TheNewForest 10000581

T HE N E W FORE S T .
A N O VE L .
B Y T HE
A UTH O R OF B R AMB L ET Y E H O USE , S

( EC .
This b o y i s f o re st b o rn , -
And h ath b e e n t u t o re d in th e ru dim e n ts
”
Of d e sp e ra te st ud ie s .
AS Y OU L I K E I T.
I N T HREE V O LU MES .
V OL . I .
L ON DON
H E N RY C O LBU RN ,
N E W BU R L I N GT O N S T RE E T .
1 829 .
T HE N E W FOR E S T .
CHAP T E R I .
Are n o t t h ese wo o d s
Mo re f re e f ro m p e ril th a n t h e en v o u s i C o u rt ?
And t h i s ou r life , ex em pt f ro m p ub l i c h au nt ,
Fin d s ton gu es in tre e s, b o o k s in th e i g b ro ok s
ru n n n ,
S erm o ns in s t on e s , an d g o o d in e v ery t h in g .
S HA K S P E ARE .
ON the souther n ve rge of the N ew F orest in

H ampshire and at no great distance from th e se a
'
5 , ,
stands a large and populou s v i llag e t o which , ,
fo rspecial reason s of our own we shall assign ,
the fictitiou s appellation of T haxted I ts s i .
t u a tio n and app earance were m uch m ore pie

t u re s q u e t h a n migh t have been expecte d from
'
I t s vicinity to the sea a n element which i n our

, ,
V OL . I .
B
2 T H E N EW F OR ES T .
northern latitudes generally imparts a sterile

,
and unlovely character to the contiguous shores ,
either preventing altogether the growth o f

trees or givi ng such a st unted warped an d
, , ,
ca nkered appearan ce to those that struggle

again st the chalky soil a n d the s to rmy win d s ,
as to make the m rather disfiguri n g than o r

n ame n tal t o the scen ery S u c h w a s n o t the
.
case at T haxted which was su ffi ciently re

,
m oved from the great la nd scape spoiler to be -
beyon d the reach o f its ban eful i nfl uen ce an d ,
yet near e n ough to derive from it all those

scenic embellishme n ts which s o emi ne n tly e n
h ance the beauty o f a rich land v iew by aff ord ,
ing occasional glimpses o f the gleami n g s e a o r ,
a white sail ca u gh t beneath

, t he bough s of
n oble trees ath wart the u n dulati ng hollows o f

,
th e interve ni ng dow n s or over an e n closed an d

,
cultivated level T he v illage stood upon the

.
extreme edge o f a heath n o t o f such exten t ,
as some o f those which formi ng spacious open,
ings in the interior o f th e N ew F orest are ,
extensive enough to deserve the name o f

V as t v
sa ann as ,
’
wh ere th e wan d rin g eye ,
Unfi x e d , is in d
a v er ant o c ean
”
l o st 5
T H E N E W F O R EST . 3
and yet su fficiently large to give breadth dis ,
tance and picturesqueness to the surro u ndi n g

, ,
scenery I ts opposite extrem i ty wa s bounded by

.
the F orest f ormi ng woody bays and p rem o n

,
tories alternately receding f rom an d advan cing

, ,
i n to t h e heath ; n o w open ing u pon some d eep

,
da rk vista athwart whose dista nt gloom th e

,
deer were occasi o nally seen to bound or from ,
which a timber wain in H ampshire called a

-
,
tu g was slowly emergi n g u nder th e e ff ort s o f

, ,
'
a nu me ro u s t e am o f oxen now throwi ng for —
ward som e promi nen t grove so far upon the

open land that the tufti ngs o f it s n oble trees
,
fell into rich masses of light a n d shade relieved ,
by the umbrageou s back g rou n d Of the F orest - .
N or was th e heath i tself by any m ean s s o for

lor n or dreary an Obj ect as migh t be supposed .
I ts broken surface t ufted w i th every variety

,
o f
f urze , fern and other wild plants and p resen t

, ,
ing here and there t h e red ochreou s b ank s of a

road that wou n d thro u gh it ,
wa s tin t ed with the
rich harmoniou s h ue s that a painter loves ! de
tac h e d clumps of tre e s hre a k ing it s monotony
,
.
,
served to u nite its woody bo u ndaries with its

area ; while a l arge shee t of water that o c c u
B 2
4 TH E N EW F O R ES T .
pied its centre was n early bisected b y a long

,
proj ecting tongue Of lan d u pon which espe , ,
c ial l in th e su nn y eve ni ngs o f summer migh t

y ,
be see n groups o f cattle or forest mares with

,
their foal s se ndi ng their l o ng shadows a t hwar t

,
th e golden bloom o f the little lake T he view .
from the opposite side Of th e ge n tle emi ne nce

on w hich the village stood though totally dis
,
similar ,
w as scarcely less at tractive —m
t he eye
passing over e nclosed cor n fi e l d s pastures and
-
, ,
meadows till it reached the I sle o f Wight the

, ,
in sularity o f which no t bei ng perceptible to th e

eye gave t o the i nterve ni ng Chan nel the a p
,
e a ra n c e O f a n exte n sive lak e bo u n d ed by rug

p
o
ged cli ff s a n d dista n t mou n tai n s .
A clump O f lofty elms a nd lime trees br a nch -

,
less f o r so m e dista nce from th e grou nd but ,
t ufti ng over luxuriously at t o p formed a n ,
arch across th e road leadi ng to t h e villag e ,
arou n d which n umerou s fligh ts o f pigeo n s w ere

ge nerally to be see n w heeli ng a n d careeri ng ;
w hile be n eath its a perture migh t be discer n ed
th e l o w spir e f the ch urch embosomed in foliage

o .
Athwart the straggli ng irregular cen tral road

of T haxted dig nified by the name o f the H igh
,
T HE N EW F O R EST 5
stree t h ung the sign of t h e chief i nn ex hi bit

, ,
ing a most bellipoten t S aint George o n a fiery

w h ite horse having obviou sly the best of it in
,
a c o nfl i ct w i th a portentou s green dragon who ,
seemed to be complaisantly ope ni ng h i s m o u th

for the express purpose of swallo w i ng his ad
"
ve rs a r
y s j aveli n T’
he buildi ng to which this
.
flari ng daub was prefixed was a n ancie n t low ,
edifice constructed with solid timbers blacken

,
e d the ou tsid e the i n terstices being plaster

Ou ,
ed and white wash ed A sharp pointed gable

-
.
-
,
fre tted with half decay e d oak woo d crowned -
the front ; and the ro of wa s Of large sa n d stones -

,
covered with m oss and hou se leek from th e -

,
midst O f which issued a ponderou s red brick

chimney placed edgeways a nd surmounted
, ,
w ith numerous ragged mouldi ngs T he u pper .
story p roj ected over th e lower and the cor nice ,
that divided them had sunk con siderably o n

o ne side witho u t however appearing to have
, , ,
i nj ured th e ge n eral solidi ty of the building ,
which h umble as it w a s con stitu ted the m ost

, ,
i mportan t structu re in the H igh stree t -

.
I n passing th e irregular assortme n t o f bar n s ,
s heds shops an d houses thatched tile d and

, , , , ,
6 TH E N EW F ORES T .
slated that made up the straggling v ill age th e

, ,
attentive traveller might Obser ve from th e vari ,

a
ou s i n scription s that there seemed to be b ut

,
fou r n ames in the whole place the two first ex ,
hibiting the u n mea ni ng mo n osyllables o f W ick s
a nd S t ubbs a n d the remai n ing t wo the more

,
rura l com pou nds of Penfold and H a sl e g ro v e ,
which with variou s baptismal dis t inctio n s were

, ,
pe rpetually alternated and i n tercha nged ; wh i le

a physiognomist would have bee n tempted to
imagine from the similarity of the faces
,
su r
roundi ng him that the owners Of these four

,
appellatio n s had successively i n termarried until

the whole v i llage had become as it were one , ,
n u merous family T hey who have derived thei r

.
notion s from the golden age or the patriarch al

times might dream that such a m utually con
,
n e c te d society i n habiti ng s o beautiful an d s e

,
u e s te re d a retreat would form an u nited

q ,
brotherhood of peace a nd love ; while they who

contemplate our peasa ntry as truth will pai n t
,
”
them a nd as bard s will n o t will n o t widely
, ,
err in forming a very di ff ere n t conclu sion In .
m ost large families indeed the claim s o f c o n

, ,
sa nguin i ty are too apt to be forgotten i n o p

T HE N EW F OR EST . 7
po s i n g i nterests and t h e con sequen t f ee li ngs of

,
j ealou s r i valry ; in whic h res p e ct the greater ,
part of th e in h ab i tant s of T h axted a little ,
”
mo e than kin and less t h an ki nd o ff ered no
r
,
exception to the general rule T owards t h e .
e n d of th e v i lla e th e road branched o ff in two

g
direction s rou n d a little gree n furnished with a ,
fi ng e r post of which according to the laudable

-
, ,
practi c e of semi barbarou s E ngland one of th e

-
,
board s w a s broken o ff and t h e oth er rendered

,
t o tally illegi ble ; while a m ileston e on th e o p

po site s i de of the road w as eq u ally unserv i ce
able from its figures having been ca reful ly

, .
punch e d out and obliterated In fron t Of t h e .
green stood th e stock s the neglec ted state of

,
which attested e i ther th e orderly hab i t s of th e

v ill agers or the rem i ssness of t h e consta ble ;
,
and be hi n d this crumbling machi ne was a poo l

of m uddy wa t er termed t h e horse pond on the
,
-
,
poach ed margi n of w hi c h migh t u su ally be seen

s ix or eigh t ducks perform i ng t h e i r toilet with
,
bu sy b eak an d no w and t h en de tachi ng a

,
fe ather from thei r plumage w hi c h was lazily ,
wafted by th e w i nd to j oi n t h ose that fri nged

the opposite bank .
8 T H E N EW FOR EST .
O ur hi story comm ences on a S unday n the , o
afternoon of which th e villagers of T haxted ,
who , like most other S abbath idlers o f h umble

life often fou n d the u n employed ho u rs hang
,
rather heavy upo n their han d s were divided ,
into t wo knots one of w hich i n cludi ng m ost of

, ,
the women a nd o l d m e n went to attend the ,
fu neral o f Ol d Isaac o ne o f their o wn body

, ,
canvassing his age which wa s a matter o f some

,
doubt , an d th e little property he had left be

hind him which seemed to be invol ved in equal
,
u ncertai n ty ; while the o ther party embracing ,
the younger por t io n of the rustic comm u nity ,
betook them selves to the G eorge I nn to await ,
the arrival o f t he Lo ndo n coach which gene ,
rally passed throu g h about this hour N othing .
could m ore s tro ngly mark the vacuity of the

day an d the listless ness O f the assemblage tha n
'
, ,
the lou ngi ng lazy i n terest with which they

,
awaited the appearan ce o f the we l Lk no w n v e

hic l e though they expected n o t that i t should
,
bring them any thi n g n e w and they had re ,
e a te d l collected upo n pre v iou s S undays at

p y ,
the same spot at the same hour to witne s s

, ,
the dri ving u

p of the same coach , which , as
T HE NE W FO R EST . 9
it d id change horses at T haxted sel dom

no t ,
stopped more than th re e or four minutes at

the George At length it came in sigh t passe d
.
,
under the arch of tree s to which we ha v e al

ready alluded bl essed t h e eyes O f suc h d w ellers
,
in th e H igh street as were draw n to the win

-
dow s by the sou nd of th e hor n an d finally dre w ,
up at the G eorge whe n the spectators w ho had

, ,
bee n waiting so lo ng for the i nform a tion were ,
enabled to ascertai n once more that it wa s drive n ,
by N ed Davis as us u al was dra wn by th e fo u r ,
cu stomary horses , an d conveyed no passenger ,
e i ther inside o r o u t whose appeara n ce was cal

,
c u l a te d to excite the least atte n tio n F o rtu .
n a te l
y ,
however f o r the gazers somethi ng n e w
, ,
wa s at last discovered which e ff ectually pre ,
vented their dispersion A portion o f the iron .
bin ding or tyre ,had been detached from o ne o f

,
the w heels and th e coach cou l d not safel y pro

,
c eed until it had bee n replaced A board upo n .
th e very n ex t hou se but one announ ced that its

occupan t was Joh n S tubbs H orse farrier ,
-
,
B ullock leech a nd Blacksmith

-
, but it wa s
S u nday the shop was S h ut up and the ru stic
, ,
Vulca n was no t at home ; though several voi ces

B 5
10 TH E N EW FO R E S T .
si multaneou sly declared that he would be su re

to be fou nd d own at the Cricketers .
T h e d river as i s u sual with E nglish coach

,
m e n upon every emergency cursed a nd swore ,
very heartily at the coach cleaner whose bu si

-
,
ness it w as to have examined the w heels ; th e

wielder of the whip being now a days m uch to o - —
important a personage to attend to an

y depart
ment of his o wn vehicle beyon d the driving it
,
.
T he gaping rustic s busied them selves conj ee in
tures as to where when and ho w the acciden t

, ,
had happened ; u n til one O f their body a lit tle ,
sh rewder than his companion s s u ggested that ,
the trua n t iro n m ust be somewhere ; ( a proposi

tio n which met with a ready assent and repetition
fro m the others ) and that i t might be advisable
,
to dispa t ch a b o y in search o f it T his advice.
was taken by the coachma n thoug h n o t until he

,
had declared that an y fool could have thou g h t

o f that expedie n t and lest he S hould be a ntici
pated in his farther measures by some other o f
the b ysta nders he imm ediately se n t a seco nd
,
lad in quest Of S t ubbs the blacksmith a n d him ,
self called lustily for S am the ostler o f the

,
c orge ; asking h is opinio n when he a ppeare d

, ,
TH E N EW F O R ES T . 11
w h ether t h e wh eel would go S afely as far as the

Mermaid in case they could not find the miss
,
ing i ron .
”
Ah Master Davis
, , said S am patting and
,
examining one of t h e horses wit h out even casti ng ,
a glance u pon the wheel ; so you ve pu t o ld ’
Greyhound on th e o ff side have yo u -? H e ll ,

”
go anywhere no w ; but I remember when n o

bod y could n t drive he nohow without it was
’
,
strai t haired Jack O ut and o u t h e was the

-
.
- -
,
most u nre s tl e ss beast as ever I came nigh all to ,
n oth ing .
”
D— your chuckle head

n crie d th e irri
-
ta te d coachman never mind old G reyhou nd ,
but look at the w h eel W hat d ye think o f .

’
her ? W ill she ru n o n as far as the Mermaid

”
W ha t black Bess are you there ? co nti
,
nu ed S am , tickli ng one of the leaders in the

flank ! A y I ve rode s h e many a hundred
“ ’
,
m ile when she were a poster ; and I t h ought I
h ad pretty well seen the en d of her ; b u t a

horse wi th good bottom wi l l do ye a deal o f
coach work still when the boy i s taken
-
, o ff her
shoul ders .
A fresh volley of oat h s from the coachm an

12 THE N EW F O R EST .
tes tified ho w m uch his self importan ce was -
wounded by this dilatory a nd d isrespectful pro

c e e din o f th e os tler a n d some o f the p a ssen
g ,
gers began t o ma nifest stro ng symptoms Of im

patie n ce wh e n t o the satisfactio n O f al l parties
, ,
the lad w ho had been se n t in search o f the

black smith was see n approachi ng with Joh n
,
S tu bb s by his side ; w ho however t o j udge by

z
, ,
his leisurely pace w a s n o great frie n d t o e x pe

,
ditio u s proceedi ngs W he n he at length reach

.
ed the sce n e o f i n actio n a nd u nderstood the n a ,
t ure o f the accident he very d eliberately t oo k ,
O ff his S u nday coat put o n his spectacles a nd

-
, ,
havi ng mi n utely exami n ed th e w heel a nd re ,
p e a te d l
y shak e n hi s head he a t le n gth drawled ,
out W hy Master Davis this be a pretty

, ,
”
baddish bit O f a j o b baint i t P ,
“
W ill she g o o n as far as th e Mermaid P ”
cried th e coachman pettishly , .
N a that
, won t without I
s he
’
, g i
’
her three
”
or four lo ng screws .
W ell the n set

, work , to , man ; an d don t
’
stand there stari ng a nd j awi ng .
‘4
A y,
y Master Da
a v is
, I always makes ,
quick work o f it when o nce I begi n s and so

T H E N E w F OR EST . 13
sayi ng he bega n slowly

, to put on his coat
again .
What the devil are ye up to ! bawled the ”
”
coachma n ; “
i s n t th is your shop ?
’
“
’
Ay b u t I left the key on t dow n at th e ’

,
Cricketers when B ill called me away in such a

,
h urry H owsom ever I shal l be b ack in te n

.
,
mi nu tes .
At this certai n ty o f a fresh delay one o f the ,
outside passe ngers exclaimed in a cal m voice ,
a n d with a somewhat precise a n d formal ma nn er ,
Coachman this will be a tedious aff air ;

‘
by sitting here I shall certai nly lose my time ,
a nd I m ay possibly lose my temper ; there i s
n o reaso n why I should d o eit h er ! I will there
fore get d o wn a nd remai n at T haxted Please

,
.
”
to give me my luggage .
As t he c oachman opened the boot and drew ,
o u t the traveller s small portmanteau he e ndea

’
v o u re d to
propitiate him with that mollifying
langu age which is usually prompted by the
,
anticipation of t h e valedictory fee “

N O wo n .
der ge m men sh ould be exed twas enough to v

,
’
provoke the Devil himself ; b u t t wa s n t no fault ’ ’
O f his n and migh t have hap e n ed to e er a

’ ’
, p
14 T HE N E W F O R ES T .
co ach in all E ngl and . H e was un kimmo n
sorry and would take good care that Bi l l the

, ,
coach c l eane r sho u l d be properly m u l k e d for it

-
, .
.
H e had never been ten minute s behind time

”
afore Since he d ru v the N elson W ith these .
excu ses the traveller seemed t o be quite satis

fi e d for h e paid h im s o handsomely as to be
,
rewarded with thanks a nd a rapid touch o f the

hat ; but he had n o soo n er e n tered the George ,
than the driv er dropping the shillings into his

,
j ingling pocket Observed aloud as a hint pe r

, ,
haps to his rem ai ni ng passengers W hat

cursed n on sense it is for gemmen to go a nd put
theirselves in a passion about what n obody in
”
the world couldn t help ! H owever absurd
’
migh t be such conduct in a ge ntleman it did ,
n o t by a n
y m ean s apply to his passe nger w ho ,
had not evinced an atom o f ill humour n o r did -

,
it put any restrai nt s u pon his own tem per for ,
the lo ng absence Of th e blacksmith occasio ned

a nother return of hi s impatience which as u sual ,
found vent in a fresh explosio n of oaths mu t ,
t e re d , however in a low voice rather out

, , of
respect towards his remai n i ng passengers one ,

TH E N EW F O R EST . 15
o f w h om was a Q uaker than fro m any par ,
t ic u l ar reverence for t h e S abbath day -

.
Leaving him t h u s to solace h im self unt il t h e

arr i val of John S tubbs should put hi s vehicle
in a condition to pursue its route we will fol ,
lo w the passenger who had carr i ed h i s o wn

,
ortmanteau i n to the G eorge the inm ates of

'
p ,
which neither presen ted them selves to welcome

him to thei r caravan sary nor to relieve him of
,
his b a rthen T he traveller was a tall hand

.
,
some young man whose open countenance

, ,
strong hazel eyes and si ngularly fine features

, ,
wore a n expression of remark able though a ,
somewha t sedat e no t to say grave be nignity

, ,
mi ngled with a cert ain character of decision tha t

indicated a self thinking and indepe nde n t mind
- .
N eat as it w a s, a lmost to formali ty his dress ,
was not in accordan ce w i th any of the prevail

ing modes of the day ; a circu mstan c e which
might be attributed either to hi s rece n t return
from a foreign cou n try or to his contem pt f o r
,
the frivolitie s of fashion H e had bee n to o .
much accu stomed to wait u po n him self to heed

.
those l i t tle m ark s of inattention that sign alized

16 TH E N EW F O R E ST .
his entr a nce into the George I nn , especially as

the sordid cr i ngi ng servility O f the lower orders
,
in E ngla n d prese n ted itself to his eyes as a some
what degradi ng characteristic O f th e country .
But whe n he h ad thrice ru ng th e hel l of the little

parlour i nto which he had made his way withou t ,
O btaini n g any other a n swer tha n that aff orded
by th e echo of his o wn alarum he was i nduced ,
t o sound a peal which migh t be fairly co nstrued
i n t o a n expre ssion o f som e impatie n ce T ony .

,
to whom in the absence o f th e family the O ffice

, ,
of waiter h ad bee n temporarily deputed wa s ,
summo n ed from the coach wheel by the d in a nd -

,
the traveller beheld stalki ng i n to the parlour a ,
gau n t meagre clow n wi t h cold looki ng l a nk

, ,
-
,
j a ws a long red nose swi n ish eyes a nd pig

, , ,
coloured hair while ,

his sca nty S u nday j a cket ,
no treachi ng to his wrists exhibited to a d v an ,
tage t wo raw b and s which he held dangli ng ,
before him as if at a loss ho w to d iS po s e o f

,
them I n a n swer t o the i nquiries o f the u ne x

.
p e c te d guest T o ny tated ,
that his master s ,
togeth er with his daughter S ally w ho u sually ,
o fficiated as waiter were go n e to atte nd o l d

,
Isaac s funeral ; that h e him self wa s their sole

’
T H E N EW F O R EST . 17
represen tati ve for the ti me being ; and that a

good dinner a good bed an d every su i table
, ,
acco mmodation might be had at the Ge orge so ,
long as th e stranger should be pleased to rem ain .
H ow far is it from T hax te d to Mr Gi deo n .
W e l b ec k s inquired th e stran ger

’
.
W hat ! Master W elbeck of the Manor

hou se j ustice of the peace an d quorum
,
W hy ,
bythe road u s ch arges six m ile and it s that ’

, ,
go o d bu t acro s s the field s it baint bar ely five .
Phil H a se l g ro v e the postman has walked it in

, ,
an hour an d ten min utes afore n ow b ut then ,
he be a m ortal lo ng legged nu T aint m ore ’

.
’
”
no r a mile fro m where th e coach stops .
I know it and i t was my inte n tion to h ave

,
go ne on thither b ut T haxted will suit m e as

,
well ; and at T haxted therefore I shall proba , ,
”
bly remain for some days .
W hat ! at the Geo rge along wi th we ? ,
W ell that s kind 0 ye ; and hang m e if I baint

,
’ ’
glad o n it for our bu sine ss has run cruel slack

,
”
o
’
late You baint going to stay at his wor
. e
ship s then at t h e Manor h o use

’
,
-
I kno w h i m not ; I never saw him ; ho w ,
then should I be going to stay at his h ou s e 7”

,
Y ou ve got an affidavy then to make or

’
, , ,
to lodge an i nformation or , to ax for a sum

’
mons or sum mat 0 that sort
,
’
. It s no u se to g o
”
to he of a S unday .
I re q uire n othi ng of th e ki n d nothing —
whatever at his hands s aid the stranger in a , ,
tone th at seemed intended to di scourage farther

i n terrogatories .
T ony who although a perfect clown and little

, ,
’
better than a simpl e to n wa s neither deficient in ,
curiosity nor a certai n degree of cun ni ng S eeing ,
himself baffl ed in his direct attempt s at pump

ing out the motive s of the guest s visit to T hax ’
ted endeavoured to e ff ect his obj e c t by a c o nfi

,
den tial com munication of his own Opinions touch

ing th e aforesai d Mr Gideon W elbeck a pro .
,
cess wh i ch b e comm enced after the following

fashion W ell hang me ! i f I baint glad you
.
,
”
ha nothing to do wi b e for between ourselves’
, ,
”
S ir, and here he dropped hi s v oice to a w his
per an d looked as secret and importan t as his

,
vacant countenance would allow him I say , ,
S ir, atwixt yo u and I he s a bigger n egre ,

’
n o r S quire F ram to n s blackamoor a graspi ng

’
p , ,
greedy miserly old h u nc k s

,
' Z ooks ! I v e a
’
good mind to tell y e ho w I s arv e d be whe n they

”
h ad m e up af ore u n for poachin g a b are .
Whi ch i s t h e way to t h e Manor h ouse -

,
”
across t h e fields ? inquired t h e stranger appa ,
re n tl not wis hing to h ear th e story of th e b

y are .
Lord love ye ye would never find the way;

b ut Ol d Ball s in th e s table I ll j ust clap he
’
,
’
in to our taxed cart and bowl ye over there soon

-
,
”
as ever S am O stler h as s tarted t h e N elson .
I never u se the li mbs of animals whe n my

own w il l serve the purpo se I shall walk ; w hi c h
.
”
is the way? A d e msmn i n t h e l oo k manner , ,
and voice of t h e stranger declared much m ore ,
impressively th an any words could h a v e done ,
that his purpose wa s unal terable ; so that T ony ,
ha v ing given h i m full d i rect i ons h ow to fi nd the

path across th e fields qu i tted the room mu tter
, ,
i ng to him self A proper rum chap queer

,
brutes the se L o nno ne rs Danged if I wouldn t ’
stand h alf a p i n t o b eer to know w h at h e wants

’
wi the Manor h ou s e w h en h e has got nothing

’
-
,
to say to O ld S kin fl int Drat me if I bel i eve

.
,
it I ll try he ag ai n I ve caug h t more cun

’
.
’
”
ninger woodco cks nor b e afore now Wi th .
a full determ i na t io n to e ntrap the vi si tant h e ,

520 TH E N EW FO R EST .
h urried back into the room exclaiming I , ,
sa
y S ir
, if ye walk
, along at a good slapping
pace ye ll catch his worship j ist a s he comes
,
’
”
back from a te rno o n ch urch I n s tead of u otie .
-
ing t his i n timation the stra nger wh o had appa

'
, ,
re ntl
y bee n deep in a reverie i n quire d Pray , ,
is Miss We lbeck stayi ng at th e Man or hou se ? -
H as she returned from S outhampton

A y that she is a nd I warran t is at ch urch
, ,
w i the j u stice this here very moment Lord

’
.
love ye ! there would n t be no beari ng the o l d ’
tyrant if it wo r n t f o r sh e ! sh e s no more like

,
’ ’ ’
”
he than S quire F ra m p to n s raci ng filly 5 like
,
’
o u r raw bo n ed Ball in the

-
stable S he do a .
m ort 0 good in these parts a nd is almost as

’
m uch loved as his worship is hated ; but how ,
so m d e v e r it do n t become poor folks t o speak ill

’
,
of their betters an d he a j ustice 0 the peace

,
’
.
Ma ny people say she be as ha nd som e a s sh e be

k o ind and g e ne ro u s l ik e but Lord yo u d say ’
,
s h e was but a poor spi n dle sha n ked ki n d o f body-
if ye saw her by the side 0 Molly S tubb s ’
T he stranger took u p hi s hat a nd quitted th e

a partme n t without waiting to hear any farther
,
illu stration s of Miss W e lb e c k s style ’

of beau ty ;
T HE N EW FO R EST . 21
w h en T ony , putting his forefinger to his nose ,

wi n ki ng one eye a nd doi ng his best to twist his
,
sheepish feat u res into a knowi ng l ook wh i spered ,
to hi mself W heugh master I v e found you

,
’
out have I f o r all so c u nni ng as ye though t

, ,
yourself ? E cod ! ye ca n t cheat T ony so e a ’
sily I sm elled a rat all the time da nged if I

.
,
did n t ! but the old fox won t g i his daughter

’ ’ ’
and his forti n to n o ne less tha n a lord or a b a

ro n ite I can tell ye H an
, g d if I w o u l.d n t s ta nd
’ ’ ‘
a quart any day toward s cheati ng himand get ,
ting Miss E mily fairly O u t 0 his clutches I ’

.
”
would da nged i f I W ould n t !
, Chuckli ng to ’
himself at the though t O f thu s wreaki ng his

reve nge upo n the Ob noxious j ustice who had ,
called him to accou nt for poaching ab are T o ny ,
hastened back fO the disabled wheel O f the

coach which had almost excited as m uch
, ia
t ere st I I] his vaca n t mi nd as the unexpected ,
visit of the stra nger .
T he latter mean while followi ng the i nstru

, ,
o
tio n s h e had received discovered the path across ,
th e fields a n d p ursui ng his route wi th a youth

,
ful vigour w h ich might h ave don e credit t o

Phil Ha se l g ro v e himself emerged in little more ,
922 TH E N EW F O REST .
than an hour into the high road along w h ich ,
he had scarcely proceeded three or four h un

dred yards when he beheld the entrance to the
,
Manor house
-
T O spare the expen se o f a gate
.
keeper th e lo dge n o lon ger ten an ted h ad bee n

, , ,
su ff ered to fall into decay though the gate ,
itself was kept in repair f o r the purpo se Of

excluding cattle Pushi ng it Ope n the stran ger
.
,
e n tered what had o n ce bee n a spacious a nd

stately park but which n o w wore a forlor n ap
,
p of
e aran c e n eglec t a n d abandon m ent where it ,
had not bee n i ntentionally disfigured to a n swer

the sordid purposes o f its prese n t proprietor .
S ome of the recen tly felle d orname n tal timber

-
was still lyi ng upon the grou n d in melan choly

and unsightly confusion and t h e she e t Of water
,
in which they had on ce bee n proudly reflected ,
was now beco me a wilder n ess o f reeds and

rushes A large gravel fp it had been opened t o
. -
supply materials for a new road f o r which the ,
interest of the j ustice had rece n tly obtai ned a n

Act of Parl iamen t partly with the view o f th u s
,
deriving an immediate profit from its formation ,
and partly in the belief that i t would ultimately

increase the value of hi s estate . S lopes an d
THE N Ew F O R EST . 23
pastures over w hi c h deer

,
had once bound e d ,
were nOw plough ed up and plant e d wit h po ta

toes ; other por ti on s were enclosed wit h hurdles ,
and let o u t to the neighbouring farmers for

'
sheep or cattl e feeding ; every th i ng attested

that this once fair and goodly domai n had fallen
in to th e p ossession o f a m a n to whom it wa s
not endeared by any hereditary associations ,
and who h ad a m uch keener eye to his own

interest t h an to the preser v a tion of those pic tu
,
re sq ue b ut unpr oducti v e beaut i es which had

, ,
once conferred celebrity upo n th e park of the

Manor house - .
W hile the stranger stood gazi ng upon this

scene re n dered perhaps more desolate o r at
, , ,
least more sordid

, ,
in its appearance from occa
si o u al mark s o f occupan cy, than if it had e x hi
‘
bited signs of a total derelictio n ; an o l d peasant ,
seated on a shady bank beside him exclai med , ,
as he respectfully touched his hat Ah S ir

'
, , ,
this be another guess sort of a place now from

what I recollect it when the old S quire lived
at the Manor hou se T w a s a sad loss to the
- .
’
n eighbourhood wh e n he died o f a n d the estate ,
came t o Justice W elbeek who was but a dis

'
,
tant relat i on It s a sad pity baint it Si r to

.
’
, .
,
se e suc h a fine place all cut to pieces and tra n s
m o g rifi e d as a body may say till i t l o oks more

, ,
like Boldre H eath or N o man s walk than the

- -
’
-
,
manor hou se park

-
W hy my good friend replied the stranger

, , ,
w ith a be n evolen t smile surely i t is more use

,
ful n o w th a n it w a s before All land that will .
repay the expen se ought to be cultivated this —
seem s to be a good soil therefore it is righ t t o,
cultivate it I s it n o t better that so large a

.
piece o f ground i n stead O f bei ng withdraw n from

,
t he com m u n ity t o pamper the pride o f a n i ndi
vidual o r fur nish a n occasional hau nch of veni

,
s o n f o r the riot o f his friends should th us be ,
m ade to contribute towards the formation o f

p ublic roads , an d supply sustena nce for the
”
poor ?
’
An an S ir ! I do n t
,
se e how th at ar
g u fie s .
Th irty years ag I were gamekeeper o, to the old
S quire an d I wouldn t i a quid tobacco

’
f
’
; g o
’
to se e a park th at hasn t ple n ty Of preserves in
”
it f o r game and a good herd O deer
,
’
.
A nd I my frie nd should be glad to see

, ,
every park in the ki ngdom enclosed and pla nted ,

TH E N EW F O R EST . Q5
that it might sup port hu man bein gs rather than ,
be ast s a nd birds and beco me a scene o f peace

, ,
i nd ustry and ple n ty i n stead o f a n arena f o r the

, ,
”
warfare of keepers and poachers .
Very like S ir very l ike ! b ut these he

, ,
new fangled notions such as I n ever heard o f

-
,
afore in al l my bo rn days a nd I ha lived ,

’
a good i sh bit to o ! C ut do wn the covers a n d

, ,
plough up the pre se rves quotha ! what would ,
come 0 all the game I should like t o larn

’ ‘
”
A pretty rig truly ! S O saying he passed
, ,
t hrough t h e gate in to the h igh road w i thout ,
touching his h at on parting from suc h a s u s

ic io u s pe rso nage as an avowed enemy t o p he a
p
f
sants and partridges and the stra nger pur sued

,
his wav along t h e dri ve that led u p to the

mansion . I t was level and in g o od order , for
in a nei ghbo ur h ood infested wit h sm u gglers

and po achers the road to the resi dence Of the
,
pri n cipal magi strate was sure to be in pretty

constant u se ; but t h e unt rimmed borders were
rank w i t h weed s and u e ttl e s w h ile t h e shrub ,
he ries and t h e planta tion s around the ma n sion

had bee n suff ered to sh oo t u p i nto a wild over
growth w hich had obli terated the w al ks that

,
V OL . I . C
once serp entined among them T h e h ou se .
itself an extens i ve and venerable bri ck p ile

, ,
seemed to have been built at d iff erent t i mes ,
and in vari ous tastes ! high crocketed gables ,
surmou nted with carved tabernacles bei ng in ,
t e rming l e d with round and square castel lated
towers whil e the pointed goth i c windows alter

,
nated wit h proj ect i ng e ase m e nts overh ung by ,
fre t ted arch i traves T he whole building wa s

.
in good repair though th e greater part of it

,
was sh ut up only that port i on which looked

,
out upon the garden appearing to be inhabited .
In v ain however d id the stran ger peer up at

, ,
the windows to catch a gl i mpse of any of t h e

i n mates ; nothing seemed to be moving w i t hi n
the dwelling an d the only sign s of occupancy
,
which presented them selves on the outside ,
were three cow s standing in t h e shade close ,
under t h e wall s Of the bu ild i ng and t wo sorry , ,
lean coach horses haltered to th e paling in

-
,
the stable yard F r o m the latter circu mstance

- .
,
the O bserver concluded that th e family had

ret u rned from after noon ch urch but he c o uld ,
percei ve no servant s moving about no t a sin ,
gle face at any of t h e i ndows ; all was s till

w ,
THE N EW F O R EST . 27
silent and motionless a circumstance which

, , ,
in combination w i th th e deserted state of t h e

greater part of the building i mparte d to t h e ,
whole scene a si ngularly forlorn appearance .
A nd t h is is the residence of E mily W el

”
beck said the stranger to himself ; she did
,
not exaggerate when she described to me its

melancholy character T here are some who
.
cannot gaze upon a ruined castle withou t feel

ings of sadness ; to me it is th e most cheer,
ing spectacle in t h e world as an evidence that ,
pe ace and l i berty h av e tri u mp h ed over the

strong holds of the feudal system ; n o r am I less
please d to w i tness the decay of these stately man
si ons erected by the feudality of wealth for the
,
downfall of one overgrown family cannot but ,
a ssist th e advancement of m any ; and t h e bloat

ed possessions , or inordinat e power O f ind iv i
dual s only tend to i mpover i sh the comm un i ty

, ,
at t h e s ame time that they gener ally entail

m i sery upon the i r possessors I t i s of more con .
s equence to extend h u man h appiness th a n ,

to
prese rve t h ese cumbrou s piles no t seldom built ,
up by t h e spoi ler and the oppressor ; and their

d i lapi dation therefore i s to m e a pleasi ng
, , ,
c 2
Q8 TH E N EW F O REST .
p roof t h at the structure of our civil society

,
i s daily receiving an accessio n of stre ngth

and improvemen t If people would contem
.
plate moral in stead of physical beauty they

, ,
would fin d n o S igh t so pleasing as the pros

‘
t ra tio n
of ancient castles the destruction of ,
wealth s u seless palaces a nd the breaki ng up

’
,
an d division of inordinate domai n s Poor —
E mily ! this mu st be an u ncongenial d welling

”
place for thee .
SO say ing the sol ilo q uiser walked two or

,
three times round th e lonely buildi ng tho u gh ,
at some distance from it occasionally ve n ting

,
observati on s of the same tendency wit h those

which we have recorded ; but as h e could not
O btai n a glimpse O f a single inmate though ,
he fai led not to examine every wi n dow that

remai ned unbarr i cadoed he at l e ng th qu itte d
'
the spot agai n traversed the park which but

, , ,
f o r th e remaining clumps of noble trees would ,
have rat h er resembled the p urlieus of an ex

ten sive farm an d regai ning the path across
,
the fields returned to T haxted at a m uch

,
mor e le i surel y pace t h an w h en he had bee n

winnin g his way to t h e Manor H ou se -
.
THE \
N EW F O R EST . 29
C HA P T E R II .
He who wi th p o ck et - h am me r sm it es th e e dg e
O f lu ckl e ss ro c k o r p ro m i nent sto ne di s gu i se d ,
I n w e ath e r s t ai n s a nd c ru st e d o e r by N at u re
-
,
’
W ith h er fi rs t gro wth s d e t achi n g by th e st rok e

—
A chi p o r Sp li nt er to re so l v e h is d o u b t s ;
—
And w i th th at re a d y an s w e r s at i s fi e d ,
T h e su b s t an c e c l as s e s by so m e b arb ro u s nam e ’
,
An d hu rri e s o n ; o r fro m th e fra gm e nt s p i c k s

His s p e c i m e n if h ap l y in t e r v e in d
’
W i th s p arkli n g m in ral o r sh o u l d cry stal c u b e

’
,
Lu rk in its c ell s an d think s h im s e lf e nrich d

’
—
,
W e al th i er and d o u b tl es s wi ser t h an b e fo re
,
W O RD S W O RT H .
H EN R Y M E L C O M B ,
the stranger whom we
have th u s co n ducted back to the George I nn ,
wa s the adopted s o n of Captai n T e nby of the
R oyal N avy who whe n h is young charge wa s

, ,
only two or three years Ol d had carried him ,
ou t to Ca nada the frigate h e com manded bei ng

,
30 TH E N EW F O R EST .
appoi nted to th at station an d had pla ced him

,
under the guardian ship Of his wife then resid ,
i ng at Mon treal T his lady having no children

.
,
of h er o wn cheerfully performed f o r her you ng

,
charge all the du ties Of a mother ; an d her b e

n e v o l e n c e as i s u sual in most cases where that
,
v irtu e i s called into exercise fou n d its own

,
reward ; f o r the benefits she co nferred w hile ,
they kindled gratitude in their obj ect awakened ,
such a war m aff ect i on in herself that she soo n

,
loved t h e child as muc h as if it had been her

proper Off spri ng and blessed th e chan ce that had
,
th us removed the pri n cipal source of their u nhap
p ine s s,
by providi n g them with a recipient for
their m utual a ff ections whe n they had aban

,
d o ne d all hope of possessing an y direct issu e .
A s the faculties of the b o y expan ded he he ,
came more especi ally e n deare d to his protectors ,
b y the innate gen erosity of his dispositio n the ,
f ervency of his grat i t ude to themselves an d ,
the unbounded aff ectionate n ess o f his n oble

heart which even at that early age seemed to
, , , ~
overflow with love and ki nd ness towards al l

th o se t h at came within the S phere of it s influence .
Most unfortunately for H enry at the very ,

T HE N EW F O R ES T . 31
momen t w h e n hi s d u ct ile m i nd was ready to

re c eive that d urable i mpress which stamps the
future character death depr i ved him of t h e in
,
valuable fr i en d w h o wi t h out any of the m ater

,
nal t i es had so wel l d i sc h arged the dutie s of a

,
mother S h ortly after this privatio n he w as sent

.
to sch o ol where h e had rem ai n ed about a year

,
and a h alf w h en in an evil hour th e Captai n

, , ,
became smitte n wit h t h e charms of a handsom e

th ough v ulgar and i ll i terate American W ido w
s ettled at Montreal and m arri ed her W ith
, .
t h e exception of h er be auty w h ich was h er on ly ,
recommen dation sh e was in e very respect

,
tot all y dissim il ar from his first wife and ,
H enry soon found a painful diff erence in the

treatme n t h e ex perienced Cold sord i d a nd .
, ,
selfish th e second Mrs T enby only beheld

, .
in him a ri v al clai mant for that fortune which

had been her sole ind uceme n t to m arr y and ,
of w hi ch t h e ill -
healt h o f her h u sband see m
ed to prom i se her no very d i stant acquisi
t i on ; under w h ich i mpress i o n i t s oo n becam e
her Obj ect to deprive th e ch ild i f possible of , ,
t h e Captai n s aff e ct i on s by representi ng him

’
,
a s to tally un worthy of hi s favour and every ,

8 92 TH E N EW F O REST .
way d i squal i fied from becoming his hei r

Dur .
ing her h usband s frequen t and long absences

’
in the performance of his professional d u ty she ,
endeavoured by every specie s o f neglect and

, ,
even cruelty a nd oppression to provoke H e n ry ,
into some such betrayal of passion or d iso b e

die nc e as migh t j u stify her complaints and
, ,
promote her secret views Bu t although as .

,
wa s very natural he showed little or no regar d

,
for hi s ne w m other and evinced an occasional

,
sense of thi s tyranny and i nj u stice so far as ,
sh e herself was co n cer n ed ; n othi ng could ever

sh ake his u nbou n ded gratitude and lovi ng du ty
towards his father for such he al way s termed
,
t h e Captai n . Di sappoi nted in o btaining any

re al ground o f accu sation agai n st th e boy she ,
w a s s o far overcome by her sordid disposition
for she had not been originally fu np rinc ipl e d ,
as to trump up ficti tiou s charges supporti ng ,
t h em by asseveration s n o t less circum sta n tial

t ha n u nf o u n d e d
’
T he Captai n who was a clear
.
,
s i ghted m an a n d soon discovered that h e had

,
made a sad mistake in th e choice o f his seco n d

wife detected at once the falsehood of her cri
,
minatio n s, an d t h e mot i ves th at had prom pt

THE N EW FO R EST . 33
ed them ; and being not less d ec i s i ve than

penetrati ng b e compelled her though ! n o t
, ,
withou t con siderable domestic d i scomfort to

him self to aban don this ungenerou s li ne of
,
conduct whe n ever his public d u ty allowed him

,
to reside o n shore T his however was only.

, ,
occas ion ally ; a n d after a f e w i n terval s of thi s

nature his f rigat e wa s so suddenly ordered to
,
India that he had no time to settle any ne w

,
arrangements for the protection of his adopted

son, thoug h he took care to make his will ,
a n d deposi t it w i th a friend before he left

Mo n treal .
S hattered and weakened by pre v ious ill

health Captai n T enby soon fell a victi m to
,
the enervati ng e ff ect s of an eastern climate and ,
hi s widow had no soon er learned h i s death tha n ,
she haste n ed ,
with more anxiety bou t h er
a
anticipated gains tha n regret f o r he r recent

,
f
l oss to ex a mi n e the will

, I t disappointed her .
m uch as to the amou nt of the pro pe rty l ef t

behind him b u t infi nitely more so in the appro
,
ria tio n of it ; for her own s hare w a s restricted

p
to a h undred pounds a year while the remai n -
,
der which howe ver did no t exceed th ree or

, , ,
c 5
four h u ndred a year more was bequeathed to

-
,
h i s adopted so n H e nry M el c o mb By this

,
.
unequal div i s i on her previou s an i mos i ty against

,
t he yout h wa s so aggravated th at she deter

,
mi n ed to lose no O pportu nity O f wreaki ng h er

revenge until the expi rat i on of hi s mi n ority
,
should legally withdraw him from her clutches ;

a resol utio n wh i ch h er au thority as sole exe
c u trix for such she h ad been inadvertently
,
appointed empowered her in m any i nstances to

,
perform U nder th e pretex t that their narrow

.
income would no t aff ord a sch ool education she ,
wit hdre w him fro m the semi n ary at which h e

had been placed and leavi ng him to prosecute
,
h i s studies in wh atever way h e chose or to ,
n eglect t h e m altogether sh e consoled

,
hersel f
for th e testamentary m al treatme n t sh e had
-
experienced fro m her hu sband by directing a ,
con sta n t though petty system of persecut i o n

an d an noyance against his adopted so n
.
.
T his was a si tuatio n whic h mu st inevitably

have ru i n ed bot h the head and heart of H enry ,
had he not been gifted with a patie nt virtuous , ,
and amiable temperament proof agai n st the

,
seduction s of pleasure or v i ce , an d utterly n u

THE N EW F O R EST 35
'
suscept i ble of any rancorou s or revengeful feel

ing ; at the same t i me that h is fi ne intellect ,
h ungry for t h e acqu i sitio n Of knowledge found ,
i n t h e spontaneo u s completion of his o wn edu

cat i o n a resource and a deligh t which almost
atoned for the hard ship of his forlorn and soli
tary lot A self educated man if he be at the
.
- -
,
s ame t i me acute and reflective possesses many ,
advantages over the regularly drilled pupil of -
the schools In sem i nar i es and colleges where

.
,
it i s the system to cult i vate the head an d neglect

t h e h eart t h e m i nds of ou r youth without the
, ,
smallest regard to their re spective tendencies ,
are all t h rown toget h er into th e same classical

mould ; years are devoted to the drudgery of
t he d e ad languages ; that i s to say to t h e acqui ,
sitiou of sound s in stead of the expansion of

ideas to the making of l i nguists in stead of
—
thi n kers ; the leaves of the tree of k nowledge

are more considered than it s fruit ; m odels are
se t befor e the studen ts that the y m ay be ser
,
v ilely and u nin u irin l

q g y cop i ed ; to resemble —
their predecessors and t h u s render the ge neral

,
literat ure of the country stationary , is the g reat

obj ect of the i r ambition ; and the result of all
this elaborate fetteri ng o f the free i n tellect is

th e d i ff usio n o f a n u niform perhaps a graceful
,
lear ni ng Of which however the i nv ariable cha

, , ,
ra c te ris tic s are mo n oto n y tame n ess imitation

, , .
W ere o u r mi nd s allowed to shoot out accordi ng

to th ei r n atural propen sities ; were we e nc o u
raged t o thi nk more f o r ourselves and trust less ,
to the th oughts o f others ; to prefer sen se to

sou n d ; to lear n o u r lesson s by head rath er
t h an by rote ; we sho u ld doubtless witness m uch
extravaga nce an d error ; bu t there would be
infi nitely more Of charac ter o f origi nality of , ,
geniu s W e sh ould have a n atural landscape

.
,
in short the more beautiful becau se wild an d

,
u n pru n ed i n stead O f clipped hedges u nifor m

, ,
parterres correspo nde n t alleys a n d trim gar

, ,
de n s where half the platform j ust reflects th e

,
”
other .
O f the benefits to be derived from sel f in -
struction co nd ucted by a powerful an d inquir

,
ing mi nd H e n ry as h e grew up imbibed his

, , ,
full portio n while h e did not by a ny mea n s

,
escape the disadvantages co n seque n t upo n a

want of comparison an d collision with other and
more experienced intellects . W eed s had sprung
up w i th th e flowers in the progress of h i s i sola

ted ed ucation A n i n nate impulse directed him
.
m ore ear n estly toward s the u seful branch es of

knowledge especially where they could be ren
,
dered cond ucive to the melioration Of his fellow

creatures . H e migh t be termed a n atural
u tilitaria n wh ose l au dable aspiratio n s for hu
,
man improveme n t led him to u n derval ue s u c h

literat ure as was m erely ornamental and to
think m eanly of all pursuits that were not con
tribu tary to hi s own philanthropic views al ,
t h ough th ese were frequently superficial or mis

take n a nd sometimes i n capable of execution
, .
O wing to his u tter exclusion from society he ,
wa s totally deficie n t in t act . S uch i ndeed wa s

, ,
h i s re vere n ce f o r the maj esty of t ruth that n o

,
earthly co n sideratio n would prompt him to com

promise it ; eve n it s suppression seemed to him
to make so near an approach to its violation ,
t hat h e rarely concealed his though ts ; but in ,
t h e si ncerity Of his honest heart gave ve nt at

.
tim es to the most startli ng a nd h eterodox pro

positio n s tot a lly regardless what prej udice s or
,
feeli ngs h e mig ht wou nd w hat hearers he

,
-
migh t astound an d horrify . O f a naturally

38 TH E NE W F O R ES T .
sedate temperament his o wn cheerless l e t hi s

, ,
se n se of the miseries of his fello w creatures and -

,
his inten se convictio n that by a little better

m a nageme n t amo ng ourselves they migh t be
materially alleviated had combined to invest
,
!
his character with a seriousness and a reflective

turn seldom see n in youth
, H ence h e was
.
rather i n toleran t Of ban t ering and levity it —
conduced to n o u seful purpose it seemed out —
of keeping with the real state o f the world

and a n idle j oke seldom failed to m ake him look
grave H e was a strict gramm arian becau se
.
,
he thought it Of importan ce th at m e n should be

accurate in th e conveyance o f thei r ideas ; an d
s o ac u tely sensitive was he t o errors o r eve n ,
vulgarism s of speech that he scrupled no t to

,
correct the m upon the spot whenever th ey ,
proceeded fro m in divid uals whose rank and

education ough t to h ave secured them agai n st
such lapses although he passed them over in
,
“
the lower classes withou t notice deemi ng their ,
ignorance a misfortu n e not a fault Conver

,
.
sant with books rather than with men a n d

, ,
accustomed to condense his though t s into a

logical form h i s own conversation was apt
,
to
TH E N EW F O REST . 39
assume a syllogistic or laconic ph raseology ,
wh i ch might well be m i stake n for aff ectation ,
t h oug h i t wa s quite unpremeditated and he ,
h i m self wa s u tterly u nconsc i ou s t h at his dis

course wa s li able to any such i mputat i on .
T o confess the truth we h ave a vehement

,
su spicio n that as our history proceeds the

, ,
reader will be occasionally prone to ap o s tro

hiz e H enry M e l c o mb as a prig a pedant a
p , ,
pragmatica l fell o w an d per h aps t o bestow upon

,
him still mor e derogatory epithets , no t duly

c o n sideri ng h ow fai rl y hi s little o ddities and -
peculiar i t i es or e v en hi s m ore startling and

,
indefe n sible opinion s may be attribu t ed to

,
th e circumstances of his birth and education .
S h o uld our young friend he v i si ted with any

such petulant reb u kes we m u st submit to th e
,
infl i ct i on c h eering ourselves w i t h the reflect i on

, ,
t h at we never m eant t o delineate a faultless

mon ster b ut to adhere as scru pulou sly to the
,
truth as H e nryihimsel f would have don e had ,
h e been called upon to pourtray his own charac

ter W hatever intermediate j udgment may be
.
passed upon his little failings we trust that we

,
shall ultimately in sinuate him i n to th e good

graces of all parties H is cup Of l if e even i n

'
.
,
i
his c hil d ho o d had bee n filled with moral bit

,
ters which in their to nic e ff ect had surprisi ngly

,
fortified a n d corroborated his mi nd Ign orant .
w ho were his pare n ts he had of course no k n own

,
relatio n s ; his only frie n d was sn atched from

him at a n early age ; he was of a temperament
unu sual ly aff ectionate a nd in the wa n t of more
,
immediate O bj ects f o r its reception his love ,
might be said to overflow upon the com m u nity

at large although directed in an especial m a n
,
n e r to ward s the poor a n d the lower orders ,
w ho seemed in m ore urge n t need of his good
O ffi ces By substi tuting for the sordid and

.
graspi ng selfish ness which i s n o w so carefully

instilled i n to o u r mi nd s a more expan sive sys
,
tem o f be nevolence a n d m utual assista n ce he ,
believed that the state o f human society might

be very materially improved and if in develop
,
ing his u ndigested notion s h e som etimes in

,
d u l g e d in visio n ary o r da ngerous reveries h e ,
n ever recommended to others what he would
not h ave cheerfully performed himself ; and

none could refuse h im th e praise of bei ng
a most amiable and d i si nterested ent h u siast ,
TH E N EW FO R EST . 41
thoug h i t might s omet i mes be truly asserted

”
that he wa s a mistaken one .
S om e years after the death o f C aptai n T enby ,
h i s wido w in order to be near a relation re

, ,
moved to an infant settlem ent in one of the

Ameri can S t ates accompanied by H enry H ere
,
.
a n e w an d to his i n quiri ng mi n d a peculiarly

, , ,
interesting scene was opened to his ob se rvation .
H e atte n ded th e publi c m eetings for th e reg u

-
lat i on of th e colony took minutes of the pro

,
c e e d in s a nd in process of time ac uired su fli

g , q
cient confidence in hi s own observation s and
reflection s to suggest bot h orally an d in writ
,
ing several improveme n ts most of which were

, ,
ad opted and procured for him the reputation of

,
bei n g a soun d thi nk er and a singularly promis

,
ing young m an .Although hi s advancemen t

towards m aturity rendered him indepe ndent o f
-
his mother for such he respectfully termed her

, ,
however little she deserved the name he cont i ,
nu e d to reside with her subj ect to all t h e in

,
fl ic tio ns of her u nconcealed dislike whic h time ,
seemed rath er to aggravate than dim i nish F re .
quently did h e expost ulate with her upo n the

unreasonableness of her aversion in the h ope ,
42 T HE N EW F O R ES T .
that h e m i gh t co n quer i t by argument though ,
he had failed to conciliate h er esteem by a long

course Of truly filial deference and attentions .
F rom the expressio n s which escaped he r u pon

these occasion s he disco v ered that th e secret and
,
insuperable cau se Of h er animosity wa s the u n

equal distribut i on of her hu sba nd s property ; ’
an act of i nd ignity an d inj ustice to herself which

ever since h i s d eath had be e n rankl i ng in h er
sordid mind Beyond the bare mea n s o f s u b
.
sistence money wa s to H e nry a n obj ect o f s u

,
preme i n di ff ere n ce if not o f co n tempt ; an d he

,
therefore hesitated not to declare that th e dis

posit i on o f the will wa s an u nfair o n e si n ce he ,
had n o legal o r natural claim whatever upo n the

Captai n s boun ty ; professi ng at the sam e tim e
’
hi s fixed determinat i on so soon as he became of

,
age to take the widow s portion for his o wn

,
’
Share w hi ch would be quite su ffi cient for all his

,
wants and to make over to her i n perpetuity

,
the larger income bequeathed to himself .
”
“
Wh at !
exclaimed one o f his American
acquaintance when he stated this i ntention to
,
him i mpoverish yourself for her for the n u

, ,
feeling unnatural woman who has ever hated

,
T HE N EW F O R EST . 43
you e ver maltreated you ever been your per

, ,
secutor and oppre ss o r si nce the Captai n s death ’

,
and w h o would previou sly h av e alienated h im

from you by h er infamous aspers i ons
In t h e m ea sure I propose and wh i ch I ,
”
sh all certainly ca rry into eff ect replied H enry
,
calmly , I do not con sider what is d ue to her ,
but w h at i s d ue to my self and to the m emory

,
of C aptai n T enby I t is not right that h i s

.
adopted so n s h o u ld be r i c h er th an his widow ;

nor am I the l e ss grateful for h i s generou s kind
n
~
ess when I ref u se to avail m yself of it One .
of t h e R oma n emperors said he would destroy

all his enem i es by maki ng t h em his friend s .
I will endeavour to imitate h i s example and ,
with whom can I more properly or delightfully

begi n than w i t h M rs T enby ?.Money is o f no
u se u nless wh er e i t can confer happ i ness but —
i t confers no h app i ness u pon me therefore I ,
am no loser in p a rting wit h i t O r let u s place

.
the syllogism t h u s Mone y is of u se where it

—
confer s happiness i t can prod u ce th i s e ff ect

upon my father s w i do w therefore it is d e
’
,
”
s irable that she should have it .
T he A me i ica n t urned round and walk

'
44 THE N EW FO R EST .
ed away with a look of i n e ff able con tem pt ,
m utteri ng t o him self ; T he boys a p e ’
dant I guess
, ; a born fool little better than a
,
”
n ait ral
’
!
Mrs T e nb ys feeli ngs h ad been irritated and

.
’
perverte d by avarice which was the ruling ,
passion of her mi n d bu t, sh e wa s a shrewd and

acute and n o t originally a n u nprincipled
,
woman S he k n ew that H e n ry never made a

.
promise which h e did n o t if possi ble perform ;

sh e had see n eno u gh of his honest straight ,
forward ge n erou s character to believe him c a

, ,
pahle o f carryi ng the meditated exchange i n to

e ff ect without even bei ng con sciou s of th e sa
,
c rifi c e h e w a s v olu n teeri n g ; a n d the prospect
O f gratif i n g her darli n g propensity worked a

y
sudde n marvellous ch ange in h er cond uct .
Determi ned n o t to a ff ord him the slightest

pretext f o r retracti ng his pledge eve n had he ,
bee n so disposed her demea nour now becam e as

,
smooth amicable a n d insi n uating as it had pre

, ,
v io u sl
y bee n ch urlish a n d morose H e n ry gra .
,
t ifi e d eve n by th e appeara n ce of a n a ff ection to
which he had so lo ng been a stranger was de ,
lighted beyond measure at t h e alterat i on and ,

T H E N EW FO R EST . 45
though t i t i mpossible that he could ever have

made a h appier di sposi tion Of his little fortune ,
t h an by th u s employing i t to convert an enemy

into a fr i end .
T he property was in the B ritish funds .
H e n ry as h e approached the expiration o f his

,
m inority signified his i n te n tion o f residi ng in

,
E ngland and Mrs T enbyre solved to accompany

,
.
h i m , assi gning as a reason h er anxiety to visit,
a brother of h er first h usband w h o was settled

.
at S ou thampton although her real motive was

,
the fear Of bei n g separated from h er nomi n al

so n u n t il the co n templated pe cuniary arra nge
,
ment in her favour s h ould be legal ly completed .
T hi s had been e ff ected some little time pre

i
v ous ly t o the commencement of our hi story ,
an d i t is gratify i ng to record th at the mother s ’
mind (f o r suc h we shall cont i nue to cal l her )

,
-
t h us se t at ea se upon the grea t obj ect whic h was

always nearest to h er h eart was not agai n V i sl t ,
ed by an y of those una mi able feelings w hich she

had pre v io u sl y c h eri sh ed
H enr y s under . Of
’
standing i ndeed she formed an i mmeasurably

, ,
lower estimate than bef ore f o r she had always ,
t h ough t him an in te l l igent young man ; but

46 T H E N EW F O R EST .
such was now her opinio n of the goodness and

generosity of h i s heart that she became as
,
m uch attached to him as the coldness of her

o wn nature would allow Perhaps it was ra
.
ther compassio n than regard that th us drew

her towar d s him for believing t hat h e m ust be
,
almost simpl e witte d and imbecile t h u s to bestow .
the greater part of his fortune upo n one who

h ad certai nly not acquired any parti cular claim
to hi s liberality she feared lest h e s h ould su ff er
,
the remainder to be wh eedled away from h im ,
a n d the very teeth to be drawn from his head ,
by an y artful or insi nuating assoc i ate wh o should

once find t h e way to h i s h eart T o guard him .
agai n st such dangers by th e i nterposi tion Of her —
o wn superior sagacity it was agreed that they

,
should cont i n ue to live together and in a mo ,
ment of solitary an d unp recedented weakness ,
she even con sen ted to take such a trifling a d

d itio n al sum out of his scanty income for his
b e ard and lodging that accord i ng t o her

, , o wn
subsequent declaration she wa s sure to be a

,
’
loser by th e arrangement at the year s end .
E arly on the morning af ter H enry s arr i val ’
at T haxted an amb i guous looking personage

,
-
into the yard of the George i nn w hi st

hu s tl e d -
,
ling as he entered and t h en cal l i n g wi th a loud

,
and c h eerful voice for the landlord S am O stler , ,
T ony an d pretty S a lly apparen tly ind iff erent

, ,
w h ether h e procured the attendance of one or

all , that his summon s were promptly an
so
s we re d W e hav e termed his appearance a m

.
b ig u o u s on acco unt of his dress which con sisted ,
O f a fustian j acket and trowsers and a seal sk i n ,

-
cap w hi le he h ad a well lade n walle t sl ung

, .
-
acros s hi s s h oulders and a stout crutc h h eaded

,
-
staff i n his h and H e had neith er dog nor gun

.
to j u s tif y t h e suspicion of his being a sportsman ,
nor wa s i t indeed the seaso n for s u ch recrea

tion s he was past the meridian life an d thoug h ,
his look a nd deportmen t did not indicate any

very pol i sh ed degree of gentility there , wa s a
freedo m and self possession not to say a sligh t

-
,
air of importance in his manner w hi ch sh owed ,
him to be super i or to his h omely habili ments ,
a nd m i gh t lead a keen Obser v er to infer at the

first glance that he was in independen t circum
stance s an d by no mean s unconsciou s of the
,
fact . Th e i ndividual t h us described '
,
was Mr .
Mark Penguin origi nally a tradesman

, , and
48 THE NE W F O REST .
latterly a merchant at S outhampto n who hav ,
ing m ade a fortune during the war by privateer
ing accordi ng to his own versio n o f the m atter

, ,
but rath er by his exte n sive sm uggli ng tran sac

tion s accordi ng to the i n sinuatio n s o f the c e n
,
s e riou s world had lately retired from bu siness

, ,
upon the conclusion of the peace a n d had he ,
come a resident in the neighbourhood o f T ha x
ted w h ere he had purchased a h ou se and estate

, .
Like others who have suddenly exchanged a

life of bu si n ess and excitemen t f o r o ne o f ino cc u
a tio n and repose he soon fou n d the misery of
p ,
e nj oying h i mself ( as it is termed ; ) bu t bei ng of an

active and i ntelligen t m ind h e was neither long
,
in discovering th e cau se Of his discomfort and

e nnu i nor in providi n g a remedy f o r it
,
I t was .
indispen sable h e mai n tained to th e happiness

, ,
of every u n employed m an that he s h ould h ave a

,
hobby and b e determi n ed that his o wn should

,
be the stu dy and practic a

l illustratio n of geology .
H e had obtai n ed some smatteri ng Of this science

when in bu siness and he possessed little more
,
now though he had si n ce been an exte n si v e pur

,
c h aser and a diligent if

, ,
no t j udicious reader
,
of boo k s upon thi s subj ect ; bu t maki n g up in

‘
e n th u sms m w h at h e wanted in knowledge , be

devoted h i msel f to the pursuit con a mo re , pur
c h ased minerals fossils speci men s kn i ck knacks
, , ,
-
and trumpery of all sor ts for t h e formation of a

m useum to w h ich purpose he had devoted t h e
,
largest room in his house ; generally arrayed

h i mself every fi n e mor ning in his geological
'
dress such a s w e have described it and having

'
d u ly deposited a hammer in hi s wal let together ,
w i th two or three book s of geological engravi ngs ,
in order that he might sit down and look the m
over when h e was weary or be i nstantly enabled ,
to classify and n ame whatever specimen s he

m i ght be so fortu n ate as to e n cou n ter he sal lied ,
forth towards the lime and marl pits or t h e -

,
cliff s knocki ng upon the head every suspicious

,
s tOne that h e met with by the way, and stoppi ng

to examine every ba nk or excavatio n i n order ,
that he might pro nounce upon the s t rata Of
which it was composed . In the s e excursions

he could hardly be a loser for they kept both ,
h is body and min d in good healt h ; and if he

picked up n othing worth h aving which was ,
a lmost i n variably the case he at least , g e t rid of

the time which to , him wa s so much clear gain .
V OL . I D
50 TH E N EW F O R E ST .
E arly as it was the morning when he entered

on
the George inn he had already walked several

-
,
m i les and his wallet bei ng laden wi t h Hi n ts of

,
sl
y aspect a n d lime or other sto n e s which look
,
ed very much as if they contai ned some hidden

treasures h e had made for the caravan sary in
,
the hope of recreati ng himself with some syl

l ab u b s for the n ice m an ufacture of which
, ,
pretty S ally the innkeeper s daughter had

,
’
obt ai ned no incon si derable portio n of v illage

fame .
T ony the first i ndiv i dual wh o a n swered h i s

,
ge neral summo n s knew the visitan t as well as

, ,
his habitual occupations an d havi ng always a ,
shre wd su spicion in his mi nd th at a m an who ,
could voluntarily pass the whole mor ni n g i n

breaking stones a drudgery to which the lowest
,
paupe rs are condemned mu st be nearly as m uch ,
crack ed as the fl ints that were subj ected to his

hammer he could not suppress a little j erk of
,
his shoulders and a smothered chuckle a s he

, ,
approached T o prove his respect however he

.
, ,
pul led down his head by a lock of h i s pig c o -
lo u red h air and with a look and tone neither

, ,
of w hi c h were entirel y d i vested of a sneeri ng

expression , though h e endeavoured to be as

grave as possi ble h e said , , as h e u sh ered him
i nto the l i ttle parlour ,
’
You h a been a bre aking a mort o stones ’
,
”
this morni n g I reckon ? ,
A go od sport sman T ony knows wh ere to , ,
find the game ; and a clever geologist will seldom

be at a loss f o r s u bj ects for his hammer My .
wallet you , se e , is tolerably well filled but my ,
stomach is proport i o nably empt y ; wherefore ,
bring m e quickly my morning s tiffi n some ’
”
fre sh syllabubs and a pl ate of biscuits T he .
foaming delicacies w ere speedily placed before

him in long n arrow glas ses wh en b e commenced ,
immediate operatio n s upon his favourite refee

tion prefacing the process b v hi s u su al i n quiry
,
”
of W ell T ony what news with y ou ?
, ,
Wh y thank ye kindly S ir no great mat

, , ,
ter 0 news except that u s h a got a strange

’
,
’
”
gemma n come to stay some time at the G e orge .
A strange ge tlema some time at the

n n — —
”
George t o o ! Do you call t h at no news ? ex
,
claimed Pengu i n w h o h avi ng no a ff airs o f his

,
o wn to look after too k a prodigiou s interes t in

,
those of other s and was in fact the bu sy body

, , ,
-
D 2
Of the w h ole n eighbourhood . W ho i s he ,
T ony ? what s his name ? do you kno w any

’
”
th i ng about h i m P And the first syllabub
remained u nfi nished in eager expectation Of the
reply .
K now an
ything about un ? D o an t I Mas
,
ter Pe nguin an swered the clown putting his ,
long red finger to his nose and winki ng one Of ,
his pig s eyes

’
. E cod he t h ought to run his
rigs upon I to come the old fox but I pumped
, ,
e n fi n ely ; danged if I didn t !

’ ’
Did yo u so T ony ; and w h at migh t you

,
discover
Wh y sure as ever I stand here h i m be
, ,
come a sweeth eart i ng a ter J ustice W e l be c k ’ ’

s
”
daughter .
Wh at ! a lover Of my friend E mily ! Im

possib l e T ony ! S he knows no stranger poor
, ,
t h ing ; and i f she did S he would be too

, sh
y
a nd to encourage h i m Besides i f this
d iffid e nt .
,
were h is Obj ect why should he stay here ? H e

,
would be nearer to the Manor hou se at the -
”
coast .
Well and h im were a goi ng on to the poast

,
-
,
warn t h im only N ed Dav i s rattled the tyer o ff

’
,
TH E N EW F O RES T . 53
o
’
o t h e N elson s wheels I t hi nk it were
o ne
’ ’
.
d ine a coming down Boldre H ill and so h e got

-
,
ou t h ere ; ay and d o mean to stop h ere S ome

,
”
day s .
S ome s i ck citize n, T ony , d epend upon it ,

who li ked the appearance of our village , a nd
thought he migh t recover his healt h as well
here as b y i nhali n g the se a breezes H as he
,
-
.
the look of a valetu di nar i an

No ! h i m don t look like a valet to ne er
’ ’
a- one . Lord love ye h i m be a gemman I tell ,
ye .
Perhaps h e expect s to live cheaper here

t h an i f he went on to t h e coast ; and soot h
to say t h ere is no s mall diff erence in the
,
c h arge for lodgings Ay ay I d are say h e .

, ,
co mes h ere f rom parsi mony l”
N ot be ; h im do come here from L u nn u n,
t h ere baint a d o ub t that for I axed N ed 0

’
,
.
Y o u m ay leave me alone Master Penguin , ,
”
for finding out the righ t meaning O t hi ngs ’
.
A y, T ony , and the wrong one too ; and

ther e for e I s h ould be glad to k n o w why
you have formed the sapien t conclu sion that ,
M i ss W elbeck but here comes talk i ng T imo

—
thy from whom I dare say we shall get the

, , ,
long o f the matter thoug h we cannot expect

,
the s h ort Of it Good morni ng landlord good

.
—
, ,
”
morni ng .
T ony retreated from the room with a nother

pull of hi s lank h air and a simultaneou s scrape
,
of his left foot upon the floor leaving to h i s ,
master as in duty bound t h e farther develope

, ,
ment of the stranger s charac ter and inte n ’ ‘
tion s bu t that th e reader may understand the

singular j argon o f th e voluble Mr T imothy .
Wi cks landlord o f the George it is necessary

, ,
to premi se that h e was a bustling loquacious , ,
empty h eaded little man who had origi nally

'
-
, ,
be e n a waiter an d had succeeded to his present

,
post of lan dl ord by marryi ng his predecessor s

,
’
widow H is spouse had n o w for many years

.
been dead leav i ng him sol e proprietor of t h e

,
George ; the accounts of which flourishing

concer n h e would n ever have been able to
keep for h e was totally uneducated but for
, ,
t h e as sis tan ce of his daugh ter S ally F inding .
him self in tolerably easy circumstances our ,
bo u rg eo is resolved at le ngth to be g entil ho mme ,
so far at least as education was concerned ;

, ,
and i n order that he might keep pace w i t h

,
the march of i n tellect he went over once a

,
week to attend the scientific lectures that

were given at a neighbouri ng to wn — T he Me
cha ni cs Institutes which by inv i t ing
’
, ,
a large
class of the community to substitute inte ll e c
t u al for sen sual pursuits m ust ten d to r ai se
,
it in the scale of bei ng not less certain ly than

,
to embalm the name of t h eir founder as a

benefactor to t h e h uman r ace , had not , at
this peri od been establi shed A t t h e lecture s
, .
he attended T im W icks fait h fully committing

, ,
to his memory al l the h ard words and technical

term s which he co n sidered to be the pit h and
,
marrow Of the whole matter ( al though in ot h er , ,
respect s he came away j ust a s ignoran t as he

,
went ) blurted t h e m ou t upon all occas i on s

,
w i th a most l udic rou s and ac ute misc o nce p

tio n o f t h e i r m eani ng Thi s sc i entific mala
.
prop sometimes chang ed his Babel di al ect ac ,
cordi ng to t h e subj ect of th e last lecture he

h ad heard ; t h e only part of his d scour se i
that remained unvaried being the fuss and ,
pucker with whic h h e called abou t him an d ,
i nterlarded his di sj ointed gabble wi th orders

to S al l v cook S am ostler an d T ony in the

, , , ,
h ope Of persuadi ng others a nd perhaps him ,
self that the quiet little frequen ted in n Of

, ,
-
the George w a s full o f company an d i n volved

, ,
in a co n seque n t h ubbub o f b usi ness .
Am used by the absurdities Of hi s ch aracter

at t racted by S ally s syllabubs ’
, and perhaps , ,
no t altogeth er displeased to ha v e a peep at

her pretty face , Pengu in seldom missed an
opportunity in his rambles o f turni ng into th e
parl our o f th e George -
inn ; and upon the pre
sent occasion th us proc eeded to com mu n e with
,
his b e s t who having left the door Of the r o o m

, ,
open that h e migh t both h ear and observe

,
what was passi n g withi n h u s tl e d unceasingly ,
about th e ch amber n o w peepi ng o u t o f t he

,
w i n dow i n to the road n o w peeri ng towards ,
hi s o wn tap a n d stable yard and n o w busil y -
whisking the d ust from th e fur niture with

a napkin which he held in his hand .
W here s your pretty daught er lan dlord ?

’
if I sa w her I should scold her

, fo r no t having
”
m ade her syllabubs so good as u sual .
Gone u p to Doctor Dotterel s S ir to settle ’

, ,
with the clerk Pay as you g o that s my m ax ’

.
,
i mum ; an d I wish all my cust omers wo u ld ac t

u pon the s am e s quare r o ot an d pay do wn as I -
, ,
do do wn u pon th e
, f u lcr um , S ir . I t c om e s to
t h e same t hi ng i n the end f o r t h e vel o ci ty s ,

’
alway s pro port i oned to th e de scent S yll ab ub s .

—
no t so
g o od as u su al ? Li ke enough N o t made .
by S al ly to day bu t by cro oked M art h a

-
, , our
o
c o k —
S am os tler g emman wan ts bay mare .
You ve see n cr o oked Mar t h a S ir— po o r thing !

’
,
g oo d coo k b ut no t quite a, p arall el o b i e p d — s adly

out o f th e pe rpendi cul ar
h er momentu m buil t —
to o m uch upon the d i agonal W hy S ir a righ t .

, ,
line A ! B from her head to her fo ot wo u ld

,
.
,
de s cri b e an angle Of for ty fi v e degr e es no - —
be a u ty neither in the fa c e I ca ll her my in
clin ed plan e Hi h i D ye catch th e fo cu s

.
—
’
T ony ! an swer bell ba ck parlour Com i ng S ir ,

- .
, ,
c om ing F or my part S ir when I loo k a t

—
, ,
Martha standing as , she doe s and de scribing a

,
s ort O f spheri c al equilibrio I of ten wonder , ho w

”
she pre se rves he r c en t re o f gravi ty .
”
I m s ure I fi nd it dif ficul t to pre se rve mine
’
s aid Pengu in s miling , ,

when I li st en to your
lear ned di scours e Y o u have be en attend ing a .
lec ture u pon m echanics I pres ume ,
D 5
Y e s, S ir ; monstro u s clever man that Pro

f e ss o r Pulley ! told m e many things I n ever
heard afore ; no inverse ratio abou t him no ,
th i ng o f the sort ; all rectilinear ; quite a poly

o n of a man a n d proves all his c o n u m d ru m s
g ,
in the t wi nkling of a radii show s you the —
proper tri gonometry of every thing at once and ,
that s what I lik e

’
—
S am ostler ! gemman on
th e switch tail hors -
e —
Comi ng S i r com i ng
, ,
W hy now , ,
S ir when you want t o get up out of
,
a chai r do you k n ow why yo u draw your feet

,
inward s and rest upon their extrem e axis ?

,
W hy to preserve the equilibrio and have the

, ,
centre f
gravity righ t u n der yo u ; a nd that s ’
o
t h e reason why yo u do n o t fall slap backward s ,
’
as fl a t as a parallelogram D ye catch the .
focu s ? A y an d th e Professor proved to u s

,
to be su re he brings every thi ng point blank to

,
-
th e fulcrum t h at in w alking you n ever take

,
both legs Off the ground at o n ce while you do ,
so in ru nni ng . N ow that s a vertical truth ,

— a
mathematical maximum as I , m a y s a y; and yet

I n ever thought o f it afor e — T o ny ! gemmen
in the tap call i ng more bee n— Coming S ir
, ,
com in ”
7
g
TH E N EW F O R EST 59
T rul y landlord you appear to have bene

, ,
fi te d m ore th an u sual by your last lect u re .
A h, S i r I am li ttle better than a smatter

er after all h aven t brough t away half so m uch
’
as I ought I wish you could h ave heard t h e

.
learned Professor describe a parabola or Sh ow ,
u s the trigonometry of the categorical curve ,
and t he I sau sag e s wedge T here s two bell s .

—
’
ringi ng at once W here can S ally he d au d ling ?

”
I expected her b ac k in t h e segment of a circle .
I a m disappointed mysel f at n o t seei ng h er ,
n o less than I a m in the q uality of the sylla

bubs H ow comes o n her love aff air with the
.
you ng m il ler
Off and on S ir b ackwards a n d for wards ;
, ,
always in a state of osculation like t h e pen ,
d u lum of our kitchen j ack -

! but I suppose the
proble m will fi nd its own lever some day or
other Coming S ir coming
.
—
, ,
B u t lan dlord before you go do tell me

, , ,
W hat yo u k n o w o f the stra n ge gentleman u

p
s tairs ,
an d why he h as taken up h i s a bode at th e
”
Geo rge ?
As to that S ir it s a vertic al rule wit h
, ,
’
me never to pry i nto secrets b u t to let every ,

60 TH E N E W F OR EST .
axis revolve u pon its proper impetus No .
doubt h e has his own momen tu m for coming

here ! for where there ’
s a m aximum there mu st
be a m inimum ; b u t i t would n t become me to ’
be ferreting out his ful crum j u s t as he has com e

i n to th e h ouse Little brass plate u nder the
.
-
handle of his portmanteau with the name ,

Of
M e l c o mb e ngraved upon it but that may be ,
all a sham segment and turn upo n a false p i vot

, ,
after al l H e seem s a shy bird and I doubt

.
,
w hether his obj ect is altogether recta ngular and

horizontal right line AB Comi n g S ir .
—
, ,
coming Al way s in a bustle at the George

— '
early an d late for ever on the m ove toil

— —
some work sla i ng sl av i ng from morning till

— v
, ,
n ight
W ell bu t la ndlord have you not formed a

, ,
notion as to the purport of t his stranger s visit ’
to T h axted for every on e w ill he questionin g

,
m e about it and I s h ould at least like to have

, , ,
a conj ecture to o ff er
Wh y , S ir , m u m
the word a nd n o blab ’
s
hing that s my square root ! but to s ay the

’
-
, ,
truth I have formed a little problem of my o wn

, .
T h ere has been a good deal of running lately

to th e oppos i te coast amon g the free trade gen -
tl e me n and I have taken i t i n to m y head that

,
h e h as com e down to do a little bit of bu sine ss

u po n th e sl y and thinks perhaps h e would be
, , ,
less observed h ere t h an u pon the coast T h at s .

’
my theorem of t h e matter S ir ; do ye catch th e ,
focu s
By thi s ge n tle periphrasi s the landlord meant
to convey his impression tha t his i nmate was
concerned in contraban d trade ; a bu si ness wh i ch ,
d uring the war had been carried on to a con

s id e rab l e extent i n that n eighbourhood though ,
he knew better than to a pply h arsh term s to

an
y species of smuggling in the presence of Mr .
Pe ngu i n T he l atter was abou t to question

.
him farther as to th e ground s of h is opinion ,
when he bolted out of the room cry i ng Com , ,
ing S ir in
, , the segment of a tangent ! S ally !
where th e dicke n s have you been I expected

you bac k in a m omentum Glass brandy and .
—
water i n th e Dolphi n — cold arou t su gar Look , .

-
to the tap T ony S am ostler ! saddle g e m

,
—
,
’
man s gre y pony .
— C om i ng ,
S ir , com i ng ! ”
C HA P T E R III .
Mr H . . Y ou r n am e is Pry, I i
th n k?
P ry Ye s , S ir
. y o u r s e rv i c e
J ere m i ah Pry, a t .
M 72 11 An apt n am e ! you h a e a p ry i ng t em p e r
. v .
I m ean s om e li tt l e c u ri o sity ; a s ort Of i n qu i siti v en e ss

ab o u t
yo u .
P ry A n at u ral t h i rst a ft e r k n o wl e dge yo u m ay call

.
,
it , S ir . C HA R L E S LA M B .
P EN GU I N though no t personally so loco

,
moti v e as his bu stli ng landlord was Of a dis ,
positio n i nfi nitely more prying and busy ; h is

mind was no more able to sta nd still than wa s
the body of Mr T imothy W icks ; doi ng no
.
thing was the hardest drudgery that could be

imposed upon him ; it wa s the great Obj ect o f
his pre sen t life to escape from it and if he ,
could keep h imself in a perpetual though vai n

and u seless pucker like a squirrel in i ts rota
,
tory cage he was willing to compound w i th his

,
T H E NEW F OREST . 63
faculties a nd sacrifice their progress to their

,
acti vit y N O sooner did h e find himself alone

.
,
t h an h e proceeded to decypher for the fiftiet h ,
t i me at least the fulsome scrawlings u pon t h e

,
parlour window perfectly well disposed to

,
”
accept a miracle instead of wit could h e ,
h ave made any such di scovery ; but as he o h

served nothi n g but the autographs and amatory
eff u si o n s with which he was already familiar ,
h e ret urned to hi s chair and betook himself to

,
sundry conj ectures touc h ing t h e intelligence h e

had recei ved S lig ht as w a s t h e foundation for
.
such a surmi se h e felt convinced that the mo

,
tive f the stranger s visit to T haxted was som e

O
’
important secret and as h i s mind made as dead

,
and sure a point at ny mystery as does the

a ,
staunch S paniel at a concealed h are b e de ,
t e rm ine d i nstantly to f erret it ou t if possible .
T he notion of his being attached to E m ily

W elbeck he treated as an idle emanation f t h e O
brainless head Of T ony for h e k ne w her t , o
be modest an d reserved almost to a morbid ,
bas hfulness w h ile he bel i eved h er to have no

,
acquai ntan ce beyond th e imme d ia te n e ig hb o u r l
n ?
hood in which she lived A remembrance per .

,
haps of his own former practices induced h im

, ,
to consider the landlord s suggestion as infi ’
n ite l more plausible but he felt or at least

y ; ,
discovered n o sympathy whatever with his pre

,
sumed brother co n trabandist si nce in order , ,
to avert the imputation which h e kne w to be

attached to his own character he ,
no w aff ected
an oste n tatiou s abhorrence Of all similar m i s
demeanours an d tal k ed loud ly a nd angrily
,
against the smugglers with whom the n eighbour

h oo d was i nfested though he ,
n ever i nterfered
ac tively to preve n t any O f their proceedi ngs .
W hile he w a s deliberati ng ho w h e migh t best

pump the stra nger the i n dividual in questio n ,
e n tered the parlour when Penguin , ,

who be
that th e Ol d adage
l ie v e d o f
their bei ng truth in
wi ne extended to edibles
,
a nd potables O f every
descriptio n saluted , him with a cordial fami

l iarity,
and pressed him so hospitably to a s
sist in finishi ng the remaining syllabubs that ,
H enry w h o was O f a singularly friendly and

,
ac c o st ibl e
disposition instantly acquiesced , .
M r M e l c o mb I believe said Pe nguin ply

.
”
, , ,
ing h is f g c on with renovated pleasure at the

t h ou g h t that he h ad thu s pinned down t h e

subj ect Of hi s experimen t .
”
T hat i s my name said H enry somewh at , ,
surpri sed ; but I h ave not the honour of you r

acqu aintan ce .
Belong to th e family Of tha t name at Black

”
water in the north Of the cou n ty I suppose ?
, , ,
I was not aware that any family of that

nam e ex i sted i n H ampshire .
”
Th en you are doubtless one of t h e lVI e l
combs or M al c o mb s of Cricklad e
, , ,
in W i lt
sh ire 9”
T hey are equally unk nown to m e .
T here an old Joel

wa s M e c b , war m
l o m —
Joe ,
we u sed to call him for h e was a rich old
,
”
h unks died at S outhampton a f
—
ew years ago .
I never heard of him ; and t o save you

farther trouble I , m ay as well infor m you at
once as I u sed to declare to the good c i tizen s
,
Of Amer i ca whe n they perpetually cross ques

,
-
tio ne d me I neither kno w the b i rthplace nor

,
”
t h e name s of my parent s .
H umph sai d Penguin concluding this ,
w a s merely advanced to stop farth e r i n terroga
tories and feeli ng h is curiosity rather sti m a

,
lated than repressed by such a susp i c i ou s de

c l ara tio n You see med to adm i t that your
.
name wa s M e l c o mb t alked of being in A mer i ca ;

,
you are then an American I suppose ,
I believe myself to have been born in E ng

land though in what part I cannot tell you for
, ,
”
I am myself i gnorant Of the f act ?
”
R a ther a marvellou s tale , sai d Penguin ,
with an i ncredulou s look and an emphasis upon ,
the first word w h ich seemed to betray a con

i i
v c t on that it was altogether a fabrication .
F e w people would like to make such a hum i
l ia ting co nfession especially to a stranger whom

,
”
t h ey had n ever see n before .
W hat oth er people may or may not l i ke is

n o rule t o me I like truth I hate unnecessary
.
,
mystery an d I se e nothing h umiliating in what

,
I have a v owed In bei ng t h e acknowledged s o n

.
of the h ighest nobleman I should not feel myself

,
exalted should I hold m yself degraded

no r ,
were it proved that I was th e Off spring of a

beggar .
All right all very right ; qu i te agree w i t h

,
you parti cularly in what you

, sa
y abou t un
necessa ry mystery ; nothi ng like frankness and

candour among friends we are all friends here , ,
under t h e rose . T h e last words be i ng give n

i n a very significan t tone , as i f to i nspire c o nfi
dence in his auditor and win him t o a con ,
f e s sio n of his purpose in visiti ng T haxted ! Pen
gui n who n o w su spected him m ore than ever

,
of being engaged in some sm uggling tran sac

tion , contin ued Beautiful n ights ,
S ir, for
t h e trade con sidering th e season
, .
On t he contrary , the night s have been

rem ark ably dark a nd rather s tormy no moon ,
”
a ndnot a single star to be seen .
W ell those are beautiful n i gh ts are they

, ,
not for the f ee t d e

,
r ra ? Y o u u n derstan d me ?
-
T here has been a good deal of working lately .
T hr ee crops Of goods run ash ore i n t h e M iller s ’
Gap not a hoop lost

,
. T wo poor sm ugglers
were shot though about a week ago down by
, , ,
”
t h e R o c k Cli ff .
He defrauds the G overnment and

who ,
t h ereby the community a t large does a greater ,
wron g than the hi g hwayman who stop s and robs

a n i ndividual in the exact proportion of one to
,
68 TH E N Ew FO R EST .
t h e wh ole nation I am sorry for t h e smugglers

.
you m e ntion a s I am for all malefactors b ut

, ,
”
while laws exist they m u st be obeyed .
T rue true ; all very ri g ht in a general

,
way but a little trifle of smuggling you k n ow

, , ,
”
nobody obj ects to .
I beg your pardon S ir I obj ect to it as

, .
,
I would to a ny other misdemeanour t h at com

bines certai n fraud falsehood and d u plicity
, , ,
”
with co n tingen t violence and bloodshed -
F indi ng that his companio n did not by any

m ean s sympathize wit h the indulgent tone he
had assumed toward s th e smugglers in the hope ,
of coaxing him i n to some sort o f co nfession ,
P e ngui n quickly resumed his cu stomary severity

in speaki ng Of such deli n que n ts acknowledged ,
that there was good excuse for wi nking at their

practices duri ng the war si nce t hey were very ,
often highly be neficial to the n ation ; b ut add

ed th at
,
in a time of peace they were , no t less
un warra n table than i nj uriou s and ough t u n ,
questio nably to be suppressed as far as possi ,
ble by the strong and i nexorable arm of l a w

,
.
I n support of thi s si ngular disti n ctio n suggest ,
ed probabl y by his own m i nd in vindication

, , ,
TH E N EW FOR ES T K 69
o f h i s own past con duct he did not attempt to

,
advance any argumen t for he found the flattering

,
unction too grateful to his soul to ru n any ris k ,
O f h av i ng it rudely w i thdrawn T here are f e w .
off enders w h o do not secretly attempt to v in

d ic a te their own course of life by some such sub
tle casuistry ; a n d if the individ ual in q uest i on

could persuad e himself that by smuggli ng dur
,
ing the war an d leav i ng it Off at the peace

, ,
( when he had m ade a handsome fortune ) he ,
had been all along acting patriotically h e was ,
surely qu i te right not to expose such a sel f re -
c o nc iling co n victio n to the hazard of a refut a
tion H e would have taken it for granted t h at

.
,
h is companion s condem nation O f the practice

’
had been merely assumed for the occasion as

well as h i s own ; for he was b y no mean s defi
cient in that shallo w worldly cu nning which
, ,
suspects the motives of others and presu mes ,
every man to be till he has proved him

'
a ro u e,
g
self to be honest ; but there was som ethi ng so
frank ingenuous and u n reserved in the look a nd
, ,
voice of H e n ry ; trut h was so v i sibly stamped

upon his fine open bro w that it wa s impossible,
,
,
even for t he mos t mistrustful observer to doubt ,

his si ncer i ty S till h owever h e h ad not de

.
, ,
c l are d th e purport O f his visit to T haxted and

,
Pe nguin deemi ng that the m ost likely m ethod

,
to d i scover it was to i n si n uate himself i n to his

,
good graces stated him self to be a resident

,
in the nei g hbourhood Off ered h is services in ,
th e vi e w s Of th e stra nger w h atever

f a rthe ring ,
m ight be their n ature and ended by inviting ,
him to become his companion in the remainder

of his morni ng s ramble ’
,
O b se rv ing , that the wea
ther was remarkably fine an d that he w a s well ,
acquainted with all the most pict u resque scenery

i n the vicinity .
W ithou t entering into any detail of his mo

t iv e for coming to t h e spot H enry courte o u sly
s ,
thanked him for his civility an d declaring that ,
he would gladly accompany him in hi s stroll ,
left th e room havi ng pre v i ou sly deposited a

,
book upon the table Upon this Pe nguin in .
s ta ntl y pou n ced eagerly open i n g it in the hope

, ,
that i t might aff ord som e clue to the real name ,
pr o fession and pursuits or at all events t o

, , , ,
the taste O f the owner . I n vai n did he search

e age rl y for any in scription e i ther at the begin ,
n ing or end ; there was no ne ! but for thi s ,

dis
'
appo i ntment h e was amply compen sated when

, , ,
u o n re f err i ng to the title page h e foun d t h at

p
-
,
it was an A mer i can treat i se u pon h is favour i te

sc i ence of geology i llustrat ed wit h engrav i ngs
,
.
T he w h ole truth now flashed upon h im at once ;

the stranger was palpably a geological touri s t ,
w ho meant to pass some tim e at T haxted in
exploring the neighbo urhood and he h ad no ,
doubt t h at h e had at that moment gon e u p st ai rs -
for h i s hammer and wallet .
S o completely did h e abandon himself to t h i s

b eatifi c v i sion that whe n H enr y returned to t h e
,
parlour he ran towar d s him w i th extended

,
hand s exclaiming Ah a ! my y ou ng friend

, ,
for suc h I shall hencefort h call you close and ,
secret as yo u were h ave I found you out clas

, ,
sifi e d you ? Y o u are a brother geologist I ,
”
see , a nd he held up t h e book in tr i umph ant
—
proof O f the assert i on ; and I am all anx i ety

to know before ,
we sti r a step farth er or l i ft a,
hammer whether we agree in our t h eories DO

, .
you hold w i t h H utton or W erner ? are you a

Vulcani an or a N eptunian
A fit Of cough i ng brough t on by the eager
,
ness and rapidity of h is u tterance , as h e ran on

79 . TH E N EW F O R EST .
w i t h oth er question s Of similar import aff orded ,
H enry an opportunity of disclaimin g all know

ledge Of geology or of the di ff erent system s to
,
which allusio n had been made ; a declaration

that o nly produced a n i ncred u lou s smile from
Pengui n as he pointed to the
, b O Ok in h is hand ,
and exclaimed ,
H ere is your refuta tio n ,
you ng man ; a proof in black and w h ite that

if n ot an adept you are at least like myself a
, , ,
dabb l er a smatterer a n admirer of the noble

, ,
”
and transcendent scie n ce .
T he book given to m e in America

was
to be delivered t o a frie n d of the author s in ’
London I forgot the commission and disco

.
,
v e rin
g it in my portma n teau brought it down ,
st airs that I might dispatch it by the coach to

its destination I hav e n o t even read it for I
.
,
a m no admirer of the science upon wh i ch it

”
treats .
”
W hat ! shouted Pengui n with a ,
m ixed
look Of
amazeme n t i n dig nation an d inc re d u
, ,
l ity not a geolog ist ! n o t a n admirer of the

,
m agisterial science which is alone worthy the ,
devot i on of a h uman intellect ! Did I under

T H E N EW F O R ES T . 8
t
s an d you rightly ? S urely you are not an
”
enemy to this noble study ?
N ot at all ! I would prohibit nothing .
K nowled ge i s power ! power m ay be applied t o

u seful purposes , and I woul d therefore pro
, ,
se c u te the sciences o nl y m aki ng them subor ,
d ina te to th at greatest of all wisdom which
te ac h es u s how we m ay best a n d m ost exten

siv e l benefit our fello w creature s I would
y -
.
h ave men les s con sider in their studies what

may pro v e advan tageou s to t h emselves than ,
what m ay be of value to o thers ; a nd I would

wish the m to co ntemplate with much greater
respect the ignora n t clow n who practises active
benevolence than the deepest a nd most a e com
,
l is he d s c holar who i s too m uc h i mmersed i n

p ,
the lore O f pas t generation s to attend to the

wan t s and suff er i ngs of the pre sen t ; or t h e
scientifi c inquirer who attaches hi m self s o
ardently to inanimate nature that he neglect s ,
th e nobler productio n s of the Deity and has ,
neither t i me n or sympathy to bestow upon his

fellow creatures
- T he proper study of man
.
kind i s man and for my own part I would

,
’
, ,
V OL . I . E
74 THE N EW F O R ES T .
rat h er allay a s i ngle pang Of angu i sh t h an

, im
mortalize myself by the most br i lli ant d isco
v erie s in sc i ence .
Pengui n feeling no interest in opinion s whic h

,
seemed to him little better tha n fan tastical re

v e rie s had been turn i ng over the leaves of the
,
geologi cal treatise instead Of attending to th e

,
S peaker w h en H enry nothing

, , O fl e nd e d
’
at th i s
mark of disrespect told him th at i f he W i s h ed
,
to read i t h e wo u ld defer his i ntention Of send

,
ing i t to London and take it wi t h him when he

,
h i m self returned thither By thi s Ofle r h e had

'
unintentio n ally found the d il e c t road to the

heart of hi s com pa ni on who eagerly accepted ,
i t and recollecting at the same time that h e had

,
hitherto made little progress in fishing out the

h idden obj ect of H enry s visit j um ped up ex ’
, ,
claim i ng with h i s former look of animation and

,
good humour ,
“
W ell my young friend what say you ?
, ,
S hall we prosecute our i ntent ion of tak i ng a

ramble together T he morning is beaut iful
9 ’
I know the whole surrounding country wit h in

wal k ing distance ; and though you are no geo
l o g ist now ,
who knows but t h at I m ay make a
TH E N E W F O R ES T . 75
convert Of you knoc k down your obj ect i on s

,
w i t h my hammer and finally coax your h eart ,
into my wallet H a ! h a ! ”
.
H e brand i sh ed t h e tool i n playf ul menace as

he spoke ; and H enry declari ng that he would
gladl y accompan y h i m though h e had no fear ,
O f
being made a pros elyte to such a barren ,
u seless and u nprod uctive sc i ence t h ey sall i ed

, ,
forth toget h er .
Yonder large w h ite h ouse a m i d t h e tree s ,
s a i d t h e goss i ping geologist to hi s com anion

p ,
called O ak h am H all belongs to Ju stinian ,
F rampton S quire F rampton as h e is some

,
‘ ’
;
times named though i t seem s ri d i culous e nou g h

,
to bestow that t i tle upon a Londoner an d a ,
W est India proprietor who only comes do wn ,
here in t h e summer season and w h o ho wever , ,
ric h h e m ay be in slaves and estates i n Jamaica ,
does not possess s m uc h lan d i n t h e neigh bour o
h ood as honest F rank R ingwood w h ose family ,
have been al ways call e d for m an y generat i ons the , ,
S q u ires of Th axted F rampton him self i s rather .
a
f p
p o m o u s, purse proud fello w -
,
who lives in grea t
style feasts upo n tu rtl e and old Madeira w h en
, ,
h e i s not v i sited w i t h t h e gout and seems d is ,
E 2
76 T HE N EW F O R EST .
posed to be h earty and neighbourly enough as ,
far as Lady S usan will let h i m H is wife yo u .

,
m u st know is a bit of blood an d not wanting

, ,
inproud flesh I may add in proof O f which ,
D O you s e e how yo n der stratu m O f fli n t s is

broken all along th e side Of that chalk pit ? —
-
W hat a con vulsi ve wrench does this indicate !

O ne can almo s t i magin e that the earth in full
swing m u st h ave knocked again st som e ot h er
planet t o produce such a concu ssio n or that ,
some tremendou s earthquake but however , ,
that i s not t h e subj ect u n der discu ssio n W e .
were considering were we not th e probability

, ,
that flin t might be produced from the sh ells

of m arine an i mals deposited in the strata of
”
chalk ?
“
N O, Sir , i ndeed ! we w ere talking of Lady
”
S u san F rampton .
“ ’
Gadso , you ’
re ri gh t —
perfectly righ t !
bu t we were not wandering far fro m the su b
j e c t, for I believe her heart t o be somewhat

O the
f fl inty order decidedly Of th e siliceou s
—
gen us . H a ! ha ! you ll excu se my being a b i t

’
of a wag . W ell , sir, Lady S usan F rampton ,
as I was in f ormed alt h o u g h

, we h ad met at a
hou se in t h e neighbourh o od an d b ee n i n tro ,
d u ce d to one another decli n ed c all i ng upon me

, ,
becau se I h ad been originally a sh opkeeper .
N o w,as I k n ew my sel f to be as good a m an as

her hu sband and i ndependent Of all the world
, ,
I determi ned to give her a wipe ; so when she

n ext honoured me with o ne of her cold conde ,
scending bows egad I stared plump in her face

, ,
gave her th e cut complete and t oo k no notice Of,
h er W hen she found that I could be as rude an d

.
arrogant as h ersel f sh e fanc i ed I suppose th at

, , ,
I m u st h ave som e sort of gent il i ty abou t me ,
for she called nex t day and we h ave been u po n

,
very c i vil term s ever since T hey have t wo .
daugh ters beautiful girls bot h of them ( though

, ,
I like t h e you ngest the best ) and a coxcomb Of ,

k ‘
a son who I S i n the army and se e m s to h ave

O
, , .
th e faults of both parent s wit h out Aha ,
wh at have We h ere ? T his m u st be l i m e stone

a small specimen wonder h ow i t cam e here
— .
Let u s se e whether it contain s an y pe tri factio n s .
Ah ! I was not mistaken t ake i t home to

!
—
ascert ai n its specific grav i ty And he popped .
it i n to his wallet wit h as much deligh t as t h e

k een sport sman bags a pheasant .
78
'
TH E N E W F O R EST
A voice was no w h eard singing i n a loud ,
merry tone b ut wit h a foreign nasal sharp

, , ,
accen t when Pengui n looking in the direction

, ,
of t h e sou n d e xc l ame d
, Yo nder I see comes
,
a nother part of F ra mpto n s establis h ment which

’
I f orgot to mention though with t h e except i on

, ,
of the younger daugh ter of w h om I told yo u ,
h e is the only lively inmate i n that stately but

stupi d family I t i s P o mpey thei r black ser
.
,
vant S ome mi sch i evou s prank at Barbadoes

.
,
occasioned the fellow to be severely whi pped

his present m aster happened to be pass i ng at
t h e tim e O f hi s punishment and moved by hi s ,
crie s and supplication s purch ased h i m on th e

,
spot from his unrelent i ng owner i ntend i ng to ,
take him to Jamai ca and leave him o n one,
of his estates i n th at i sland . O n t h e voyage

thither F rampton not having full p os session
, ,
of his gou ty feet t u mbled overboard through a

,
gangway that happened to be open when Pom ,
pey w h o swim s like a fi sh j umped after him

, , ,
and sav ed h is l i fe by keeping h i s h ead above

water t ill a boat was put out to their ass i stance .
F or t hi s i mpo rtan t serv i ce h e was brough t to

T H E N EW F O R ES T .
79
E ngland w hi c h ,
Of co u r s e ensures his fr ee dom ,
and promo ted to t h e situat i on Of a footman ,
though utterly u nqualifi ed for the perf orm ance

of any ot h er duty t h an t h at Of w earing a gor
ge o n s l i very stand i ng occas i onally beh i nd the
,
carriage and ca rryi ng t h e family prayer books

,
-
t o ch urch on a S u nday H i s m i stre ss hate s .
h i m never h avi ng forgiven as it i s shrewdl y

, ,
s u spec t ed , s k ill i n
i m ming ; but h e h as
hi s sw
n o ot h er enem y F rampton l i k es him so do h is

.
,
fello w servant s ; and indee d the w h ole vill age

-
are u pon go o d t erm s w i th merry Pom pe y for ,
as he has li ttle or not hing to do in the hou se ,
he emplo y s nearly the w h ole Of hi s t i me in pro

mo ting fun froli c an d am u se ment w h erever
, ,
they are to be fo und H e i s a go od m i m i c not

.
,
in h i s voi ce for th at never alt ers bu t with h i s

, ,
l i mbs perf orming va ul t s and so mer sets like a

,
clown act i n g a drunken man or i m i tat in g t h e

, ,
pom po us str u t of D o ctor Dotterel w i t h a d rollery

that i s perf ectly irres istible H e m akes w h istles ; .
p p
o - guns and bows and arrows for the ch ildren ;
,
sings songs to t h e women or tells their fortunes ; ,
plays gr ati s u pon t h e fiddle w he n ever a ru stic

dance i s got u p in a barn a nd i s always ready ,
for a pra n k or a freak o f a ny sort so th at h e is ,
”
equally popular with all ages .
T here seem s to be a n i n superable m erri

”
men t even in th e tone Of his voice Ob served ,
H e n ry it i s l i ke the shrill but cheerful crow

”
ing of the cock .
Merri m en t h e k n ows no t wh at i t i s to be
!
either sick or sorry Drive n away by t h e soun d

.
of h is j oyou s ch uckle Care seem s afraid to come

,
n ear him ; and even age i tself for his h ead i s ,
grey has silvered his woolly hair without hav

,
ing been able to tam e or chill t h e boyish play

ful ness Of his h eart With the ugli n ess h e has
.
a ll the mischievous prank s o f a young baboon ,
and no small share of its acti v ity .
T hep th u
art v s described h ad by this tim e
approached bursti n g as h e c ame up into a
,
n e w so n g accompanied wit h veh ement and

,
appropriate gesticulations an d pau si n g , e very

no w an d then to laugh , or rather to smile ,
for h e uttered no sou n d at th e momen t N o .
cachinnation however coul d be so j oyou s as t h at

, ,
s ilent smile whic h like the s u n sudde n ly burst

, ,
i ng f rom a dark cloud illuminated i n an in ,

~
stant hi s w h ole countenance di splay i ng h i s ,
large wh i te even teeth imparti ng an ab solute ,
flash to hi s eye and raising u p h is low bro w

,
in succe s sive wrinkles u nt il th e grey woolly ,

-
scalp w a s thrown backwards w h ile t h e e n tire ,
shining face was man i festly float i ng in e nj oy

-
m ent. T he following was the snatch of negro

so n
g
,
w h.
ic h m et the ear of H enry and h i s
companion as th e black came u p to t h em
Da su n b e gin from d a se a t o p e ep,
B uck ara ! b u ck ara ! c ra ck o !
Da Ob ers e er, him smac k him whi p ,
B k ! b k ac are uc ara c rack o !

From b e d O fre ed d i gg t ts a n e r s ar ,
Gog ! if h e d n t d y m k him m
’
o , e a e s art ,
An he g o t o d a fi el wid h e b b y h e art ,
’ ’
a
B u ck ara ! b u ck ara ! c rack o
In da b oili ng -
ho u s e , a
’
te r b rek k as t ime ,
B u ck ara ! b u ck ara crac k o !

Da Ob ers eer u p a l add er c limb ,
B u ck ara ! b a ck are ! crack o !

TO se e if d a sug g e e bo il t o a crac k ,
W hen d a ni gg er s t e al b ehi n d him b ack ,
An
’
p u sh him int o da p
co p er, sm ac k
Bu ck ara b u ck ara ! c rack o
Gog ! him nebb e r crack any mo him d a m ’
whip Alway s floggee poor nigger and say

.
,
E 5
Wh at for 0 0 no make mo su g g e e ? ’
.
’ ’
Hi m m ake su g g e e h im self in da b i g C opper

se e ho w
him like it Ah m assa P ing wing ; .
,
m orrow m orn i ng
-
A n d as he made hi s salu
t a tio n he stood still apparently wit h the in

, ,
tention Of h aving a l i ttle gossip w hi le he ,
pursued h i s occupation of fash ion i ng a pop gun -
ou t O f some alder O f wh i ch h e had gathered

,
a boug h .
“
Always bu sy in making playthi ngs for
t h e children said the geologist ;
,
I don t ’
kno w what th e young folk s would do with

”
ou t you .
Wh o tink 0 dat P N o Massa

e bb e r
’
—
,
P ing wing m ean w h at I do wid o u t em I l ub .
da little pickaninny ; wh at for ? Pompey Ol e

m an dere ( and h e pointed
,
to the gri zzled
wool upon his poll ) but Po m pey got lib e l y,
lilly boy here ( patting h i s heart and u n she ath

, ,
i ng his teeth with a rad ian t smile ) H im blood .
s o red a n d so merry as e b b e r a n d Gog ! him ,
”
limbs not berry ole W ith these words h e
.
,
popped t h e knife into his m outh let fall the ,
branch O f alder t h rew hi s hand s upon t h e

,
g round an d performi ng a rapid somerset con _ ,

tin n ed Aha Massa P ing wing w h at

,
“
, , 00 tink
’”
0
’
dat ? not berry Ol e h ey i ,
N O, i nde ed Pompey I was j ust Ob se rv i ng

, ,
t h at you are as l i s some as a monkeyand by no ,
”
m ean s unli ke one in oth er respects .
Berry true massa berry true w h en I wear

, , ,
m a fine l ibb e ry o n da S abba day and go da ’

-
,
ch u rch ater my lad y u m l i ke J ac k o m onkey ;

,
dress op fine berry fin e and um long for da

, ,
fiddle t o h ab a dance Ma bl o od berry f u l l 0.

’
dance him dance wid o u t a fiddle N O g e t l i b

,
.
be ry now bu t w hite j acket ; no l ike monkey

,
n o w Ma ss a
,
.
I shou ld have though t he would have f elt

”
flattered by the compari so n said Pengu i n to ,
H enry but he see m s more a s h amed Of Mr

“
, .
F ram pto n s gorgeou s li very th an of th e sable

’
”
and ugly one that N ature has given hi m .
Penguin did no t think it necessary to lower

his voi ce in making t hi s ob se rvation w hi ch h e ,
perh aps i magined to be above the c o m pre he n

sion o f h i s black aud i t o r T he latter ho w .
,
ever recognizing it wit h a nod

, O f th e head ,
”
and th e exclamation Of Berry true ! con
tin ned M assa P ing wi ng al w ays bus y same ,
84 THE NE W F O R ES T .
as Pompey ; Massa no m i nd break da ston e ,
dig d a earth go down da pit climb da cl i ff

, , ,
work hard an d wear j acket al l same as n igger

, ,
’
ony mi n e white a n d m o smart like Gog ! .
‘
ti n k it co m e to be da fashio n ; s aw t wo gem me n
dis morni ng all d a same as Massa ; look at da
groun b e rry sharp look at da big stone talkee, ,
t alkee o ne a n o d e r and den tap ! tap ! break

,
him a pieces as if him a great cocoa n ut full 0 -

’
”
m e a te e .
H ey how ! what ! Pompey

!
‘
; t wo gentle
”
m en did you s ay?
I ss Massa ; one in da brown j acket one in
, ,
”
da blue .
H a ! these mu st be t h e t wo geologi st s I
heard of th at came O ver here last week and ,
”
were supposed to be from Christ church -
.
“
I s s Massa ; I left em in da cross road to
’
-
,
”
C hrishu rsh under da great marl pit ,
-
.
Ah h a ! are they poaching upon my

,
m anor ? T here h ave been som e very curiou s

things found in that pit S hall we j oin them .
,
my young friend ? I dare say they have m ade

”
some interesting discovery .
H enry signi fi ed a ready assent ,

and Pom
TH E N Ew F OR EST . 85
pey hav i ng declare d in answer to Pe ng u i n s

,
’
enqu i ri es t h at th e shortest way to the spot was

,
o v er t h e field to t h eir left and across th e mil

,
ler s water which they m i gh t easily pass by

’
m ean s O f th e steppi ng stones pl aced for t h at

-
pu rpose pursued his way b u sil v employ e d in

, ,
the completion Of h i s po p gun an d his song-

,
while the ge ologist and hi s com panion hu rried

forward s in the d i re cti on t h at h ad been po i nted
o u t to t h em .
C HA P T ER IV .
O ur g ayne ss and o ur g u il t are all b esmirch d ’
W i th rai ny marching in th e p ai nfu l fi el d ”

.
S H A K S PEA RE .
A FT E R h av i ng traversed a ploughed field , no t
w ithout di fficulty from the heavy nature Of the

soil t h ey reach ed a wild brake overgrown with
, ,
t h istles nettles burs docks and bramble bush es

, , , , ,
th rough which they h ad som e tro u ble in forcing

their way T h e geologist delighted in conqu er
.
ing little impediment s of this nature which at ,
once st i m ulated his ardour an d establish ed his

,
character for i ntrepi d per severance s o that v o ,
l u nte e ring to take the lead h e m anfully pu sh ed

,
through every Obstacle Observing to his com

,
pan i on that a good sportsman never stood u po n

t rifl e s in followi ng the game and that hi s fu s
,
tian j acke t and trowsers were expressly adapted

for emergenc i es like the present H is seal skin .
-
T H E N E W F O R EST . 8?
cap however
, , w as tw i tched o ff , and i t wa s no t
wi t h ou t a scratc h ed f ac t h at it s owner was eue
abled to redeem i t w hi le hi s wallet was obli ged

to pay sim i lar toll to the vari ou s bri ers w hi c h
i t h ad to pass T h us acting as a p i o neer to
.
H e nry wh ose clothes were not so well c al c u

,
lated for th e warfare i n whic h t h ey were e ng ag “
ed th ey at len gt h emerged upon the brow of a

,
roug h de scent s h elv i ng dow n into a little gl en ,
c alled the R un on acco un t of the i ncrease d

,
rapidity of th e m i ller s stream which h u rried ’

,
along t h e bottom in i ts course to t h e sea I t wa s .
sh allo w except in heavy rains and large step

, ,
ping stones were u sually t h ro wn i nto i t f o r t h e

-
accommodati o n of suc h ru stic s or others as had

occas i on to cross it On arriv i ng at t h e spot it
.
wa s found that t h ese h ad b een r e m ove d pro ,
bably by some m i sch ievou s urc hi n and Pen ,
with all his ge ologi cal love Of t h e

eart h and its content s di d not by any means ,
stand so well aff ected towards cold water Ob se rv ,
ed w i th a di sappo i nted look that i t would take ,
th em a mile out of t h eir way to go round by t h e

mill T O t his circu i t he was prepa ring to sub
.
mi t not wit h ou t manifest reluctance agai n st th e

,
d elay i t would occasi o n especi ally as t h e Obj ects

,
of h is searc h might in the mean tim e have b e

taken t h em selves to some ot h er quarter w h en ,
h e heard th e faint sou n d O f voices imm ediately

succeeded by th e click Of a hammer upon some
h ard substance .
Gadso he eagerly exclaimed ,

grasp i ng
his own hammer as if he lo nged to be a t work ,
there they are there th ey are sure enou gh !

, ,
I warrant m e they are hard at it T h e pit i s.
only beyond the first field o n th e other side the

bank W hat say you my young friend shall
.
, ,
w e dash through this paltr y ru nnel ? I t i s not

above knee deep an d a little sousing will not
,
h urt either o f us N oth i ng venture not hi ng

.
,
h ave sh ould be the motto Of a staunch g e o l o

,
’
gist and though you are not one of u s you

, ,
probably s wimme d across th e M issisippi and

the O hio before you left America an d will ,
therefore never boggle at such a puddle as

”
this .
“
I have no obj ection whatever to pass it ,
but my revere n ce to tr u th compel s m e to tell

you that you are m i s taken wit h respect to th e
,
T HE N EW F O R EST . 89
Mis sisippi and theOh io ; and my regard for

grammar obliges m e to add t h at the preterite ,
O f
swim i s swam swom or swum
, , ,
.
All righ t perfectly ri ght my young Do

, ,
mine B ravo ! h ere goes ! fol low me and fear

.
,
nothing . SO saying Penguin spran g i nto th e

,
stream intendi n g to cross it in t wo or three

,
long strides b u t in stea d Of m eeti ng the fi rm

,
footing he expected h e sank u p to t h e knee in ,
a sort of black quicksand an d being t h rown ,
upon his face was obli ged to scramble in th e

,
best way h e could to t h e oppo s i te ba n k wh e re ,
h e arri ved i n a most ruef ull y d u cked and b e

smirched condition Q u i ckly recoverin g h im.
sel f howe v er h i s m i sadventure seeme d to have

, ,
made him bate no j ot o f heart or hope for ,
he began washi ng his s wa n like legs laugh i ng -

,
at his own r i dic ulous pli g h t perhaps to conc e al ,
h i s real m o rtifi c atio n and expressi ng his su r ,
prise t h at his compan i on did not partic i pate in
his merriment .
I never laugh at the smallest m i sch ance or

di sappoi ntment of my f el low creature s ”
said -
,
H enry .
All righ t perfectly ri ght but I tell yo u

, ,
before h and th at I shall laugh most confound

,
”
e dl if you are caught in th e sam e trap
y
-
.
T here would be small danger of that even ,
were th e strea mlet wider than i t is S O saying .

’
he returned a little way u p the ba nk to give

hi m self the benefit of th e descent an d then run ,
ni ng forward at full speed cleared the water at

,
a s i ngle leap .
Gadso my young friend

,
" 3
exclaimed the
aston i shed geologist y o u vault l i ke
, a roe
buck or rat h er like an arrow out of a bow
, .
”
D i d you learn t hi s tr i ck i n America ?
A t h letic exerci ses are cond uc i ve to h ealth
h ealt h s h ould be our primary con siderat i on and ,
I h ave th erefore diligently practised every sport

t h a t migh t contribute to strength or agil i ty ,
u nt i l I have Obtained a command over my

l i mb s whic h I con sider preferable to a know
,
ledge o f all th e languages upon earth . T h ere

is both pleasure and u tility in having th e full
possessi on O f my own body while t h ere i s nei
,
t h er t h e one nor t h e other i n wasti ng time upon

the acquisit i on Of a foreign tongue for t h e E ng ,
lish language embod i es w i t hi n i tself eit h er in ,

TH E N EW F O RES T . 91
its nat i ve store s or by mean s of translat i on all

'
t h e Wi sdom t h at the world ha s ever known .

”
All ri gh t Domine all ri gh t I m ust needs

, , !
c o nf ess t h at your gymnastic exerc i ses are better

,
t h a n all Latin and Greek ones in t h e world for

carrying a fello w clean an d d ry o er a treac h er v
o us brook like t h is cursed Miller s run Gad so ’

-
.
I h aven t lost my hammer h ave I N O here i t

’
, ,
”
i s all sa fe
,
.
In t h e tri ump h of the moment he t wirl d i t ’
hi gh u p i n the ai r agai n catch ing i t ad roi tly by

,
t h e h andle and his abstersion s be i ng n o w com

,
l e te d o far as the sable sta i n s c ould be e f

p , s
faced h e ag ai n h urr i ed f orward to i ntercep t

,
hi s brot h er ge ologi sts Af ter cli mbing u p the

.
opposite bank and again d escending t h ey, ,
crossed t h e field to w hi c h Pengu i n had alluded ,
and m aki ng the i r way in to t h e cros s r oad -

,
pre sently reac h ed the bottom Of an extens i ve

marl pit of whic h the precipi tou s s u mm i t was
-
,
tufted w i t h al der and other bu shes Pen g uin .
li stened eagerly f o r the sound of voi ce s or

implements and gazed round in vai n f o r the
,
ex pected m en of sc i ence ! h e could only pe r

c e iv e a couple o f labourers s i tting in t h e sh ad e
92 T H E NEW F O RES T .
and qu i etly d i spatch i ng their bread and c h e e se ,
w h ile a dog who had the charge of their hat s

,
and a little flask of beer saluted the stranger s ,
with a bristli ng m an e an d an angry growl , .
Ah ! lame R ichard ho w are you how are

?
,
you Joe Penfold

, said the geologist w h o ,
kne w every individual rustic and pauper for

miles round whic h way are the two gen
gone who were h ere j u st
tl e m e n n o w, mak i ng
mineralogical researches
In an s wer to this inquiry the men declared ,
that they had no t see n a soul in the course Of

the mor ni n g except S quire F ra mpto n s black
,
’
a-moor who i n tended crossi ng t h e fi eld to t h e

,
Miller s run until they told him the steppi ng

’
-
,
stones h ad bee n rem oved which induced him ,
to go round by th e road W hat ! were t h ere .
not t wo ge ntleme n upon the S pot ? there m u st

‘
have b een — I heard their h am mers not ten

min utes ago .
“
Lord lo e ye ! that was we ;
v —
we was a
cracki ng Hints for the ro o ad whe n the black
c h ap came up to us .
And one f
them wears a brow n and the
O
”
other a blue j acket Observed H enry , .
T HE N EW FO R EST .
93
A blank chop f allen look attested Penguin s

-
’
c onvi ct i on that h e h ad bee n bamboozled by

t h e N egro an d the angry blood quickly ru sh e d
,
to h is features as h e exclaimed C urse t h at

r
imp u d e nt black fello w ! then I have bee n
regul arly hoaxed ; these were the ge n tleme n

geologists wh o were breaki ng sto n es and I ,
have scrambled through thorn s a n d thi stles ,
and have been sou sed in th e m ud and d i rty

water f th e Miller s run all for nothing
’
O -
.
”
I ss Massa
, , iss , cr i ed a cackl i ng voi c e
fro m above and upon looking upward s t h ey
,
be h eld the white teeth a nd black shi ni ng smil , , ,
ing face of Pompey protru d ed from the ove r ,
hanging alders wh i c h ha d j u st supplied him

wit h a n ew po p g u n - .
Massa Pin wi ng sayu m look like a m onkey

,
aha ! wh at 0 0 look l i ke o o se fl wid 0 0 bl ack legs

'
an d 0 0 souse j acket ? Better um look li ke a

”
monkey nor an ass .
T h i s impertinence fellow shall be made ,
”
known to your master cried t h e geologist ,
.
Gog ! berry like cause Pompey tell ,

um
him se fl dat a may hab da fu ss laugh

'
, .
T hi s Observation probably suggested to

94 T HE N EW F O REST .
Peng ui n that as h e could gain noth i ng by h i s

,
wrath h e h ad better view the w h ole aff air as a

,
j oke for re pl ac mg his uplifted h am mer in h is

,
wallet he said with a forced smile

, Af ter
all it was not a bad hoax an d I mig ht well ,
h ave expected it knowing th e black fellow t o

,
h ave as many trick s as a baboon I t m ust he .
confessed that he has m ade a prec i ous fool

,
”
of me .
I ss Massa is s berry true cried Pom pey

, , , ,
d is closing his white teeth with a broad ra

dia nt smile and bei ng n o w apparently satisfied
with the triumph he had O btai n ed he quitted ,
t h e overhangi n g bough s a nd pursued his way ,
along t h e upland s shouti ng at th e top of his

,
voice
Da ni gg e r st e a l b eh i n d him b ack ,
And p u sh him i nt o da co pp e r, s m a c k
B u ck ara bu ck ara ! c rac k O
T h e two labourers in the m arl pit , although -
Penguin had to a certai n exten t co nciliated their

good wishes by weari ng a j acket n o better than
thei r o wn and by O fte n chatteri ng familiarly
,
w i t h t h em as he did i n deed with all th e world

, ,
h ad st i ll such a poor opinion o f his i ntel lects ,
fro m hi s volunteer i ng t h e drudgery of br eak i ng

THE N E W F O R ES T .
95
stones when i f h e chose h e

, , ,
m igh t sit at h ome ,
and s wil l strong al e all day l o ng that t h e i r look s

,
an d tone O f v oice i n conversing w i t h him gene

rally betrayed th e same compass i onate kind
. O f
contempt that they would have assum e d h ad
t h ey been ad dressi ng t h e parish i diot U po n .
t h e presen t oc cas ion they had at first obse rved a

cert ain degree of respe ct but when they com ,
pre h ended th e fu ll extent of Pompe y s tri ck ’
wh en they understoo d t h at t h ey them sel v es had

been palm e d Off u po n Pengu i n for gentlemen ,
and th a t i n h i s eagerness to share the i r soc i ety ,
h e had fl o u nd e red through t h e m ud and water

.
of the Miller s r un as his bedraggled pli gh t

’
-
,
l udi crou sly attested all the barriers Of respect

,
were broken down and they bot h burst i nto a

,
horse la u gh loud enoug h to sen d disson an t

,
echoe s from the si des of t h e p i t and to be an ,

.
s w e re d by a di sta n t D a Ca o of Pompey s s ong

’
p
a s h e w a s retreating homewards Pengui n h ad .
no al tern at i ve bu t to j oin them

hi c h h e di d , w
w i th an as sumed h ilar i ty and then turni ng to ,
H e n ry with a somew h at sardonic expression ,
exclaimed Y ou are th e o nly grave fellow

among u s my young fri end ; why don t you
,
’
96 T H E N EW F O REST .
laug h ? Gad so it s a cap i tal j oke and I really

,
’
,
enj oy it myself ! why don t you laugh ’
I told you before that I n ever laughed at ,
th e smallest misadventure of a fellow creature -

,
a n d you mu st allow me to O bserve that you ,
have brought this troub l e u pon yourself by

compari ng Pompey i n his own heari ng to a
, ,
m onkey . H i s retaliation i s a moderate one ,
t h ough no retaliat i on can be excusab l e sinc e ,
t wo wro ngs will never make o n e right I t is .
u nj u stifiable in principle and may be da ngerou s ,
in practice ever to wou nd the feeli n gs

,
o f ano
ther eve n
, in j est ; for as retorts an d revenges
i
generally double or quadruple in severity the

last Off e n ce given t h at which bega n in mirth
,
”
m ay quickly end in murder .
All right my young Domi n e perfectly

, ,
right Gad one may lear n more by listening

.
to you than to one of Dr Dot trel s sermons .

’
t h ough that perhaps is no great compliment

, ,
.
Come, shall we pursue our ramble ? I don t ’
value my so u si ng a s i ngle button I t s vastly .

’
”
pleasan t is n t i t
,
’
?
W ith these words he walked away at a brisk

,
pace by no means sorry as it seemed to es c ape

, , ,
T H E N EW FO R EST .
97
from the boisterou s m erriment and ridicul i ng

l ook s of th e labourers who m he quitted with ,
out his u sual valedictory n o ti ce and th e cl i ck ,
of whose ham mers as they agai n pl i ed t h eir ,
work fell u pon his ear with a m uch less grate

,
ful an d stim ulating e ff ect than when he had

previously heard the same sou n d H ad H enry .
been what is called a wag he would not h ave ,
failed to draw his compan i on s attentio n to it ’
and to banter him upon the rene wed labours of

t h e gentlemen geologist s ; bu t th i s wa s fore i gn
to his n ature H is be n evolence was so sen sitive
and delicate h i s sympathy with his fellow crea
,
-
t ures so i ntense that he never i n d ulged

,
in any
raillery in the remotest degree calculated to
give pai n Penguin however w a s fi d g e tting
.
, ,
u nder t h e m anifest apprehen sion of hi s m ali

cio n s pleasantry for he walked rapidly f o r
,
wards although it was up hill in order to get

, ,
beyond the sinister sou nd of the h ammers an d ,
talked incessan tly that his companion m igh t
not have an opportunity for ven ting either b an

ter or sarcasm Ah a ! my young friend h e
.
,
bri skly exclaimed stoppi ng to take a moment s

,
’
breath whe n they h ad gained the summit

, O f the
V OL I . F
.
98 T H E N EW F O R ES T .
ascent there a prospect for you wh at

’
s sa
y
y ou to t h at ? I s it n o t noble yonder fine ,
stretch of wood th at form s the com mencement

o f th e N ew F orest a n d shows us man y a stout ,
oak desti ned perh aps , , to form o ne o f our fi rs t
rate ships and carry the Britis h th under to the

,
remotest cor n ers of t h e world

I see an open rich and fi ne ly cultivated , ,
-
tract that while it smiles

, in beauty promises ,
to
yield su stena nce a nd plenty to m ank i nd ; and
which I con seque n tly admire much more tha n

a gloomy forest whether i t be re s erved for the
,
u seless and cruel warfare o f the chace o r ap ,
plied to the still more hateful and guilty ho s

t il itie s wh ich we m ay ca rry on again st distan t
”
n ations .
Ah ! I forgot you have been i n America

, ,
com e from the back settleme n ts and h ave had ,
a surfeit O f trees of which you doubtless like

,
the sigh t as little as a grocer does the taste of

figs I fear we shall fi nd little to please you
.
in E ngland Y o u have bee n accu stomed to a

.
ne w country a n d it is natural t h erefore t h at

,
”
you shoul d no t like a n Ol d o ne .
Y o u are w i dely mistaken I n my opinion .

,
T HE N EW F O R EST .
99
the in h ab i tants O f an O ld country h ave inn u

advantages T heyhave t h e benefit Of
m e rab l e .
every past age for all t h e prev i ous generations

—
of m ank i nd m ay be con si dered as t h eir slaves ,
who f o r the enj oymen t of the existing race h ave

, ,
m ade and perfected th e public road s dug wells ,
an d canals ren dered rivers navigable drain e d

, ,
m orasses fertili zed the soil b eau tifi e d the sur

, ,
face Of the country and covered i t with c o stly

,
edi fices of publ i c u ti l i ty

"
, or for private re
sid e nc e . I t m ust be an addit i onal pleasure to

the d wellers in such a country that t h ey m ay ,
j u stly consider it their home si n ce it contain s the

_
,
bones Of t heir forefathers ; while all t h e m onu

me n ts of art and m uch of the n atural scenery
, ,
be ing associated with the n at i onal rec o rds are ,
lifted out of their m ere mater i ality and become ,
endearing an d ennobling m em ori als ; w hi ch may

u sefully stimul ate the people w ho live a mong
t h e m to maintain the greatness t h at has been
transmitted to them U nless as I h ave done .
, ,
you h ad witnessed the format i on of a new s e t

tl e m e n t in a new country you could hardly ,
im ag ine ho w gri evou sly th e wan t of all t h is ,
h o w deep l y the total absence o f an an ti qu i ty is
F 2
1 00 T H E N EW F O R ES T .
felt and regretted how d i shearten i ng it is to

,
—
begin with felli n g trees m aki ng roads digging , ,
wells an d performi ng th e most s evere an d

,
servile drudgery lo n g before yo u c an eve n

attempt to raise a crop ; h o w stra nge and u ni n
t e re sting is the d umb scenery which can tell us
nothi ng o f o u r ancestors o r o f the past ages ,
though it m ay pai n fully remi n d u s tha t it has

been the hau n t o f savages an d wild beasts ho w —
oppressive i s th e misgivi ng when h e wh o t oils ,
reflects th at h e may perchance peri sh before h e

has con quered the stubbor n earth or th at after , ,
all h e m ay be only slaving like th e bee to raise

, , ,
”
honey for strangers .
More fool h e ! W hy can t such fellows ’
remai n w h ere th ey were bor n ? ”
Becau se it i s better to h ave th e hope o f

living in a n ew cou ntry th an the fear of s tar v
ing in an o ld o ne ! over populatio n and wa n t

-
drive m any t o th e n ecessity o f colonizing ; bu t

a still greater n u m ber and o f a better class , ,
h ave sometim es fl e d t o th e wood s a n d wilds t o

e nj oy that paramount moral good which more
than compensate s f o r all the ph y sical d isad
”
v an tages oi a new settlemen t .
”
A y, y w h
a at m a y that be ?
C i vil and religiou s l i berty ; equal ri gh ts and ,
uncorrup t i nstitut i on s seldo m to be found in

,
a n old country where tim e that rot s every

'
, ,
t h i ng does n o t even spare th e bul wark s of

,
freedom an d j ustice an d where the very pro

,
gress of civilization and luxury work s the

greatest perversion and abu se in those establish
ments w hi ch were originally th e most pure and
wholesom e . T he combined ad v antages of the
past and the present are per h a ps most likel y , ,
to be fou n d in an Ol d country whic h h as recent

l y purged and regenerated itself by a revol a
tion ; for th e moral as well as t h e nat ural so il

is best fertilized by the ashes of the destroyed
’
rankness corruptio n, , and overgrowt h w hi ch

i tself had thrown up ” .
W hy my you ng fr i end w h at t h e deuce

, ,
do you call yourself a j acob i n a radic al a ‘

'
—
, ,
revolution i st ? Gadso ! it s l cky Doctor Dot ’

u
t ere l does not hear you or you wo u ld be ex

,
comm unicated anathemat i sed Come come I

, .
, ,
u nderstand n othi ng of t h ese m at ters let u s ,
talk of something rational DO you s e e those .
me n at work diggi ng the

, f oundat i on s of a
1 02 THE N EW F O REST .
h o u se ? Th ey turned up last week what I con a
s id e re d
a specimen of va l uable ore and the ,
owner O f the g rou n d poor fellow ! t h ought ,
he was goi ng to make hi s fortune all in

a h urry ; but egad ! it proved to be only it
,
species Of mi ca or Gl i m mer as the work men

, ,
call i t or s o met h ing of that sort and the ch url

, ,
threw it at my head when he fou n d I had elated

,
him wit h false hope s A h a ! what have we —
here I m u st give th i s ferrugi n ou s clod a touch

o f my hammer it has a shrewdly m i neral a s
,
peet . You s e e I literally leave n o stone u n

,
turned to s u cceed in my obj ect s ; a nd , indeed ,
I may well keep a s h a rp look out for i t , wa s
not far from here that about a mon th ago I , ,
stu mbled upon a foliaceou s or flaky substance , ,
that h ad very m uch the appearance O f talc .
I tell yo u t h e w h ole h istory o f my find i ng it

ll
’
,
which i s really interesting but egad ! I for ,

—
,
got you are no geologist ; and though S hak

,
spe are you know says that th ere are sermo n s in

, ,
stones you have little i n clin ation I dare say

, , ,
t o h ear sermon s o n stones N ow between these .

,
trees we can j u st catch a peep at t h e

,
Ol d -
fash
io ne d towers an d poi nted gables of t h e Manor
TH E N E W F O R ES T . 1 08
hou se w h ere, G adso ! I protest I had nearly

”
forgotten a ll about it .
In t h e mul tipl i city of obj ects wh i c h succes

s iv e l claimed Pe ngu i n s attention one was very
'
’
y ,
apt to pu sh its predec essor ou t of his head a ,
process wh i ch had taken place more t h an once

thi s m orn i ng si nce he h ad started fr o m the
George T he sigh t of the Manor house re
.
-
,
calling to his recollecti on the surm i se of T on y ,
as to H enry s v isi t reminded him

th e O bj ect Of
’
,
at t h e sam e t i m e that h e h ad h i therto made no

o
progress towards discovering it ; and being now

disposed to attach more importance to the
ostler s assertio n than he had yielded to it at
’
the time he procee ded without delay to sound

,
his companion upon th e subj ect . Yonder old

buildi ng i s th e residen ce of h i s worsh ip Mr .
G ideon W elbeck of our j u st i ces of the

,
o ne
”
pe ace Do you kno w any thing of him ?
.
H enry an swered in th e n e gat i ve .
”
great loss con ti nued h i s companion
NO ,
.
H e is a strange creature and by no m ea n s

popular in t h e county H is legal knowledge .
,
h owever is of , u se to him as a m agistrate the ,
d uties o f which o ffi ce he discharges with such

zeal , v i gilance and impartiality that h is bro

, ,
th er j u stices too i ndol en t or to o ign oran t t o

,
assist o r compete with him voluntarily aban ,
d o n t o him all the troublesome an d execu t i ve

business o f th e di strict I told yo u th at he was .
ge nerally disliked ; b ut if all be true that I have ,
heard he is rather an obj ect Of compassion

,
tha n hatred f o r stop ! stay ! look at this bit o f

,
—
slate d o yo u Ob serve how the dark vei n s that

,
cross it are broke n a n d continued agai n half an

inch lower m an ifestly provi ng that it h as once
,
bee n in a liquid state T here s another bit .

’
which I m u st p o p in to my wallet Gadso ! let .

—
m e see wh ere wa s I ; were w e no t talki ng

, of
the vertical st rata which VV e rne r

N O, S ir , yo u were re m arki ng that Mr .
l Ve l b e c k was rather an obj ect o f com passio n

than
All righ t perfectly right so I was an d
—
, ,
so h e is if all be true that i s rumoured ; f o r

,
the poor man such I may , w ell call him ,

in
spite O f his riches ,

ha s an only so n, wh o , after
taki ng to gambling and all sorts of dissolute ,
courses by which he wa s perpetually torment

,
ing hi s father in t h e most sensit i ve part — that i s

T H E N EW F O R EST . 1 05
to say in hi s pocket , completed h i s o wn rui n

,
and degradat i o n b y marrying a l o w wom an of

infamou s character U pon thi s occasion Ol d
.
W elbeck Wh is a man
, o Of
violent passion s so ,
l e m nl y cursed his son struck him ou t of hi s

,
will and swore that he would n ever forgive hi s

,
daughter o r any o n e else who s hould ever

, ,
mentio n his name in his prese n ce I t h as been .
even whispered that the son wa s subsequen tly

guilty Of forgery for he fled to t h e con tinent
,
w ith his di sreputable wife and has never bee n ,
heard Of si nce E g a d ! talking of his daughter

.
,
puts m e in min d that T ony o f the George told , ,
m e yo u were acquai nted with Miss W elbeck

is i t so ? Ho w come s it ? S he rarely leaves
home
W e lately passed a few day s in th e sam e
boarding house at S ou th ampton where she we nt
-
,
to visit an aunt and I confess that I wa s mu ch

,
struck by the ti mid g entleness o f h er m anners

'
and the resignation wit h which she seemed to

”
submit to some deep rooted mel anc h oly - .
Ah a ! my you ng friend h ave I fou nd yo u ,
out ? So this then was the obj ect o f your v i sit

, ,
”
to T hax ted .
1 06 TH E N EW F O R ES T .
You are q u ite m i staken it was not unti l I

arrived at Th axted that I recollected th at her
,
”
father resid ed in its vici nity .
”
I ndeed ! exclai m ed the geolog ist casti ng ,
a n incred u lou s look at his companion s coun

’
te na n c e , w h ere however he beheld such legible

, ,
evidences Of sincerity an d truth that h e coul d ,
not doub t his assertion an d bei ng now reduced ,
t o a non plu s h e d ete rmined to sati sfy hi s

-
,
c uri osity by t h e point blan k questio n Of -
Pray t hen m ay I i n quire w h at w a s the Obj ect

, ,
”
O f you r comi ng hither ?
I come for t he purpose o f visiting a gen

tieman in thi s nei ghbourhood upon some a ff airs
”
o f business .
A gentleman in this neighbourhood — I
know them all I will introd uce yo u t o him

— .
What is his name ? ”
Mark Pengu i n , said H enry .
Mark Penguin 17
' reiterated t h e geologist ,
with a n expression Of amazeme n t not altogether ,
unmi ngled with alarm a n d then endeavouri ng ,
to recover him self and appear unconcerned h e ,
added ,
W hat can yo u y to Mhave
m to sa
T aken as he wa s by surprise h e h ad still p re,

s
T H E N EW F O R ES T . 107
sence of m i nd enough to resolve on preserving

his incognito t il l t his point s h ould be cleared up ,
for h e was not wit h out appre h ension th at the

ghost of some Ol d s m uggli ng tran sact i on migh t
rise up in j udg m en t again st him though i t a p ,
e are d
ut terly inexplicable ho w th i s young man
p ,
b ut j ust arrived fro m Am erica where h e had ,
pas sed n early all hi s life should have b e come ,
impl icated w i th him and h i s former contraband

practices Loquaciou s as he was he preserved
.
,
a cau tio u s silence and gazed w i th an eager

, ,
reddened face upon H en ry as th e latter pro ,
c e e d e d to state that the first hu sban d of Captai n
T e nb ys wido w had been a Mr Joseph Pen

’
.
,
g u i n Of hf o n treal broth er to Mr Mark P e n

, ,
.
gui n lately residen t at S outh ampton to wh om

, ,
t h e widow w i shed to del i ver certain papers and

docume n t s left by h er dece a sed firs t h u sband ,
as well as to pay h er personal respects to so

near a relative and one with w h om
, she had for
m er ly been in habit O f frequent correspondence .
In point of fact Mark had recei ved a letter

,
from he r some years before annou n cing the ,
death of he r h usba nd in circum stances that ,
scarcel y promi se d to leave her a m aintenance ;

1 08 T H E N EW FOR ES T .
b ut as Penguin like most ot h er worldly men h ad

, ,
an i nstinctiv e horror of poor relation s he never ,
n ot i ced her comm unication j u stifying him self ,
at the time by the reflection that as sh e wa s an ,
America n she oug h t to look for support fro m

,
her connexion s in that country and v ind ic at ,

.
ing hi s subse q uen t silence by choosing to take

it for gra n ted that if she h ad need o f his assist
,
ance she would have m ade farth er applicatio n

,
t o him T his sh e would probably have done

.
,
bu t that her marr i age with Captai n T enby

'
rendered such a step u nnecessary an d in her ,
pique at his leaving her first letter u n a n swered ,
sh e had su ff ered the correspon d e n ce to drop

altogether though , sh e had now become eager
to renew th e acquaintance upon lear ning that ,
her ki n sman had retired from bu si ness with a

handsome fortune . Penguin wa s by no m ean s
pleased with H enry s commu n ication at the
’
firs t blush o f th e aff air Conscious perh aps .

, ,
that his character did no t m erit any e x t ra o rd i
nary homage he always suspected the

. m otives
O f those who said they came to pay their re
s
p e c ts to hi m and as he
,
se t dow n th e avermen t
about th e papers and documents fo r a m ere pre
T HE N EW FO R EST . 1 09
tex t he concl u de d t h at th e obj ect Of t h e w i dow s

,
’
vi sit to E urope wa s to make a vehement appeal

to his f eelings and h i s purse Th e v i sion o f a
—
weeping female i n weed s a w hi te cambr i c h and ,
kerch ief i n her hand her h eart full and her, ,
pocket empty began t o float before hi s imag i

,
nat i on an d he determi ned not to disclose h i m

,
self until h e had ascerta i ned the probability of

h i s being h aun ted w i th any suc h app ar i t i on .
T he sub seque n t information t h at h e received ,
soon dissipated all h i s appre h en si on s w h ether ,
pat h etic or pecun i ary S O li ttle importance did

.
H enry attach to money and so small an income ,
appeared to him a competency that w i thout ,
men t i oni ng th e exchange h e h ad voluntarily

made with the w i do w h e stated t h e amoun t of
,
her fortune add i ng t h at h e h i mself ow i ng to

, ,
the bounty of th e captain w h o h ad adopted him ,
as h is s o n, was in independen t ci rc u m stances ,
an d that the n e c e s sart ran sf e rring of stock con ,
sequen t upon hi s com i ng of ag e w hi c h h ad been ,
the cause of the i r voyage to E ngland h ad j ust ,
bee n completed in London .
T his u nexpected intell igence e ff ected an in

s ta ntaneo u s and su rpri sing change i n t h e mi nd
of Pe nguin Attach ing a m uch m ore i mport

.
“
an t meaning to th e words independent cir
”
c u m s ta n c e s tha n H en ry had i n t en ded to con
vey he s a w at o n ce the propriety O f cult i vating
,
a strict i n timacy with a sister inl l a w who had a -
comfortable provision for life and a young m an ,
of fortun e by connecting him self wit h whom h e

,
migh t materially increase his own con seque nce

and the opinio n Of his gentil ity in th e neigh
b o u rho o d S uch anticipation s had rapidly flit
.
t ed through his head while his companion h ad,
been speaki ng a nd h e had no sooner concluded

, ,
than he burst i n to a forced laugh exclaimi ng , ,
Gad ! I was determined to surprise you did —
I not keep my incogn i to famou sly W hom do

you think you have bee n talking to all this
while ? why to ,
no oth er than the very man o f
who m you are in search to Mark P engui n
,
himself an d most happy am I my d ear young

, ,
friend to m ake your acquaintance ; since as

, ,
you mu st indeed have Obser v ed I took a strange ,
fancy to you from th e very first moment I be

”
held you .
H ere he seized his com panion s hand ’
, and
shak i ng i t wit h a h eartiness whic h migh t no w

TH E N E W F O R ES T . 1 11
be pronounced gen ui ne since h i s d i sposi t i on was

,
really cordial whe n unchecked by any fears of

,
a pecuni a ry nature h e expressed his delight at

,
t h eir happy meeti ng inquired very part i cularly

,
after Mrs T e nb ys health an d protested that

.
’
,
he would n ot part with his com panion now that ,
they had s o fortu n ately e n countered bu t that ,
he m ust go home and dine with him that they ,
migh t arrange their future plan s and proceed

ings . My forlorn pligh t , said he looki ng ,
down at h i s bedraggled clothes h ardly qu a ,
l ifi e s m e for prolonging our ramble w h ich we ,
will however resum e t o morrow ; and to tell

, ,
-
,
you the trut h I find myself so m uch chilled by

,
the m u d and water o f t h at curse d Mill er s ru n ’

-
,
tha t I shall no t be sorry to change my soiled

equipme n t s for clean and dry garments T he .
geologists however ought n o t to quarrel with

, ,
the earth for leaving its honourable mark upon

u s z W e are of t he eart h earthy H a ha !
— —
.
,
you ll excu se m y be i ng a bit of a wag Come

’
.
”
along my young fri end come along
, , .
H e n ry signified his wi l ling acceptance of the

invitatio n an d Penguin accordi ngly proceeded
,
at an accelerated pace towards his own d welling .

CHA P T ER V .
T he way i s pl i b efo re u s— there i s now

a n
T h e l o v er s v i s i t fi rs t an d th e n th e v o w
’
Mu tu al an d fo n d th e m arri age ri t e th e b ri d e
,
- —
B ro u gh t t o h er h om e w i t h all a hu sb an d s p ri d e
’
.
B u t in sh ort t i m e h e saw w i th m u c h su rp ri s e
Co mm andi ng fro wn s and ang e r d art i ng e y e s
,
- .
C RA B B E .
T H E Y who are young should not m arry yet ,
those who are O ld should not m arry a t all says ,
T hales the philosopher . In his prudence and

worldly wisdom Penguin h ad Observed the first
,
clau se of the a po ptheg m ; but when his inde

pendent ci rc umstance s authorized him as he ,
thought to follow h is own fan cy he had n e g

, ,
l e c te d th e last half of the position Just as h e .
was med i tating a ret i rement fr o m bu siness he ,

TH E N EW F O R E S T . 1 13
was se i zed w i th a tediou s m alady for w h ich ,
chan ge of air was prescribed ; and he accord

ing l y engaged lodgi ngs at the d i stance Of a f e w
,
miles fro m S outhampton in the h ouse of a wi ,
d o w na med Jarvis a pparently a very respecta

,
ble woman who with her daughter pro mi sed

, , ,
to take all possible care of the invalid and to ,
make him quite as comfortable as if h e were at

home Th e mot h er an exceedingly plausible
.
, ,
but sh rewd and artful woman of t h e world no ,
sooner learned the circum stances of h er lodger ,
th an she felt a deep interest in performi n g this

promise h aving promptly formed a hope that
, ,
by proper management she migh t entrap him ,
as a h usband for her daughter Laura for .

,
such was the name of the latter was a fine

, ,
showy looking girl somewhat more das hing

-
, in
her style Of dress th an became her stat i on ,
though b y no mean s an unattrac tive figure ,
especially to a bachelor verging u pon sixty .
N o soo ner was sh apprized of h er m other s de

e
’
sign s than s h e entered into t h e m with the t

, u
mos t alacri ty and prosecuted them with a pro

,
p o rtio n a te address R endering.her ap pearance

as allur i ng as possi ble she found an ex cu se in
, ,
1 14 T H E N E W F O R EST .
the invalid s state o f h ealth for being perpe

’
,
t u a l l y about his pe rso n prepari n g with her own

,
hand his slops a n d broth s administeri ng his m e

,
dic a m e n ts providi ng hi s little delicacies when

,
h e becam e convalesce n t and omitting n o o ppo r

,
t u nity Of am u sing his mind while

, sh e contri
buted to alleviate h is personal ailments .
Pe ngu i n was neither u ngrateful for her un
remitting attentions n o r insen sible to th e infl u

,
ence Of her personal charm s ; bu t as she w a s

more than you ng enough to be his daugh ter ,
h er appearan ce rather suggested t him th e pro o
p rie t
y of his choosing a wife w i th similar if l i
’
ua
fi c a tio n s,
but o f a more appropriate age tha n ,
presen ted her to h i s m i nd as calculated t o sup

ply th e desiderated h elpmate in h er o wn person .
In fact he had n o idea th at

, sh e wo u ld accept a
h usband so m uch older than h erself even were ,
be bold eno u gh to overlo o k th e d i sparity Of
their years and m ake her a n Off er Of his hand ;

,
in which persuasio n he prepared to leave th e

hou se not however with ou t war m expres sion s
, , ,
and liberal testimonies of hi s grat i tude Alarm .
e d a t these demon st rat i o n s of departure M rs , .
Jarvis pro c eeded to adopt suc h e ff ectual mea

TH E N EW F O R ES T . 1 15
s ures for the attai n ment o f her obj ect an d was ,
so artfully and eff ectuall y seconded by her

‘
daughter t h at i n t h e course Of a f e w weeks

,
Laura became M rs Peng u i n . .
In explanation o f th e young lady s anx i ety ’
t o e ff ect this incongr uous u nion i t m ay be ,
stated that she had a year or two before t h i s

,
peri od been so unfort u n ate as to com mit a f a u x

,
p as ,
wh i ch by the m, oth er s wary m anage ’
ment , had bee n carefully h u s h ed up at the mo

ment ; bu t as i t was by no m ean s imposs i ble
that t h e aff ai r migh t transpire an even t w h ich ,
would not tend t o increase the n umber o f can

d id a te s for her hand sh e deemed i t highly ad
,
v i sable to ge t married with as li ttle delay as

po ssible M rs Jarv i s was the m ore anx i ou s to
. .
se e h er settled from h er knowledge o f Laura s

,
’
light unsteady character ; and w h e n to t h e se

,
w e i g h t y considerat i on s were added a presen t
s ettlement Of t wo h undred pound s a e a rj and

y -
th e prospe ct Of becoming a well prov i ded w i do w ,
s h ould she surv i ve Penguin , of whic h there

could be little doubt di spari ty of years a p ,
e are d s o trivial an O bj ect i on as scarcely to

p ,
d eserve a moment s though t

’
In the da u gh ter s
.
’
fi .
estimation , indeed ,
t h e advanced age of her
h u sband was rather an advantage as bringing ,
wi thi n n earer view that happy period whe n she

might i ndem nify hersel f at the altar of love for ,
th ose sacrifices whic h s he now made at th e

shrines of wealt h an d prudence .
TO j g ud external
e bym anifestations n ever ,
w a s s o watchful s o diligent so anxiou s a wife

, ,
.
S he took i n to her own han d s the complete c o n

trol O f h is h ou sehold the superinten den ce o f
,
his health the direction of almost every action

,
of his life so that her l o ve for such her hu s

, ,
ba nd chose to call i t soon degenerated into

,
an absolute tyra n ny w hi ch she somet i mes ex

,
e rc is e d i n a wa rather painful to h is feelings

y ,
by displayi ng her authority in the presence o f

his friends an d visitants T o reconcile h im self
.
and oth ers to this obtr u sive domination he ,
would candidly co nfess that h er fo n dness be
came occasio nally importunate and troublesome ,
b u t that k nowing h o w s he doated u po n him ,

i
how deep an d tender w as her solicitude for his

welfare he m ust be the most ungrateful
, Of me n,
in fact lit tle better than a brute did he n o t
, ,
h u mour h er in these little aff ectionate though , ,

T H E N EW F O R EST .
perhaps over anxiou s interfer ences N ow and

- .
then h e would vary th e ground he took in de

fe nce Of his own independence poi nt i ng out b e
,
forehand t hi s foible in hi s better half declar ing ,
t h at there w as n o thing in w h ich h e took S O

m uch deligh t after geology as in the display
, ,
o f character a n d volunteeri n g to dra w o u t Mrs

,
.
Penguin s foibles and pec uliariti es in j u s tifi c a

’
tion o f his assertion s ; a process by which he

flattered himsel f that he should keep th e u pper
hand in the opi nion of hi s guests at th e very
m oment t h at h e most s ubmi ssively yielded him
self u p t o the lady s dominion
’
.
S eeing her stan d at the open door O f the

house as he approached he gave H e nry a h asty
,
i n timation Of these particulars as if to prepare

,
him f o r an e ff u sio n of her pet ulan t fondness ,
notwith standing which caution his companio n ,
was so mewhat surprised at th e shrewish tone of

rep rehen sion in which she exclaimed a s soo n as ,
she had discovered her h usba n d s bespattered ’
condition ,
H o ity toity ! Mr P is thi s a
-
. .
pligh t f o r a gentleman to come home in s plash ,
ed a n d draggled a s if he were a commo n hedger

and ditcher who had bee n draggi ng a fi sh
,
1 18 T H E N EW F O R EST .
pon d or cleaning ou t a cesspool ? W h at h ave

,
you been diving after ston es into the mud and

water like a N ewfou n dland dog ? F a u gh it
,
m ust h ave been some filthy place f o r it has the ,
n o is o m e s t smell I ever came n igh Y ou ll be .

’
drowned or smothered one of these days if you ,
go on with such fool i sh dangerou s freaks , p k o
ing i n to wells , and grubbing into pits after ,
”
rubbish and o l d brickbats .
“
After mi n erals spars and subterranean rari
, ,
ties you mean

,
. Z ook s my dear it would never ,
do f o r a stau n ch geologist like me to boggle at

”
every puddle or q u agmire and he wi nked his
,
—
eye at H enry as h e spoke as if , to i ntimate t h at

he enj oyed the voluble anxiety Of his spou se .
I m no perso n to be wi nked at nor is it a

’
m atter to be pas sed O ff with a nod Mr ,

.
resumed the m agisterial dame ; when you m ay

be laid u p again for six week s wit h a rheumatic
attack as you were with a sprained a nkle after
, ,
t umbli ng down th e cli ff O f Christch urch Bay ,
in ferreti n g out an Ol d bone .
“
An elephant s tooth a rare d invaluable
’
,
an
”
fossil as I hope to be saved ! sai d th e
, g e ol o
gi st appeali ng to H enry
, . T hat wa s the
TH E N EW F O R EST . 1 19
pleasantest roll I e ver h ad for I kep t t h e ele ,
han t s tooth in m y hand al l the while

’
p .
Ye s ; but yo u h ad one o f your o wn knock

e d out of your h ead whic h is l i ttle better t h a n
,
a fool s exchange ; and I found nothi ng so plea

’
sant in having to n urse yo u early and late ,
n igh t and day and you as cross all the time as

,
,
two stick s .
“
Gadso ! I believe I m u st plead gui lty t o -
that charge though I had th e best n urse i n all

,
the world B ut I cannot bear to be tied by the

.
”
leg ; it s like caging an eagle
’
.
“
Coopi n g a goose you mean Mr P and , , . .
,
cooped you are agai n likely to be i f you stand ,

.
talking a ny longer in your we t clothes so be ,
pleased to change them as fast as you can .
Your t h ings have bee n airing e v er si nce break

fast time and you w i ll find t h em
-
, al l ready in
your room ; for some h ow or other I had a ,
m isgiv i ng that you would come h ome as i f you

had been dragged through a horse pond -
. I ’
m
’
sure it s a mercy you have one like me to think
”
for ye a nd look after ye and take care of ye
, ,
.
”
Gad ! there s som e truth i n that whis
’ ’
,
pered Pengui n to his com pan ion as he led him ,

1 20 TH E N EW F O R EST .
“
forward s into th e hou se ! faithful fond crea ,
ture admirable manager truly attached t o

— —
me invaluable wife to be sure ! Did yo u s ee

—
,
how I drew her out o n purpose to ex h ibit the ,
little O ddities Of her character to yo u ? pl ayd ’
her o ff famou sly did n t I T hat s the way I ,

’ ’
”
always serve her Vastly amu si n g som etimes . .
By this time they had reached a handsome

parlour whe n th e geologist having retire d to
, ,
his toilet H enry ,

h ad an opportu nity o f O h
servi ng that the room bespoke the taste of its
owner bei ng decorated with e ngrav i ngs o f mi
,
nerals petrifactio n s shells corals an d various

, , , ,
vegetable and an i mal fossils ,

while th e m antel
piece was e ncumbered wit h specimen s Of the
same n ature al l neatly ticketed a n d labelled
, ,
in Pengui n s o wn rou n d legible hand wr i ti ng

’
-
.
O nly a short i nt erval had elapsed when the ,
geologist who wa s rapid in all hi s m ovements

, ,
re e n tered the apartme nt so much improved in

-
,
his a ppearan ce that H enry could hardly recog

,
nize in the really respectable looki ng figure no w -
before him his late companio n O f the shabby

,
fustian j acket seal skin cap ,

-
, an dloaded wallet .
Penguin however had by , ,

no means changed
T H E N EW F O R ES T . 1 21
his habits with hi s habilim ents ; f o r observing

that his guest h ad bee n exam i ning for want of ,
better occupation , o ne of t h e fossils he imme ,
d ia te l y exclai med ,
“
Ah a ! m y young f ri end ,
th at s a rarit y is i t , n t
o ? B ut th ese are no
thing ; only th e dunnage o f my cargo as I m ay ,

'
say Come al o ng com e alon g to my m u se um

.
, ,
and you shall see all m y treasures S O saying .

,
h e seized th e arm O f his victim an d h urried

,
him no l ens c o l ens

, ,
to th e room in question ;
a spaciou s apartmen t surrounded ,
w ith glazed
m ah oga n y -
cases wel l filled with geological cur i
,
i
o s it e s , fossil al l bearing in sc rip
m i n eral an d ,
tion s and numbers to enable their propr i etor to ,
refer them t o their proper species an d classe s -

.
Being now upo n his o wn d unghill , no cock

w h o had found a pearl could crow m ore loudly
and l u stily and although H e nry migh t ha ve
,
truly exclaimed N on s u m Ga l l u s id eo g u é
, ,
”
n o n re e ri mm m h e submitted to th e infl ic
p g e a ,
tion withou t a si ngle sym ptom Of impatience ;

for h owever his manners might occasi onally de
,
vi e te from conventional form s and Observan ces ,
he was never deficient in that truest and best o f

al l pol i teness wh i c h has its source in b e ne v o
V OL . I . G
en ce . N O sooner t h erefore di d h e perce i ve t h e

, ,
u n f eigned deligh t wit h which Pengu i n rode h is
h armless hobby tha n he gave him his e n tire at

,
tention more for the purpose

, Of gratifyi ng his
host th an from an y interest that h e took i n the
,
d i splay of his treasures H e eve n courteou sly

.
a ssisted in referr i ng to sundry e ngrav i ngs and

scientific books upon a large table i n the centre
of the room w h e n illustrations or descriptions
,
were required of any par ticular specimens ,

a
process which was faci litated by labels pasted
u pon th e bottom of eac h by Pengu i n s own ’
hand .
I t was h owever no sm al l gratificat i on to H enry ,
especially as he had acquired an import unate

appetite by his excursion wheh he w a s relieved
,
from th i s duty by th e announ cemen t of dinner ,
an d u shered to a board spre ad with a copiou s

ness w hich h e had h ardly anticipated . M rs .
Penguin was non e Of those lenten housewives

who could be taken by surpri se S he n ever had
“
o ccasio n to excuse a shabby dinn er to an u n
expected guest by saying she , w i shed h e had

g i ven h er n otice Of hi s com i ng ; nor to an in
v ite d one by t h e doubt f ul compliment
, o f telling
h i m she had treated him as a friend . Wi th the

com m o n mistake of u n der bred pe ople -
, s he con
sid e red expens i ve clothes , an d th e m ai nten anc e
of a h and some table the distinguish ing an d , in
f alli ble characteristics of gentility ; and being at
onc e vain O f her per son and some wh at over ,
addicted to good living s he n ever failed to ,
be d i zen herself every day w ith bu stlin g an d

exuberan t finery ,
an d to s i t down to a very
su bs ta n tial and diversified dinner . During the
pro gress O f th e repast , Mrs Penguin who se
.
,
ze al fo r her h usban d s health of a m os t

’
w as
fi d ge t ty an dfu ssy character perfor me d for him ,
the same u nwelcome o ffi ce di scharged by S ancho

Panza s physicia n laying an authori tat i ve in
’
t e rd ic t upon all such viand s as she thought

calculated to di sagree w i th hi m U pon t h e .
pre se n t occasion h e would gladly have di s

,
p e nse d w i th her tyrannical ve to more especi ally ,
as sh e h er self spared no n e O f the forbidde n

d is hes ; but s he was ne i ther disposed to rela x
'
in h er v i gi l ance nor eve n t o relen t at

,
hi s
oc c asi onal appeal s to w h ich she generall y ,

re
pl ied by a peevi sh P o oh ! pooh ! don t tell ’
me Mr P don t you remember h ow il l i t

, . .
’
G 2
124 T H E N EW FO R EST .
”
m ade you at such and such a time ? always
taking care to specify th e exact day At the .
s am e mome n t she g e ne rall v ordered the servan t

to bri ng from the sideboard a nd t o place before
him some little del i cacy Of w h ich she knew him
to beparticularly fond and it was b ythis sort
, ,
Of double solicitude t h war ti ng his palate when

,
it could not be safely gratified and ind ulging ,
it w h ere his health did not forbid that she ,
had established an d m ainta ined her ascende ncy .
Penguin never opposed her Offic io u s dictation ,
b ut as h e felt it to be somewhat derogatory he ,
agai n sei zed the opportunity of whisperi ng

to his gue st as soon as her back was t ur ned ,
,
H aven t I played upon her foibles fi nely

’
!
I did n t wa n t any f those dishes never touch

’
o —
them bu t resolved to let yo u se e what a sharp

,
look o u t she keeps upon my health what s th e

-
’
consequence N ever ill ; n either sick nor sorry

?
— don t spend five gui n eas a year u pon ap o the

’
caries and doctors ; all owing t o her excellent ,
creature ! devotedly attached to me invaluable ,
wife ! It s really too bad O f me bu t I m so

’
,
’
fond of exhibi ting character that I purposely ,
h umour her now and then j ust to draw out ,

TH E N EW F O RE S T 1 25
those li ttle distinctive trai t s those am i able pe c u ,
liaritie s that I ment i oned Descr i bed her well .
d i dn t I hey
’
N otwith standi n g her prodi gi ou s merit s as a

w i fe and his own skill i n ex h ib i ting them her
, ,
‘
absence eviden tl yfreed him from a certain de

gree Of awkward n ess a nd restrain t ; for he n ow
talked with a more cheerful volu bility severely ,
scolded the m an servant wh o brough t in th e

wine not so m uc h for t h e alleged sh ak i ng of
,
the basket w h ic h was i ndeed an im aginary

,
Off ence as to prove that he could at least e x e r

,
cise proper aut h ority over h i s domestics ; ex

tolled h is claret smacked hi s lips pushed about
, ,
the bottle disserted rath er pompou sly upon his

,
fortune h i s m u seum and the respectable and

, ,
wealth yn ei ghbours who v i s i ted h im ; and hav

ing thu s , as h e thought , re - establ i sh ed that
d ig nit w hich might perchance have been lower
e d , in hi s guest by the dom ination
the eyes O f ,
exerci sed by Mrs Pengu i n h i s rul i ng passio n

.
,
of curiosit y recovered i ts s way and he p

'
ro
,
d d to i n terrogate hi s compan i on as t his

c ee e o
pla n s pro spects an d inten ti on s H enry w h

'
, . , o
,
was u pon all occas i o ns frank and open as the

1 26 T H E N EW F O R ES T
day stated t h at
,
his m other designed pay i ng a
v isit to h er kinsman as soon as she h ad learn ed ,
his addre ss a n d Obtained his permission for

,
doing so which had been the O bj ect of hi s o wn

,
v isi t to T haxted ; and th at h e h imself purport ,
ing to settle i n E ngland S hould probably fix ,
w h erever his m ot h er did bei ng perfectly

, ind if
as to local i ties T h e last statement was
f e re n t .
b y no means u n acceptable to Penguin who in , ,
th e desire of relieving th e occasional tediu m of

h i s l i fe and in the belief t hat h e should increa se
,
hi s respectability by promoti ng an i n timacy w i t h

H enry w h om h e se t down
,
for a y oung m an Of
hand some fortune , wa s alread y a n xiou s to se
cure him as a perma n e n t neighbour an Obj ect ,
most like l y to be attai ned by invit i ng h i m to

become his temporary guest . S uch an import
ant step h owever, , wa s not to be h azarded w i t h
ou t the previous concurrence hi s wife w h om o f ,
h e fort h with sough t assigning as t h e sole m o

,
t i e Of hi s proposed arrangement the des i re of

v
contri bu ting t o her comfort by the soc i ety of

Mrs T enb y
. M rs Pengui n wh had been
. .
, o
mu c h struck by H enry s handsom e appearance ’
and f rank manners g i ving a ready assent to his

“
,
sc h eme t h e geolog i st h avi ng n o w plen ary au

, ,
tho rity to act returned to t h e di ning room and

,
-
,
a fter sett i ng fort h t h e pe cul i ar r e co mmendat i on s
O f hi s own vic i ni ty as a place o f res i dence i ts

, ,
salubri t y its ru ral beauty i ts prop i nqu i ty to

, ,
the sea and above all t h e great advantage O f

, ,
his be i ng able to introduce them to the best

s o ciety in the neighbourhoo d he concluded w i th ,
inviti ng H enry and h i s mot h er to pass t wo or

t hree mont h s wi th him at Grotto h ouse for -
,
s u c h was th e n ame of hi s man s i on ; o b se rv

ing t h at t h e y could t h us for m an op i ni on o f t h e
,
country and d e c i de whet h er they s h ould c h oo se

,
i t as a place Of pe rmanent abode U nable to .
re si st even at the expen se of truth a l i ttle b ra

, , s
v ad o in sup por t of his m ari tal au t h o ri ty h e ,
added t h at h e ha
, d not c o mm u ni ca t e d hi s inte n
ti on to M rs Pengu i n t h at i t was altoget h er
.
,
unneces sary since he h ad onl y to si gnif y hi s

,
own wi sh e s upo n any subj ect w h atever to e n ,
sure her immed i ate acq i e scen c e an obse rvat i on u ,
w hi c h h e gave wit h a con si derable air of se l f
impo rtance H enry th ankf ul l y accepted t h e

.
i nvi ta tion add i ng hi s pe rsu asion th at his mot h e r

,
would be equally glad to avail her se lf of h er

k i nsman s k i ndness ; which poi nt being settled

’
,
and a bottle of excellen t claret havi ng been

finish ed he prepared to retur n to his i nn in
, ,
s p i te o f the pressi ng instances o f his host that ,
h e shoul d m ake Grotto house his present quar -
ters .
I w i s h to see a little more Of the neighbour

”
hood was h i s reply
, I told the waiter at
.
the George t hat I s h o u ld pass a f e w day s at th e

,
inn an d I never forfei t my word unless from

, ,
necessity .
All righ t perfectly right my young D O

, ,
mine ; but a loos e prom i se of this sort

I k n o w not the m eani ng of t h e term —
if a
pro mise impl i es perf ormance it cannot be loose ; ,
if it d o n o t it is n o promise T here are no

, .
degrees of compar i son in trut h .
Gad so ! my you ng friend you are logical ; ,
bu t surely yo u m ay mea n wh at you promise ,
and yet be s u bsequently prevented from per

”
form i ng it .
“
If the preventio n be absolute i t is a su ffi
cien t excuse b ut mere change O f will is a poor
'
apology for breaking our word If we violate .
trut h i n trifl e s we s h all soon cease to respect it

,
T HE NEW F O R ES T .
1 29
-
in matter s of mo ment Y ou m u st allo w m e to

.
w i sh you good e v en i ng but I sh all be at

' '
a ,
your serv i ce t o m orrow for t h e rene wal Of our

“
”
ramble .
W ell well I see by yo u r peremptory look

, ,
t h at you have made up y our mind ; and since ,
a s they say o n e m a n m a lead a

y ,
pon d bu t twenty can t m ake him d rink yo u

,
’
,
’ ’
m u st e en h ave your own way B ut yo u c an;

’
.
'
not think of walking it i s too far af ter your

'
long morn i ng s ramble ; ’

d my man very
'
'
an — a
st eady fellow i s James — sh all d r i ve you over in

”
the gig .
I am obliged to you , bu t I ever ride

’
when I can u se my o wn feet . All person s in

good healt h sh ould h ave n u se exerc i se ; I '
complai nt and i t is fit t h eref o re t h at I sh ould

, , ,
”
walk .
N ay if you bri ng y our first an d t hi rd i nto

,
the same denomination and prove i t by the rule ,
of three there s ,
’
no gain saying you ; bu t you
m u st at least allow me to accompany you part
James br i ng m e m y h at and stick
’
of the way ; ,
.
tak e
'
S hall I and h ammer ? N O it m y wallet

'
will be getti n g too late an d besides we sh all , ,
G 5
1 80 THE NE W F O R ES T .
re ne w our research es early i n t h e morn i ng .
Gad though I cannot vaul t over th e Miller s ’
ru n l i ke a roebuck I c a n stir abou t upon my ,
l egs as well as any m an of my sta nding i n t h e

w h ole coun t y s o come along my young fr i end
, , ,
come along .
S O say i ng h e bu stled at a br i sk pace towards

,
t h e hal l doo r where h owever h e wa s i n terrupted

-
, , ,
by t h e ever watch f ul -
exclai m
ed as h e approached H ere s doi ngs Mr P ! ’
. .
here s fine doi ngs going out again such a dam p

’
afternoon a s th i s after you have been already

,
drenched and sou sed like a blind puppy ; and

n ever t hi nking of those that have got to n urse
and wai t upon you shoul d you catc h c o ld as , ,
"
t en to one yo u will o r be laid up again with ,
th e rheumatism I have h alf a mind to s ay.
you sha n t stir a step bu t if you m u st need s

’ ’
go a gadd i ng w h en you o u gh t to be sitt i ng

,
at home a nd drinking a treacle posset let -

,
James at least fasten on your gaiters a nd take

, , ,
t h is umbrell a w i th you a n d p u t this hand k e r ,
chief in your pocket to wrap round your t h roat

’
as you return and don t make it late
, . I won t ’
h ave yo u be l ate for i t l ooks very l i ke ra i n

, ,
T HE N EW F O R EST 1 31
“
and Go d kn o w s Wh at m i ght be t h e co nse
q u e nce s o f t h e we t and t h e nigh t a ir , a fter

be ing be -
draggled and -
ho rse po nd e d as y ou h ave
”
bee n t hi s morn i ng !
”
All righ t p erfectly rig h t my! dear sai d
, , ,
t h e obed i ent h u sband putt i ng on t h e gai te rs ,
wh i c h the c aref ul w i fe had brough t w i t h her .
Gad s o t h ere ’
s n o h arm in be i ng on the sa fe
Jame s i n the meanw hi le kept h old i ng O en p

the hall door and s urvey i ng t h e pr o cess as
-
,
his m aster b utton ed hi s ga i te rs ; w h e n Pe nguin ,
who wante d a se t Off again st hi s own s u b mis -
i
s v e ne s s to h i s s po u se cri ed w i t h an a u tho ri
,
t ativ e voi ce an d look W hy do you stan d ,
gaping t h ere you st up i d f ellow ? get

, al ong with
you get along
,
T h e man a quiet c i vil rust i c i n a flam i ng

,
l i very wi t h dre w wi t h o ut sayi ng a w ord and

, ,
Pengu i n carefully acc outred for h i s afternoon s

,
’
walk was at length allowed t h e l i berty Of

,
quitt i ng hi s o wn h ou se Th i s good crea .
”
t ure he s ai d as t h ey passed into the g ar
, ,
den is ever on t h e watch for my healt h and

,
comfort C om i ng i n or going out as yo u h av e

.
,
1 82 TH E N EW FO R EST .
seen s h e i s al ways t hi nk i ng Of me ! though to

, ,
.
be sure I have rather led her to exhibit h erself

,
to day for your amuseme n t I longed to Show

-
.
'
you her weak side S ome people would be

.
p
o ff ended at her little im ortunities b ut that s
’
not the case w i th m e Th ank God I m no t a

.
’
bad h u sband and Wi t h such a treasure Of a

’
”
wife I should indeed b e a brute if I were
,
- .
T he principal O bj ect O f the geologist i n O ff er
ing to walk part of the way back with hi s visi

'
t ant wa s to S how him a grotto at t h e extrem i ty

,
of his grou nd s from which his m a n sion had

,
derived its nam e though as far as shells spars , , ,
an d m i nerals were concern ed t h e dwelli ng house ,

-
deserved the appellat i o n q u ite a s m uch as its

'
appe n dage H ere H e n ry u n derwent a fresh in

.
fl ic tio n O f hard words b u t th e catalog ue being

,
at lengt h completed they pursued their way,
together towards T h axted .
A s they h ad di ned early it was yet the ,
broad daylight O f a fine summer eveni ng ,
w he n o n approachi ng C o wfi e l d Cross
, P en ,
gui n h avi ng shaded his ey es w i t h h is hand

,
t o O btain the better sig h t of the obj ects b e

“
fore hi m exclai med , , Yes sure en o ugh t h at
,
i s Doctor Dotterel s carriage I wonder f ’

— or
what purpose i t c an be stopping there P an d —
yonder also i s Mr F ram pto n s four wheeled

, ,
.
’
-
c h ai se and t wo or three horsemen

,
that long -
n ecked black m are m u st be F ra n k R ingwood s

’
—
an d th e parties are all confabulat i ng together .
Very extraordi nary ! I m u st k n ow what all

this mean s Let u s pu sh forward my you n g
.
,
frien d ; let u s step briskl y ou t or t h ey may

.
separate before we can j oi n them A few .

“
minutes smart walking bro u gh t them to th e

party several of whom sal u ted Pe nguin as he
,
came up and Doctor Dotterel leaning

, , out o f
the window Of his ponderou s coach drawn by ,

'
t wo club tailed horses

-
al most a s c o rp u l e n t a s ,
the i r owner exclaimed “

H a ! well I protest
, , , ,
this is curi ous enough ! H ad we called a

special meeting of the neighbour h oo d ; we
should hardly have collected more t h an w e
have done in this acciden tal h em ha re n —
,
—
contre . I was men t i oni ng , M r Penguin .

, to
my friend R ingwood who has j ust j oined u s ,
hem
-
t h at it is inc u mben t upon u s to put
—
dow n this approaching fair S ir it is as I .

, ,
may say — ahe m — an abominable n ui sance !

1 34 TH E NEW F O R EST .
Y e s, S i r ,
a n u i sance promoting v i ce and im
, ,
m oral i ty and profaneness and all manner Of

, ,
-
h em ha in short quite shock i ng ; an d as
,
—
,
t h e vicar of this parish , and a m agis trate and ,
moreover a min i ster Of t h e Gospel I hold it

, ,
to be my bounden duty ah em — in fact the —

,
gen try and all the person s of respectabil i ty

,
yes S i r of respectab i lity ah em ! h ave deter

'
, ,
mined to support m e in suppressi ng i t ! and

you S ir I am quite sure wi l l be happy to
, , ,
co ncur t h at i s to assist in s h ort S i r to

—
,
—
, ,
put it down ahem —
Certainly Doctor certainly ; all righ t per

, , ,
”
sai d Pengu i n eagerly not a l i ttle
f e c tl y right , , ,
flattered at being thu s include d among the

“
gentry an d persons of respectabi l ity ; Any
thing that you an d the ot h er gentlemen pro
pose I sh all , be
most happy to suppor t ; and ,
as you very j u stly Ob serve we ough t all to ,
un i te together upon an occas i on of t hi s sort .
I se e n o n ecessity for u niting wi th a ny

”
body said the gou ty an d purse proud Mr
,
-
.
J u stinian F rampto n with a superciliou s look ;

,
bu t as holdi ng o ne of t h e largest properti e s

i n t hi s ne i gh bourh ood and I bel i eve I , , mi gh t
sa y in t h e w h ole coun ty exclusi vely of my

, ,
be i ng a magistrate an d one of the verderer s ,
of hi s Maj esty s forest I would gladly c o Ope’

'
-
,
ra te i n putt i ng down t h is f ai r w h ic h i s l i ttle ,
better t h a n an as semblage o f rogues and vaga ,
bonds and t h ieves and poac h ers from w h o se

, , ,
depredation s we have already su ff ered qu i te

e
Pon my h onour no w that s p arte e c u l arl y , ,
’
true drawled Captai n F rampton t h e son Of

, ,
the l as t speaker who was dr i v i ng h i s father ,
in a fo u r w h eeled c h ai se-
T h o s e d e m d p oa ch .
’
e rs I beg pardon Doctor D a wte re l

,
— tho se , ,
—
co nfounded poac h ers r u ined our preserves last

s e as on not a phaisant to be seen ; don t kno w
—
’
wh a t we s h all do i n O ctober ; u nc a wm o nl y dis

’
agreeable besides a fair S a mon so n s bore
—
, ,
a i n t it now
’
S uch a no i se of drum s and tr u m
pe ts enoug h of that yo u know whe n
—
and I ’
ve , ,
I m w i th my raig ime nt Besides a f ai r s so

’
.
,
’
vul gar ain t i t now ? ab awminabl e

, Oh we l l
’ ’
pu t i t dow n b y all means Pon my hon our .

’
,
”
it s quite laug h able
’
.
What wa s quite l augh able i t m igh t h ave

pu zzl e d the cap tai n to . ex
p l ain, but as t h e word
1 36 T H E NEW F O R EST .
a ff orded him an excu se for smil i ng and di s ,
playing a remarkably fine s e t o f teeth h e was ,
in th e habit of usi ng it as a peroration which ,
w h ether appropriate o r not would at least , , ,
leave his countenance which was really hand ,
some , in a becoming and graci ou s expressio n .
”
Oh ! curse t h e fellows ! cried one o f th e
“
horsemen ; let u s summon th e w hole p o sse
c o mita tu s , and suppress t h e fair by all mean s ,
if it brings any m ore poachers amongst u s .
We bee n quite out o f luck lately only shot

’
ve ,
a couple o f them si n ce last F ebruary n o t in ,
these parts at least ,

. S ome o f the keepers mu st
play booty or the y , h ave turned a dozen m igh t
o f them into dog s m eat in that time T he

’
.
lazy rascals wo n t get ’

out of their bed s if they
hear a night shot .
You will never get griping old Gideon W e l

”
beck to consen t to i t observed another horse
,
m an for as lord o f the m anor he gets certai n

, ,
fees by i t ; a n d if it only pu ts te n pou n d s in his

pocket he wil l uphold the fair although as a
, , ,
”
m agistrate it is his duty to crush it
,
.
”
W e are quite aware of that resume d the ,
“
former ; but we proposed to rem unerate the
o ld curmudgeo nby a ge neral subscri pt i on w h ich ,
”
would presently be fil led .
I t i s not as i f there were n o monied peo

”
l e in t h e n e i g h bour h ood said t h e elder Mr
p ,
.
F rampton wit h a con sequent i al look evidently

, ,
mea n t to restric t that d i stinction to his o wn

perso n .
Duri ng th e latter speeches Pe nguin had ,
taken an opportun i ty of i nforming Dr Dotterel .
in a whisper that h is compan i on a dis t ant

, ,
c o nnex i on of hi s own and th e adopted , so n of

t h e late Captai n T enby of th e R oyal N avy , ,
who had left him a hand some fortune talked ,
of purc h as i ng an estate and settling i n the v i

i
c nit
y of T haxted a comm unicat i o n wh i ch had
,
such a manifest e ff ect upon th e Doctor s est i mate ’
of the stranger that h e leaned forward out of

,
the window of h i s carr i age and said to H enry , ,
with a half bow S o I fi nd Mr Me l c o mb ,

.
,
that you are likely to becom e on e of our neigh

bours Ahem ! W ell I protest it s singular
.
, ,
’
that we should all meet togeth er ! And as I

m ay look upon you as on e of my fut ure pa
rishio n e rs and as a gentleman h avi ng an u n
,
doubted — ah em —
that is to sa
y a b out
, to hold
1 88 T HE N EW F O R EST .
property i n t h e ne i gh bourh ood ; I cannot for

a moment entertain a q uestion in fact a doubt —
, ,
that you will co n sider it your duty yes S i r —

, ,
yo u r bounden d uty should you become one of

,
u s to c o operate in putting down this m ost

,
-
ah em t his most abominable n u i sance

—
is not probable t h at I sh all ever be au

It
tho rise d to interfere in t hi s matter said ,
H enry ; but if I were I sh ould most cer

“
,
t ainl y exerc i se my infl uence in supporting no t ,
in suppressing the fair for i f i t be h eld by the

,
lord of the m anor as one of these gentlem en

,
h as j u st observed I doub t w h ether the m a

,
g is tra te s h ave any legal right to interpose an d

e ven i t be no t, I am sure there could be ne i t h er
”
j ust i ce nor right f e e hng in such a measure .
I protest S ir that I S hould be glad to

, ,
hear a reason assigned fo r suc h a very h em ! —
”
very extraord i nary opin i on .
I th i nk the amu sem ents the p o or who o f ,
have most need of recreation are already in ,
”
fin i tely too m uch c urtai led continued H enry ; ,
“ and I have h eard no v al i d reas o n as signed
for still farther limiting them i n t h e presen t

in stance . H orse races occasion a m uch great e r
T H E N EW F OR ES T . 1 39
mblage of rogues vag abonds and pic

asse , ,
p ockets than a f,
air ; and until I s e e the
g e ntr y voluntaril y suppress i ng the sport s of t h e

t urf and h unt i ng an d sh ooting as well as balls
, , , ,
concerts and ,
O peras none of w h ic h are free
,
f rom obj ection s I cannot lend myself to t h at

,
partial morality which direct s its indignation

,
exclusively again st th e amusement s of the lower

orders . S urely the labou ri ng classe s requir e
r e laxati on more t h a n those who never to i l ; and
if t h e m agi strates m u st i nterfere at all I s h ould ,
re commend them to begin with racing and t h e ,
s ports of th e field which as they cannot be , ,
pract i sed without gambling wrangling and , ,
wanton cruelty are infin i tely more immoral

,
t h a n t h e noisy merri men t or even , th e oc casi onal

”
i ntemperanc e of a fai r .
”
I pro te s t, S i r , sai d Dr Dotterel
'
s
.
, q u ee z
i ng h imsel f back into h is c arri age w i t h some

d iffi culty and a good deal of h orror I n ever ,
i n all my life h eard h em suc h unpreceden t — —
ed , revolut i onary t h e y are in fact as I may

-
,
-
, ,
sa
y co,mpletely so A n d turni n g away hi s
eye s fro m H enry as i f he co n sidered hi m
,
u n wort h y of any f arther notice he cont i nu ed , ,

1 40 T H E N EW FO R EST .
addressing himself to F ran k Ri ngwood Y ou ,
can not surely deny Mr R ingw o od the m i s , .

,
chiefs that S prin g from this sce n e of vice an d

iniquity hem ! yes S ir i niquity since only
— —
, , ,
”
last year there was a case in pint
”
I n p o in t audibly ej acul ated H en ry
,
.
I t so h appened pursued the Doctor no t , ,
noticing this little interruption It so h ap

pened Mr R ingwood
,
.
— h ow it was I protest , ,
I
cann ot immediately discover ; that is t o say ,
recollect h em but j u st at t h at time my car

,
— —
ria e was m e n di n g
g
Bei ng m e n ded again interpose d H enry , ,
as if talking to h im self and yet loud enoug h to ,
be h eard by all the party .
I cannot subm i t to t h is sai d the Doctor , ,
reddening ; I protest it i s absolutely nay ,

—
,
worse ! Good eveni ng Mr R ingwood I will , .

,
—
tell you another tim e what I was abou t to state .
Mr F rampton I will do m yself th e honour of

.
,
cal l ing at th e H all Drive o n coachman d rive .

, ,
on . Aha ! -
shocki ng ! shock i ng — I hope we
are no t going to h ave an

y radicals in the
pari sh Drive o n hom e
.
— ! home h em —
If th e ge ntleman h eld an v property in the

TH E N EW F O R EST .
141
Mr F rampton he would .
,
not probably entertai n such wild an d d anger

, ,
ou s not i on s W e of the landed intere st

.
,
”
’
Pon my h o n our S i r , , i nterposed t he Cap
tai n the dust of th e Doctor s coach is quite ’
’
ain t it n o w ? R ailly his horses

int aw l e rab l e , —
’
ought not to be allowed to powder gentlemen s ’
trowsers in this shocking ma n ner S hall I drive .
on S uppress rac i ng an d hu nt i ng
—
N ever
heard suc h an e x tro r nary propos i t i on ; perf ect’
l yre d e e c u l o u s
’
and laughable pon my hono u r ,
So sayi ng h e nodded to Ri ngwood display i ng

, ,
his white teeth in spite of the d ust and drove ,
o ne i ther h i mself nor his father taking any

ff ,
fart h er notice o f H e nry or Pe nguin . .
”
Gad z oo ks ! my young friend cr i ed the ,
latter wi t h a look of c h agri n

,
ho w c o u l d you ,
think of expressi ng your opin i on s so unguard

ed l I m sa d ly afraid you h ave o ff e nded the
’
?
y .
worthy Do c tor as well as Mr F rampto n ; ,

.
bo th of t h em ge n tlemen of t h e first con sequence

”
in thi s neighbourhood .
My Opinion wa s asked ; I spoke wh at I

though t ; and I should h ave do n e th e s ame had
they been e mperors . In my est i mat i on tr u th ,
1 42 T H E NEW F O R ES T
. .
i s o f i nfinitely more consequence th an ei th er of

t h es e gentlemen thoug h I am far from que s
,
their re spe c tab il itv

t io ning .
”
My dear Mr R i ngwood resumed Penguin
.
, ,
vexed at the evident discomposure o f t h ose who

had departed and th erefore the more anxiou s
,
to conciliate his remain i ng auditors ,

you will ,
I am sure , excu se my young fri en d when I ,
inform yo u , that he i s but lately arrived from

Am eri ca and has har dl y h ad time to accu stom
,
”
him self to our man n ers .
T ush neighbour make no apologi es to

,
me man
, . I respe ct th e you ng gentleman for
his honest ,
m anly candour ; an d whatever I may
th i nk o his opi n ion s in other respects I q u i te
f ,
agree w ith him abou t this foolish a n d tyranni
cal attempt at suppressing th e fair which I ,
sh al l m ost certai nly oppose A y an d I should .

,
h ave told the Doc tor my m ind v ery plainly had ,
h e not driven o ff in such dudgeon Com e lad s .

, ,
shall we trot ? T here s a heavy sh ower clo u d ’
ing up from th e west ward a n d we sh al l have ,
wet j acket s now before w e get t o B rook

, ,
”
H atch S o saying he nodded to Penguin and
.
,
H enry bade t h em go o d even i ng and moved o ff

, ,
T HE N EW F O R EST . 1 43
w i t h hi s companions at a rapid pace ; when t h e

geo logi st aga i n took hi s compan i on to task for ’
his i mprudence remind i ng h im that w h atever

, ,
lat i tude migh t be allowed in A meri ca suc h ,
heterodox sent i men ts should never be unguard

edl
y u ttere d in E ngland espec i ally in t,h e pre
sence of the clergy and the gentry i n w h o m ,
they would be sure to cau se Off ence ; an d abov e

all reprehe n ding hi s freedom in presu m i ng to
,
”
co rrect th e Doctor s E ngl i sh ’
.
If my op i nion s be fou nded i n rea so n and

j u st i ce ,
”
i t i s prec i sely the clergy
said H enry ,
“
and gentry who ough t to h ear them ; bec a u se

t h ese are the very classes w h ose conduct I co n
d e mn in grudgi n g every am u sement to t h e
,
poo r wh ile they cling to t h e i r own w h atever

, ,
evils t h ey m ay entai l ; a circ u m stance w hi ch

subj ects t h em to a strong su spi c on of hypoc ri i
c
y , w h en t h ey a ssig n moral motives for th e i r
interference with all the pastimes of t h e lower
classes AS to the Doctor s grammatical errors
’
.
,
it is surely righ t h e sh o u ld be told of them ;

since h e who sets up for a teacher of other s ,
ought n o t to u se ac t i ve pa rti ciple s instead of

”
pass i ve .
1 44 TH E N EW F OR EST .
I tell you w h at , my you ng Domi ne , y ou
will h ear many blunders committed by person s

in authority in which it will m uch better b e
,
c ome yo u to be passive than active ; and as ,
you are a stran ger among u s yo u will excuse ,
my telli ng you that E nglishmen are in structed

,
”
to respect their bet ters .
I n which term they are sedulously taugh t
i n clud e al l those who a re ric he r tha n them

'
to
selves ; an interpretation to which I c an n ever

be brough t t o submit My betters in v irtue .
and k nowledge I shall al ways revere n ce as they

dese rve ; bu t I ca nnot sacrifice my o w n i nde
p en d e nc e to th e mere clai m s of weal th or eve n ,
”
of station .
All righ t perfectly righ t ! every m a n should

,
thi nk and act f o r him self; and tha nk Go d ! th ere ,
i s nobody more independent more free from the ,
co ntrol of others than I am ; but s till, ad s o
it s positively going t o rain

’
Mrs Pengui n . .
said it would ; sh e cau tioned m e n o t t o be late ;

'
and if I sho uld get wet twice in the s ame d ay ,
end K ind ,
’
I shall never hear the on t . good ,
careful creature ! how thoughtful o f h er to

gi ve m e the umbrella Go o d nig h t goo d night !

.
,
”
let me se e you early to morrow - .
Wi t h t h ese word Pengu i n s tarted o ff at a l o ng

tr o t w hi c h was man i festl y i ntend ed to ant i ci
,
pate if possi ble b o t h th e s h ow e r and t h e scold

, ,
ing ; w hi le H enr y ,
who c ared not for ra i n , and
who had no f ear of angry tongues if he d i d not

retu rn by a given hour qu i etly pur s ued his
,
way back to T h axt e d .
VOL . I .
C H A P TER V I .
At l ast it was h i nt e d t
t h a th e re l d b e no ways o go o d
c ou
as t hat of a ro u n d ro b i n as t h e sail o rs c all it wh i ch

, ,
the y ma k e u se of, wh e n th e y e nt e r in t o a c on s p i ra c y ,
so as not t o l e t it b e k n o wn wh o p u ts his n am e fi rst

or last t o th e pp a er .
S
B O WE LL
’
S LI F E OF JO H N S ON .
W H I L E the gentry the neighbourhood of in
T haxted were prepari ng to co ncert measures

f o r the suppressio n of the fair t h ose of the ,
lower orders who anticipated either profit or

,
amusement fro m its m ai n te nance had not been ,
idle O n th e followi ng morni n g a meeting wa s

.
,
held in the club room o f th e G eorge inn for

- -
,
the purpose of co n sideri ng what w ere the most

advisable steps to be taken in v indication of
t h ei r le al rights and for p reservi ng the i mme
g ,
~
TH E N EW F O R EST .
1 47
morial u sages of th e parish ; and as it wa s wel l

known that Mr T imothy W ick s the landlord
.
, ,
was in the habit of attendi n g publi c meeti ngs

.
as well as scientific lectures h e wa s un animou sly ,
voted into the chair by a very n umerous and

,
respec table body of the parishioners such —
being the character they b estowed upo n their

own assem blage in an address to the m agi s
,
trates which was subsequently agreed upon

, .
As the landlord h ad no wish w h atever that the

discu ssio n should be a dry one h e had seen ,
with pleasure the long table in th e centre of th e

roo m gradually cover ed with porter p ots p e w -
,
ter gill s rummers an d glasses o f all sort s ; n o r

-
, ,
had he off ered any obj ectio n to the i ntroductio n

o f to b ac c o pipes which co n sidering them as s e
p
-
, ,
c ial provoc atives of drinking it was his libe ,
ral cu stom to bestow u pon th e guests f o r n o

th i ng N o w however that h e wa s promoted
.
, ,
to the dignity of chairm an a se n se of propriety ,
and decorum suggested to him that the latter
hould be laid aside no t fitting ac c o m a ni

“
as
s , p
ment s for oratory ; wherefore having clamor ,
o u sl thum ed the table with a heavy pair of

y p
l emo n squeezers till his o w n noi s e had sile nced
-
H 2
1 48 TH E N EW F OR ES T .
every other T im , , who fancied h i m self a l i ttl e

bit of a wag as well as an orator th u s facet i ,
o u sl opened th e proceed i ngs of t h e afternoon

y .
Ge mmen ! as I ho pe we are all in earnest

’
u pon thi s here occasion determined to act ,
u pon the fulcrum as I may an d don t mean

, ,
’
that our proceedings s h ould end i n smoke I ,
beg to propose that w e should begin by lay

ing asi de our pipes D ye catch t h e focu s .
—
’
,
”
h ey P A lou d h aw ! ha w ! attested the success
of this incipien t sally several voice s exclaiming
,
at the same time Bravo T im ! well said ,
T im W icks ! that s a good o ne ’

If we sit
in suc h a confounded smoke and smother we ,
shan t be able to h ear a word that one another

’
says . T he chairman again plied his lemon

—
squeezers ej aculati ng with a voice of author i ty

,
Chair chair ! it s a moral i mpossible we

,
’
c an go on if you won t keep order T ony ! pu t

’
-
, .
ou t the candle and take away th e pipes ; but

,
ge mm en w i ll please to call f o r w h atever they

like to d rink ; for we sh all b e ar no worse and ,
speak all the better for wetting our wh i stle s

,
no w and t h en ! let every man follo w h is own

impetus and act upon his o wn eq uil i br i o t h at s
, ,
’
my ma xim u m Ge m men ! yo u all kno w what

.
-
we are m et here abou t and t herefore there s , ,

’
no occasio n f o r m e to fly o ff at the tangent of a

cu rve to speak in a parabola w h ich i s all
,
—
,
the sam e as a problem or parable or to g o ,

—
into all t he t rigonometry of a fine o ra tio n in , ,
st ead of revolving upon my o wn circ u mference ,
a s a body may s a an d sticking to my pro

y ,
per dia m eter I w i s h t

. o b e solid ra t h er t h a n ,
fl u i d and neve r to q u i t ( To ny ! pin t purl

,
—
,
ge mman smock froc k Co mi ng S i r coming 2)

-
.
’
and n ever to quit my proper angl e of forty fi ve -
degree s W hat are we met here for ? W hy

'
—
,
to uphold this h ere fair ; a qu es tion that ought
to be discu ss ed wit h sp ecific gravity and not ,
ligh tly a s i f we were only talking of a comic

,
S tiction Or any t h i ng of th at sort Gemmen ! “
, .
this here s a s tat ute fai r founded in l a w

’
, ,
which I lay do wn as a vertical tru th so t h at ,
We re all rectilinear and parallel w i t h t h e

’
hori zon in supporti ng i t w h ich i s the ratio of ,
the Wh ole radius ; and w h oever acts u pon the

diagon al and s tirs a s i ngle cubic foot against u s
,
-
,
w h y he s out of the segmen t of the law and

’
, ,
we re warranted i n knock i ng him d o wn wi t h a

’
1 50 TH E N E W F O R ES T .
pendulum or a capillary tube o r any oth er ,
weapo n that comes to han d Do n t ye catch .

’
the focus ( T ony quart— bowl rum pu n ch two -
gemmen n ever a neckclo t h Comi ng S ir c o m .

, ,
ing ! ) A n d another thi n g Gemme n ; we re ’

— —
,
supported in th i s here matter by Mr W elbeck .

,
w ho is n o t o nly the lord of the manor but ,
j u stice o f the peace a nd quorum a n d m u st ,
surely understan d the whole trigonom etry of

the thing better tha n a ny body else ; for in all
th ese cases the impet us is proportioned to th e
,
m ome n tum that I lay dow n as an other verti

-
c al truth plai n as a parallelogram

, W ell .
,
G emmen wh erever th ere

, a maxim um there s ’
s
’
a m i nimum ; that s an a xis that n o o ne can

’
de ny ; a n d that b ri n gs m e to Dr Dotterel our .
vicar a very worthy m an n o doubt but he s

, , ,
’
n o t t h e paradox we re all t o o by he s not to

’ ’
g
set himsel f up as th e polygon o f th e whole
place ; a n d be sides he alway s j oi n s wit h t he
,
ge n try all o n o ne side like crooked Martha o u r

-
coo k n o equilibrio abou t him so far from it

—
,
quite th e reverse D ye catch the focu s ? H e

.
’
may alter the Gospe l as we all k n o w cau se he s

, ,
’ ’
’
a p arson ; bu t he can t alter the law any m ore
TH E N EW F OREST . 1 51
t h an I can t urn a spherical body i nto a round

ball or a s quare i nto a quadrangle both of which
, ,
are a moral i mpossibl e ( T ony glass brandy —
water J em Pe n fold Com i ng S ir com i ng ! )

, .
, ,
VVe l l , Ge mm e n,
com e right slap ba ng to the
'
to -
f ul c ru m the re s S quire Ri ngwoo d whose family

’
, ,
have been the centre of gravity to T haxted time

out o f mind h e s all for th e fai r and that will
—
’
outweigh th e Doctor no hang i t it would —

,
take t h ree of him to outweigh the D oc tor speak ,
ing accord i ng to hydrostatics but he s a m atch ’
for him upon th e square root and th at s th e -

,
’
same thing T hen there s Mr F ram pt o n

.
’
.
S quire Frampton as some folk s call him ,
h e s al l agin th e fair b ut what of that

’
? He ,
m ay be as rich as a j ew bu t if he resort s t o ,
violence and goes to pu t down this here fair by

,
i nert force I maintai n as a mathematical maxi

, ,
mum that h e understand s nothing of the trigo

,
’ ’
n o me try of th e law an d what s more that he
,
s
no good C h ri st i an D ye cat ch th e focu s hey

.
—
’
,
? ”
Oo lie T im W icks ,
cried the sharp voice
of Pompey t h e Black from one corner of the
room . My massa bery good C hrish u n an d ,
he po ke 0 0 head in d a fire if 0 0 say him not oo

,
l
o e talkee talkee j ack ass ! Dere T i m W i ck s
, , ,
”
take dat hick ory n ut for o o se f to crack !
-
At this flagrant i n sult to the i r cha i rm an ,
and violation of all the l aws of debate a c l a ,
m oro n s h ubbub and confusion suddenly per

vaded th e meet i ng several Of th e company,
vociferating T urn him ou t t ur n h im ou t

,
and others making angry demon stration s for

e ff ecting that obj ect ; s o t h at Pompey no twith ,
standing hi s being so general a favourite would ,
h ave probably b een u shered to the door or t h e

window with very little ceremo ny had not
, ,
th e chairma n by stentorian shout s of

, C hai r
”
chair ! order ! order ! seconded by the lo u d
rappi ng o f th e lem on squeezers u pon the table
-
d rowned the strife an d agai n obtai n ed silence

,
.
All eyes were tur n ed toward s hi m i n expecta ,
tio n o f what importan t proposition h e had t o

off er worthy of th e outrage he h ad received ,
a n d of such a stun ning exordi um when Tim ,
W icks who se eye was always first directed to

,
his o wn in t erest ej aculated in a gentle voice

, ,
T ony ! a noggin brandy g em m an in paper

-
,
cap ' a mandate so litt l e anticipated after so

7’
pointed an insult and so clamorou s an outcry

,
TH E N E W F O R EST . 1 53
for si lence that it wa s received with a loud laugh

, .
T he prudent chairma n h ad in fact been reflect , ,
ing th at i t would be hi ghly impol i tic in the

,
landlord of the George inn to o ff e nd a person -
o f so much wealth a n d in fluence as Mr F ram

p .
ton o r even to quarrel w i t h h i s servant ; where

,
fore he pro c eeded to state in his usu al Babel

, ,
!
d ialect th a t in the observation s h e h ad felt it

,
- -
his duty to m ak e h e had intended n o thin g d is

,
respectful t o h is worship Justinian F ram ton

p ,
E sq . one of th ei r wort hy m agistrates con

, ,
c l u d ing w ith a h ope that after such a declaration

, ,
Pompey would ask pardon f o r th e off en sive

expression s he had u sed towards him self in ,
calli ng him an old j ackass .
”
Pompey ax pardon ! c ried th e Black
N o no , , n e bb e r s ee
de day 0 0 no wish say —
’
bad word s 0 my mas sa den 0 0 ten t i mes oler

’
'
and greater j ackass than ebb er to speak what ,
0 0 no mean ! Dere T im W icks dere s ano d er, ,

’
h i ckory n ut for 0 0 to crack

-
S o vari able is the temper of a public meeti ng ,
that t h is speech which a mi nute or two before

,
w ould have aggravated the general indignation ,
only aff ord ed the auditors n o w that they were

,
,
H 5
once di sposed to risibility a plea for another ,
burst of laughter which the chairman having ,
at le ngth ch ecked by th e fre s h hammeri ng of

his lemo n squeezers -
, th u s proceeded in his
oratio n .
You m ay t h ink Gemm en that I v e some , ,

’
d iag o nal m o tiv e ; that I do n t act all together

’
u po n the square root down -

,
u pon th e fulcrum ,
as I may say in w i shi ng to support this here

,
fair ; bu t if you do you re all o f you turning ,

’
'
u pon a false pivot I stan d u p for our righ t s

.
a nd liberties ; n o Sh am segme n t abo u t T im

W ick s ! I scor n to allude to my o wn inte re s ts ‘
especi ally as we h ave bu si ness enough at the

George m a con stant state of collision and per
,
c u s s io n in a perpetual mot i on ne v er t wo mi
— —
n u te s sta n ding upo n the same centre o f gravity
— toili ng a nd moi li ng from morni ng till night

but Gemmen I feel it m yd u ty to state t hat
, , ,
o n the first day of the fair last year I took te n ,
pound s at the tap before twelve o clock hard ’
mo ney Gemme n n o chalki ng or scori ng but

, , ,
right slap bang point bla nk plump down u po n

-
,
-
,
the fulcrum Dy catc h the focu s

’
. e
“
A y, an d by th at time the stable was not
only f ull of hor se s bu t the cow house and the

,
-
cart shed too-

S am O stler scratching ,
hi s h ead ! that was the day our Ball thre w

“ .
out a nother spav i n ri gh t i nside of t h e near

ho u g h f ’
“
A n d afore t wel v e o clock
t h at day I d a ’
0
’
,
’
-
got my breeches pocket chuc k full 0 coppers

-
’
i n me b o n e gemman or another da n ged if I

’
g y ,
”
hadn t ! sa i d T on y th e wai ter slapping his
’
,
righ t th i gh , as if to ind i cate the successful

pocket .
exclai med the i r m as

O rder ! order ch ai r
ter apparen tly scan dalized at this vain glori
,
ou s boastin g of his assistant s .
F at S am T apps of the Cricketers now f elt it

, ,
incumben t o n him to state that he too p arti , , ,
c ipate d largely in t h e advan tages of the fair ;

bu t this was by no means his motive for uphold
ing it being solely act uated by h is regard
,
for his neig h bours and the righ ts and pri vi

,
lege s of the p ar i s h at large The brewer s .

’
clerk stated that he was commissioned by his

master to mak e a similar declarat i on ; the tra
vell er of a neigh bou ri ng dist ill er followed in the
s ame strai n ; a pastry cook and a v i ctualler wer e
-
no t a whit less pure and patr i otic in t h eir mo

t iv e s fo r
supporting the fair never was so dis —
i nterested so p u b lic spirit e d a n assemblage A

,
-
.
long and desultory con versatio n n ext en sued, as

t o the measures to b e adopted for mai n tai ning
their rights several strangers who had dr o pped

in, proposi ng resol ution s or urging proceed
,
i ngs o f so viole n t a character that th e prudent ,
c h airman thought i t high time t o interfere .
T hough I am e n tirely o f the same opi nion ,
said he a s th e gemma n in t he brown smock

,
frock at the lower e nd o f th e table a nd quite ,
agree with th e tother gemm a n beyond him

him in the splashed neckcloth and g reasy j acket
— as to th e u nlawful ness o f putti ng down this
here fair ; a nd thi nk moreover that we o u ght to
, ,
show o u r spirit in th e matter because accord , ,
ing t o the Ol d prove rb N o ne bu t t he bra v e

,
’
deserve the fair D ye catch the focus
,
’ ‘
yet howbei t nevertheless a nd no t withs ta n d

, , ,
~
ing we m ust act upo n the hori zo ntal a nd

, ,
n o t get i n to any legal qua ndary by goi ng ,

~
out o f o u r o wn a xis F o r my part I wish

.
,
to walk upri g htly and go upon the square as a

,
t rue parallelo biped o u ght to do w i thou t any

-
,
T HE N EW FO REST . 1 57
i nverse rat i o or v ulgar fract i on s or any t hi ng

,
-
,
of tha t so rt ; and t h erefore ( T ony ! ge mm an

'
—
, ,
calls glass of gin Coming S ir com i ng .and , ,

—
t h ere f ore Gemmen I ll read you an ad dre ss to

, ,
’
the magistrates drawn up b y my ne y w ho is , v ,
clerk to a lawyer a nd therefore u nderstand s ,
t h e whole trigonometry of t h e mat t er from the ,
maximu m to the mi nim um from the axis to , .
the horizon ; and I t h i nk vo u 11 all agree wit h ’
me , Gemmen , that , though it

’
s re spect i vely
worded it gives the magi strates a pretty ha
,
rd
h it ay that it does righ t dow n slap bang
, , , ,
-
,
poi n t b l ank plump upo n the fulcrum

-
,
T he chairman accordi ngly read th e address ,
which contesting t h e righ t of t h e magistrates to

,
i nterfere with a f air appointed by law displayed ,
all the form s tech nicalities and legal explet i ves

, , ,
t hat could be stu ff ed into it by a pedantic law
e r s clerk a n d conclude d with expressing t h e

’
y ,
determi natio n of the undersigned parish i oner s

’
to hold the fair in the u sual way paying th e

.
c ustomary dues to the lord of the manor , an d to

repel force by force sh ould y attempt be , an
m ade to i nterfe re with their lawful recreation .
As the ph ra seology of this paper was for t h e

most part utterly unintelligible i t , was taken for

granted that i t was soun d good law ; t h e con
cluding resolution was at least comprehe n sible ,
and as this portio n met th e wish o f al l parties ,
th e address was proposed a n d carried nem c o n ,

. .
amidst t h e triumphant clattering of pewter pots -

,
gills glasses and knuckles

, , , u pon the table .
T hat no one migh t appear in t h e invidiou s

light of a leader or instigator , , o f these proceed
ings , it w as agreed that the S ignatures S hould
be in the form of a round robi n ; a measure
wh i ch threatened som e little graph i cal d iffic u l
t i es u n til a carpenter present placing a pewter
, ,
pot u pon the paper ran his penci l round its

,
base , and the chai rman proceeded to explain in ,
the clearest man n er possible that ever y signa ,
ture sh ould begi n at the outside diameter of the

circle and describe a radii so that the whole
, , ,
w h en completed should present an atmospherical

,
shape T he maj ority appeared not a little b e

.
pu zzled at thi s darke ning ill ustration whe n an ,
ho n est cartwright after pori ng upon the paper

, ,
and scratc h ing his head f o r a couple o f mi n utes ,
exclaimed H eart alive T im Wi cks ! I l l be

, ,
’
c h ucked r ight into t h e h orse pond i f you don t -

,
’
mean that we S hould S ign i t all sloping fro m th e

round line like the spoke s of a wheel like
, ,
”
T hat ’
s preci sely my max i mum , said the
ch ai rman .
T h en why couldn t ye s ay s o resumed ’
the cartwr i ght without such a mort of fine

,
word s and fl u mme ry that are of no more u s e

,
than so m uch sh avings a n d sawd ust Come ! .
s h all I sign first ? Bat H as e l g ro v e ar nt ashame d ’
of hi s n ame .
W ri te away sai d t he f ac e tio u s c hairman

’
, ,
a l i ttle stung perh aps at t h e reflect i on s u pon

, ,
his oratory W r i te away for as all t h e spokes ,
begi n at the n ave it i s righ t that you s h ould

,
take the lead

H a w ! haw shouted thos e who under
stood t h e j oke well said , T im W icks ! ”
while T ony not having comprehended the hit

,
till th e others had all do n e laughing b l u ste d ,
out a post h umous H aw ! ha w ! haw master

h ad you there Bat , H a s e l g ro v e , da nged if h e
’ ”
h adn t !
T he proces s of signing as soon as the first ,
di ffi culty was overcome proceeded fl uently ,
enoug h , although several whose attention to ,

1 60 THE N EW F O R EST .
the mo re i mportant branch es of educat i on h ad

prevented t h ei r ac q u i ri ng the art of penman
Sh ip sl ipped u n der variou s pretext s out of t h e
,
room ; while others d is d aining fl ig h t sturdily

, ,
“
observed i t sig nified no odds whether th ey
,
’
scratc h ed paper or not there wasn t room for ’
all t h eir names were well known they approved

, ,
of the address and what t h ey h ad said t h ey

,
”
would stick to come wh at would o n t
, Th er e ’
.
were i n fact enough without these parties to

, ,
complete the round rob i n and though man y ,
of t h e autograph s evidently proceeded from m en

more acc u stomed to hold the plough stilts than -
the pe n we can certify from an accurate com

, ,
parison of th e two documents t h at they were , ,
u pon the whole much more creditable to the

,
writers tha n t h e S ig natures of the lords spiri

‘
t ual and temporal to Magna C h arta

'
I t n o w only remained to be settled w ho

should present the address to Justice F rampton ,
who m it had been resolved to assail in th e first

instance si n ce it was known that J u stice W el
,
beck was already favour able to their ca u se and ,
it was concluded that Dr Dotterel the remain .

,
ing magistrate would be entirely governed by

,
T HE N EW FO R ES T . 161
the d e c i sion of h i s wealt h y friend and n eigh

bour Mr F ra mpto m S imp1e _a s i t migh t a p
. .
pear t hi s ques tion

, wa s not of ve ry easy a dj u s t
m ent for there was too muc h re ason to
, a
pp re
hend that t h e latter gentleman migh t take t he

'
matter in h igh d udgeon as an evi dence o f an

,
i n subordi nate and revol utionary spirit and f e w ,
of the present assemblage most of them trades ,
men o r persons of an inferior station cared to ,
receive the first brun t of his indignat i on more ,
especially as h e was o f a h aug h ty morose and , ,
”
arb i trary temper W ho should bell the cat
.
mig h t not ha v e bee n decided until the presen t

“
ti me had not fat S am T a p ps proposed th at

'
, ,
they should dra w lots for t he performance of

the obnox i ou s o ffi ce ; a proposi t ion wh i ch was
i nsta n tly ado pt ed and carried i nto executi on
, ,
when it appeared that t h e c h oice h ad fallen

upon T ony the waiter A blank and bewil .
dered look of alarm a long whistling Wh e u gh

,
and a simultaneou s slap upon h i s righ t t h igh -

,
attested hi s first sen se of this un welcome dig

n it,y whic h he seemed to rel i s h no more than
d i d F alstaff such gr i nning h o nour as S i r
W alter hat h ; but ashamed of appe aring
'
ch i cken hearted before so many o f his neigh

-
bours he gathered u p a lo ng breath and pu ff

, ,
ing it o u t agai n with a fierce l ook exclaimed , ,
W ell I don t care a farde n no t I ! who s

,
’
,
—
’
afeard I ll g i it to u n righ t plump into his

—
’ ’
,
”
o wn hand da n ged if I don t a resolution that ’
, ,
Wa s fortified by cries o f Bravo T ony W ell ,
,
”
said T ony ! fro m several o f the by stan ders .
A t thi s stage o f th e proceedi ngs t wo addi ,
t io n al perso n ages entered the debating room -

.
T he first , had dism ounted from a beauti

who
ful blood mare which appeared t o have t rav el l

-
,
ed far and fast a nd which he him self had care

,
fully i n stalled before h e e n tered th e hou se ,
was o f rather short stat ure bu t o f remarkabl y ,
broad m u scular al most H erculea n frame with

, , ,
a fa c e o f very si n gular a nd striki n g appearan ce .
I n S hape it was n early tria ngular th e broad ,
chin a nd j owl forming the widest part T he .
forehead was narrow th e rou nd black spark , , ,
ling bold eyes were set close togeth er the n o se ,
w as salie n t an d well form ed but the m outh -

,
was disproportionately wide while the li n es o r , ,
rather the cordage that dre w his face in deep

furrows all around it togeth er with th e dark ,
h ueof h i s mu zzle well shaven as it was and a

,
-
,
profusi on of black t hi c k curling hairs falli ng

,
do wn to h is shoulders like a m ane imparted t o ,
h is whole ph ysi ogno my a pointed resemb l anc e

to that of a lion F ree fro m any fell or savage
.
expression his counte n ance indeed exhibited

, , ,
mu ch o f th e cal m noble imperturbable courage

, ,
observable in the l o o k of that king of the

.
forest H e wore a frock and waistcoa t of dark

.
coloured velveteen blue cloth trowsers and , ,
enormous fi she rm an s boots reaching half way ’

,
-
up his thigh A rare I ndia S h awl was tied

.
round his th roat and when his waistcoat an d

,
shirt were blown open it mig ht be see n tha t ,
his chest wa s as shaggy as that o f th e animal

which he so m uch resembled in hi s visage I n .
his han d he carried a rich meerschaum pipe -

,
w h i ch he immediately began to smoke ; n o r did

any one care to tell him o f th e chairman s in ’
te rdic t all maki ng respectful way for him as h e

,
entered wh ile a buzz of

, the C a pt
’
n, the Cap
’
t n t h e C apt n ran round the
m ake w ay for
’
room and contin ued til l h e seated him self a n d

,
p ursued his smoking w hi ch he did withou t ,
uttering a word .
Ay, observed one ,

t h ey may bring the i r
b um bailies and maliciou s m e n and what n o t
-
, ,
to put dow n the fair bu t if the Ca pt n were to ’

’
lift up his little fi nger h e could soo n gather a

,
h u n dred men abou t their ears to serve them

”
w i t h sauce t h ey would n t like ! ’
Ay and a h undred to t h e back of th em

, ,
sai d a second .
T hat s w h at he could and a hund red to

’
,
th e back of them ad d ed a third T here w as

,
.
a momentary pau se whe n the C aptai n taking

, ,
t h e pipe from hi s mouth said in a loud and ,
deep but calm voice

, ,
A nd a h undred more to the back of t h em ,
—
”
all good m en an d tru e ! w h e n b e replaced
,
his pipe an d quietly res u me d his pu ffi ng

,
.
T he other person wh o had e n tered th e room

at the same time with the Captain was H enry ,
M e l c o mb w ho
proceeded to address th e asse m
,
blage i nforming them that he had only j ust

,
learned t h e obj ect of their meeting or he should ,
h ave sooner attended for the purpose of givi ng

it hi s support ; condem n i ng the illegal conduc t
i
of th e magistrates in the p roposed suppression

of t h e fair ; recommending to his h earer s to be
peacefu l and orderl y bu t at the same t i me fi rm

,
in opposing i t and o ff er i ng to b e h i mself t h e

,
be arer of t h e add re ss s h oul d such be t h e wi s h

,
of the meeti ng H enry s fearless h o nesty of

.
’
purpo se al ways imparted such an earnestness to

his oratory t h at i t s eldom failed to touch t h e
,
feeli ngs an d adapt i t self to t h e facul ties of h i s

audi tors ; while upon the present occasi on it
, ,
off ered suc h a c ontrast to t he rigmarole fustian

of T im W icks that his speec h w as rece i v e d
,
wi t h ent h usi a sti c appl au se and cri e s of N on e ,

“
”
but t h e brave de serv e the fair ! foll owed by
buz zing inquiries of W ho i s h e w h o i s h e
, ,
T ony in parti c u l ar who i n spite of h is a s

, , ,
sum ed courage was not a li ttle anx i ou s to

,
avoid delivering t h e addre s s not know ing to ,
w h at peri ls i t mig h t subj ect h i m applaud ed t h e ,
speaker still more veh emently t h an the res t ex ,
clai ming T hat c h ap s a proper g oo d n ! — g o t

,
’ ’
s ome pluck in him dang ed if he h a n t w hile

,
’ ’
the Cap tai n tak i ng th e pipe from h i s mout h

, ,
and c o mi ng tow ard s H enry sai d ,
Lookee S i r I never i nterf ere i n th e se mat

, ,
te rs never lift a hand nor stir a foot unle s s

,
where Govern ment s con c ern e d bu t i t d o es m y

’
,
1 66 TH E NE W F O R EST .
heart good to se e a ny of the gentry attend ing a

meeting of th i s sort especially a brave and ,
honest man like yourself ; an d I for one

, , ,
should be proud that you should carry our ad

dress if so be you re a parishioner or a settler
’
"
among u s for we h av n t any of u s the h onour

,
’ ’
”
of knowing yo u .
H e nry co nfessed th at he was neither th e one

n o r th e other an admission which,
in the opi ,
nion of the meeti ng rendered it impossible to ,
accept his o ff er without throwi ng an imputat ion

of cowardice upon their o wn body ; under w hich
impressio n they recurred to their first i n tention
of c o nfi d ing it to T ony an d H enry withdre w , ,
with a fresh declarati o n of his readiness to pro

mote their obj ect W henever he could do s o with
,
propriety H a vi ng been m uch struck with th e

.
appearance o f the Captain ; a s h e was called he ,
inquired o f several who and W hat h e was ; but

could get no other answer t h a n t h at i t was the
”
Captai n and that every body knew th e Cap
,
”
tai n in these parts as well as they knew T hax
ted Church A ny attempt to obtai n more ex
.
p lic it information was evaded wit h a look of
s usp i c i on ,
and an air of my stery and reserve ,
TH E N EW F O R E ST . 1 67
that in d uced h im to forbear fro m farther inter

ro g a to rie s an d h e accordi ngly walked ove r to
,
Grotto h ou se
-
to k eep hi s appo intment w i t h
Pengu i n .
Meanwh i le the procee d i ngs at the George

’
u ff ered no int erruption ; the brewer s clerk Oh

’
s
serving that i t was de sirable their e n v oy shou l d ,
for their Own honour assume as respec table an

,
appe arance as po ssible o ff ere d to len d him a

s u i t o f clot h es of hi s Own T ony s bei ng by no
’
,
mea ns of an e mb assad o rial character whi l e the

barber generously volunteered to c url his lank
h ai r hitherto unacquai n ted wi th ho t ir o n H e
, .
retired accordingly f o r the purpose of com

p ie ting h i s investiture an d u pon hi s return into
,
the room the Captai n was so m uch am used wit h

,
his altered appearance that he o ff ered to treat

,
him with w ha tever h e S hould like to d rin k ;

ob servi ng that he would exec u te hi s commission
,
all the better if he were well p rimed before h e

went o ff T ony was not slow to accept the
.
proff er ; an d at t h is j uncture Pompey the Black ,
coming forward and declaring that he was a s

,
s ta u nch a n advocate for the fair as a n man

y
prese n t although he was Mr F ra m pto n s se r
, .
’
1 68 THE N EW F O R ES T .
vant prom i sed that T ony should h ave imme

,
d i ate adm i ssion to his master t h e moment that

he presented him self at th e H all Th is pledge
.
gave so m uch satisfaction to the Captain that ,
h e inv i ted him to part i cipate i n his capaciou s

bowl of ru m punch before h e returned hom e ;
-
an d as t h e N egro happened to have a part i cula r

predilecti on for t h at beverage he d i d not wait
,
to be tw i ce sol i c i ted but sate h i m sel f down an d

, ,
pu shed i n hi s glass and uns h eat h ed his wh i te

,
t e et h wi t h a most rad i ant and c o r d i al sm i le .

C HA P T ER VI I .
Oh th e c harm that m ann e rs d ra w,
N atu re , f
ge nu ine l aw !
ro m th y
Thro be nig n aff e ct io ns p ure

’
I n t he slight o f se lf se c ure ,
I f fro m wh at h er h an d w o u l d d o
, ,
Or t o n g u e u tt e r, t h e re e ns u e
Au ght u nt o ward o r u nfi t ,
T ran s i e nt mis chi e f v agu e misch an ce

, ,
S hun n d by g u ard e d e l e g an ce
’
H er s is n o t a chee k sh am e stri ck e n
’
-
,
B u t he r b lu shes are j oy fi u shes -
An d th e fau lt ( i f fau lt it b e )
, ,
Onl y min ist e rs to qui ck e n

L au gh te r lo vin g gai e t y
-
,
And k in dl e spo rtiv e wit .
W ORDS W O RT H .
L E A V I N G t h i s pa rty to fin i s h t heir bowl and ,
reple nish it if they t hink fit we wil l take the

, ,
op portunity of i n trod ucing the rea der to O ak

h a m hall the reside nce of J u sti n ia n
-
, F ram p
VO L . I .
I
1 70 TH E N E W F O R ES T .
t o n, E sq . Lady S u san the mi stress,

o f the
mansion proud o f her n oble blood and a n cient
,
family a nd naturally a nxiou s t o exhibit some

,
excuse f o r her co n descen sion in having married

a commoner resolved that O akham hall as ,
-
-
,
well as their town residence should blazon t o

i
all the world the g re a t wealth of a h usband ,
w ho if h e had n o t been w orth mo n ey would

, ,
h ave been worth noth ing ; a fact which no o n e

admitted more f re e l V tha n herself S tatues .
,
pai nti ngs imm en se mirrors costly and gorgeou s

, ,
fur niture dazzli ng th e ye by an obtrusive and

,
e
ostentatiou s m agnifice n ce seemed to say o n th e ,
part o f her l ady ship I married the house an d ,
the fortu n e n o t th e m an ; if you wish t o ap

,
re c ia t e m y taste look at the gildi n g a n d t he

p ,
ha ngi ngs n o t at th e plebeia n ow n er o f them

, .
It was said o f Philip the S econd whe n he made ,

.
a vo w build the E scurial and dedicate it to

to ,
S t Laure n ce if he wo n the battle o f S t Q ui n

.
, .
tin that the great n ess of his fear m igh t be mea

‘
sured by the vast exten t o f the structure ; and

in like manner it migh t be a ffi rmed o f Lady
S usa n that the gl itteri ng over fi nery of her

,
-
mans i o nattested h er deep sen se o f the h u milia

THE N EW F O R EST !
. 171
tion she had endured i n her m arri ag e If the .
splendour i n which S he lived fu rnish ed her a n

excu se it did not aff ord h er m uch con solation
’
”
.
,
H er h u sband Wa s a purse pro u d con se qu en tial-

,
man with no better redeemi ng p o in t than a

'
'
.
,
love of hospitality ; th ou gh e v e n this migh t be

referred to a desire of displaying the s ta te in .
which he lived an d o f e nj oying the good cheer

,
in which he de l ighted ra t her th an t o any in

‘
here n t sociability or frie n dli n ess o f disposition .
Compose d of such discordant elements ,it m ay

be imagi ned that th e u nio n had no t proved a
very happy one M utual disappoi n tment wa s
.
followed by reciprocal indi ff ere nce ; nor was i t

always that their feeli ngs assumed e v e n this
comparative degree of comfor t T heir family .
con sisted of one so n and t hr ee dau gh ters ; th e

former a dissipated and coxcombical b ut really
, ,
elegan t young m an b e ing the Captain Tram p

,
~
.
ton of w h om th e reader ha s al re ad y had a slight

glimpse .
Augusta the eldest d aughter and always

, ,
the mother s favourite b ecause she had always

’
,
~
promise d t o be a beauty was a bl onde bu t , ,
without any of the i n sipidity that some ti mes

,
I 2
accom panies t h at style of beau ty ; her fine s ta

t ure bright blue eyes the somewhat disdai nful
, , ,
Apollo lik e curl at the corners of her mouth

-
,
a nd eve n the character of he r thin aquiline ,
n ose ,
and arched n ostrils al l combining to ex ,
press a certai n degree of hauteur and to chal ,
le nge admiration as a right rat h er than to

'
s olicit it as a favour W hen to these a ttrac .
tions were added a scrupulous attention to the

,
fluctuating elegancies of fashion in her dress ,
a nd that ind e finab l e air of style and distinction ,
which seem s to s ay its possessor was bor n to

be a d uchess to wear feathers and diamo nds
, ,
an d to adorn a court few could behold her ,
withou t an exclamatio n of surprise and delight

at her firs t appearance After a laboriou s t u .
itiou a nd drilling u n der a host of masters A u ,
gusta had been se n t to one of those expen sive

fi nis hing establishmen ts in London where you ng
-
,
ladies are taugh t to regulate every limb a nd

motio n nay every m uscle a n d look with a n
, , ,
au tomatic pl e CI S l O D ; where they are i n stru cted

'
by a fi nica l priggi sh dancing master ho wto

, ,
-
,
enter and quit a room ; how to curtsey in

wal king and to ,
bo w from a c arriage ; ho w to
present or receive a card or a smelli ng bot tle ; -
how to stand sit or go ; h ow to do some

, .
, ,
thin g no thing and every thing until they are

, , ,
persuaded that the m ost insignifi c ant action ,
requires an express form ula and t h at every ,
n atural movement and emotion s h ould be regu ,
lated by artificial m odifi c a tio n s As no thing

, .
is so eas il y se en through as these creat u res of

st udied manag e me nt a nd mec h anism any o h ,
server , who once po sses se d a cl ue to A ugu sta s ’
ruling passi on w h ic h was t h e love of self

,
di spl ay migh t im me di ately assign t he motive

,
of her every l o ok word and action

, ,
.
U nf ort unately she h ad not acqu ired th ese

,
li ttle perso nal artifi c e s from her mot h er with ,
o u t imbib in g also m uc h of h er cold haugh ty , ,
and ambit i ou s c h aracter R ememberi ng the .
consta n t mo rtific atio ns sh e h ad herself endured

from having married a commoner an d c o n ,
fi d ing in the power of her daughter s c h arms

’
L ady S u san had d eterm i ned that sh e should

be at least a countess ; and Augu sta equally ,
proud of h er mo the r s no b l e relation s and of

’
,
her father s wealth willi ngly lent her self to

’
the belief that sh e migh t command a titled

1 74 TH E N EW F O R E S T .
hu sband under which convictio n she looked

, ,
do wn upo n all suitors o f i nferior ra n k with

an ill co ncealed d isdain S everal o f this class
-
.
had i n deed bee n refused a nd n o more com

, , ,
m o n e rs prese n ted them selves ; while the lords
a nd lordli ngs h ung most provoki ngly back .
T his might have happened had Lady

not ,
S usa n possessed art e n oug h to conceal h er art ;

but s he a ngled so palpably f o r a ti tle that ,
the young n oblemen either sh u nn ed the bai t

altogether o r only played around it to laugh
,
at it and defy it s allureme n t s He r Lad yship

,
.
,
a n d her ambitiou s proj ects be came a sort of ,
b y word among them ; that most anti connu

- -
bial o f all feelings a sort of com passionate

,
ridic ule w as excited by the daugh ter s ma n i

,
’
fest participatio n in her pla n s ; a young c o l

legian d ubbed her w ith the unfo rtu n ate nick
n ame o f the T uft hu n ter ; and at the period
-
o f o u r his tory M i ss F rampto n had lost the

,
first bloom o f her youth an d n ovelty had ,
satiated the tow n with th e display o f her

beauty and was i nfi nitely less li kely t o obtai n
,
th e great obj ect o f her life tha n she had been ,
at th e dazzling outset o f her car eer .

T H E N EW F O R E S T . 1 75
F anny who was several years younger tha n

,
Augu s ta , had in early life laboure d under some

apparent disadvant ages wh i ch u lt i mately proved
,
to be her greate st blessi n g s Inferi or to her .
sister in personal beau ty she h ad been an o h

,
j c e t of compa rative indi ff erence to her mother -
and had th u s e s cape d the ban ef ul i nflu ence o f

all her stratag em s so phi stication s and ambi
, ,
tious man oeuvres until she was old enough to

,
detect and rej e ct t h em ; whi le her del icate sta te

of health not all o w i ng h er to be put in regular
training at a po lite semi nary her natural cha ,
had been permitted to develope itself in

rac te r
the progress of suc h educa tion as S he received

at home Illness had nece s sitated oc casio n al
.
interrupt ion s of her studies and her mother s

,
’
neglec t had left h er at i ntervals to prosec ute or

abandon them j us t as she tho ught fi t ; bu t a n
,
i nnate ge nius a nd singular quickness of app re _

he nsio n enabled her to acquire by a sort of in ,
t uition that which others can only obtain by

,
lon g and laboriou s applicat i on ; w h ile her lucky

-
escape from the p e rpe tu al art i fic e and disc iplin e

t o which her si ster h ad be en subj ected had left ,
her what
,
s he was i ntended to be by N ature an ,
1 76 TH E N EW F O R ES T
'
un aff ected si m p le warm hearted sp ortive girl

, ,
-
,
.
S he either pau sed to calculate how she should

n
look nor what she should say; an d yet with al l

, ,
this nonchalan ce a nd submission to th e impulse

of the moment , sh e n e v er committed an i nde
corum n ever thre w herself into an ungraceful
,
attitude n ever uttered a n unbecomi n g senti

,
m e n t S he was d arker th an her sister and

.
,
without bei ng so regularly handsome was infi ,
n ite l more lovely and fas c i nati ng A ugusta s ’
y .
stately beauty could n either be nd nor alter .
F anny s w a s playful a nd fl uct uating One was

’
.
like the trained a nd grafted F ren c h rose tall ,
and m aj estic but w i t h a sti ff formal ar t i

, , ,
fi c ial aspect in the m idst of i ts beau ty ; the

other resembled the sam e flower with all it s free ,
a n d nat ural graces h anging in careless elega nce

, ,
and swi nging as th e wi nd directs it F an ny s .

’
countenance had acquired no tricks it n ever ,
wore a n assumed expression and ra rely c o n ,
c e al e d an emotion t h at s he felt All this ope n .
singleness of heart was so co ntrary to th e c o n v e n

form s the guarded co n cealments a nd col d
tio n al , ,
etiquette of high life that it gave prodigiou s ,
off ence to Lady S usan ; w ho having in vai n e n~

d e av o u re d
to correct it at length abandoned the
,
attem pt observing t h at she should never be

, ,
able to make any thing of poo r F ann y t hat S he

“
was a m ere giddy giggling girl and would , ,
al ways remain so F an n y was content to wear

.
the character they had assig n ed to he r pro v id e d ,

'
she might escape fr o m a con stant d i sgu i se and

con strai n t which she found insupportably irk
some a nd indulge occas i onally in a little mali
,
c io u s pleasantry at her si ster s exp en se ! b u t ’
thi s giddy girl would somet i m e ha zard a re

elicit a trait of feeling that sh owed ,
her to be any thing b ut w h at they termed her .
O n the morning w h en w e have in trod uced

,
o u r read ers to O akham h all Dr Dotterel and his

-
,
.
sister h ad called to pay a visit T he latte r a n .

,
o l d maid somewhat stricken in years and like

, , ,
her brother i n clined to corpulency lived at th e

, ,
vicarage where S he sup eri n tended the hou se

,
hold arrangements a nd piqued herself upon dis

,
chargi ng in her o w n perso n all those duties o f a

good old E ng lish hospitabl e hou sewife which ,
the fine ladies of the presen t day are so apt t o de

lega t e to housekeepers an d servants Althoug h .
a lit tle starch and prudish she was a good tem ,

- ~
1 5
pered woman of feeble understandi ng and con

, ,
sequently of n a rr o w n otion s with a partie n

,
lar abhorre n ce o f i nnovatio n o f any sort and ,
m ore especia lly o f the march o f i n tellect her ,
o w n h a vi ng remained t olerably stationary from
her earliest years I n these particulars as

.
,
w ell as in her perso n al appear an ce she bore a ,
stro n g resembla nce t o her brother so m uch s o ,
as to h a v e called forth the sarcastic obser v ation

from Lady S u sa n that if both wore petticoats
, ,
i t would be impossible to disti ng u i sh o n e old

’
woman from the other T he Do c to r howe v er

.
, ,
had several excellen t points abou t him ; it was

hi s head not his h eart th at was narrow and the ,
k i n d ness o f t he latter gen erally proved to o

strong for the old fashio ned notion s of the for
-
n e r s o that if h e seldom said a liberal thi ng he

, ,
n ever did an illiberal one ! a better in c o n sis

te nc y si n ce action s are o f m uch more c o n s e
,
u en ce t o the c o mm un i ty t h a n opi nio n s tha if

q n ,
he had reversed th e propositio n Measures or.
individuals that h e the most condemned were ,
the most sure of hi s assistance if th ey appealed

,
to his charityo r h is kindly feeli ngs of a ny sort ;

and i t was sometimes amu sing to hear him in
TH E N EW FO R ES T .
~
1 79
vent excu ses for the amiab ility that occas i oned
his good deed s t o be so frequently opposed to
his less ge n erou s decl arations Mr Fram pto n s . .
’
w h o le family was collect e d in the great draw
ing room at t h e t i me these visi tant s calle d H e

-
.
himself reclining in an arm ch air wit h his gouty

-
,
foot upon an embroidered velvet c ushion re ,
t aine d h is position patien tly awaiting what

,
ever migh t happen T hose h orrid Dot

.
”
t e rel s ! excla i med L ady S usan as soon as she ,
heard their names an no u nced ! w h at can they

be c o ming for agai n ? surely they called here
”
last a n d then
—
ste ppi n g forward with a smile
of th e most cheerful welcome she continued , ,
My dear Miss Dotterel my good Doctor , ,
this is really kind of you I am quit e delighte d

”
to see you and b o t h looking so well pray be

— —
seated
Miss F rampton bein g sligh tly indispose d
with a cold , and no t wearing in consequence
her best look s placed herself with her back t o
,
the light assumed her rece ption sm i le made

, ,
the prescribed half bow a nd hal f curtsey drew '
herself sl owly up again and reseated hersel f in

,
such a way a s to display a portion of h er well

1 80 T H E N EW F O REST .
turn ed leg and an kle carefully se t o ff by an

,
open work F rench S ilk stocki ng and a Parisia n

- -
,
shoe o f the last importation .
Delighted to se e you pon m yh onour said ,

’
the Captain lightly throwi ng up hi s curls with

,
o n e ha n d while he surveyed his whole fi gure

,
in a n opposite mirror with a com placent ear
n e s tn e s s t hat showed he experie n ced much more
deligh t in seeing him self t ha n his visita nts .
F anny who reall y liked both the Doctor an d

,
his sister f o r th eir goodness of heart in spite of ,
their lit tle oddities an d o ld -

fashio n ed no t io n s ,
ra n toward s them as th ey e n tered ,

warmly
pressed their han ds a nd welcom ed them with
,
a cordial smile i nfi nitely more expressive than

w or d s . N o soo n er was Miss Dot terel seated ,
than no t bei ng provided with any im m ediate o h

servatio n a n d deemi ng m oveme n t of any ki nd
,
a sort o f relief from e n tire silence she bega n ,
t o fi d g e t about in her chair and adj u st her ,
clothes s o as to make t he rustli ng o f her a n

,
t ique silk gown as was her wont a momentary

, ,
substitute f o r conversation W hile thu s o c c u .
pie d and cleari ng her throat at the sam e ti m e

,
that it might be ready for actio n her eye fell ,

THE N EW FO R EST . 1 81
upon Miss F rampto n s leg wh i ch bei ng ex ’
posed as she thought rather more than stric t

, ,
decorum warra nted sh e pulled down h er own ,
petticoat s over her thick co t ton clad ankles ,

-
with an alarmed and squeamish loo k i ntendi ng ,
it as a fri endly hin t to h er n eighbour Au gu st a .
u n derstood the implied m eani n g of the actio n ,
but with out altering her position con tin ued ,
talki ng with her brother W ho whispered in h i s ,
u sual drawli ng way S hocki ng pity ain t it

’
,
’
no w ,
t o h ide those taper legs of Miss Dot
‘
te re l s ? c apital model s for a couple of mill

’
pos ts never sa w any thi ng like them e xcept her

s ister t h e doctor s a palpable plagiari sm quite
,
’
,
—
”
re d e c u l o u s pon my honour
,
’
.
Lady S usan was at the mo men t c at ec li isin

g
F a nny s o tto v oce abou t some article of dress
, ,
w h ich had not bee n arran ged s el o n l es e l es ; r

g
Mr F rampton had engaged t h e Doctor in con
.
versatio n a nd Mi ss Dot terel at length deeming

,
it i ndispe n sable that she S hould sig nify her pre

sence a nd determined to commence with a n in
,
t e re s ting theme exclaimed Brother you were

, , ,
aski ng m e about t he apricots o n the sta nd

ard tree down by the pigeon h ou se W ell I -
,
counted six ty two yest erday an d would you

-
,
believe i t there were o nly forty this morning

,
T he others must have bee n all blown dow n by

the wind in t he night but I could only find ,
sixtee n a n d those I pu t in one o f the willow

,
pattern dishes a nd sent Davy with them t o

,
Mrs Penguin ; f o r several of them were bruised

.
,
and n o n e o f the m would keep a nd she ha s ,
been very civil to u s latel yin sending u s that

n ice preserved ginger that you are so fo n d of
-
,
o therwise I kno w you don t like to part with ’
any of o u r fruit Lady S u san have yo u made

.
,
your preserves and your raspberry vinegar yet 9
’
I t is a t roublesome j ob no w i sn t it ? and I m
’
,
”
sure I m glad ours is all over
’
.
I am truly sorry I ca n not inform you ,
havi ng quite forgotten to ask M rs

'
. J e l l ic o l t
about it replied Lady S usan with a courteou s

, ,
smile while as she caugh t A ugu sta s e ye she

, ,
’
threw up her o wn with a n expression o f con

t e m pt u o u s der i sio n .
La ! how very odd ' exclai med Miss 71
Dotterel .
f ’
r p
Most e x tr o r na y said the Captai n ;
’
could n t railly have supposed her L adyship

’
T H E N EW F OR EST . 1 83
to be ignorant of suc h an important fact ;

”
could you F anny ? ,
S porti ve as she was , a nd ever ready to j om
any raillery or bantering amo ng them selve s ,
F a n ny could not be drawn in to assist iu q u izz '
ing , the ir
present visitors and she therefo re ,
stated with a very serious face th at she had

, ,
heard Mrs J e l l ic o l t express her intentio n of

.
beginni ng the preserves on the fol low i ng day

;
Miss Dotterel had co mm enced a very minute

description of her o wn part i cular m ethod of
.
potting apricots when the Doctor havi ng fi

, ,
nish e d a long discussio n with Mr F rampto n .
respect i ng a game of W hist at their last meeting ,
interrupted h er by exclaimi ng
“
D o rothy our friend s don t want to hear
,
’
an
y such trifling m atters ; we can talk ab ou t
th e apri cot s anot h er time a hin t w h ich imme
d ia te l y si lenced the aff ectionate and s u b m is '
sive sister , who was no t u naccustomed to such

checks and always deferred to them
, . I came
over o n purpose to mention to you Mr , . F ram p
”
ton con t i nued the Doctor
, only t he game of ,
whist put it out of my head that I had a very ,
early visit this morning from our neighbour ,

M r Pe ngui n
. ahem to make explanation s
,
— —
touching the conduct o f this you ng man Mr , .
Me l c o mb W hose opi n ion s last night when we

, ,
e ncou n tered him o n the road did appear to m e ,
completely— ahem and I have no doubt they

—
”
struck you in the same light ; did they not ?
N ot alway s having his words at command , al
though he spoke slowly a nd pompously enough ,
the Doctor whenever he boggled f o r an ex

,
pression would substitute a pau se or a hem

,
f o r the requi red term proceed in hi s disco urse,
as if he had uttered it and take it for granted ,
that his auditors u nderstood him as well as if

h e had A ware o f this h abit a nd not wishing
.
,
to send back so slow a fi n der in search of the

missing word Mr F rampto n declared that the
, .
se ntimen t s alluded to had made precisely th e

same impressio n upo n himself ; when the Doctor
proceeded Mr Penguin explained to m e that
.
, ,
th e you ng m an h ad no t the most remote idea ,
that i s to s ay n o t the smallest thought o f giv

,
ing off e n ce ah em , bu t that b ei n g a s I m ay

— —
,
sa
y though
,
not born in that country an Ame ,
rican
A Ya nkee IS he in terposed Mr . F ram p
ton ; “
that s not i n his favour
’
— I don t l i ke
’
any of them — they are l i ttle better th an revo

l u tio nis ts and rebels
”
Very true observed Miss Dotterel ; and
,
I fear they have not a j ot of religion among

them . H ow can t h ey indeed without an esta , ,
b l ishe d c h urch a nd tithes ? ”
Impossible quite im possi b le ! shocking !

,
”
sh o cki ng ! ej aculated the Doctor shaking his ,
hea d wit h a l o ok of reprobation ;

-
but I once
kne w an Ameri can nevertheless who played an , ,
”
excelle n t rubber .
And it m u st be confess ed added the sis ,
ter anxiou s to do j u stice even t o a people with

,
out tithes that t heir cranberries are finer

,
tha n ours W hen I was last at S outhampton

.
,
I bough t a s mall cask at Je ff erson and H ackle

stone s th e sign of t he Golden Cani ster and of
’
, ,
”
all the cranberri es I e ver— l
“
Dorot hy ! Dorothy ! we can talk of th e m
”
at th e same tim e as the apricots sai d the Doc ,
tor . Certainl y Mr F rampton it i s bad , .

, ,
v ery bad ; in short a complete a hem as I ,

— —
freely confess t hat this you ng ge ntle ma n should

,
h ave been educated in America b ut as he may ,

get over in sh ort get rid o f all th ese heretical

, ,
yes S ir heretical notions ; as he is about to

—
, ,
settle in this neighbourhood an d is m oreover , , ,
as I am given to understand a person o f large ,
fortu ne I have co n sented to overlook in short

, , ,
to take n o farth er notice as I may say of o u r , ,
little ahem ! yesterday and in fact to be

— —
, , ,
introduced to him .
“
N ay Doctor that alters the aff air alto
, ,
gether said F rampto n who for his own sake

”
, , , ,
never chose to u ndervalue the importance o f

wealth ! if h e i s a person of large fortu n e he ,
m ust o f course be perfectly respectable a n d

, , ,
a desirable acquai ntance ; and as I presume

others will b e entirely governed by me I shall
,
,
be h appy to gi ve him a passport i n to the first

society o f this par t of H ampshire by re c eivi ng ,
”
him at O akham hall -
.
I m u st re q ues t Mr ,
.
,
F ram p to n , said Lady
S usan , that you will decide on n othing of this
sort hastily o r w ithout m y concurrence At
, .
your solicitatio n I con se n ted to receive those v ul

gar Pe ngui n s ,
an d I have repented it ever si nce .
S urely , Lady S usan , you m ust yourself

TH E N EW F O R ES T ! 1 87
admit that h is E ast Ind i a Madeira i s i n compar

able h i s dinners are exc ellen t and as to his
,
-
S ta ff ord shire pudding s

“
I wish he woul d stay at home and eat
them interposed her Ladyship
, and not ,
wander a bout the country in th at ridiculou s

, .
geolog ical dress as he calls it H e had the

-
, .
presumption to approach the carri age t other ’
d ay as I wa s r i d ing with my cousin S ir

, ,
N u g e n t C l a vering an d wa s about to address

,
me, when I threw S ixpence out of the wi ndow ,
as if I had mistaken him for a beg gar and de ,
”
sire d the coach man to drive on .
”
5 La ! h ow very odd !
‘
exclaimed Miss D o t
'
te r W el l I found S ixpence m yself last

“
el .
,
T uesday fortnigh t I t was the t i me we were .
brewi n g our table ale ! I had gone out at the -
orchard gate and wa s crossing the road to call

-
,
at Laurence Penfold s to order som e more hops ’

,
when who S hould come by but S am H olde n ,
driving along in his taxed cart drawn by that -

,
v icious bl ack horse of his you k n ow his

horse I dare say Lady S usan ; so I d re w up,
o n one side
Dorot h y ! Dorothy ! put the Sixpence in

t he same basket with the apricots and c ra nb e r
”
ries cried the Doctor
,
.
T he good gossip agai n looked at her brother

with an affectionate smile a nd held her peace ,
.
And Mrs Penguin is a thousand times

.
”
worse than her husband said Miss F rampton ,
.
If she were only vulgar S h e might be endured ;

bu t S he is low whic h is intolera ble It is really
,
.
overwhelmi ng in hot weath er to see her flaring

hat a n d red feathers her red t h ick fingers load
,
ed with ri ngs a n d her fine clothes put o n

,
over that and over that and over that like

, , ,
’
Betty Blackberry s as i f it were the depth

’
,
”
of winter .
W e could not of course notice such people

, ,
”
in Londo n said M r F rampton ;
, but a s a ma
.
is tra te a n d the principal person in t hi s neigh

g ,
b o u rho o dif I did not receiv e the m at O akham

,
h all nobody would visit them ; which was my

,
sole co n sideration in wishing Lady S usan to

leave cards at Grotto house and to keep up a -
”
certain degree of acquaintance .
T o say nothing of the E ast India Madeira ,
an d the S taff ord shire puddings , whispered

Augusta to her brother neit h er of them ever ,
sc rupling to ri dicule t hei r father .
“
Very g ood very good ; not the p u d d ing s
‘
, ,
but the observatio n Y ou re in high force.

’
,
Augu sta thi s mor ning ; quite re d e e c u l o u s

,
—
,
H
o n my honour " returned th e Captai pre
’
n
p ,
se n ting his enamelled snuff box to hi s nose so -

,
as to d i splay his white h and and glittering l i ngs ,
and t h en return ing it to his pocket

“
F or my part observed F anny I t h ink

“
, ,
w e ought to be grateful to t h e Peng u in s for
favouri ng u s with an occasional visit since it ,
n ever fails to relieve the dullness of O akham
hall with a little amu semen t and to aff ord u s at ,
least a laugh which we rarely hear unless w hen

, ,
so me of Pompey s tricks occa sion one to echo up

’
’
the staircase from the servant s hall .
’
I m sure child you laugh often enough
, ,
yourself though I have frequently repeated to

,
o u Lord C he s te rfi e l d s opinion of that vulgar

’
y
emotion Indeed you someti mes appear to l n
.
,
d ul g e i n it ou t of opposition and absolutely to ,
la ugh at n oth i ng .
N o indeed I am rarely without an excuse ;

, ,
fo r I cannot hel p laughi ng at o u r own solemn

and stately gravity ; a nd it is precisely becau se

Mr Pe nguin breaks in upo n all this and Seems
.
,
”
t o ha v e n o respect f o r it that I l ike him , .
H o w come s it that yo u always like the vul
g are s t people best P

”
i n quired A ugusta .
I suppose S i ster becau se they are the most

, ,
n atural a nd amu si ng I k n o w so completely .
by heart all our polite an d titled visitants who ,
call speak and look by rou ti ne that I coul d

, , ,
tell you beforeh and every word th ey would

utter an d e v e ry e x pre s s io n they would wear
'
, ,
with as m uch certai n ty as I c a n tell what o clock ’
”
it i s by casti n g m y eye upo n the dial plate - .
I protest Miss F an ny said Dr Dotterel

,
”
,
.
,
’
I hope yo u don t i nclude m e in this polite list ,
f o r I flatter my sel f I am no t t o be s o easily read ,
—a little more variety in my di scourse I hope , ,
a nd in fact I trust T o do this yo u mu st no t

'
‘
,
.
o nly possess great di scrimi nation bu t be as I , ,
m ay y a co m
sa plete ahem
,
don t you think — —
’
”
so Miss Augusta ?
,
You have exactly expressed my own sen ti

m ents replie d Miss F rampto n bowing to th e
,
”
,
Doctor and casti ng a side glance at her brother

,
.
”
And mine too , said the Captain . Most
T H E N EW F O RS ET . 1 91
’
e x tr o r n ary coi
’
n cidence ; the very phrase that
was o n th e tip o f my own tongue pon my '
,
’
hono u r ! B ut yo u re wrong F a nn y to re ’
, ,
d ee c u l e any o f our v i sitan t s whether genteel or ,
vulgar ; it S a thi ng I never do myself quite

’
—
b aw min abl e d on t you thi nk it is Miss

’
a ; ,
Dotterel
W hy to tell you the truth I
, , was a Zeet l e
su rprised at Miss F an ny s observation T o be ’
.
sure present compan y S always ex cepted yo u

,
’
,
know ; b ut I m u st say for myself that n o one ,
can tell b eforeha n d wh at I am goi n g to talk

about c an they brother ? Just at this time 0
, ,
’
year i n deed o ne n aturally talks of what s goi ng

, ,
’ ’
on in the great world o f j am s an d j ell ies and —

, ,
preserves an d such like ; and t h at reminds me

,
of a question I h ad inte n ded to ask you Lady ,
S u san whether you h ave made your ketchup

,
yet for we ca n t get a ny good mu shroom s at

,
’
”
the Vicarage .
A nd
that remi n ds m e said Lady S u san , ,
evading the question by turni ng the subj ect , ,
“
that we have wandered from th e poi n t at
which we started as to this Mr H enr y Mel, .
comb whom it i s wi shed to introduce at th e

,
H all ,
. W ho i s he ? whence i s he ? what is
he 7
T he two former question s become of very

little co n seque n ce when we can a n swer the
,
”
l atter by stat i ng t h at h e is rich
, said Mr ,
.
F rampton .
Y ou can h ardly expect to forget the v a me

lue and importance of birth and rank whatever ,
may be your own opinio n said Lady S u san , ,
haughtil y ; t h oug h I am quite wi l li ng to al

low t h e seco n dary impo rtance o f wealth W ho .
has see n this Mr M e l c o mb ? W hat is he like ?

.
”
A remarkably handsome you ng m a n I pro ,
”
test said t he Doctor ;
, though I cannot say
I was pleased with hi s notion s altogether nor ,
i ndeed with his ahem —
”
A S to those remarked the Captai n, I ,
never attended to the m; t h ou g h I remember h e

talked som e non sen se ! quite re d e e c u l o u s n o w ,
railly wasn t it ? abou t putti ng down horse races

’
-
and th e opera ; bu t I could n t keep my eyes ’
from his dress pon my honour ! I d o n t know

,
’ ’
wh at sorts of coats gentlemen may wear in

America b ut w o uldn t exhibit such an article
,
’
’
myself in any of th e streets of Lon on for a ,
TH E N EW F OR ES T . 1 93
f ar thi ng
less tha n a th ousa n d pounds A most .
T ran s atlantic t urn out irre sis tibl yl u dic ro u s

- - —e —
”
ca n t help laughi n g when I think of it
’
.
Mr F ram pton and the Doctor becom i ng

. no w
deeply e ngaged upon th e important subj ect of

t h e fair Miss Dotterel movi ng her ch air close
, ,
to Lady S u sa n and carefully coveri ng h er

,
ankles an action which ge n erally accompanied

,
every cha nge of positio n resumed her i nquiry ,
abou t the ketch up ; an d then , in a most co n fi
dential w h isper proceeded to gi ve her L ady shi p

,
an accou n t of th e funeral of old I saac a po or ,
villager who had recently been buried of the ,
little property he had left behind him and of ,
t h e silver watch h e had be qu eathed t o S ally

-
W ick s .
After two or three ineff ectual attempts to

e scape from this inflictio n L ady S usan fixing , ,
h er eyes o n the sple ndid clock upon the mantel

p i ece exclaimed with an assu med lo ok of sur
,
-
”
pri se ,
Almost three o cloc k I declare ! ’
”
La ! so it is , said h er tormentor not in ,
t h e least taking t h e hint ; but I v e n othi ng ’
partic ular to do this morni ng for I v e finished ,

’
my pre serves and ketch up t hank H eaven and ,
VOL . I K
"
we don t dine till five Y ou ve g t a ne w .
’
o
F rench clo ck haven t you ? W hat a beauty !

,
’
I n ever saw an
y thing so handsome
”
It ou
g ht to be handsome madam ! ,
cried
Mr F rampto n w h ose ear
.
, q uickly caught ‘
an
y
admiration o f his gorgeou s finery ,
a nd who
m easured every thi ng by what it had cost .
“
T here i s nothing , I flatter myself at O ak ,
hamhall that is no t, of the very best and m ost

”
expensive ki n d .
T he Doctor otwithst anding frequent syn

, n
copes o f speech h ad contrived to make his

,
a u ditor understand that it was absolutely ne c e s
sary to suppress thi s formidable fair , and to

com pel th e lo we r orders to submit to the wills
o f their pastors an d masters ,
who were so m uch
rich er a nd co n sequently s o m uc h more re sp e c
, , ,
table than themselves ; sentiment s in which Mr .
F rampton perfectly coincide d that h e pu ff ed

SO ,
o u t his cheek s wit h mingled c o m l a c e n c v at hi s

p
o wn i m portance a n d i n dignation a gai n st those
,
w ho would presum e to oppose it ; whe n th e door
s uddenly ope ned , a nd , withou t the announce

m ent of any new visitant a strange figure bolted ,
into t h e centre of the apartment . It was T ony ,

the bearer of the address voted at th e George ,
but n o t less disguised by h i s borrowed h abili

m ents an d th e eff orts of th e barber than by t h e ,
poten t content s of the frequently replenished

bowl in which h e had been allowed to participate
,
.
S obered t o a certai n exten t by findi ng him self ,
for the first time in hi s life in so gran d a room

, ,
and among S O many of the gentry he remained ,
for some second s bowing very reverentially .
His for m was reflected by the numerou s long

m irrors surrounding him ; and bei ng u tterly
u nable to recognise his proper figure in its pre
sent tran sm o g rifi e d state h e though t that h e

,
beheld so ma n y o f the inmates greeti ng and

welcomi ng him to O akham hall ; u n der which -
impression h e kept making profound bows to hi m

self turni ng round and rou nd like a dog pursu
, ,
ing h is own tail a nd exclaiming at the same t i me

, ,
S arv an t, S ir, this is kind on ye to

sarv a n t ;
rece i ve a body so hearty like dang d i f i t baint,

’
W hile t h us backing and bo win g h e b umped ,
against a m arble statue of Minerv a standing ,
on a l o w pedestal and starti ng round ej acula

, ,
ted, Ax your pardon m a am ,

Lord ! Lord ’
ye be as w h ite in the f eac e as our Bal l ! I hope —
K 2
I h aven t f ro u g ht ye ! take my arm ma am if

’
,
’
,
”
you want to step dow n A n d he held up h i s
’
h and thi nki ng probably that the lady had

, , ,
j umped upon the pedestal to get out of his way .
Miss F rampton w ho Was seated close beside ,
i t h ad however n o so ner ca u gh t his eye than

, , ,
o ,
he qu i tted the stat ue pl aced him self opposite to ,
h er an d surve yi n g her wi th the m audlin and

,
“
fond look of i n toxication contin ue d A d ad t , ,
you re a j olly wench hand somer nor Molly

’
,
”
S t u bbs danged if ye bai n t !
,
“ Good heave n s ! who i s thi s strange crea
t u re and what does he mean

,
cri ed A ugu sta ,
in some alarm .
Lord love ye continued T ony , don t ’
’
ye be I m a frie n d to the fair
f ro u g h t .
F ellow fellow cried Mr F rampton .

,
sternly it appears to m e that you h av e been

,
”
maki ng a beast of yourself .
T ha nk ye S ir kindly ; and I h ope you re

, ,
’
”
the same replied T ony agai n bowing w i th
, ,
great respect .
S peak booby ,
exclaimed t h e Doctor ,
W hat do you wan t are you drunk

-
”
N O, parso n ; are yo u ? responded th e
THE NEW F O R EST . 197
clown with a loo k an d tone of honest i n qu iry

, ,
as h e really c onsi dered it a m atter of do u bt

if .
'
Hi thert o th e rest of t h e company h ad stared

at t h e se inexpli cable pr o ceedin gs as if they had ,
been tran sfixed with amazemen t ; bu t L ady

S u san beginning n o w to comprehe n d t h at the
,
i ntruder was intoxicated called angrily to her ,
son bidding him throw the horrid fellow ou t of

,
window or kick him down stairs

, .
Railly , n o w, replied the Captain ,

I am
the la st perso n to be f a s te e dio u s u pon an occasion
of thi s natur ; bu t p a wsitiv el y th e creature
smell s so ab a wm inab l y of rum a l e e qu o r to ,
which I h ave a m ost p artee c u l a r obj ection that ,
I mu st decl i ne bei ng per sonally con cern ed in

his ej ectmen t ; m u st indeed pon my h ono u r ! ,
’
W e have plen ty of pe ople h owever who will , ,
se e h i m spe edily conveyed to t h e horse po nd

” -
.
An d he rang the bell to sum mon som e of the

s erv ant s for that pur o s e
p .
T on y in t h e m eanwhile find ing t h e address

, ,
in his hand and bei ng determi n ed to prese n t it

,
to some o ne advanced towards Mr F rampton

,
.
,
m umbling as h e tendered it to him

,
S arv an t , ,
your wors h ip sarv ant S ir I do ax leave to

, ,
.
h and you righ t i nto your own paw as I sai d I

, ,
would this here address wh ereby y u 11 S ee

, ,
o
’
t h at w mean to keep p the fair ; and hav i ng

e u
th e law on our side , I

’
mdesired to y with sa ,
the respects and submissi o n -

o f the whole par ish ,
t h a t we don t care a farden for your worship

’
,
”
nor f o r Doctor Dotterel neither .
S irra h ! si rrah cri ed Mr F rampton red .

,
de nin g and swelling with anger , you S hall be

se tin stocks f o r this insolen ce to a magi s
t he
”
t ratea n d a perso n of my consequence
,
.
N o bu t I sh a n t though ! g o t th e law 0
’ ’ ’
,
my side danged if I bai n t ! s o I do n t care a

,
’
brass button for your worship cried T ony ; ,
w ho h avi ng n o w completely recovered his c o nfi

de nce se t his arm s a kimbo a n d looked most
,
-
,
stolidly resolute .
”
I protest , exclaimed Dr Dotterel .
, this
i s most audaciou s behaviour ; in fact it I is, ,
as
may say a complete case o f ahem

, Th is fel —
low o u ght t o be horse whipped ; such co n duct -
”
really beats every thi ng .
Ah like e n ou gh but n obody sh a n t beat

, ,
’ ’
me Y ou bai nt in the pulpi t no w M uster

.
,
Parson ; a n d so having the law on my si d e I , ,

T HE NEW F O REST . 1 99
should n t mind fight i ng ye for a gallon of

’
beer danged
, if I sh ould ! H urra N one but the
brave deserve the fair
In this in t erval t h e bell had been rung se
veral times w i th i ncrease d ve h emence and as , ,
T ony wa s evidently becoming pot val i ant and -
pugnacious all eyes were t urned toward s t h e

,
door with considerable anxiety when i t at ,
length flew open and Pompey t h e B lack still

, ,
more decidedly under th e infl uence of the rum

punc h than hi s friend T ony reeled i nto the ,
room singing or rather shrieking

, ,
T is S tu rd ay night
a , wid a hi hi
T is S at u rd a y ni gh t
’
, wid a ho
Da m ar k et he d o n e, an d da ni g g er h e ru n ,
To d an c e ro u n d a n d ro u n dt o d a Banj ore
’
s sou nd ;
D en al l c al ph d an s, a n d j u m p an d s n i g ,
Hi ! h o ! t ink a t ing - t i ng
Clap pi ng his hands and j umping as he s h ou ted ,
t h e last lin es he looked round him wit h a smile

, ,
whic h drew up the t h ick c urtain of his lips

fro m h is white teeth and betrayed at the same ,
time by its vacan t expressi on that he wa s utterly

, ,
u nconscious what he wa s about .
“ ”
H o w sirrah ! exclaimed his master
, ,
“
w h at s’
6
20 0 TH E N EW F O R EST
th e m eaning of this ? Do you forget wh ere yo u

are T ake this d ru nke n fello w who has found ,
h is way i nto the drawi ng room an d kick him -

,
”
i n sta n tly dow n s t airs -
.
Gorry m irre e exclaimed Pom pey

-
who ,
e b b e r tink 0 dat T o ny ma friend him d am

’
, ,
good fello w him lub rum punch and ne bb er

,
-
,
dri nk warra ; but him no m ore drunk dan myse f ,
a bit ! Pompey an d T o ny u m dance

d eb b l e ,
to gedder all the same like t wo grasshopper

-
, ,
.
H i ! ho ! ti nk a ti ng ti ng ! I n t h e awkward
” -
capers that accompa nied these word s h e kicked ,
away the stool on which was propped th e gouty

foot of his m a ster who snatchi ng up his leg
, ,
with a shout of pai n and at t he sam e t i me , , ,
seizing his crutch headed stick prep a red to -

,
launch it at the head o f th e off ender B u t .
m orose as he naturally wa s a nd irritated by his ,
present su ff eri ngs he could never forget that t h e

,
black had o nce saved hi s life at the risk of hi s

own so that he quietly replaced the stick rubbed
, ,
his foot a nd co n ten ted him self with exclaim i ng

, ,
Confou nd the ra sc a l l the poor fellow I —

,
mean ; h e does n t know what he i s about

’
,
or
T H E N EW F O R E S T . 20 1
he would rather break his own limb s than hurt

m i ne
.
73
Mr F rampton ! Mr F rampt o n
. c ried .
L ady S u san wh o h ated th e N egro

,
I al way s ,
told you he would one day be the death of you ,
if you kept t hi s o d i o u s black wretc h in the

”
h ou se .
W hat da d e bbl e cried Pom pey i ndignan t

, ,
at such an i mputation eve n in the midst of his,
drunken n ess M e be de dess of ma massa and

I da same Pompey wh at fotch u m up f o m d a
bottom of da se a when u m got no m ore spe e sh
,
in um s mous dan a d ro u n rat ! Black wre sh

’
0 0 bl ack w re s h o o se lf to tink m e sush b ad ma n s
”
so dere s a hic k e ryn ut for 0 0 to crack !
’
- H is
mpl ac e nc y ho wever quickly returned
, ,
for ,
suddenly advancing t owards Miss Dotterel h e ,
ch u cked h er fa mili arly under t he chin t o her ,
inexpressible con s tern a tion and then seizing her ,
h and exclaimed with a most fo nd fuddled , and

, , ,
asi nine look W hat 0 0 say missee ? o o dan se

, ,
da J u mb e e J u mb e e dance wid Pompey

- Oo
rader ole and li ttle bit ugly and bery hebby

, ,
and l umpy ; bu t neb e r mind j o mp o p and s tir ,

2 0 92
. T H E N EW F OR ES T .
you stum ole one and o n ce 0 0 begi n o o danse

, , ,
all da same like da fat big p o rp u s whe n u m

flou nder in da warra H i ! ho ! ti nk a ting .
ting
H urra ! none bu t the brave deserve the
fair echoed T o ny bala nci ng n his totter
p a
,
o
ing knees ,
an d holding out his h a nd s to the
Blac k for a re n ewal of their w i ld dance to the ,
i nfi nite di smay of t he compa ny T he horrified .
Miss Dotterel had already waddled o u t o f the

room ej aculating
, O the filthy animal , to —
be ch ucked u nder the chin for the first tim e in

m y life and th e creature to be a black
, Th e
oth er fe m ales were preparing to follow her ex
am ple when th e Capta i n who had gon e in
, ,
search of th e m e n serva n ts an d had found them

-
,
all assembled in the court yard gapi ng at the -

,
erforma n ces of Punc h inello arrived to th e

p ,
res c u e with a timely rei nforceme n t T he butler .
took ch arge o f T ony who quietly su ff ered h i m ,
self to be led ou t of the room S h ou ti ng at the ,
same time N one but th e brave deser v e the

,
”
fair ! w h ile Joseph a stout u n der servant ,
-
,
firmly collared Pompey who showe d a dispo ,
sitiou to resist th i s summary process until he ,

T HE N E W F O R ES T . 920 3
Sh o uld have com pleted the J u mb e e Ju mb e -

e
dance Josep h h owever h auled h im away th e

.
, , ,
black wriggling and giggl i ng and expost ulating ,
w i t h h im as he retired H o sepp H o se pp o
,
o
c omical dog ! wh at 0 0 bout ? Gog ! how 0 0

tickle m a troat wid o o dam kn uckles ! H o se pp ,
”
I say! Doctor Dotterel called lustily after
t h e servants to secure both o fl e nd ers that they ,
might be se t in t h e stocks for drunkenness ; but

Mr F rampto n limited his threats t o T ony
.
,
say ing , that h e would h i m self t ake care to

pun i sh Pompey In E ngland however a
.
, ,
drunken m an i s sure to excite a good hu moured -
smile and awake n the sympathy of the lower

,
order a feeling of w h ich t h e prese nt deli u

,
quents found the advantag e for the servants , ,
who were m oreover all staunch advocates for
the fair dismissed T ony scot free to find his

, ,
way back to the George and inducted Pompey ,
to his own room that h e migh t Sleep hi m sel f

,
sober .
C H AP TER V I I I .
T h e rew as al o v e b o rn s a dn ess in his b reast

-
,
T h at w an t e d s t i m u l u s t o b ri n g o n re s t
T h e s e S i m p l e p l e as u re s w e re n o mo re o f u s e ,
A n d d an g e r o nl y c o u l d re p o s e p ro d u c e
He j o in d th as s o c i at e s in t h e ir l a wl e ss tra d e
’ ’
,
An d w as at l e ngt h o f t h e i r p ro fess i o n m ad e .
C RA B BE .
N O TW I T HST A N D I N G t h ill timed intoxi cae -
tion f T o ny n d f the Black ally by whom

o a o
h h d bee n admitted i nt o O akham hall the

'
e a -
Captain , w ho had treated them at the George ,
was to o vetera n a practitio ner upon bowls of

pu n ch to be in the smallest degree aff ected by
,
his o wn potation s or even to su spect that hi s

,
companio n s could be i nj ured by what a ppeared

to him t o be very temperate draughts After .
t h eir departure t herefore b e mounted h is black

, ,
blood mare an d still ret ai n i ng h is meerschaum

,
THE NEW F O R ES T . 20 5
pipe in h is mouth shortened by taking out

.
some of the j o i nts t h at composed i t struck at ,
a bri sk pace across the country towards the
N ew F orest into the wild recesses of which h e

,
quickly plunged T he real n am e of thi s m an

.
w a s L a wrence B o u l d rs n t h ough he had long

e o ,
ceased to be saluted b y eit h er of those appell a

tion s Born in th e F or est his father n of
.
, , o e
the under keepers who had charge of an ex

-
,
tensive walk employed him for some years

,
in b ro u z ni g
and fe edi ng the deer cutting and ,
faggoting underwood or watchi n g f o r deer ,
S tealers an d o ther trespassers upon his walk ;

but the youth had an i nnate pred ilection for
the s e a ; the sigh t of th e n u merou s vessels coast
ing t h e I sle of W ight channel or passing round ,
the N eedles which h e c ou l d distinctly s e e from

,
the hig h ground of hi s ordi nary station cor ,
ro b o rat e d this tendency and an accidental con

,
n e xio n with a band of smugglers w ho had a ,
concealed store in the h aun ts of th e N ew F orest ,
enabled him to gratify it H is n atural aff e c .
tions however which were stro ng retai ned him

, , ,
for some time at home u n til his father a stern , ,
v iolent man having u n mercifully pu nished hi m

,
for some trivial off e n ce hi s proud bold h eart

,
revolted from the i nj u stice h e quitted the p a

,
ter nal roof an d j oi ni ng the sm ugglers was not

, ,
only allowed to i n dulge the lo ng cherished -
wishes o f his bosom by bei ng sen t to s e a b ut ,
was gradually i nitiated in all the mysteries and ,
inured to all the hardship s a n d da ngers o f the

lawle ss career upon w hich he had entered F or .
this mode of life one that requires a rare union

,
of almost incompatible qualities in order to ,
prosecute it with a fair chan ce o f safety and

success he seemed to be s o especially qualified
,
by nature as almost to j ustify th e hyperbolical

,
praise of one of his frie nd s who declared that

,
he m u st have been bor n a smuggler ; con sider

ing that character not i n i ts paltry details to
, ,
which any sorry rogu e m ay be competen t but ,
with reference to it s more enlarge d complex , ,
and mercantile operations Capable of every

.
endura nce whether of fatigue or privation

, ,
absolutely i n sen sible to fear a nd yet d iscreet

,
a nd cautious in encountering da nger ; n ever

k n ow n to be intoxicated a circum stance how
—
,
ever which might rather be attributed to the

,
singular strengt h of h i s con st i tut i on t h an to ,

h i s temperance ; as acute and j udiciou s i n plan

ning an exploit as h e was undaunted and in
,
defat i gable in executing i t ; an d above all so ,
unimpeachable in hi s integri ty th at h e would

,
rather de ny h i m self h i s own fair share t h an ,
defraud an employer or a colleague it m ay ,
eas ily be supposed that the superiority o f h is

mind quickly manifested itself and that he ,
rapidly ro s e through all the gradations of em

ploymen t until he finally became the leader of
,
th a t band which he had j oi ned as a boy i sh

vol unteer .
As his mean s a nd his co nfidence i ncrease d ,
his operation s though always confined to the

,
illic it or f ree trade as it s followers term it

, ,
assumed something of a m ercantile character .
He w as con nected indeed wit h several eminen t

, ,
m erchants in London for whom he had executed

,
del i cate and difficult commiss i on s d uri ng the

war either b y the conveyan ce o f importan t
,
inf ormation from o ne coast to th e other or by ,
th e tran sport o f guineas and other valuable

freightage to and fro ; in all which tempti ng
situatio n s he had never violated th e con fidence
repose d in him , n ever done a ny thi ng calculated
to impugn the general op i nion o f hi s un i ted

boldness and address . S uch was the line of
life in which he had now been e ngaged for
many years and with varied success sometimes ,
as a n agent for others though more often lat

, ,
t e rl y upon his own excl usive accou n t ; but a s

,
such an illegal career could h ardly be pursued

wit h impu n ity all his wariness an d ingenuity
,
had not en abled him to elude the vigila n ce of

the l a w H e had been repeatedly arrested
.
,
tried an d co ndem n ed to variou s fines and im

,
prisonme n ts while w arra n t s a nd capiases for

,
the variou s pe n al ties h e had incurred sometimes

,
outstanding again st him to the amount of many

thous and pou n d s had compelled him more
,
than on ce to fly the country N ot less gene

.
rou s and human e th an i n trepid h e made it a

,
r u le to abstain from blood and v i ole n ce except ,
whe n they were forced upon him in self defence -

,
often exposi ng and surrenderi ng his o wn perso n

to scree n his comrades or to protect h is an
,
tag o nis t s whe n th ey were overpowered ; so that
if he was engaged in any desperate aff ray h i s ,
individual cond uct seldo m failed to command

the esteem eve n of t h ose who were opposed to
hi m .F or the purpose of perplexing or baffli ng

the law i n case Of being subj ected to prose
,
c u ti no i t is cu stomary w i th all smugglers to

,
drop their real names an d as sume an al i as -

,
or a n i ckname frequently o ne of a lud icrou s

,
d escription con sonant to the appeara n ce or s u p

,
posed c h aracter o f the wearer B o u l d e rso n .
had for ma ny years alternately bor ne the ap

p e l l a tio n s of Bl ac k l o c k s , fro m his profusion of
dark curling hair and of Lio n from his strong
, ,
resemblance to that noble an i mal ; but latterly ,
since he h ad become by tacit con se n t of the

w h ole fraternity alo ng the coast a sort of ,
general leader and ma nager in all important

en terprises , h e had received the disti nctive ,
”
h onorary title of T he Captai n by which h e ,
was familiarly addressed in all the ports from ,
th e Land s E nd to Yarmouth even the K i ng s

’ ’
offi cers to most of whom he was know n an d

, ,
by whom n otwith sta ndi ng his avowed pro

,
f e ssio n h e was generally respected i nvariably

, ,
bestowing that appellation upon him W ithout .
any dereliction of thei r d uty m any of the latter ,
were upon the m ost amicab l e term s with him .
T he i rs was a m utual contest of courage and

2 10 T HE N EW F O R EST .
c unn i ng bu t one which like any other generou s

, ,
warfare was not incompatible with a certain

,
degree of frie ndli n ess among the i n dividuals

w agi ng it T his was the ligh t in which the
.
Ca ptain loved to view it f o r he always c o n ,
s id e re d him self as a sort of legitim ate belli

gere n t pitted a v owedly agai n st the K ing s
,
’
reve n ue o fficers but in all other respects as

,
loyal ho n est a nd orderly a subj ect as any in

, , ,
the realm U pon the conti ne n t where the

.
,
untoward state o f hi s a ff airs had occasionally

co mpelled him to be a reside n t he was a s m uch ,
at home eve n in th e m id st o f th e w a r as if he
, ,
h ad been in E ngland ; and t he E nglish Lion “ ,
for such w a s hi s conti n ental s o brzgu et had ,
smoked his pipe with Myn heers B urgomasters , ,
an d F renchmen and wa s as perfectly wel l ,
known upon almost every exch ange fro m the

T exel to Ob erb urg , as h e was along all t h e
sou thern shores of hi s native i slan d .
E xclu sively of his n umerou s confederate s

'
along S hore and hi s acquai n tan ce wi th all the

,
fi sh ermen most of whom were rea d y to assist

, ,
“ ”
now and then i n running a crop of goods, ,
or doing an odd j ob i n the free trade h e

“
was i n i mm ed i ate fell o wship and l eague with

a band of land smen as resolute an d st urdy
,
abett o rs of his enterprises as a ny of the re ,
gular smugglers T hese were the ten ants o f

.
t hat m ultitude of cabi n s and cottages run up ,
in defiance of trespass u pon the borders and

,
purlieu s of th e N e w F orest ; a set of m e n w ho

_
, ,
in addition to the advan tages of reari ng cattle

and hogs u pon its commo n s and waste lan ds ,
found occasional employme n t in cutting furze ,
and conveying it to the brick kiln s but who -

, ,
h aving n o regular retu rn s o f weekly labour t o

subsist o n were gen erally poor an d pro fl ig a te
, ,
and depended for their collateral support upon

, ,
deer stealing poaching purloini ng timber and

-
, , ,
assisting w h enever their services were required

, ,
in runni ng spi rits or ot h er goods ashore after ,
they had been floated u p S outhampto n water -

,
or the forest r i vers for the purpose of conceal

,
ment wi thin it s covert s an d recesses Most .
of t h ese di spersed band s could be assembled

at a given point and at a short n otice when
, ,
ever any importa nt enterprise required a con

centration of thei r force s T he captai n had .
n umerou s e mi ssaries while h e himself ri ding

, ,
a thorough bred mare which defied p ursu i t

-
,
and possessi ng a fast saili ng cutter whic h could

-
,
outstrip a ny vessel in the K i ng s service h ad ’
the mean s o f i ssui ng his orders with a celerity

and secrecy that ge nerally baffled discovery ,
by accide n t or treachery . It wa s n o t, there
ed at the George -
inn , that by holding up h i s
”
little fi nger , he could collect some h undred s
he migh t u ndertake .
At the period of our history t h e Captain , ,
discouraged by two or three heavy losses was ,
half disposed to secure what remained of his for

t une which after all his risk s and toils scarcely
, , ,
exceeded a competen cy ,
an d to listen to the
earnest entreaties of his o nly child a daughter , ,
abando n a mode of life which S he abhorred ,
as not less disgraceful th an perilous and s o ru ,
pled n o t to stigmatize in indignan t term s .
T hat he might have some ostensible pursuit ,
and elude the keen su spic i on s to w h ic h his

T H E N EW F OR ES T . 213
pa st life h ad exposed him h e had some time ,
be fore returned to his native haunts to wh i ch ,
h e had always bee n attach ed and h i ring a ,
f arm in th e N ew F orest near Beanley ri v er , ,
gave ou t that he had abandoned the free trade ,
and mea n t in future to plough the earth

, , in
stead o f the seas for h is s u pport Hi s real .
mot i ve however for taki ng th e farm hou se a

, ,
-
,
so lid a n cient edifice which h ad formerly been

,
a detached grange appertai ni ng to Beaulieu or

,
B e a u l ey Abbey was t h e accidental di scovery

,
of an exte n s ive ra nge of vaul t s ben eat h it ,
w h ich had remained hidden and u nk n o w n for
several centuries T hese h e con verted into a

.
store for sm uggled goods co nceali ng the e u ,
trance in such an e ff ectual manner that though ,
hi s premises h ad been repeatedly searched by

t h e o ffi cers they had n ever been able to detect
,
i t T his dwelling now con stituted h i s hom e ;

.
h e made n m ore tri ps across the C h annel

o ,
rarely went to sea bu t still carried on t h e

,
free trade al thoug h i n a narrower circuit

, ,
h Oping to redeem his recen t losses and solemn ,
l y pledg i ng hi mself to his daughter t h at w h en ,

he had done so , he would forswear smuggling ,
i the farm an d retire to live at S outh

'
g ve u
p ,
ampto n .
H er m Othe r having died when she wa s y o ung ,
a n d her father having no settled h ome Mary , ,
for such was hi s daughter s name had been sent ’

,
to school at S outhampton , wh ere s he had latter

l y re m ai ned as a lodger , un der the c are of the
same lady who had superi ntended h er educa
tion ; bu t when h e took the farm her fat h er , ,
who w a s d o ating l y fo nd of her brought her ,
home to superi n tend it sending her back to ,
S o ut h ampton whe n ever he was obliged to be

absen t for any length of time . Mary h ad be
come m uch attached to the schoolmistress who ,
had been as a seco n d moth er to her ; and it was

on this accou n t as well as that she migh t
,
e ff ectually withdra w her father from hi s Ol d

haunts and associates that she had stipulated,
for hi s selecti ng S outhampton as his reside nce ,
w h en he S hould decide upon retiring a period ,
which S he was perpetually implori ng him to

accelera t e .
W he n the Captain after leav i ng the George

, ,
arrived at his sequestered dwelling which st i ll ,

TH E N E W F O R ES T . 215
bore the nam e of the Grange F arm i t hi s , was
first care to stall and feed his m are ; when h e

ente red the hou se no isil v wel comed b y three
,
or fou r m astiff dogs and passed into a large

,
low parlour of w h ic h the ceili ng

, was bisected
by a massive beam of oak that h ad doubtless
once flourished in the wood y vicinit y while the ,
walls were decorated wi th engra v ings all of ,
which bore some allu sion to the N ew F ore s t .
T here was a smoke blackened p o rtrait of H enry

-
H astings the memorable keeper and spo rtsman

,
i n the time of James t he F irst ; a v i ew of the

celebrated groani ng tree of B a d sl e y which about ,
sixty years before had bee n v i sited by t h e

Prince a nd Princess of Wales that they might be ,
ear wit nesses of its portentou s sounds

-
anoth er —
of the C ad e nham oak the rival of Glastonbury

,
thor n in bud d ing at Christmas

, a third o f -
the great ye w tree in Dibden ch urch yard and

- -
,
a drawing of the famou s stag which ,

after
rece i vi ng a keeper s shot collected its dying
’
energi es i n a bound that cleared eigh teen yards ,
a fact commemorated by two posts fixed at

the extremities of the leap in the vicinity of
H ound s down
’
-
.
2 16 TH E NEW F O R EST .
T he i nmates of the parlour at t h e moment ,
of his e n trance were first a S hort thick t

, , , ,
-
se ,
square built bull headed m an n ick named

-
,
-
,
-
R ough an d ready a stau nch sturdy fellow

- -
, , ,
whose prodigiou s strength blunt h on esty and , ,
readi n ess to apply him self to any work whet h er ,
in farming or sm uggli ng h ad recomm e n ded him ,
to the special favour of the Capt ai n though he ,
had n o tale n t f o r plotting or plan ning or for ,
any o f the variou s contrivances requisite to m ake

an accomplished sm u ggler ; and secondly a sl y ,
looki ng h ump backed m an called My Lord

,
-
, ,
g enerally employed as a scou t or s

py bu t more ,
e specially retai n ed o n accoun t of his wife a ,
handsom e woman who formed part of t h e esta

,
b l ish m e n t a n d wh o was h i ghly u seful in n ego

,
t ia ting bribes with the coast blockade men or ,
decoyi ng th e officers T hese two 1nd iv id u al s

.
appeared to be no otherwise occupied than in

smoking A boy called M oon probably from
.
, ,
the rou nd ness of his vacan t face wa s gazing ,
throu gh a telescope at the open window which

comman ded the Channel where it was his bu si ,
ness to keep a con stant watch , an d g i ve inf or
m ation of every th i ng that h e observed .

T H E N E W F O R EST . 21 7
Re clin in g upo n a ch air and holding a b o k in

,
o
his hand thoug h w i t h an air of abstractio n that

,
showed h e was not readi ng it there was a nother ,
i n dividu al in the ro o m bu t oh how unlike ,
tho se w e have be en describing an d ho wm uch ,
exalted by the c ontrast t h ey presented It was
a tall young m an whose symme try of for m was

,
pe rc eptible e v en through th e homely habili

me n ts in which he had i nvested it ev i de n tly f o r ,
the purpo se of di sguise ; wh ile hi s fine co un

te nanc e in which sorrow and perh aps vice had
,
made manifest i n road s without havi ng bee n able

,
t o ec lips e its pale beauty could be co mpared to

,
nothi ng but that of a fallen angel H is red u n .
dant glossy brown h air was throw n wildly a nd ,
ye not inelegantly
t about his head
, ; his fair
hands so d i ssimilar from those of his comrades
, ,
were adorned with rings ; and in spite of t h e

negligence and coarse ne ss of his dress which was ,
ad apted to the degradi ng occupation he follow

e d his sua vi ty of manner his po l i shed language
, , ,
his courteo u s demeano u r imp arted to him a cer

,
t ai n air of gentil ity and di sti nction o f which the ,
e fl e c t was rather heightened by the deep mela n

'
c ho l
y in w h ich h e was ge ner a lly plu nged Ge n . ~
V O L. I . L
2 18 T HE N EW F O REST .
George was hi s common name although

t l e m an ,
some of hi s rude companions j ealou s of the ,
favour show n him by the Captain bestowed upon ,
him the less complimentary appellatio n o f George

th e S well H is gen erosity i n deed an d a c o n
.
, ,
rage so reckless as almost to deserve th e n ame

o f desperatio n had early e ndeared him to the
,
Cap t ain whose attachmen t had been stre ngth

e ned by hi s cond u ct in a S harp a ff ray with some
o f the Preventive S ervice m e n wherei n he h ad -
,
received a wound in his anxiety to screen an d

bri ng o ff his leader I n i n trepidity and n oble
.
ness o f feeling the t w o men resembled e ach

other ; in all other respect s they were totally .
dissimilar .
F o r a well educated right pri n cipled girl like

-
,
-
Mary it would have been

, d ifli e u l t to imagi n e a
m ore i n appropriate residence than th e Grange ~
farm considering the c haracter and pursuits

,
“
of it s ordi n ary inma tes E ve n with h er own .
father however st rong migh t be h er filial aff e c

,
‘
t ion sh e did bu t partially sympathise f o r the

, ,
coarseness o f his ma nn ers sometimes repelled

her while
,
she was at once alarmed an d revolted
by th e lawless tenor o f his life . George it is ,
true , w as a s i milar delinquent bu t this appear ,
ing in his case to be the result of some st ern ne

c e ss it
y not
, of choice it rat h e r provoked pity
,
than cen sure . S ecluded f rom other society , she

beheld in h im the only i nmate of the farm
whose education and taste assimilated in the
smal lest degree with her own the m yste ry
~
t h at
at tached to him the profou nd sorrow of which
,
he was the victim the contrast off ered by h i s

,
fi ne form gentle manners and cultivated mind

, , ,
to those of hi s associates presented themselves to

,
her in a romantic poi n t of view that could not ,
fail t o strike the imagi nation o f a girl s o circum

s ta n c e d ; and w he n w e add t h at h e played at
times u po n Mary s gu i t ar and sa ng plai ntive

’
love songs wit h a most t o uching m elody i t may

.
,
be hardly n ecessary to state t h at he h ad c o m ,
p l e te l
y won h er heart long before she su specte d
that she had lost it M ore than on ce had b e

.
given her reason to believe though not in any ,
direct d eclaration , that h e wa s f ervently attach

ed to h er ; but upon this i nteresting poi n t his
cond uct was so waveri ng and eve n c o ntrad ic
tory that s he could form n o conclusio n as to his
,
real wishes ; an uncertai n ty which a gitated her

L 2
feelings w i t h ou t d im i n i shi ng the tenderness

, of
t h eir n ature .
S carcely had th e Captain e ntered the par

lour whe n Mary havi n g heard his arrival ran
, , ,
into the room to receive his embrace whic h Sh e ,
returned w i th as h earty a cordiality as i t was

bestowed ; h er profuse black locks falling over
her glowing face as he roughly saluted her .
Although comely if n ot handsome S he bore a

, ,
m arked resemblan ce to her father ; every trait

of her cou n tenance bei ng of course softened , ,
and harmon ized a nd th e ro u nd lion like eyes of

, ,
-
the sire expressing on l y a becomi ng decision and

fir mness in the child .
W hat cheer girl ? cried the father agai n

,
”
,
kissi ng her with a loud smack ; n o t sorry to

get home agai n and in time for di nner I c an
, ,
tell you that Polly ; f o r I was at S wanage Bay

,
wh en th e sun rose this m orni ng and n ever u n ,
shipped bit till I got t o th e George at T haxted ,
w h ere I was obliged to give Black Bess a feed

a nd a rest George b o y! what makes thee
.
,
al way s so dow n in th e mouth ? O h ! no wo n

der ; thee S t bee n readi ng I see whic h is b u t
’
, ,
d u l l work for a brave man . S tar t my t i mbers !

THE N EW F O R ES T . 2 21
I never rea d n othing but invo i ces an d bills of

lading and w h at s the upsh ot ? I m always
,
’ ’
taut and braced gaily u p All ri ght R o ugh

, .
,
”
and ready P
-
A y ay master all rig h t

, , T he cages are , .
set and if we do but get beak s enough we

, ,
sh all so on clap the sparrows into them .

”
T hi s piece of Slang which we do no t pretend ,
to translate since th e smugglers are con stantly

,
ch angi ng their vocabulary and h ave new pass ,
w ord s f o r almost every fresh adven ture seemed ,
t o aff ord satisf ac tio fi to the Captai n ; who next

addressi ng My Lord inquir ed w h et h er h e had
,
planted h is potatoe s agreeably to the orde rs h e

h ad rece i ved !
“
T hey have been upo n the l o ok out t hes e -
”
three h ours an swered the h unc h back ; no t
,
-
a n oar can move nor a foot stir w ithou t t h eir

!
blowi ng the balloon . W ho ’

s to be spot s
”
man P*
and w h ere s t h e shy P ’
T ime enough to kno w that , My Lord ,
wh en we come to the start H allo ! M o on . ,
a hoy ! look out platter face and tell m e What

,
-
,
T he m an wh o fix e s th e sp o t wh ere t h e s mu ggle d
go o ds are to b e l an d e d .
you se e at the Jack in the Basket o ff L yming - - -
”
ton.
I see a ro w boat that seem s to be moored to

-
”
th e buoy an d t wo m e n in her
,
.
S tart my timbers ! t wo m en in her ! that s ’
a l i e I m sure ; u nless your telescope sees

,
’
double ; and that s another lie for it s the best

’
,
’
”
in all H ampshire G i ve us the peeper . .
H is o wn practised eye discovered in stantly

that there was b ut o n e man in th e b o a t an d ,
'
retur ni ng the glass to the b o y with the observa ,
tio n that he had either got n o eyes o r o ne to o ,
many h e bade h im go a n d station him self at th e

,
Pigeo n hou se charging him n o t t o lose sigh t of

-
the Jack in the Basket and to bring him imme

- - -
,
diate word whe n the boat began to move .
H av i ng sent My Lord out of the room u pon

som e other commis sion h e S h ut the door and ,
windo w a nd observing to h is remai ni ng compa

,
n io n s with a wink and a smile that s ix ears

, , ,
and t wo of them belo ngi ng to a woman were ,
fi ve too many for heari ng a secret and that h e ,
wa s an ass for tru sti ng them he proceeded to ,
i nform t h em that t h e L o ng splic e which was the ,
name of hi s cutter would arrive o ff the coast in

,
the course of the week with a valuable crop of

,
dry goods ; an d that he h ad been m aki n g ar

rangement s for exte n sive c o operat i on i n running
-
them ashore at the breaki ng of the cliff abo u t ,
three o r four miles fro m H ordle in the vici nity

.
o f which place he h ad an other secret store .
”
“
And I hope father said Mary th i s is
, , ,
“
t he last time yo u will ever be engaged in such

dangerou s and lawless tran saction s . H o w often
have yo u promised me
W hat do you mean girl by lawless tr an s
, ,
”
actions P interposed the Captain S tart my .
timbers ! I n ever wronged a fellow creature of -
a S ix pence in all my life and my word S good ’
for a thou san d pou n d o n either side th e Chan

ne l . I honour the K ing ; a nd if I make wa r upo n
the preventive a nd the blockade why it s b e , ,

’
cau se they m ake war u po n the free trade which -

,
every E nglishman h ad a righ t to carry on b e ,
fore these fellow s start e d u p E very body .
know s th at I did the Government more than

one go od service duri ng the war or el se they ,
would n t h ave granted m e the free pardon they

’
did and cancelled all the warrants and capiases

,
agai n st me ; an d its nation hard if I mayn t

’
,
’
run a crop now and then w h ich does good to ,
many and n o har m to no o ne H owsomdever

,
.
,
if we make a clean j ob of the L o ng s pl ic e this

trip without losi ng a hOO p or a halfpe nny I
, ,
do n t know but what I m ay strike flag and lay

’
,
myself u p in ordi nary .
T hen I m sure fath er I sh all pray mos t

’
, ,
h eartily for your success .
W ho brin gs over the L o ng spl ic e th i s trip P”
in quired R ough and ready - - .
S tockings R agged R obert Popgun and , , ,
”
You ng O ysters replied the Captain , .
”
A y ay all righ t growled th e other who
, , , ,
wa s a m an of very few words . T he boy Moon

now came tappi ng at the w i ndow to s ay that he ,
sa w a S ki ff m aki n g from K e yhav e n towards th e

Jack in the Basket
- - - .
S tart my t i mbers ! a s k iff P— H o w is S he
”
rigged boy P ,
C utter rigged wit h a j i b and boom

-
, .
W hy then as sure as ever I m standing here

,
’
,
that m u st be S keleto n Jack out of Lymi ngton .
Come along R ough a nd ready we Shall soon ,

- -
know if it s his ski ff by the red streak

’
and ,
s o say i ng they h astened to the pigeon h o u se

,
-
,
TH E N EW FO R EST . 2 25
w h ic h be ing the highest po int o n t h e farm not ,
only enabled the m to m ake better observation

of w h at was passi ng bu t to h oist certain t ele
,
graphic Si gnals for t h e gu i dance of thei r confs

derates at se a .
Good heaven s ej aculated Mary as they ,
quitted the room what a harassing danger

, ,
ou s and disreputable life doe s my i nfatuated

,
f ather persist in following

H orrid exclaimed George w i th a d eep ,
”
I beg your p ardon cri e d Mary recovering
, ,
her recol lectio n at the sound of his voice ; my

anxiety for my dear fat h er m ade m e forget ,
tha t you were followi ng the s ame career or I ,
should not so harshly have con demned i t A nd .
yet yo u t ermed it horr i d W hy then do you

.
, ,
”
pursue it P
O h ! d o not ask me Mary ; do n o t turn
i
my t h ought s inwards upon the hideou s spec

t acle of my self , for that way madne s s lie s .
’
”
W hy do I pursue it P he exclaimed in a louder
voice starti ng into one of those b ursts of v e he
,
men t pas sion which were perpetu ally alternat

ing with his fits of profo u n d dej ection W hy
L 5
226 T H E N Ew F O R EST .
do I pursue i t ? Because I am a wretch a ,
reprobate a forlorn a ban doned hopeless out

, , ,
cast from th e world 0 h Mar y Mary ! I h ave , ,
fou n d more peace n o peace will never m ore be

—
,
mi ne more solace o f my incurable ang ui sh in

—
th is life o f h ardship an d per il t h an ever I h ave ,
experien ced amid bowers o f luxury and scenes ,
of extravagance and riot And yet even here .

,
in this comparative state of relief have you not ,
S ee n how miserable ho w wretched ho w heart

, ,
broke n I h ave been O h God ! have I no t .

,
cau se enough f o r my de spair ? T o know that

I was b orn with prospects o f wealth respecta ,
b il ity and happi n ess ; to feel that I was dest i ned

,
by heav en for nobler pursuits and higher pur ,
poses ; to reflec t that I h ave sacrifice d my youth ,
wasted my health perverted my talents , al ie na t

,
‘
ed an d embittered my friends ; that my short

career has been madde n ed by dissipatio n by ,
folly by crime ; and that n o w drive n from s o

, ,
c l ety degr aded in my o w n opi nio n as well as

, ,
i n that of others I am con dem ned to lead the

,
life of an ou tlaw
T o h o v el m e wi th ro g u e s, an d s w n e i f l
o r orn ,
”
I n s ho rt , and mu s t y s t raw .
O h forgi v e me Mary ! I k no w not w h at I say

, ,
’
N ot to your brave an d generou s fat h er could I

allude ; not to any abode in wh i ch y ou are a
d well er you who h av e filled me wit h m i n gled
! ,
thou ght s of happiness and despair ; you who ,
have at o nce soothed and torme n ted m y heart ;

you alas ! of whom I have only been able
,
to t h ink w i t h u nalloyed pleasure in m y

“
”
dream s
I can easily forgive you George for I , ,
n ever refl ect upo n the di sgraceful pu rposes to

whic h o u r dwelling i s applied without Sh aring ,
your own f eeling of h umiliation at being one of

its inmates I se e however by your agitated
.
, ,
and desponding look s that yo u h ave n o t for ,
given yourself B ut wh at could yo u mean .
by saying I h ad filled you w i t h thought s

,
of despair ; that I had to rme rite d your heart ?

I ndeed i ndeed , , George , nothi ng could have
been farther fro m my wishes and in te n
”
ti o n s .
Generou s k i nd hearted Mary ! I believe

,
-
,
it I feel it and this it i s that ag gravates my

—
,
regret my an guish Do n o t ask me to e x nl ain

,
.
my self ; I m u s t not dare n o t ! T rouble not ,

228 T HE N EW F O REST .
y o urself about suc h a castaway as I am ; but

leave m e to pur su e t o it s end ( and God grant ,
t h at it m ay be a speedy o n e ! ) my wretched
”
and dishon ourable career .
“
Wh y s h o u ld i t contin ue to be e i th er
wretch ed or dish on ourable ? Y ou are you ng ,
you m ay redeem your early errors ; sincere re

e n t an c e m ay atone eve n for your cr i mes if
p ,
such yo u h ave committed and a fut ure l i fe of ,
v irtue a n d respectabilit y
“
F orbear oh ! in p i ty forbear to tantali ze
, ,
m e with a deliciou s dream that c an never be

realized . Th ere is no redemption no h appi ,
ness in store for m e . My follies are irre

”
m e d iab l e .
N ot all George surely

, , all Mig h t no t .
you n o t, for i n sta n ce withdraw yoursel f from

,
”
this life of lawlessness a nd pe ril P
'
“
Peril ! It i s its danger in wh i c h I delight .
O h if yo u knew the fierce gloomy j oy with

, ,
which my bosom pan ts when I fi n d myself in

th e midst of flyi n g b u llet s and deep darkness ,
in the desperate h ope that some friendly ball ’
may find its way to my heart and stil l its ,
th robbings for ever '

And w h y s h ould I con
to l i ve ? Wh o would regret me ? E very

t inu e
”
body spurns repudiate s h ates me !
, ,
Oh no George no ! Does
, , no t m y f at h er
”
love you do ,
no t I love you P
You love me exclai med G eorge ,
str i king his hand upon hi s forehead “

oh !
'
graciou s H eaven ! thi s is the ke enest pang '
, the
most dreadful t rial of all .
Un accu stomed t o measure and wei g h h er

words th e artless girl had m erely m eant to
,
sa
y t
, h at she sh ared h er father s respect and ’
esteem for their in mate ; b u t in stantly consciou s

of the diff ere n t i nterpretation that had be en
given to h er expression she stood utterly ,
abashed blushing from brow t o bosom an d

, ,
so confuse d as to be unable for t h e m omen t to

”
explain herse lf S urely , S ir
. sh e at le ngt h ,
f a u l t e re d as she h eld her h ead proudly u p and

, ,
shook bac k the black ringlets that had fallen

over her face you un derstand my meaning P
I hav e the same regard for you that my father
has ; i s i t not proper that hi s friends should
—
be m i ne ? T hi s was w h at I meant to say no ,
”
thing more wh atever .
H ea ve n k nows that I deserve n othi n g

more ! A nd yet if , t he fond wishes of my

h eart this fluttering heart which i s ready to
, ,
leap out o f my bosom at the thought could be ,
realized b ut n o n o no t here i s n o such h ap

—
, ,
—
p ine ss for me I am doomed to hopeless misery

”
and degradation Th e wretched m an agai n
.
struck h is hand v i olently upo n his forehead ,
and su n k with a deep Sigh into th e chai r from

w hi ch he had risen .
A pau se e n sued of whic h t h e still blu shi ng

,
Mary felt the embarrassment ; bu t no t knowing

how otherw i se to e scape from it she snatch ed ,
up her gu i tar and tendering it to her compa

,
n i on with a S port i ve look exclaimed ,
Come George away with these gloomy

, ,
thoughts ! W hat ! can neither my smiles n o r

my entreaties gladden that m elanchol y face ?
Y o u shake your head mour nfu lly N ay th en .
, ,
you Sh all not conti n ue in this sad mood Posi .
t iv e l y you S hall S ing yourself into a m ore h appy
f eel i ng for we may sometimes dissipate sorrow

,
by thesound o f o u r o w n voice .
A s b e fixed upon h er a look a t once em -
passioned and despondi ng th e tear glistened in ,
his e ye ; h e took the guitar and i n plaint i v e ,

T H E N EW F O REST . 2 81
tones t h at seemed ind e ed

'
, , , to come from a
stri ck en h eart t h u s c ompl i ed w i th her request
,
.
Oh t u rn a wa y ,
in p it y t u rn
A wa y f ro m me th t f t a a a l sm il e
It d oes bu t m a k e m yb o s o m b u rn
W i th g i f th t
r e a n o th n i g c an beg u ile .
T he c harms t h at I c an n e e r
’
f g o r e t,
I k no w that I c an n e e r O
’
btain .
Oh ! w o u l d th at we had n e v er m et ,
Or th at w e ne e r
’
g
m i ht m e e t a g ain !
S u ch fas c i n at in g p o we r is thin e ,
T h at t h o
’
I fee l ’
t is m ad t o s t a y ,
An d d o at o n wh at m u s t n e
’
er b e m i n e,
I c an n o t t e ar m y s e lf a w a y .
But d o n ot , d o n o t s m il e an d yet —
Myh e art w o u l d b re ak w i th y ou r d i s d ai n
Oh ! w o u l d that w e ha d n ev er m e t,
Or th at w e ne er
’
g
m i ht m e et ag a n i ! ”
S carcely had he concl uded when th e hoarse ,
voice of the Captain was h e ard exclai mi ng , ,
as b e tapped impatiently at the w i ndow

S tart my t i mbers , George ! are you cater
wauling here alon g with Polly when there s a ,
’
strange S ki ff upon the S l y o ff the Jack ia the - -
Basket ? Come al ong m an a nd se e what yo u , ,
”
can m ake of her with t he Pigeo n hou se peeper -
.
T hi s summon s was immed i atel y obe y ed , and

Mary now left in the parlour by herself re
, ,
mained agitated a n d bewildered by conte nding

emotion s H er eager explanation of the inc o n
.
siderate p h rase into whic h she had been b e

t raye d had by no mean s removed her glow i ng
, ,
con fusion w hile the tender tone th e impas

, ,
sio ne d look s and above all th e love breathing

, ,
-
sentime nt s uttered by George in his song so ,
m uch more pointed a nd explicit than a ny that

h ad been previously addressed to h er had s e t
her boso m heavi ng an d filled her with tender
,
thoughts at once pleasing an d distressi ng I t

, .
was delightful t o her to believe that she h ad

,
a wakened a reci procal pass i o n in a man who ,
n otwith standi n g th e errors of his former or the ,
degradatio n of his presen t life wa s not only ,
brave gen erou s and accomplished bu t one

, , ,
who h ad eviden tly been born and had moved
in a sphere i nfi nitely superior to her own Per .
haps t here is n othi ng more flattering to a female

of comparatively h umble station than th e ,
ho
mage of a man thu s circu msta nced ; and if as ,
in t h e present in stance personal advantages and

,
every w i nn i ng en d owmen t be added to the

ac c i dental grace of bi rth there are few h e art s

,
th at can resist the combination Mary felt t h at .
hers had not been proof against suc h danger

ou s attraction s . W hate er George migh t h ave
v
bee n she bel i eved that a virtuou s wom an s love

,
’
migh t redeem him migh t r e clai m h im from his

,
present e vil courses might even t ual ly sa v e him

,
from destruction ; a conviction that sanctified

her aff ection into a sort of du ty ; wh i ls t she
perhap s felt too great a confidence in the ques
tio nab l e dictum that a reformed rake make s t h e
best hu sband ; B ut the more her own fe elings
be came u ndeniable to herself the less could S he ,
a cco unt for George s co n trad i ctory phrase s an d

’
ambiguous c ond uct W hy all this vaci llat i on

.
of passion this fierce struggle agai n st hi s own

,
apparen t wi sh es ? Wh y no t com e manfu lly

forward an d avow his attach ment if h e really ,
f elt i t ? Alas ! t h ough t Mary to herse l f h ow ,
do I know after al l that he is attached to me ?

‘
, ,
T hi s idle song fro m wh i ch I would dra w such

,
vai n concl usion s was doubtless wri tte n by

,
s ome di stan t bard for a di ff erent mistress and ,
has probably been su ng to hu n dreds o f sil ly ,
credulou s girl s besides myse lf . As th i s con

234 TH E N EW F O RE ST .
i i
v c t on stole over h er mi nd , S he heaved a d e ep
sigh she felt Oppre s s e d by a mingled fee l i ng of
,
h um iliatio n an d di sappointme n t an d in t he u n , ,
con sc iousness o f her reverie t o ok up th e book ,
that Geo rge had left u po n th e chair when he

had be en so h as tily summoned away I t open .
ed sponta neou sly wh ere a paper h ad be e n

placed wi thi n it u po n which she beheld s ome
,
pencil li nes in G e orge s well k n own han d writ ’

- -
ing T hey were t he words o f the so ng h e had

.
j u st been singing to her so altered an d inter ,
lined as t o Sho w th at it was manifestly his o w n

,
compo si tio n ; while th e verses which appe ar e d ,
to have be en left unfi ni shed were h eaded with ,
”
the words S ta n zas to Mary
,
.
T he flutteri ng her heart the tremb'li ng

o f ,
o f h er whole frame the d e ep su ffusion o f her

,
face attested the sudden agi t atio n in to which

,
sh e was th ro w n by thi s unexpe cted di scov ery .
H er eye a ai n h urried confu sedly o v er th e

g
word s with o ut exactly comprehe nding their

,
impo rt o r i ndeed s e ei ng them di stinctly ; b ut

,
as she went o v er them a seco nd and a t hird

time she became enabled t o comme n t u po n
,
them in an eager whi sp er I know that I .

T HE N EW F O R EST 2 35
'
can n e er obtain
’
H ow doe s he kno w th a t ?
what does h e mean A nd doat on what
H e love s m e then G eorge d o es love m e H e
,
—
says he doat s n m e o N e er migh t meet — ‘ ’
again —
\V hy should he express this cruel
wi sh ? I hat prevent s
V
A t this instan t
she heard footst eps approachi ng an d in her ,
first surpri se and alarm hastily crumpled up ,
th e paper and thru st it i n to her bosom ; bu t in

the next m oment recollectin g th e conclu si on s
,
that George might draw if h e i magined h er to

h ave take n it , sh e smoothed it out again in a
violen t h urry and replac i ng it in the book
, ,
ru shed ou t o f the room to her own ap artmen t ,
crim soned with blushes an d almost breathless

, ,
from the u n i ted rapidi ty o f h er fl i g ht and the

vehemence of h er emotions .
C H AP TER I!
Ha ! h a ! fl
a se to me ? t o me
A v au nt ! b eg on e ! th ou h as t set m e o n th e rack
I s we ar tis b e t t er to b e mu ch ab u se d
’
,
T han b u t t o k no w a li t tl e .
S H A K S PE A RB .
W H I L E the Captai n took good care to keep

h i s farm in a proper state of cultivation t h at it ,
migh t aff ord the better cover for his real pur
su i t s h e contri ved to render i t sub servient in
,
variou s ways to the more impor tant bu s i ness of

smuggling . T he borderers upon the N e w
F orest are so subj ect to th e depredations of the
neighbour i ng deer when these animals have
,
once gotten a haunt of their corn lands that -

,
they are often obliged to burn fires all night for

the purpose of drivi ng them away By ligh t .
ing these at certain hours and in particular,
quarters the C aptai n m ade the m answer the

,
additional purpose of aff ord i ng signals to h is

co n federates at se a ; w h ile another expedient

was devised for t h ose season s of t h e year w h en
,
such beacon s could not be kindled without ex

cit i ng su spici on It has been mentioned t ha t
.
there was a pigeon h ou se attached to the farm

- ~
,
situated upon a little eminence and u sed as an ,
ob servatory Around t he bottom of th e beam

.
t h at support e d it had been con structed a c ir

,
o n lar apartment with glazed windows for t h e

, ,
ostensible purp ose of serving as a smoking and

drinking room but i n reali t y that w h en t h e
-
, ,
Captain and h is comrade s were carou si ng in it

at nig h t th ey migh t convert it into a spec ies of
,
telegraph by dividing th e ligh t by mea n s of

,
sh utters or lea ving i t open for the guidance of

, ,
their friend s aflo at who could se e an d interpret

,
t h is n otice from d i ff eren t part s of t h e coast .
N ear the centre of the knoll upon wh i ch th i s

out building stood was a clump of wild forlorn
-
, ,
looking trees con si sting of a feeble shattered

, , ,
with ered oak th at h d been apparently struck

,
a
by lightn i n g ; t wo or three bald topped meagre-
, ,
decay i ng elm s ; and a large spruce fi some of -

r,
whose branches h ad bee n torn away as if by ,
the same thunderbolt that h ad scat h ed the oak

'
,
wh i le the remainder hung ragged and drooping

on one side waving mour nfully in th e breeze
, ,
like s o ma ny si nged a n d tattered banners .
S pri ngs oozi ng from the bottom o f the knoll

had wor n them se l ves a chan n el arou n d three o f
it s sides th e runnel itself bei ng hidde n by
,
b ushes and u nder wood altho u gh it s course was,
betrayed by its gurgling noise as it fell from ,
one littl e stony ledge t o an other Lan dward .

,
the pigeon hou se commanded an exte n sive vie w

-
o f noble f orest s cenery ; while in the opposi te
direction it aff orded an u ninterrupted prospect

o f the coast a n d sea .
this S pot o n the second m orni ng after the

To ,
conversa tion detailed in o u r last ch apter Mary ,
had betake n herself with the inte ntio n o f speak

ing to h er fath er H e had quitted it but she
.
,
fou n d George plyi ng hi s telescope from the

window o f the sm oki ng room or the summ er -
hou se as she al w ays preferred calling it

, .
T h ough n o t altogeth er free from embar rassme n t

or agitatio n at m eeti ng him for it was the first ,
time th ey had encou n tered since she h ad per u s

ed the verses addre s sed to herself ,
an d which ,
during a
~
great part o f the n i ght , sh e had bee n
endeavouring to recollect an d repe at , s he tried

to conceal h er co n fusion as m uch as poss i ble ,
but she wa s still so uncollected that after , ,
hav i ng quitted t he room with h er companion ,
sh ealmost ii n c o n sc io u sl y turned as h e turned ,
and fou n d herself walking u p and down w i th '
him upon the turf W he n our i nward feel i ngs

.
occasion any delicacy or diflic u l ty in the choice

of a topic we naturally betake oursel ves ti) ex
,
ternal appearances ; and Mary in order to break ,
a silence rendered more pai nful by h er com

,
panion s eviden t depressio n of spirits observed

’
, ,
that she loved to linger about the summer house -
on account o f the beauty of the vie w which she ,
had seldom seen to more advantage than at th e

present mome n t .
I too find a melanc h oly pleasure in v i siti ng

, ,
”
t his spot said George
,
for I s e e in it m any
,
obj ects tha t re mind me of my own fate Li k e .
this oak my h opes are all withered and blasted ;

,
I feel myself peri sh ing like these leafless elm s

,
at top and h e struck his hand to his foreh ead

,
”
a n d yo n der forlorn fir smitten with prema ,
ture decay does but too pai n fully recal my

,
own unhappy doom . N ay as if every th i ng

,
that surrounds me were destined to t ur n my

thoughts upon myself I am rem i nded by this
,
b ra wl ing j
that my o wn dark a nd t urbulent
r u n ne l
career will eventually dash me to pieces over

some precipice or occasion m e to be lost and
,
”
buried in ignoble obscurity .
If you were but in a fit fram e of mind

said Mary you would
, draw m uch more
cheerful than despon di ng images from the face
of N ature T o do thi s h owever yo u m ust be
.
, ,
at peace with yourself a nd tha t you c an n ever

,
be while you pursue this illegal an d di sreputable

occupation O h that my father and yourself
.
,
”
would both aba n don it !
Ab stracted by his o wn remorseful thoughts
” ,
he had n o t heard h er observatio n a nd pointi ng ,
to the plot o n which they stood whic h happened ,
at the mome n t to be i n volved in d eep Shade he ,
con tinued O nce more does this k noll remind

,
me of myself ; for I too am u nder a dark clou d

, , ,
and H eave n o nly kno ws whether i t will pas s

away withou t pouri ng forth its th under upo n .
my h ead I care n o t I care n o t ! indeed I

.
—
,
could wish to be the in stan t victim of its fury ,
”
if so I migh t be at peace . As h e spoke t h e
,
su n sudde nly darted its streaming rays from

behind th e cloud ,
s till leaving t h e emi ne n ce
upon which they stood and th e nearer landscape ,
in sh ade but illumi nating t he t uft ed tops Of the

,
forest as it rose amphitheatrically in the dis

‘
tance , an d sending fragm e n t s o f green li gh t

i n to its glimm ering lawn s a nd glades Look .
,
look exclaimed Mary ; how beautiful ,
ho w gloriou s ! Does n o t N ature herself bid

you hope for better and brighter days by ,
Sh owi ng you that though the presen t be

,
shrouded in gloom the future m ay be ligh ted

,
”
U
p with brillia n cy a n d s unshi n e P
I t is beautiful it —
isfull of cheering and
consoling suggestio n s , cried her companion ,
w h ile a languid smile passed over his pale j aded ,
countenance O h Ma ry ! Mary ! if I could ,
only say with B ur ns that the light w hi c h led ,
me astray was , ligh t fro m heave n .
S ay it not with B urn s,w i t h any one no r
el se for no light th at really comes from h eaven

,
can ever lead ma n astray Y onder g low of ra .
d ianc e i s i n deed a celestial o ne ; it comes not ,
however to lead yo u astray b ut to becko n you

, ,
to virtue ; to fill you w ith t he exhilarating con

voL . I . M
fi d e nc e t h at the coming day s shall be better and

m ore cheerful than those which n o w o e rs ha d o w
’
77
you .
W ould I migh t believe it would I might

believe i t And why Sh ould I not ? why m ay
’
I not lend myself to the sweet and sooth i ng 1 11
of t h is forest w i t h in w h ose silent re

fl u e nc e s ,
cesses I h ave felt more of th e solemn awfulness ,
the tranquillizi ng subl i mity of religi on than ever ,
v i sited my h eart amid th e proud domes built

by h uman ha n ds O h there i s no temple like
.
a natural grove where the c olumn s have been

,
reared by an immortal A rchitect and into ,
which the Deity seem s to be look i ng down from

the glorious roof of az ure w i t h wh i c h he ha s
overh u ng it I have stood h ere in this forest

.
,
h ave I stood in the midst of such a sublime

,
fa ne lost in silen t ecstasy gazing upo n t h e

, ,
figures in the evening sk y imagi ning them to ,
be the spirits of the departed who h ave escaped ,
from all the troubles o f earth and wishi ng my ,
self to be floati ng peacefully amo ng t h em until ,
I h ave forgotte n you and the w o rld and even , ,
th e se n se of my own i ncurable miseries

T hes George are ennobl i ng t h ought s
e
, , ,
and feeli ngs which you would do well to en
courage I am onl y amazed that yo u can

.
entertai n such elev at i ng i mpress i ons and yet ,
pursue the degrad i ng career i n wh ich yo u are

”
now engaged .
W hat avai l these h igher and more holy

promptings of a spiri t originall y destined per
haps for be tter t h ings but now irretrievably ,
sunk and lost P H ow can I obey i ts year nings ,
h w listen to its whisperi ngs ?

o Whi ther can I
go wh ere hide my head i n w h at unfat h o m
, ,
able abyss bury an d smo ther up my shame

.
P
A s k me not what it is b e content to know —
that
Mine ins ens ate fre nzi e d p art

w as t h ’
, ,
Ah ! why sh o u l d I su ch s c e n e s o u tli v e
S ce ne s s o abh orrent t o m yh e art ,
T is t h i ne t o p it y an d forgi v e ”
’
.
If they are now abhorre n t to your h eart ;
if you h ave indeed repented of t h em every one ,
should pity and forgi ve them and abo v e all you , ,
should forgive yourself F or my own part I can

.
,
n ever n ever beli eve any m a n to be irre c l aima

,
ble to virtue who retain s the fervour of his firs t

M 2
attac h ment to poetry an d I know that yo u

, are
st i ll an occasion al votary of the M u ses .
”
Me ho w c a n yo u k no w this P
Mary who had quite forgotte n that
,
George w a s not aware of her little discovery

abou t t h e song blus h ed deeply a nd wa s con
,
fu sed ; but her companion , no t notici ng her

embarrassment co ntinued , If yo u allude to
the lines I have j ust quoted they are not my ,
o wn b u t from B u r n s ; whose beautifu l poetry

,
I perhaps admire the more because I have ,
sometimes imagi ned that there is a degree of

si milarity in our faults an d follies however little ,
”
there may be in our respective talents .
At all eve nts i t I S a m ise rab l e waste of

,
your life as wel l as tale nts to thro w the m a way

upo n the lawless and ign oble occupation of a
’
s m uggler O h that this night s adventure may
.
succeed tha t so my father may redee m his

,
pledge to a bando n it for ever ! I n that case ,
”
would y follo
o u no t w his e xamp le P
I k n o w n o t I care n o t ! j oyfu lly yes yes

, , , ,
gladly if I might only accompany yo u in your

,
retreat . O h ! if I had any one fair and good as

yo u are to cheer a nd counsel me to guide me fro m
,
error to confirm m e i n virt ue to be t h e com

, ,
pani on and deligh t of m y years but remaining —

,
no no no ! there i s no such happine ss f o r m e

, ,
it is i mpossible , quite i m possi ble , an d i t is

worse than madness t o drea m of i t
N Ot knowing w h at reply to m ake to t h ese
pass i o n ate an d perplexing declaration s , wh ich
seem ed to adm i t an attachment and depl ore ,
som e inexpli cable di fficulty that rendered i t im

po ss i ble to be gratified Mary was preparing to ,
take h er departure in some confusion w h en she ,
saw Rough and ready pacing his sturdy m ea

- -
,
”
sured way towards th e Pigeon h ouse W hat ! -
.
exclaimed George , are you come alre ady to
relieve guard at telescope ? is i t th e t i m e we

h ad appoi nted P I had no i dea i t wa s so late ”
.
”
A y,y all r i
a ght repl
, i ed th e ta c i tur n
,
smuggler who seldom wasted a word and w h o

, , ,
taking th e telescope in hi s hand d i rect e d i t im ,
m ediately toward s Lymi ngton .
”
Mary ! sai d George j oi n i ng her as she ,
descended the knoll and spe aki n g in a low ,
ea rn est v oice as h e looked at his watch

, I
h ave no t a moment to lo se I m u st be absen t for ,
t wo h ours and you will oblige me by n o t men

,
2 46 T H E N EW F OR EST .
t io ning i t to the Captain . I t i s m ost v exatiou s

th at I mu s t be a truan t at such a bu sy tim e ,
and on the mor ni n g of such an eve n tful night as

this may prove ; bu t th e a ff air u pon which I am
e ngaged i s imperative it concern s m y last and
—
dearest hopes and mu st not b e neglected

,
. I
tru st th e Captai n will not notice my ab sence ;
I p l e d ge m yself that it Shall not exceed t wo

hours S o saying he h astened d own th e knoll
.
, ,
and struck in to th e forest at a brisk pace

S eating herself upon a bench ou tside th e su m
m er hou se Mary remained f o r som e time watch

-
,
ing him as h e was alternately lost an d seen amid

t he clu stering beech es of Boldre wood walk - -
,
until he turned to th e righ t towar d s Purley ,
whe n as he was n o longer visib l e she s a u n tered

, ,
thoughtfully back to the hou se a n d took her ,
cu stomar y seat at th e parlour wi n dow B ut -

.
s he could not purs u e her u sual avocation s ; in

vai n did she endeavour to ply her needle to ,
am use herself with h er guitar ; she su n k i nto

a n u nconsciou s reverie o f which George w as
,
always the predomi nan t obj ect T he m ore S he .
reflected upon his co nduct the more e x trao rd i

,
n ary did it appear . S h e knew that t he cargo

w h ic h was expected at night con s i sted ent i rely

of silks to the amount of several t h ou sand
,
pounds ; and t h at h e should absent hi m self on

th e near approach of such a n i mportant cr i sis ;
one that b y i ts result migh t determine her
, ,
father s future course of life and perh aps his

’
,
own too seemed doubly marvellous S till m ore

,
.
inexplicable was it con sidering the perfect con

,
fi d e nc e bet ween the m t h at h e s h ould so au x

,
io u sl y desire
his abse n ce to be concealed from
her father and pledge him self to h urry back
,
with a l l possible speed to pre v ent its being

noticed H is engagement therefore whatever
.
, ,
might be it s nat ure was obviously unconnected

,
with the nigh t s enterpri ze in w h ic h he was to

’
be engaged H e had said that the aff air that

.
c alled him away was imperat i ve and could , no t
be neglected ; that i t concerned his l a st and

dearest hopes A S she more th an once repeated
.
these latter words t o h erself a vague uneasy , ,
m i sgi ving arose in h er bosom S h e recollected .
the mystery that involved hi s fate t h e close ,
res erve in w hi ch h e had alway s wrapped himself

u p the contradictory nature of his declarat i ons
, ,
his frequent allusions to some in superable ob .

s ta c l e t h at opposed i tself to t h e gratification of

his wish es an d a doubt a suspicion o f she knew
, ,
n o t w hat bega n t o agitate her bosom

,
S he wa s .
not withou t h er sex s share of curiosity m any

’
m oti v es concurred to i n terest her m ost deepl y

in every thi n g th at related t o George ,
an d in
a d dition to th ese stim ulants ,
sh e reflected that it
was her bou nde n d uty ,
o n such a critical day ,
to watch m ost n arrowly th e min u test action s of

her father s comrades Already had he su ff ered
’
.
m ost exte n sively from treach ery the con stan t ,
besetti ng d a nger to which th e sm u ggler is ex

posed and to whic h th e tem ptation was great
, ,
in proportion to t h e k n own value o f th e cargo

to be ru n I t was th e first time th at treach ery
.
a nd George had ever been associated together
in her mi n d ; even n o w she absolved him in h er

h eart from su c h baseness ; but sh e wanted a
valid plea a salvo to her con science for endea
, ,
v o u ring to penetrate th e secret o f this mysteriou s
engageme n t S h e had give n a taci t con sent

.
no t to comm unicate hi s absence t o h er father ,
and this implied ple d ge she scor ned to violate

b u t sh e w a s boun d to nothi ng m ore . A ppear
an oes were i nd i sputably strange if ,

no t fairly
su sp i cious ; it was d ue to her f ath er an d his

ot h er comrades to neglect no meas ure of pre c au
tion t h ere could not therefore be a sh adow of
, ,
i mpropr i ety in h er f ollowing George and s tri , v
ing to discover th e nature o f t h e b u siness w h ich
could withdra w him from his f ri ends at this m o

m e n to u s j uncture .
S o subtle a casuist is t h e w i ll , t h at i t can

prese n tly overpower t h e clearest j udgment an d ,
persuade i t th a t any strong i n clinat i on i s a

paramoun t d uty ; under t h e i nfluence o f which
process M ary determi n ed to lose no time in
,
pursu i ng and watching the operation s of her

lover f o r such he m i gh t truly be termed
, ,
although he had never m ade her a ny exp licit

declaration of his attachment H er father had .
purchased for her a beautiful h orse , bred in

t h e forest and con sequently d i m i n ut i ve but
, ,
of great spirit an d docilit y and like m any , ,
others of t h e same hardy race almost literally , , ,
indefatigable . W ithou t imparting h er int e n
tions to any o n e sh e ordered the b o y Moo n

, , ,
to saddle h im m ounted cantered into Boldre

, ,
\ wood walk
-
a nd
, tur n ed into th e umbrageou s
ave n ue that led toward s Purley . F rom the
M 5
frequent h abit of ridi ng in the forest she was ,
perfectly co n versan t wi th
E a ch l an d an d e v ery al l e y g re e n
, ,
Di ngl e o r b u sh y d e ll o f th i s w il d
, wo o d,
A n d e v e ry b u sh y b ou rn from s i d e to s id e,
a circum stan c e that rather i n creased th an di

minished th e di ffi culty of h er prese n t search ;
since as , s he had no clue to guide her in her
per q uisition s S he , ha d no reaso n for preferri ng
o ne pa t h to a n other S he rode o n however.
, ,
still keepi ng a general directio n toward s Pur

ley bu t allowi ng her n ag to m ake his o wn
,
choice of th e variou s openi ngs that tended

thither ward , when ,
after ha v i ng ridde n for
some time n o t knowi ng how S he should ao
,
complish her design an d yet l oth to abandon ,
it she beheld through the spray o f some tall

,
underwood a white obj ect o n the opposite side

o f a small forest lawn S he stopped suddenly
-
.
,
f o r bot h herself and h er horse were e ff ectually
scree ned by the bu shes a nd quickly a s c e r ,
taine d that th e figure was a female evidently ,
of genteel station in life win ni ng her way ,
slowly and stealthily ,

an d l ooking anxiously
around ,
as if sh e expected to be j oi ned by
THE NE W F O REST . 2 51
some one appointed to meet her S h e advanced .
half way across th e li ttle lawn and as Mary

-
,
perceived that S he w as both young and h and

some her h eart th rilled w i t h a si ckening sen
,
sation immediately after w hi ch a burn i ng glow

,
ru shed over her w hole frame A thou sa nd .
fears an d m i sgiv i ngs fl itte d li ke lightn i ng fl a she s -
athwart h er brain as with a breat hless and

'
i n ten se anxiety S h e ri veted h er eyes upon the

figure which h ad no sooner come forward
,
eno ugh to be recogn i sed from an open deer

shed at one en d of the lawn than a
, , . m an ra n
out of it t o meet her I t was George ! H e

.
flew toward s th e stranger he embraced h er ,
with ardour wi th transport h e placed h er arm

, ,
wit hi n h is own and leading her to th e shed

, ,
seated her pon a pile of faggot s th a t ha d

‘
been left within it and placed himself besid e

,
her .
Mary was of a vehemen t and arden t tempe

rament ; for a m oment she was overcome by
rage and i ndignation ; flash es of light seem ,
ing to sparkle before h er eyes deprived her ,
f o r some seconds of all po wer o f disti n ct vision ;

b u t when she could again distingui sh the s h ed ,
sh eobserved that the parties withi n it were

conversing together with every appearan ce of
animated an d tender i nterest I t wa s a hate
.
ful a hideou s spectacle an d she agai n a v erted

, ,
her eyes ! i ndeed S he had see n quite eno u gh ;

th ere could be no doub t of George s i nfam ous ’
duplicity an d treachery an d her wounded pride

,
quick l y gaini n g t h e predomi nance over every

other feeli ng she becam e n o w solely an xiou s
,
t o e ff ect her retrea t withou t discovery S he .
t ur ned h er horse ge n tly rou nd the turf pre,
ve n ted a ny soun d fro m his retiri ng footsteps ,
sh e selected the m ost u mbrageou s alley before
her a n d had n o soo ner gained u nobserved a

,
safe distance fro m th e she d than S he struck

,
her animal wi t h an u nwonted sharpness and ,
galloped with speed towards th e farm ,

h er
face still crim soned with a nger , an d her heart
beati ng with violen t pulsatio n s a gai n st her
bosom .
I t had been her i n tention to commu nicate

in stan tly to h er father what S he had seen and ,
her rapidity had reference to this primary act

o f d uty ; but as her first ebullient feelings in
some degree subsided S he not only recollected

,
TH E NE W F O REST . 2 53
her prom i se to George no t to betray h is ah
sence b ut began to reflect t h at h er fat h er was

,
no ways interested in th e discovery Sh e h ad

made T owards him th ere was no evidence
.
of treach ery ; bu t as the aff air aff ected h erself ,
it seemed impossible to paint in colours s u fli

c ie nil
y black the atroc i ou
, s cond uct of t h e deli u
quent . S he h ad now ascertained the secret obj ect

of his last hopes and dearest wishes she had
detected th e insuperable obstacle to wh i ch suc h
f requent and mysteriou s allusion h ad been made
-
evide n tly attached probably betro th
he w as ,
ed n ay perh aps actually m arried to the yo u ng

, , ,
and beautiful girl whom she had seen in the

F orest ; and un der either of these circumstance s
that h e should attempt as h e m anifestly had ,
done to delude her own aff ection s an d trifle

, ,
”
w i th her tenderest feeli ngs w a s an act of gra ,
t u ito u s duplicity of wanton false h ood of h eart

, ,
less in sult that filled her with unbounded scorn

,
and i ndign ation T r u e he had never mad e any

.
,
positive declaratio n of hi s love he had never ,
O pe nly o fl e re d her h is han d s o much the baser

’
—
was his m eanness an d hypocri sy ; but had h e !
not l aboured to convey the same impression by

2 54 TH E NEW F O R ES T .
a thou san d equivalent modes by demeanour , ,
looks and language the most expressive per

, , ,
haps when they were th e least expl icit ? F o r

,
h er o w n part she was h eartily glad that he was

,
unmasked ; S he h ad n ever cared f o r him sh e ,
had never though t o f him beyond the passing

moment ; it was impossi ble i n deed , , that sh e
cou l d have e v er bes tow ed any seriou s re

gard u pon such a self condemned p ro fl ig a te -
an d open violator of the l aws ; a nd i f she felt

angry an d agitated it was not th at it gave her
,
the smallest concer n to throw o ff the off ender

for ever bu t that S he could
,
no t ad v ert to his
off ence with ou t feelings o f j ust detestation and
abh orrence .
T h us argued Mary to herself a s after her , ,
retur n to the farm S he sate in the parl o ur

, ,
endeavour i ng to work , b u t only snapping her

thread , breaking her needle unpicki ng wh at ,
S he had se wed amis s venting impatient e xc l a

,
mation s at her o wn awkward n ess and imme ,
dia te l y repeati n g th e sam e mistake ; wh en after ,
she had been for some time th u s occupied the ,
door opened and George e n tered th e apartment .
T hough fl ush ed and h eated from the h aste he

had m ade in return i ng there , was an unwonted

expression of co mplacency upon h i s featu res ,
which Mar y i n t h e m omentary glance that Sh e

,
ca st at hi m ob served and attri b uted t o the

, ,
pleasure h e had derived fro m his recent i nter

view T he though t was not calculated to allay
.
h e feelings wh i ch were agai n boiling in her

r ,
bosom at th e presence of th e supposed traitor .
H er cheek s burned her eyes flashed her veins , ,
swell ed but in the pride of her i ndi g n ant heart

, ,
she determined to be compo sed to aff ect in ,
diff erence an d sh e accordi ngly fixed her eyes

,
upon her work which she plied with increased ,
diligence .
I am back you , se e , withi n the t wo hours ,
said George extending his watch ;, I hope

the Captai n h as not been appri sed of my
”
ab se nce .
I ndeed S i r I kno w not hing at all about

, ,
it said Mary speaking i n a con strai ned u n

, , ,
natural voice in the unavailing attempt to be

,
p erfectly composed at all events I have not ,
apprised h i m T houg h I o nly gave you a

.
sile n t promise to th at e fl e c t I scorn to viol ate

’
it T han k God I am no speciou s hypocri te ;

.
I am no smooth tongued dissembler ;

- I am no
”
habit ual dealer in falsehood .
Good hea en s Mary ! what mean s this

v
,
strange language ? Y o u are angry what can ,
”
have happened to o ff end an d disturb you P
A ngry dist urbed O h dear no , S i r, no t in
th e least ; I was never more cal m in my whole
life I can neither be surpri sed nor off ended
.
at an
y t hing t h at you m ay th i nk proper
”
to do .
T hat I m ay thi n k proper to do ! how can

I have i n curred your displeasure ? S urely my
temporary ab sence
“
N ay ,
S ir , prythee give yourself n ot the
trouble to devise a n explanatio n which can only , ,
increase the number of your falsehoods an d ,
entitle yo u the more to my suprem e contem pt .
I will not decoy you i nto more u n truth by pre

tending ignora n ce o f your proceedi ngs If the .
imperative affair upon which you were engaged ;

if yo u r last an d dearest hopes compelled you
to make an assig n ation with a lady in Boldre
wood walk it concer n s n o t me ; and I m u st
-
beg therefore that you will no t off end my ears

, ,
”
wit h any of i ts off ensi ve details .
Mary Mary ! h ave you tracked my f o o t

0 ,
steps dogged m e t hrough t h e m azes of the

,
F orest t o discover this secret ; and was t h is

,
”
wort h y of you P
I suppose S i r I a m at liberty to ri de
, ,
-
where I please ; I wa s on horseback when I

acci dentally beheld your clandesti ne meet i ng ,
said Mary condescendi ng to equivocate as she

, ,
c ould no t altogether rebu t th e imputation .
Mary you are mistaken ! the conclu si on s

,
you h ave apparently drawn from w h at you saw ,
are wrong totall ywrong I swear to you most

,
.
solem nly he continued observ i ng th at she

, ,
shook h er head with a look of incredulou s

scorn ,that t h ere i s nothi n g absolu tely no ,
th i ng whatever in th e n ature of my acqu aint

ance with t h at lady w h i ch s h ould prevent any
oth er attachment t h at I migh t
H e hesitated and Mary stri v i ng to m ai n
, ,
tai n an i ndi ff erence which s he was far from

feeling exclai med i n a taunt i ng tone
,
N ay , ,
S ir what yo u swear m u st of course be

, ,
true ; who can doubt i t ? I have n o right

to deman d any explan ation of your conduct ,
and I am far from wishing to h ear i t ! i f yo u

proceed t herefore it will be for your o wn

, ,
pleasure n o t for mine

, .
T his speech w a s made in the hope o f s tim u

lati ng him t o som e sort o f co nfessio n even ,
while she disavowed a ny desire o f the kind ;

and she was therefore proportionably morti
fi ed ,
when George replied N o Mary n o , , ,
.
I m u st not cannot follo w the dictates o f my

,
heart by laying open to you all it s wishes all ,
its hopes an d fears I have s wor n secrecy and

.
,
wh atever may be the consequen ces my lips sh all ,
be sealed upon the subj ect o f this misappre

hended interview My o wn safety a nd that o f
.
,
anoth er who is still dearer to m e tha n I am to

m yself, migh t be fatally i mplicated by t h e small
e s t disclosure .
Mary s warm and impet uous disposition

’
woul d not allo w her to m aintain for a ny length

of tim e a tone of sneer or sarcasm F rank and .
straightforward herself sh e had a profound ,
hatred o f double deali ng in others ; n o r wa s

sh e by any mean s scrupulou s o r measured in
the expression of her opinion whe n her mind ,
was once m ade up I n the speec h she had j ust

.
heard she could perce i ve noth i ng but a paltry

,
equiv o cation or a dir ec t avowal t h at his pro

,
mise to th i s unkno wn lady and hi s regard for ,
her safet y were of greater v alue in George s

,
’
opinion than , an
y con siderat i o n s c o n n ected with
herself ; under t h e impulse of which irri tating

impression she darted at him a look o f ine fl abl e
’
scorn as she exclaim e d E nough S ir e n ough ;

, , , ,
attem pt no t any m ore evasion s ; you stand al

rea dy s u fi c ie n tl y low in m y con tempt B ut I .
warn y ou once for all that if yo u remai n b e

, ,
n e ath this r o of and presu me again t o addre s s

,
me in such term s as yo u have often used o r ,
i n a ny other th an those o f t h e coldest civility ,
I shall expos e your in sidiou s falseh o od s and ,
de sire my father to chast i se a n d dismiss you

from h is hou se for h aving dared t o insult hi s
,
daugh ter
I was wrong I confess I was wrbng if I , ,
h ave betrayed to you the secret wishes o f my

heart ; wi shes which should never h a v e b ee n
indulged becau se it i s impossible they S hould
,
be gratified B ut however culpable I may be

.
, ,
surely M ary I deserve your pity rather than

, ,
your anger when I swear t o v o u that the a t

,
tr act i ons w hi c h I have not been able alt o get h er

to resi st h ave added bitterness to a cup that

,
”
was already overflowing .
I understan d n o t this ambiguou s language ”

,
“
said Mary haughtily
,
an d I will save you
,
th e h umiliation of any farther shu ffling and

subterfuge .S o sayi ng , she hastily quitted the
’
room ran u p stairs to her o wn chamber and

,
-
,
thre w herself i nto a chai r ; when h er feelings ,
no longer su stained by wo u nded pride and

fierce indig n atio n presently found ven t in an
,
hysterical burst of tears .

CH AP T ER ! .
0 He av en, h o w h orri b l e it is t o b e
A p
y t o th e w il d w at ers t o co n te nd,
re —
An d fe e l h o w v ain t h e co n t es t wi th th e waves
, ,
T h infuri at e win ds an d e v e ry e le m en t
’
T h at w ars o n t he w i d e o ce an t o l oo k ro u n d
—
,
B u t l oo k in v ain f o r h o p e an d t o b eh o l d
Fear in th e fac e and in th e so ul d es p a ir
,
.
G P RI C H A RD S ON
. . .
T HE Captain who had bee n absen t u po n

,
s ome o f th e a rrangeme n t s con n ected wi th th e

night s advent ure no w retur ned and rou sed
’
, ,
G e orge from the pai nful reverie into w hi c h h e

had sunk by the hoarse exclamat i o n o f
, S tart
my timbers ! what are y ou dreaming Com e on ?
,
’
man be alive and stir your stu mp s for it s
, , ,
most time f o r u s to be j ogging Th e p arty .

’7
th u s ru dely summoned j umped immediately up , ,
and proceded to assist h i s companion in making

preparation for their departure T hey looked .
out the smock frocks in which the whole com

-
pany were to be arrayed a dress n o t only se r —
i
v c ea b l e in
assim ilating i n dividuals s o as to pre ,
vent recognition but one that had been fo u n d

by experie n ce to be less perceptible upon th e
sea shore at
-
n ight than any of a dar k er hue
, .
T he Captai n possessed an Ol d - fashioned lum

bering whiskey that had apparently been em
,
ployed for m an y years in conveying farmers to

m arket bu t which h e had proc u red to be so fit
,
ted u
p wit h hiding places secret drawers and a , ,
false bottom that he could stow away silks in it

,
to the value of some hundred s , in such a m an
ner as not to excite the smallest suspicion . In

this veh icle d rawn by a fast horse George
, , , ao
compa nied by R ough and ready took his de - -

,
parture toward s t h e coast carrying with them a ,
large shaggy black m a s tifi known by the u nfl at

'
teri ng appellation Of Belzebub probably from

his colour alone for he shared non e of the bad
,
quali ties of h i s great sp i rit ual n amesake . On

t h e contrary h e ,
wa s a prodigiou s favourite with
T HE N E W F O R EST . 2 63
the w h ole frate rnity of sm ugglers ; bu t above ,
all w i t h the Captain by whom h e had been

, ,
taugh t to act as occasion m i ght requ i re e i t h er ,
as a scou t a guard or an ally ; in all w hi c h

, ,
capac i ties he possessed t h e i nest i mable ad v an

tage i n hi s m aster s eye o f being the only c o
,
’
adj utor on w h ose fi del i ty h e could i m pl i citly

,
depend . My Lord and h is w i fe N elly t h e ,

na
t ure of w h ose serv i ces we h ave already men ti on .
ed togeth er with th e boy Moon were ordered

, ,
to remain and mount guard at h ome an d gi ve

, ,
si gnals fro m the pigeon house should any s u s -

,
c io u s appearances ind uce t h e m to believe t h at

p i
O ffi cers were upon the watc h i n t h e neig h bour
hood Of th e farm T he Captai n hi mself w h ose

.
,
boyish practice of ch a si ng the w i ld forest horses ,
a nd
'
himself u pon t h ei r back wi th out

thro wing
saddle or bri dle had rendered h i m a m uc h be t

,
ter horseman than m i ght h ave been supposed

from the naut i cal n ature of his more recent l if e ,
got ready hi s favouri te black m are ; but as he

ne v e r quitted home even on the s h ortest ex
,
c u rsio n w i t h out embrac i ng hi s daughter

, and ,
bidding her a di eu h e returned to th e h ou se

, ,
”
s h out i ng Polly , wi th hi s stentori an v o i ce as
soon as h e had crossed the threshold N eit h er .
finding h er in the parlour n o r receiving any ,
an swer to his summ on s he proceeded to her ,
room bolting out as soo n as he beheld her his

, , ,
u sual e x c l argatio n of S tart my t i mbers Polly ! ,
wh at s the matter ? what are ye piping your

’
eye about ? has any of our chaps o ff ended ye ?

T ell me who it wa s and if I do n t bri ng him
,
’
on hi s m arrowbon es to as k your pardon or else ,
clap a piece of lead in him u nship my ru dder ; ,
”
t h at s all !
’
Alarmed at the thought of any disse n sion b e

twee n h er father an d h i s comrades which as , ,
s he
kne w by ex perie n ce too Often terminated in
,
treach ery Mary eagerly declared that he was

,
quite wro ng in his supposition but that i t was

natural she shoul d be cast down an d a little ,
overcome in S pl I l tS w h e n she sa w him abou t to

‘
depart upo n an other of those d a ngerou s and dis

graceful expeditio n s which she had so ofte n im
l o re d him to disco n ti n ue
p .
A s to disgrace Polly that s all my eye ;

, ,
’
u nless the first merchan ts in L o nno n are d is

graced and as to danger I do n t beli eve ,
’
there s any ’
; and i f so be there s h ould , why,
I been to o m uch u sed to em to mi n d a few

’ ’
ve ,
slashers and barkers B ut look ye h ere Polly ; .

,
ye k no w I love ye b e tter than any th i ng else i n

t h e whole world and can t bear to see ye snivel ,
’
l i ng can t upon my soul so if all goes righ t

—
’
to nigh t as t wenty to one it will g i v e u s your

-
‘
, ,
—
hand there I promise ye to

— —
strike my flag ,
and give up the free trade for

!
-
ever ' T he re ,
girl n o w you ve got my promise

,
’
,
and Lawrence
B o ul d e rso n s bare word is go od for five thou
’
!
~
sand pounds y for t en upo n half a dozen , a , .

,
di ff erent exch anges here and abroad ; and there ,
ai n t man y a m an in E ngland can s ay th at S o

’
.
c heer u p Pol ly g i ve u s a b uss girl and God

, , ,
bless ye "7
W ith t h ese word s h e left her mounted his ,
black mare and rode towards t h e coast taki ng

.
, ,
a di ff erent road from that chosen by h is compa

nions the better to elude
,
O bservation and su s
ic io n
p .
Duri ng the remainder of this solitary eve n

ing M ary was quite unable to recover her calm
,
n ess a nd self possession ; a circum stance w hic h -
she attributed t o anx i ety upon her father s ’
accou n t but w h ich might have been assi gned

, ,
V OL I N . .
in at least a n equal degree to her u nappeased ,
rese ntme n t agai n st George T hat h e should .
positively refuse to explai n the n at ure of hi s

relation ship with this strange l ady whose safet y ,
was dearer to him than hi s o wn o r his inte n ,
tion s w ith reg ard to herself when , an o o rt u

pp
nit was a ff orded him d whe n candour and
y ,
an
honesty so im p e ra tiv e l v dictated s u ch a c o u rse

'
convicted him o f equivocatio n a nd pu sillanimity ,
even if it did n o t poi n t at som e baser design s

against her o wn ho nour H is co nduct at on ce .
irritated her feeli ngs and baffl ed all her ,
attempt s at its elucidation W hat was th e .
m ea ning of all this mystery ; what the motive

for so m uch incon sistency ; ho w reco n cile hi s
acts an d h is profession s ? T hese problem s s he
attempted to solve in vai n and whe n S he felt ,
-
that every conclu sio n to which they led her im
parted some new pang to her bosom all her ,
pride and i ndig n ation could no t preve n t her

fro m sighi ng to herself in the co n cludi ng word s
,
o f the song s he had s o recently heard
Oh ! w o u l d th at w e h ad never m et,
O r t h at w e
’
ne e r might m e et a g i
a n !
As these cau ses of agitation were comb i ned

with considerable anxiety o n her father s ac ’
count it need not be stated that she felt little

,
inclinat i on to sleep e v en altho u gh th e u sual

,
hour Of her retiri n g to rest which wa s an early ,
on e had arrived At t h i s j uncture w h ile she

, .
,
was paci ng u p and down the parlour to o m uch ,
disturbed in thought to sit still she hear d a ,
gentle tapping at the door which was cautiou s ,
l y ope n ed and the boy Moon steali n g into the

, ,
room told her in a whisper that My Lord wa s

,
playi n g booty scamping going t o blow th e

, ,
whole co ncer n Bei ng asked hi s reaso n s for

.
this alarmi ng conclusio n he added that he had , ,
seen him covertly ba ngi ng a lantern upon one

of the branches O f the old oa k, on the knoll ,
as a pri v ate signal ; m aki ng preparation s with

N elly that evinced an nten tio n of decam ping
,
i
from th e far m durin g the nigh t with all their ,
e ff ect s ; and finally th at he had observed him

,
steal down to the turnip fi e l d gate and talk to -

,
a strange man wh om he could n o t disti n c tly

,
recogn i ze , but who looked a good deal li ke

G entlem an George .
Convi nced from these a nd o ther particular s

t h at treachery was brewing Marv who like her , ,
N 2
2 68 TH E N Ew F O R ES T .
fat h er was bold decisive and e nerget i c desi red

, , ,
the boy to ret u rn an d rem ain at his post a s if

n oth i ng had happened ; whe n haste n i ng to the
stable she saddled and bridled h er horse and

, ,
led i t slowl y rou n d th e back o f th e premises so ,
as n o t to be heard or see n by My Lord and his
wife ,
wh o were in deed a t this m ome n t too bu sily
engaged in packi ng u p to be particularly Oh ,
servant Of what wa s passing immediately arou n d

them O nce clear Of the farm M ary s fami
.
,
’
l iarity with all th e b y path s a nd horse tracks - -

,
e nabled her to select such as would e ff ectually

veil her from O b servation especially as it was ,
n o w dee p night and she accordingly j umped

,
into th e saddle and galloped fearlessly across

,
th e lon ely forest in th e direc tio n Of H ordle

, .
T here was n o moon for smugglers seldom exe

,
cute any O f their operations when that luminary

i s likely t o display h er cou n te n an ce S O that the ,
forest was wrapped in gloom save whe n flashes ,
O f h eat light n ing from th e dista n t horizon irra

-
diate d for a moment the lon g vistas Or ope n

’
law n s and gl ades which glimmered before her

,
in the flitting gleam and the n appeared , to be

plu nged in tenfold obsc u rity W ithout thi s
occasion al assistance h owever , s h e w o ul d have

,
experi enced no di fficulty in fi ndi ng her way ;

and she accordi ngly proceeded with unrela xed
rapidity startling the deer who ca me out into
,
the open plots to b ro wze , or sc ari ng the i r lu i k

ing enemy the night stalker who w i t h h i s toils
-
, ,
a nd e n gi nes concealed him s e l f in t h e adj o i ning

,
bu shes that he migh t en s n are and carry o ff th e

,
fattest of the herd S he passed a fine s tag one

.
,
”
of the native burghers of the wood making ,
pitiable bu t vain e ff ort s to e sc ape h av i ng been ,
caugh t by a hook baited with an apple a nd ,
h ung from the bough Of a tree B ut the forest .
was by no mean s aba ndone d to the depredat i on s

of poachers a nd marauders More than once .
sh e wa s hailed and menacingly ordered to stop

by some O f t h e under keepers apportioned to
-
,
th e several walks into which that woo dy district

is divided On the se occasion s the mention of
.
’
her name eve n the soun d Of her v oice served

, ,
a s an immediate passport ; for however se vere
these men m i gh t be against poachers deer ,
stalkers or timber stealers n either their duty

,
-
,
nor their i n terest urged them to take cognizance

Of t he smugglers T hey were in f ac t on
.
,
'
,
frie n dly term s wit h them bu t more especially ,
with the Captai n who had purchased their tacit

,
connivan ce by acceptable gratuities ; s o that

Mary with o nly a few Of these momentary in
,
threaded the forest crossed L yming

t e rru p tio ns , ,
to n R iver by B a ttram s l ey and approached the

,
coast in a sh orter space o f time than could h ave

been accomplished by a ny o n e less co n versant
w ith th e cou n try Indig n atio n agai n st George
.
spurred her o n to the u tmost speed in the hope

o f defeati n g his desig n s ; f o r having set him
dow n as a traitor t o herself she believed him ,
capable O f every other atrocity and guided by ,
the boy s information she did n o t f o r a moment

’
,
do u bt that h e was p e rfi d io u s e n ough to have b e

t raye d her father a n d t o have give n i n forma
,
tion o f the i n tended la ndi ng Ju st before the .
mor ning bega n to dawn her a nx i ety was

, ih
creased to the utmost degree of i n te n sity by

the sound o f fi re arms a nd shou ts in the d ire c
-
tion Of H ordle Cli ff ; shortly after which She

could perceive several o f the light carts u sually
employed in ru nni ng dry good s drive n empty ,
an d at full speed back into the interior , to o
sure an evide n ce that the enterprise had been

discovered and rendered aborti v e and t hat the ,
country people and others e ngaged to carry o ff

the goods were maki ng their e scape in all d ire c
tion s
.
T h i s was ind e d th e case T he C aptai n

s .
had adopted such precau tio n s that nothing b u t

treachery could h av e preve nted his success .
A l way s his o wn sp o ts ma n h e had fixed upon a

,
gap n ear H ordle as the place for ru n ni ng th e

good s ; the comma nder O f th e L o ng s pl ic e hi s ,
part ner in the adventure was th e o nly person

,
privy t o this determi n atio n until it becam e

,
necessary t o co nfide it to th various c o nf e d e

e
rates who were to be assembled at n ight At .
the dark hour appoi nted the Captai n bei ng

, ,
provided with a lo ng t ube like a telescope ,
lined with polished tin an d contai ni ng a lighted

,
taper stood u po n the beach placed it agai nst

, ,
his body and moved it gently backward s an d

,
forwards S O that i t migh t be see n from the se a

,
at a co n siderable distance while th e ligh t was

,
utterly invisible from the shore F o r this sig .
n al th e cutter steered comi n g as n ear as the

,
dept h Of the water would allow ; a l o w whistle

annou nced her arrival the galley loaded W
, it h
valuable s i lks secured in painted bags t o pre

,
vent damage from se a water was rowed to the

-
,
gap and the men divided i n to parties each o f

, , ,
whose leaders was held accountable to th e c o n

cer n for th e n umber of bags respectively de
li v ered to them began to u nload w it h inc re d i
,
ble rapid i ty an d in perfect sile n ce E re the

,
.
first boat load however wa s completely cleared

-
, , ,
a small reven ue cutt er ran upon the beach the

-
,
cre w j umped ashore a n alarm wa s g ive n a nd

, ,
th e country people most of whom had no,
deeper i n terest in the co ncern tha n the half

crown which i s u sually paid them f o r t heir
assistance a nd perhaps a small subsequent gra
,
t u ity when all goes well fled to their homes ,
and hidi ng places with the utmost precipitation

-
.
T he galley was t h e first obj ect f attack ; t h e O
C aptai n and his remai ni ng comrades m aking

th e most desperate e ff orts to repel their assail
ants until they had completed her u nladi ng ,
a nd calling out at the sam e time t o their o w n
cut ter to slip and ru n i n sta n tly to s e a R egard .
less Of th e bullets which n ow came whi stling

around the immed i ate obj ec t of conte ntio n it ,
was no t u nt i l the boat was nearly cleared ou t,

THE N EW F O R ES T . 2 73
a nd he was assured that all his comrades were

safely up the cli ff that th e l i on h earted Captain
,
-
quitted t h e beach and mounting hi s black m are

,
rode Off toward s Milford .
S uc h wa s th e i nformation th at Mary re
from ho nest R ough and ready whom she
c e iv e d - -
,
encountered ploddi n g as unconcernedly i nland

as if n othi n g whate v er had happened a n d who ,
had n o t long before parted from the Cap t ain ,
havi ng been ordered to retur n to th e farm H e .
added that since they separated he had learn t

, ,
bad tidi ngs respecti ng Ge ntleman George w ho , ,
according t o his i nfor mant in attempting to ,
cover the Captai n had rece i ved a shot in the

,
leg t hough it was still believed that he had

,
mana ged to m ake h is escape .
”
George ! ej acu l ated Mary W as [7 6
amo ng you ! I had reason to believe that it
was he who had betrayed yo u all .
”
W hat Gentleman George ! exclaimed
,
R ough and ready in his turn with an i ndign a nt

- -
,
s u rprise N ot he a truer or braver fellow

, ,
never smelt powder ; he was foremost in the

fray covered u s all a nd if I didn t th ink h e
, ,
’
had got clear o ff sink me if I s h ould ever h a v e

, ,
N 5
left the beach ! George turn traitor ! N O

”
no ! S O sayi ng he pursued his w ay with hi s
,
u sual dogged stubbor n look a nd Mary re

, , ,
l ie ve d from all immedi a te apprehe n sio n s o n her

s accou n t co n tinued t o a d va n ce at a
f ather
’
, ,
m ore leisu rely pace toward s the S hore her , ,
though ts no w an x iously reverting though with ,
far di ff erent feeli ngs , to the su pposed tr aitor .
—
Perhaps the heart n ever year n s s o fo ndly
toward s a on ce cherished Obj ect as whe n w e
discover that we have been a ccu si n g it n u
j ustly ; ih additio n to which outbursti ng O f
a ff ectionate remorse Mary upon the prese n t
, ,
occasion was agitated with the d eepest d istress

,
at th e rumour o f George s wou nd a n d the pro ’

,
hability o f his capture I t was in attempti ng .
to rescue or protect her father that he was stated ,
to h ave bee n s h o t —
a no ble self devotio n that -
,
e n titled him to her deepest gratitude espe ,
c ia l l
y as it was the seco n d time that he had
su ff ered in th e same mann er If sh e had s o .
cruel ly wronged him in this i n stan ce might no t ,
her j ealou sy have precipitated her into a S imilar

error when she su spected him o f pe rfi d y to
,
wards herself ? Might not his conduct however ,

mysterious be susceptible o f th e most satis

,
factory expla atio

n n ? H e swore th at it was ,
and wa sit n o t cruel to doubt him ? Ge n erous ,
n oble heroic in his co n duct toward s her father

, , ,
could the same man be false mea n p e rfi d io u s , , ,
t oward s herself ? Impossible S he would await

his j ustificatio n a nd she n o w fel t co nfide nt that
,
it would esta blish hl s ho nour a nd veracity .
Pro mp ted by a secret love which though i t had ,
bee n mome ntarily c hecked had su ff ered little o r .
no diminu tio n th us argued Mary u ntil she

, , ,
w h o had s o lately visited G eorge wi th all the
fi e rc e ne s s O f co ntemptuous i ndig natio n no w ,
thoug ht o f him with mi ng led feelings Of pe ni

te nce gratitude a nd a ff ectionate admiratio n
, , ,
heighte ned by t he kee nest a n xiety f o r his safety .
I t had been h er i ntentio n to rej oi n her father at

Milford a nd as h er ridi ng alo ng th e coast wo u ld
,
no t materially le ngthe n her rout e while it m ight ,
e nable her to collect some certai n i nformatio n

o f George s fate she pu shed for ward to the s e a
’
shore .
T he obj ect o f her solicit ude was a t that m o ,
men t n o t o nly su ff eri ng the extre mity Of mental

,
and bodily a nguish bu t in a perilou s p re d ic a,

ment t h at hardlyallowed him a ch ance of

,
escapi n g with his life I n his attempt to screen

.
the Captai n he had received a bal l which had

,
broken the bone o f his l e g notwith standi ng ,
which he had con tri ved to scramble som e little

dista n ce along th e shore and favoured b y t h e
, ,
darkness thre w him self down beneat h a crag

, ,
w h ich had bee n detached from the cli ff , and

lay n ear the w ater s edge In this situation h e
’
.
remai ned ,
proppi ng him self agai n st th e crag ,
and groani ng with torture until the morning ,
broke whe n, upo n casting his eyes to the sea

,
‘
h e could j ust recog nize the cutter scuddi ng

a way to t he south and c h aced b v the revenue
,
vessel though far a head O f her

, N o other
-
.
vessel was in sigh t ; he was hidde n from the

beach ; h e could hear n o sound of voices ; all
was sile nt where but lately all had bee n clamour
and t umult Ignora n t O f his fate his co m r ades
.
,
had probably left the shore ; it was n o t im po s

sible however that some o f them migh t still be
, ,
l u rki ng u nder the cli ff waiti n g f o r d ayligh t to

,
look o u t f o r him and in order to avail him self

,
of the i r services it was necessary that he shoul d

,
render him self vi sible by climbing to th e top o f '

. TH E N EW F O R EST . 2 77
crag E asy as i t appeare d h e fou n d i t

t he ; ,
impossible to carry this design i nto execution .
S i ck , dizz y , fa i nt with fatigue and t h e loss of

blood he fou n d that
,
his powerless limbs refu sed
to Obey him and after several ine ff ectual e ff orts
, , ,
whic h only aggravated his su ff eri ngs he fell ,
back into his former position a nd resolve d to ,
abandon t h e attempt A lmost at the same m o

.
ment he m ade th e appalling discovery that h e

,
had crawl e d ben eath this fatal rock at l o w

water an d t h at the flowing tide wh i ch no w
, ,
nearly touched his extended feet threatened ,
speedily to overwhelm and destroy him

At the first conviction of thi s inevitable fate ,
the perspiration started in larg e beads fro m hi s

forehead a sudden and deep flush
, Ov erspread
hi s features wh i ch al most im m ediately resum
,
ing their gh astly paleness wore a n expression ,
O f mi n gled agony and horror H e was naturally .
Of a resolute and almos t undauntable spirit but ,
the hopelessness Of all succour or escape n o w ,
insp i red him with a gloomy despai r Life how .

,
ever had long been a burden to him and no w

, ,
that he could no lo nger retai n it without the

probabili ty o f hi s being m a d e a prisoner a nd
exposed to public shame o r the certai n ty that , ,
even if h e were rescue d by his com rades he ,
m ust u ndergo some painful operatio n f o r hi s

broke n leg perhaps after all to die in miserable
,
a nguish h e became in som e degree reco nciled

,
to his fate , an d resolved to encou nter his a

p
ro a c hin
death without fl in c hin a n d if
p g g p os , ,
sible W it hou t even a regret F ixi ng his eyes

, .
therefore u po n th e advanci ng wat ers with a

ster n composure his though t s re v erted to all
,
the faults follies a nd crimes o f his past life a

, , ,
retrospect that filled him wi th compu nction a nd

remorse ; while th e ho p e l e s sne s o f th e future ,
eve n if he could escape his doom left him little ,
to bewail in dyi ng A pang i ndeed shot through

.
, ,
his heart as th e image O f Mary passed athwart hi s

mi nd a n d h e m urm ured her n am e w ith a deep
,
sigh ; but such was t he cruel wayward ness o f

his l o t t hat eve n this his last hi s o nly chance
, , ,
o happi n ess upon earth was re ndered u nat

f ,
t ainab l e by i n superable impedim e n ts Co n .
sciou s that his e n d was approachi ng he with ,
drew his thoughts from all worldly O bj ects ,

and
determi ni ng to employ the short space tha t wa s
yet to be allowed him in imploring forgive ness

O f his O ff e n ces , he fi x e d
-
his haggard loo k s upon
the sk y an d re m ai ned absorbed i n peni t e n t and
,
ferve n t prayer .
N o t S O completely however could he abstract

, ,
hi s though ts from the earth b u t that h e felt an ,
i n volu n tary shudder as the waters flowed over
his legs while he imagi ned that h e heard his

,
death k nell ri ngi ng with a terri fic loud ness in his

c arsas the waves broke with a plash again st the
crag E very succeedi ng surge rose higher and
.
higher se n di ng a m ore icy chill to his heart

, ,
—
a nd as he me n tally calculated t o wh at part o f
his fram e the n ext would reach and ho w lo ng ,
it migh t be before hi s su ff eri ngs would termi

nate ,
na ture recoiled from a d e a th so appalli ngly
slo w and protracted and yet appare ntly S O ine v it
,
able W hile th us gloomily meditating he felt

.
,
t h e buoya ncy o f the elemen t which had al ready

began t o enwrap his body and a sudde n flash Of ,
hope shot like light ni ng th rough hi s mi nd .
By the assistance o f the rising waters he migh t

perh aps lift him self to t h e to p Of the little crag .
T his to o he wa s well aware m ust be speedily

, ,
overflo wed by the tide a n d in tha t case he,
would o nly ha v e de f erred his wretched fate ;

but in the short i n terval he might be see n by

some Of h i s comrades he m igh t be saved
,
Life i s sweet eve n t o the most miserable ! h i s

des pair wa s m ome n tarily ch aced away ; a new
hope i n spired him with fresh energy instead o f
co n tem plati ng the waves as his fell inexorable ,
executioners he hailed the m as his guardia n

,
angels his preservers a nd buoy i ng himself as

, ,
well as he could u pon their surface h e succeed ,
ed after th e most pai nful an d con vuls ive eff orts

,
in draggi n g himself t o th e t o p O f th e crag s o ,
weak and exhau sted th at he lay outstretched

upon its su mmit j u st able to raise up
,
-
an d
wave his righ t arm a s a signal
-
.
At this critical mome n t Mary hav i ng reach ,
ed the summit O f th e cli ff above threw her ,
an xiou s eyes along t he beach in th e directio n

O f the I sle o f W ight over the hill s of w h ich the
,
sun h ad j ust rise n th ro wi ng broad shadows

,
from its shores an d tippi ng with a crown o f

,
ligh t the summits o f th e N eedle R ocks S he .
could perceive n o m ovi ng Obj ect except some

distant fi shing boats but as her look s wan der e d
-
,
in a n other directio n she discerned somethi ng

,
movi ng u pon the crag . At first she imagined

i t to be seaweed blown up by the wind ; bu t on

,
-
v iewing it more i n tently s h e di scovered that it ,
was a h uman being and the ins tant su spicion ,
of t h e t ruth s ent an electrical sh o ck throug h

her w h ole frame . I t might be it m u st be
,
George rendered helpless by his wound and

, ,
left thu s miserably to perish ? Be it whom it

m igh t no t a si ngle second would her generou s
,
heart pause to delibera t e . S he leapt from h er

horse ran like an a ntelope do wn the precipito u s
,
gap plunged into the waves h urried to th e

, ,
crag a nd u tte ri ng a piercing sh riek a s she

,
rec og ni z ed the a go nized features O f G eorge ,
she fell u po n the rock beside him . C on scious ,
ho wever that n o t a momen t w as to be lost

, , s he
instantly recovered herself and started up , in
tending to support and assist him to t h e shore ;

b ut his bl o od shot eye s his death li ke coun
-
- -
,
te nanc e h i s falteri ng gasping voice his wound

, , ,
ed leg whic h h ad dyed the crag with gore

, ,
superadded to her fatigues d uring a sleepless

night and the sh ock o f violen tly con te ndi ng
,
emotion s were altogether t oo m uch f o r her

, .
H er s was a courageous heart but after al l it

’
’
was a woma n s ; n ature was unequal to the
282 T H E N EW F O REST .
struggle she had previou sly undergone and the ,
hideous the wit heri ng spectacle o n which she

,
was n o w gazi ng with look s O f horror T he .
sce ne floated dimly before her eyes a hollow ,
n oise rung in her ears she m urm ured a few

,
i nartic ulate so unds a nd slipped fainting fro m

,
t h e crag .
George had co n vulsi v ely grasped her ha nd ,
but totally powerless to raise her from th e se a ,
he was doomed t o th e u nu tterable a nguish O f

seei ng her si n k i nto th e waters beside him H er .
dishevelled t resses floated arou n d her hea d ;

o nce —
twice —
thrice did the waves flo w over
her pale lifeless face as , she lay exte n ded like
a beautifu l marble statu e H e could n o longer
.
bear the heart re n di n g sight b ut with a deep

-
groan su nk dow n insen sible u po n the hand

which he still retained in his u nconsc i ou s
gras p .
C HA P TER ! I .
An d f o r y o u r re adin g ,
l e t t h at a pp e ar
w h en the re is n o n ee d of s u ch v an i t y .
S HA K S F E AR E .
H A V I N G in the first chapter O f our work

given a descriptio n O f the Ma n or hou se the -
,
re
d e nc e
si o f Justice W elbeck and O f his d aughter
E mily ,
we should no t so long have wi th h eld
o ur readers from a visit to it b u t that H enry ,
h i el c o mb w ho w a s u n acquai n ted with the J u s

,
tice an d had therefore n o excuse for intru d

, , ,
ing himself u naccompa nied could not easily ,
persuade Penguin t o go with him and i n t roduce

him although it was his first request that he
,
would do s o I t will be r ec ollected that imme

.
,
d iate l y upon his arrival at T haxted h e had ,
walked over to the n eglected w i ld looking park ,

-
,
and had wandered rou n d the ve n erable b ut

forlorn man sion half o f which was shut u p
, ,
while th e whole wore a still more d esolate aspect

from its par t ial occupan cy tha n if it had been
totally te nantless W hat he had seen upon that
.
occasion had but the more deeply i n terested

,
him in th e fate O f E mily cloistered in so ,
sequestered and gloomy an abode with a father ,
whose pe n uriou s habit s would n o t allow him

becomingly to enj oy the imme n se wealth which ,
as h e was n o w i n formed h e had accumulated

,
by n o t v ery creditable m ean s a nd whose cha ,
rac ter,
at on ce viole n t an d hypochondriacal ,
seemed to account f o r that pen sive if n o t m e ,
l an c h o l y t emperament which h e had O bserved

in the d aughter . In E mily it was u ni ted with
a bashfu l retiring timid ity that accorded well
,
with the style o f her beauty an d re n dered h er ,
altogether i nexpressibly i n teresti ng Altho u gh .
her face exhibited a n habi tual paleness or ,
rather a bla nched delicat e h ue more the result ,
O f sorrow than o f sick n ess it was frequently

,
su ff used with blushes W hose fugitive visit s

,
imparted a still more ex q uisite gr a ce to th e

tran sparent fairness that succeeded them A .
T HE N EW F OR ES T . 2 85
tear seemed to be not seldom trembling in her

mild dove li ke eyes which were O ften d iffid e n tl y
,
-
,
cast down beneat h the fringe of their long sable

lashes ; while there was a mournful expression
in th e slightly depressed corners of her mouth
-
,
and the soft plaintive tones of her voice that ,
told touchi ngly of so me secret sorrow e n d u red ,
with resignation bu t felt w i th deep sen sibility

, .
At suc h an age as hers for she was n o w in th e

,
first bloom Of youth it migh t be expected that

,
sh e should be somewh at more sprightly and

loquaciou s an d sh e had been eve n reproa ched
,
by superficia l Observers with a wan t of a ni ma l
tio n ; but when her hear t w a s kindled by any .
noble action or a ff ecting sentiment she spoke

, ,
and looked with an enth usiasm that quickly

brough t words to h er tongue th e blood to her ,
glowing cheek and the tears of generou s sym

,
pathy to her eye s .
H enry as has al ready been stated had

, ,
lodged for some little t i me in th e same board

ing hou se with her at S outhampton whither she
-
,
h ad gone on a v i sit to a sick aun t Circum .
stan ces had thrown them m uch together for t h e ,
invalid lady had take n a fancy to h i m and f re ,

286 THE N EW Fo RE S T .
quently i nvited him to j oi n her tea parties -
at home o r the excursio n s in the beautiful

,
neighbourhood which had bee n recomm ended

,
f o r the be n efit o f her health S truck by .
E mily s appeara nce su ff ering as she manifestly

’
,
was from some concealed heart grief a nd n o t less

-
,
interested in her con versatio n H enry had ,
attached himse l f to her upo n these occasion s as

much as was co n siste n t with the avoidance Of
such particular a tte n tion s as might lead to a
misco n structio n Of hi s motives H ad n o t his
.
high and hon ourable feeli ngs led him to abhor

with a special detestation the character of a male
coquet anoth er principle would have decided
,
h im not to compromise either his o wn a ff ections

or E mily s ’
. Mu st we confess a truth which in ,
the e stimatio n of some Of o u r fair readers may ,
place him we fear in a most u n sentimental

, ,
light ? H e was a disciple of Malth us deep in ,
the theory o f the preventive and positive ch ecks

to population a su bj ect in wh ich he felt a pro
,
found interest from it s importance to the hap

,
p in e s s and independe n ce of the lower orders .
N o man in his opi nion w a s warranted in

, ,
marrying unless h e had a reasonable pros pect

,
THE F O R EST 28
N
N EW . 1 .
O f
maintai ni ng a family s o th at it sh ould n ot
,
become burthen som e to the commu nity H is .
o wn situ a tion at prese n t aff orded him no such

prospect E mily might be as poor as him self
.
,
f o r he h ad then heard n othing o f her father s

’
w e a l th h av ing made n o i n quiries upon the s u b

,
je c t, a n hedtherefore co n sidered her as o u t of th e
questio n o f m arriage at least to an i n dividual

,
s o sca n tily provided as him self withou t paus

,
ing t o con sider wh ether his o wn feeli ngs or hers ,
when exposed to the i nflue nce O f the passion s ,
could be always m ade to square them sel v es by

the rules Of political economists o r the calcula ,
tio n s Of cold abstract reaso ning .
gentlemen even such as H enry whom

Y oung , ,
we should be very sorry to confound with the

v ulgar herd o f gentility m ake bad phil o so
,
-
h e rs ; bu t you n g ladies can be seldom brough t

p
to philosophise at all I n spite Of h imself and
.
,
notwi th standi ng a demeanour that h ad bee n

strictly guarded H enry had unconsciou sly
,
awakened a flutter of tender emotions in the -
bosom Of E mily who without adverting to

, ,
theories and system s or su ffi cie ntly con sidering

,
th e sanction s of prudence listened to his gene

,
rou s and d i sinterested sentiments with a moral

homage which her sensitive heart soon kindled
into person al admiratio n T his sort of process
.
i s amazi ngly accelerated by a contrast of im

pressions at least where the change i s from
, ,
repugnan t modes of actio n a n d re v olting habi

,
tudes o f thinki ng to those with which our

,
whole soul eagerly a nd delightedly sympathises .
At ho m e E mily heard nothi ng b ut sordid and

,
grovelling m axi m s s a w n othi ng but the grind

,
ing oppression o f a crafty covetou s pe n uriou s

, ,
m an co n stituti ng the very elemen t in which she

,
w a s condemned to live and from w hich she

,
could only make occasional an d stealth y escapes ,
when the generous dictates of her own heart led

her t o soften the lot Of t h ose who were subj ected
’
t o h e r father s exactio n s or t o any other cala
,
mity Th is she was often enabled to do more

.
extensively t h an migh t have been imagined ; for

however mean and m ercenary h e migh t be to
others toward s E mily h e was liberal even to
,
profusion ; s o that she h ad i t in her power

secretly to remedy ma ny grieva nce s an d alle ,
viat o muc h Of th e d istress with wh i ch t h e neigh

b o u rho o d was afflicted .
Th ough co u ld th u s covertly indulge in

sh e
more congenial mo d e s o f acti on she could n ever , ,
in the presence of her worldly m i nded father -

,
give ve n t to those sentiment s of disinterested

v irt u e and benevolence with which her o wn
mind was imbued w i t h ou t bei ng ridiculed as
,
chimerical or hearing her opinions stigmatized

,
as the per i lou s aberration s of a romantic girl .
E scapi ng for the first time in her life fro m

, ,
such an unconge nial moral atmosphere and ,
thrown into the society of H enry it may be ,
supposed wit h what delight a n d avidity she lis

tened w h en he expatiated as he Was so fond of,
doing u pon those views of enlarged and liberal

,
philanthropy whic h had not for their Obj ect any

,
part i cular tribe or d istric t b u t the melioration

,
'
of the whole h uman race H e condemned that.
odiou s conflict of opi nion s up o n subj ects either

unimp ortan t or undeterminable wh i ch only ,
serves to embitter life ; when by substituti ng ,
practice for theory by perform i ng d uties in

,
stead Of s quabbling about idle dogmas and ,
indulging in no other rivalry than th e generou s

race of active benevolence we mig ht in a ma , ,
te ria l degree amend the errors of our soci al

,
V OL . I . O
sy stem and d i mi nis h the general su m o f m i se ry

, .
T o such sentimen t s every chord of E m i ly s

‘ ’
h eart vibrated in unison ; in spite Of all her

eff o rts to suppress them the tears of ent h u siasm
,
st o le down h er ch eek s and H enry often attri

,
b uted to her own secret grief an appare n t d i s

tress w h ic h
, w as i n real i ty the overflo wi ng of a
generou s and deligh ted sympathy .
T hese aff ecting m eetings were over E mily .
had ret urned to th e Manor h ou se u ncertai n -

,
whether she might ever agai n behold the com

panion of h er S outhampton excursion s bu t ever ,
think ing of him and of hi s exalted doctrines

, ,
w i th an admirat i on h ei ghtened by t h e contrast

Of all that n w surrounded her
o H er first .
return increased th e general depression of h er

spirits ; bu t st ill s he did not regret her visit to
her a nt it had furnished her wit h a store of
u !
pleasant and enno b ling recollection s wh i ch amid , ,
m any sources of d i squietude and regret seldom ,
fa i led to aff ord her a solace .
H enry on the other b and who found his

, ,
tho u ght s perpetually reverting to his fair

acqu aintance , attributed t h e interest t h at he
took i n h er f ate to compassi on at h er e v i dent
TH E N EW F O R E ST . 2 91
unhappi ne ss . T h e you ng philosoph er had ye t

to learn th at t h e pity f elt for an amiable and
.
beauti ful girl i s soon foster e d i nto a warmer

sentimen t ; a f act whic h if h e h ad s u spec t ed , ,
h e would not h ave be en so i mportunate w i th

-
Penguin to i ntro duce hi m at t h e Mano r h o u se s .
Perh aps t h e c i dev a nt contraband i st felt an

-
i n st i nct i ve d i slike of a m agi strate who w h at , ,
ever m i ght be h is off ences in other respe cts wa s ,
ri gid and imparti al in t h e disc harge of h is j u di

c ial funct i ons
”
Gad my young friend ! h e
.
,
exclai m e d in reply to H enry s a pplication

,
I ’
,
il ke E m ily— a sweet girl ! rath e r dumpy and

down in the m out h as well she may be ! but as
,
to t h e Ol d cu rm udgeon I can t ab i de h im ; I ,
’
term him a specimen of primitive t rap hey ! ,
W ell well d on t l ook so glum ; I told you I

, ,
’
wa s a bit o f a wag I had m uc h rath er call

.
w hen h e i s not at h ome ; i t will be the quarter

s e s s i on s so on when he is sure to be absent !
, by
t hat time you will have brough t M rs T enby .
down from London and we can then all g o ,
”
together.
”
Pray s peak for yourself Mr P sai d his , . .
w i fe ; I am by no mean s sure that I s h all

2 92 TH E N EW F O RES T .
accom pany you ! it s a horrid gloomy h ouse ’

,
in ak e s one quite mopish ; a nd besides I do n t

’
like the daughter much better than you d o the

father I n stead of t hrowi ng away her money
.
upon the good f Or nothi ng poor and all sorts

- -
,
of fa ntastical charities methinks she would act ,
more becomi ng her station in society if S he were

to dress a little ha n dsomer ; though to be sure , ,
it s har d ly worth while with such a mealy face

’
,
a nd in sig nificant little figure T his i s the se .
c o n d year sh e has wor n that O l d fashioned lilac -
p e lisse ”
. A s she co n cluded t his Observatio n ,
the speaker complacently surveyed in the glass

h er own substa n tial form and over fi ne dress -
,
w hich bri stled with novelty W hile sh e adj usted ,
her ringlets in order to display th e sparklin g

,
ri ngs w ith Which h er finger s were loa d ed .
And yet n obody ever looks so neat and tidy

”
as Miss W elbeck Observed Pengui n , .
N eat an d tidy
pray give up these trades
men like ideas M r P W hy any shopkeeper s
-
,
. .
,
’
d aughter c a n be neat a nd tidy upon twe n ty o r
thirty pou n d s a year W ith the m oney that .
Miss W elbeck evide ntly has at command S he ,
m ust be a oor mean s irite d creature not to

3
-
o ut a greater dash W h y doesn t she dress

.
’
l i ke me or L ady S u san or M i ss F rampton ?

, ,
A y t hey carry mone y upon t h e i r b acks , and

,
let you see t h at they know it As to F anny .
F rampton she S a silly wild gi rl too fond Of

,
’
, ,
non sens e and trifl e s and perhaps too young to

,
feel t h e importance Of wearing real good things ,
a nd none O f your pla i n c h eap Ol d fashi oned

, ,
-
”
trumpery .
“
But what i s there abou t the father that
renders hi m so Obj ectionable i nqu i red H enry ,
who con sidered t h e Observation s levelled against

E mily to co nvey an encomium m uch rather than
a cen sure .
Wh at first un hi nged th e Old gen tleman s ’
mind for he was not al ways thu s repl i ed P e n

, ,
guin , i s a secret wh i c h I would giv e a tri fle to

know ! but the fact i s tha t he has for ma ny
,
years been subj ect t o sudden fits of passion and ,
d ismal attacks O f h ypoc h ondria ; some say indeed , ,
th at he i s at times h alf mad and t h ese symptoms

have become S O much aggravated since his s o n
disappointed all his hopes and ran away to th e
continent that th e servants I am told are
, , ,
frequently dist urbed in the n i gh t w i th his cr i es

O 3
‘
and groans tho ugh ihe will allow no o ne to a p

,
proach him upon these occasion s but his d a u g h

ter poor E mily who sleeps in an adj oi ni ng
‘
, ,
chamber that S he m ay be always ready t o c o n

,
”
sole a nd assist him .
O h h e s a horrid old s kinfl int cried the

”
wife . W ould you believe it that though he , ,
i s rolli ng in rich es he hardly keeps any table , ,
a n d never makes the least display thoug h he ,
h as a st ro ng roo m in the house cram full Of

-
heavy Ol d fashion ed plate ? N O W an d then it

-
i s raked o u t whe n he gives a half yearly di nne r -
t o hi s brother magistrates and some of the
n eighbours ; but it i s a s a d blu n deri ng bu siness

,
the things badly d resse d and worse pu t u po n ,
the table H is wi n es in deed are decent f o r

.
, , ,
in his possession they are sure to g e t Ol d
I t is sometimes very unpleasant to b e in

his company con tinued Pe nguin ; yo u are
,
’
n ever sure o f him for while he i s co nversin g,
agreeably e nough h e will all at on ce stop a n d

, ,
si nk into a ster n m oody reverie ; o r start o ff

.
,
from the su bj ect and ran t as wildly as a moo n

,
”
struck tragic actor .
<6
T hat w h ich is common , said H enry ,
TH E N EW F O REST . 2 95
we have little wi sh to see ; but t h e be i ng you

ha ve bee n describing is a singular one an d yOu ,
h ave therefore been i ncreasi ng my desire for

an i n terview while you have been strivi ng t o
,
d imi n ish it Poor E mily ! what a melancholy

.
abode ! what a pai nful lot ! You will really

oblige m e by accompanying me this morning to
the Man or hou se ; an d besides I though t you
-
,
”
delighted in the developement o f character .
W ho I not in the least O h ay I

— .
,
recollect all right ,all right s o I d o it s qu i te my

, , ,
’
hobby horse after geology ; bu t I can t go this

-
,
’
'
m orning for you se e I have g o t on my vaga

,
”
b o nd ising dress w i th my wallet and hamm er
, .
Th e se m ay be easily c h anged and if you ,
would escort m e to the Manor h ouse we might -

,
afterwards visit the bed Of shells you were

mentioning w hi c h cannot be m uc h ou t of our
,
”
road .
E gad my young Domine and s we might , o .
Ay, that stratum run s from the coast quite

throug h the F orest and what s curio u s th ey re
,
’
,
’
all tropical Sh ells and fou n d o nly in this neigh

,
b o u rhoo d . I can Sho w you a good many Of

the m in my m useum , and t h er e are abo ve a
h undred and twenty engraved i n th e F o s silia

H au to nie nsia which you can look o ver w hile I
,
i
am changi ng my dress B ut it wil l be a long .
round and my legs are not quite so young as

,
yours ; not able to vault across th e M i ller s run ’

-
,
hey ? so I ll drive y ou o v er in the gig

’
.
”
Indeed Mr P you w i ll do no such t h ing

,
. .
,
cried h is better h alf with a look an d to n e Of

,
great decision you will never dr i ve that gig

agai n R emember how you u pset it co m ing
.
dow n the hill by Lady cross Lodge and n early -
killed y o urself ; and h ow you nearly drowned

the horse a nother day by drivi ng h i m to drink
in the deepest part O f A von W ater Bot tom -
.
James shall drive you and it will besides look ,
m uch genteeler for h e has got a new livery and

, ,
a glazed hat with a gold lace band an d there s

,
-
,
’
plenty O f room for three in th e gig ; I had it

”
bui l t roomy o n purpose H e nry declared that .
—
such an arrangemen t was perfectly unnecessary ,
as he was him self so prac tised a whip from ,
h aving driven vehicles of all sorts in America ,
that he would be respon sible for the safety o f

”
hi s companion .
”
Oh t h at ’
s a not h er matter ! e xclai med th e
lady ! “
inthat ca e, S I can willinglytrust him
to your care but poor dea r Mr P is S O per ’
. .
f ec tl y n o n c o mp os when he i s thi nk i ng about
those nasty shells and dirty rubbishing bones

, , ,
that I am determi ned he S hall never handle th e

rein s again Come my d ea r let me se e abou t
.
, ,
helping you to cha nge your clothes God .
knows what would become of you if you hadn t ,

’
a good wife to look after you an d to care for ,
you
”
Capital ! capital ! whispered Penguin ,
shrugging hi s shoulders and wi nki ng to H enry,
“
a s hi s spouse left the room ! I proposed
driving o n purpose j u st to try her ; knew ho w

,
it wo u ld s e t her Off you were quite right I

—
,
”
d o like t o dra w out people s ch aracters
’
SO .
sayi ng he h urried after her havi ng previously

, ,
placed in H enry s han d s the pro mised book of

’
engraved fossils which h e though t calcula t ed

,
t o beguile a m uch longer time tha n h e wa s
likely to con sume in d ressing for he w a s bri s k ,
a n d expeditious in all h i s operatio n s .
Philosophically i ndi ff erent as H enry generall y

was to the fashio n and cut of his! habili ments .
althoug h punctilious in the preservation Of an

2 98 TH E N E W F O R EST .
alm o st quaker like neatness h e found that upon

-
, ,
the present occasion his dress required som e ,
little i mprovemen t ; a discover y which would

probably have never been made had he not ,
been about to visi t E mil y H e proposed there .

,
f ore that th ey s h ould pass through Th ax ted

,
i n their way and stop for a S hort time

,
the at
George ; an arrangement to w hich Penguin gave

a w i lling assen t as it w ould enable him to
,
enj oy his favourite l uncheon of sylla bub s and

biscuit s O n their arrival at this rural caravan
.
sary S am O stler wh o had a sh rewd ear for the

, ,
’
sound o f a carriage wheel or a hors e s hoof -
,
took h old of Pe ngui n s mare as t h ey drew up ’

,
and pat ti ng her on the nose while he surveyed ,
her whole figure exclaimed S h e be in rare

, ,
cond i tion , Mu ster Penguin baint , s he ? A y,

and as steady a mare as any in all E ngland I ,
’
look upon t if people c an bu t drive A li ttle
, .
hair o ff the n e ar knee from that ere t umble

down Lady cross h ill which is a good ten
- -
,
poun d Off her v alue but she don t seem to ,

’
have got no sprain from dragging the chay ou t

o f Avon W ater Bottom
- H eart alive only to .
”
t hi nk of your driv i ng he r in t h ere !
T HE N E W F O R EST . 299
Curse th e se fellows cri ed P e n g uin pe t ,
tishl y; t h ey fas ten as nat urally u po n a m an s ’
s ore places as the fl i es upo n the raw b ack of

,
”
a h orse .
”
S arv an t S ir sarv ant ! cri e d T ony who
, , ,
no w ran out pulling a lan k loc k Of his pig

,
coloured h air W hat ! Muster Pe nguin you

.
,
ha n t got your worky d aydre s s on t hi s morning ;

’ ’
-
t oo h ot t o break stones baint i t ? Bod i k i n s !,
t h at were a prime g o od one warn t it that ,

’
,
t ri ck as S quire F ra mpto n s Bl ac k e ymo o r sarve d ’
ye down by the Miller s run and the marl p i t ? ’

- -
Lame R ich ard a nd Joe Penfold took a q u art

here last night and told we all about i t H ow
,
.
u s did laugh sure [y I d ha stood a pi nt to

,
-
’ ’
see th e Black fellow m aki ng mout h s at ye fro m

t h e alder bu shes danged if I o o d n t
,
’
C onfoun d your j abbering cri ed the g eo

l o gis t with a look of o ff ended dignity !
,
S h ut
up you r o wn ugly mou th or yo u ll never see ,
’
another S ixpence of mine S o sayi ng h e .

’3
,
p as s ed h ast i ly into t h e h ou s e f ollo wed by ,
H e nry ; while T on y pulli ng his features i n to

,
a grimace and putting his bony finge r to

,
h is nose looked at S am wit h such a ludicrous

,
8 00 T H E NEW F O R EST .
distort i on that the latter was obliged to stoop

,
and hide his face behi nd the m are lest his ,
chuckling visage should be seen fro m the par

lour window to the diminution or total f o r
-
,
f e it u re Of his expecte d groat H en ry ran u p .
stairs to make the requisite alteratio n in his

dress a nd Penguin havi ng inquired after S al l v
, , ,
and ordered some syllabub s provided they were ,
prepared by her a nd not by crook ed Marth a , ,
proceeded to make hi s u sual i nquiry o f th e

la ndlord who came bustli ng i n to the room Of
, ,
what news was stirri n g at T haxted “

N ews .
,
S ir exclaimed T imothy ! “Bless u s ! such

a life as I lead here at th e George toiling ,
an d moili ng from morni ng to night I have n o ,
time for n ews , no t I . J ust s n atched half an
ho u r last n igh t to ru n over to o u r sociation ’
and hear a bit Of a lecture upon c he misto ry;

but he was a poor creature q uite a borax o f a ,
fellow ; could n t catch his focu s ; n e er came

’
v
right slap bang point blank plump upon th e ,

-
,
fulcrum like Professor Pully but all o u r

, ,
v il ine ar and gelati nou s like and if i t pu zzled ,
me I ’
m su re he m u st have finely bothered th e
ho ppe ra t iv e s who
were prese n t f o r i n stead of ,
acti ng upon th e equilibrio h e was alway s in ,
a state o f osculatio n Could n t fix him n o .

’
how VVhy what are S am and T o ny s nigger

.
-
,
i g at yo der
n n ? T here s al ways so me secret ’
coagulation goi ng o n t wixt t hose t wo W hat ’

.
—
he l l was that T ony ! T o ny I say! cold

—
,
m eat tan kard ale Gemman Dolphin C oming

, , ,
.
,
S ir comi ng
,
B ut surely landlord said Penguin as h e

, ,
assaulted his second syllabub you m u st have ,
picked u p somethi ng n e w at the lect ure ho w ,
ever short a time yo u stayed .
B ut li ttle S ir b ut lit tle ! couldn t make

, ,
’
o u t his trigonometry ; never ga v e him a mi n i
mu m o f attention ti l l h e m e ntioned o x hides of -
’
iron ! D o n t tell me ! I hold i t as a vertical
tr u th a m a them atical ma x i m um that n e er a
, ,
’
t an ner in E nglan d c an m ake the m as hard as

iron ! O dds life ! I had a mi n d to give him a
hi n t that t he shoemaker should stick to his last ,
when h e we n t i n to a comic section a bo u t hydro

i n and o x i f o r I v e kept a tap these t wenty
’
g yg n ,
’
years a n d I kno w there s none eq u al to Booth s
,
’
V OL . I . P
30 2 T HE N E W F OR E S T .
best O nly thi nk Of people lect uring when they

.
know nothing about the de n sity and diam eter of

”
what th ey i e talking of l
’
A y that s bad e n ough landlord b u t we

’
, , ,
m ust make allowa nces ; your society is but

n e wly established an d ca nnot yet aff ord to have
,
”
th e best lect urers .
Ver y true S ir very true ; we can t all be

, ,
’
equally learn e d f o r the impetu s m ust depend

,
u pon th e circumfere n ce I d o n t wish to be .

’
h ard upo n th e gemma n f o r give a n d take S my ,

’
m axim u m n othi n g diago n al about T im W icks

—
,
all upo n th e square root straightforward as a ,
parallelogram ; but ho w c an I sit still and h ear

a chap talk abou t sugar Of lead a nd salt o f lead , ,
when I m u st k n ow more o f the trigo nometry o f

t he m t hi ngs tha n he does ; f o r father were a
plumber a n d m elt o r hammer his lead whic h

,
way h e would I ll swear he never got sugar or

’
salt n either b u t wh at cam e from t h e grocer s ! ’
He m ay talk till he s black in the face about

’
malleability a nd fusibility an d friability ay!

, , ,
a n d ro a s t ab il ity if h e likes bu t he ca n t have a

’
segment n o n o t a ta n ge n t O f real ability whic h

, , ,
after all is th e o nl y solid hydrostatical fulcrum

,
S am O stler draw o ff gig Lymington coach ,
driv i ng u
p
—
water h or ses Comi ng S ir com .
, ,
”
ing 2
I don t wonder T i m t h at you soon came

’
, ,
away since t h ere wa s so l i ttle to be learn t and

, ,
”
your t i me i s so preciou s .
Wh y S ir to tell yo u the vertica l trut h I

, , ,
had h alf a m i nd o nce to stay t i l l t h e end on ao '
count Of poor crooked Martha my i ncl i ned plane , ,
I c all her d ye catc h th e focus hey for

’
as — — as
,
h e talked abou t empy rheumatic oil I though t -

,
I d step an d a sk him for a sh illing s wort h

’ ’
s ince Mart h a po or soul i s sadly troubled with

,
the rheumatiz all over h er whole hem i sp h ere .
B ut h e went on to h umbug u s that a d i amond ,
w as made of c h arcoal Which appeared to me ,
suc h a downri ght false pivot and sham se gment ,
t h a t I clapped on my hat bolted out of the ,

'
ro om an d as Bat Hase l g ro v e was dri v i ng by at

,
t h e moment ia hi s taxed cart I j umped i nto it

'
-
, ,
he dro v e m e over to t h e George and sa t me ,
down ri gh t slap bang poi nt blank plump u po n ,
”
myo wn fulc ru m .
Gad so landlord that was lucky ; but h ave

,
you no o t h er news t h an t h is ? yo u h ave ge n e

rall y some Of the c hit c h a t

v
of T haxted to tell
me .
W hy S ir the great first principle and pri

, ,
m um mobile wi th u s at present i s this h ere fair ,
which we m ean to m ake a gran der one than has

been seen here f o r ma ny a year and if the ,
gentry attempt to pu t it dow n by i n ert force ,
w e are determi n ed to sta nd u p b oldly f o r Ou r
own inverse ratio N O no we re n o t suc h

’
’
.
, ,
gudgeon s as to be caugh t wi th an angle of

forty fi v e degrees ; their o ppo sitio n wil l only
'
‘
-
enlarge our axi s ; a n d t h is m u st ever be the c ase

i n a free cou ntry li ke ours si nce th e percu ssion ,
i s alway proport i oned to th e area d ye catc h —

’
th e focu s hey ,
B efore Penguin could reply a carriage d rove ,
u
p to th e d oor a n d th e la n dlor d ran out of the
,
parlour calli ng in th e s ame breath f o r T ony

, ,
S am O stler and S ally W icks and m utter i ng t

, ,
o
h i m self a d p o abou t h i s bu stling life

a ca n , o
peace toiling from morning to night St e Sac

, ,
. .
Pe nguin h ad by this time dispatched his sylla

bubs a process indeed which had been goi ng o n
, , ,
u ni n terr uptedly d uri n g th e whole of T imothy s

’
catachrest i cal gabble ; H enry sh ortly after re

appeared when m ou n ti ng their vehicle they

, ,
proceeded towards th e Manor hou se into which -

,
m ansion we shall take th e liberty o f introducing

ou r readers while the geologist
, and h i s com
panion are dri v i ng th ither .
EN D OF T HE FI RST V OI U NI E .
LO NDON !
P R I NT E D BY s. AN D R . BE NT LE Y ,
Do rs e t S t ree t , Fl e e t S t re e t .
THE UN I T E D S ER VI C E J OURN AL ,
AN D
N A VAL AN D M I L I T A R Y M A GA Z INE .
“
he A TT E N T I N O OF T HE UPUB LI C
D S E RV I C , and p art ic ul ar l y th at o f th e N ITE
e s p e c tf u ll y i nv ite d h
t o t is N E W P E R I O D I C A L , w hic h w a s c o mm e nc e o n th e I s d
y
u ar , 1 8 2 9 , i n o nt b p M h hl y b
N u m e rs , ric e 2 s 6 d e ac , a nd e m rac e s s u j e c ts Of s . . b
y
e nS i v e v arie t , a n d o f s u c hp fl d ly l
o w e r u i nte re st, a s m u s t re n e r it s c arc e e ss
bl
t a e t o th e w e ll f d C i li
in o rme h M b
v i an , t an t o th e
-
h
e m e rs o f t o se P ro f e ssmn s
o s e u se it i m p li l y i t d d
s o re ec u ar n en e
i f O R I GI N A L P A E R S
.
n d p d e tl y f
en en o i
a s u c c e ss o n o m bl i t P on nnu e ra e n e re s t
j t P E R S N A L N AR RA T I E S C RR E S N D EN C E A NE C D T E S S
e c s, O hN V O PO O ee . e ac
BI GRA H I C A L M E M I R S f E M I C E R S RE I EW S f N
, , ,
mp i
co r se s O O P O O IN ENT FF -
V o
ELIC A i th m m di t l y l ti g t th A m y d N y i l i g
T ION S e er I e a e ie a n o e r an av or nv o v n 5
P AR LI A M EN T AR
, ,
t f tili ty
s o u i t t t th orm mb f ith
n e re s P
o e e e rs o e e r— Y ROCE
f
s , as th y l t t N l M ili t y ff i T R I A L S by C O R TS M AR T I
ar a s e re a e o av a o r ar a a rs— U
NE RA L O R D E R S C I RC L AR S & D I S R I T I N f th A R M U d MW c. —
T BU O o e Y an
I N T M EN TS BI R T H S M ARR I A GE S O I T A R d it
, ,
O M O
OT I d A NS an PPO — B U Y an
L A N N A A L d MIL T A R m p h d i g h b i f N ti P f i , ,
i E s, V an I Y co re en n su c r e o c e s, ro e ss o
y d S i tifi
,
crar , an t W i th p
c en
p i ty b g d d th p
c , as c an n o ro r e e arra n e un er e re c e c
a s. Am g th m on ig i l P p gi i N 1 t 6 l d y p b l
e nu e ro u s o r na a e rs ve n n o s. o a re a u is
b f e d th f ll w m g
ou n e o o .
P E R S O NA L NA RRATIV E S
th B t tl S t m i g f C id d R d ig Th B ttl
.
V t la er oo b f d ft e o re a n a er e a e— or n o u a o r o— e a
i
var no — S t m i g f B d j C tt i g t G l l y S t y T h B t t l f S
or n o a a Ob — u n ou a a e or — e a e o
Th B ttl B Th B ttl f T f lg E l d f th C
,
uc a— f Qe t a e o u a re ras— e a e o ra a ar— sc a a e o e a
dj
a Th E gli h t V l
oz — ei n A H s Li f a S i Th C m p a enc e nn e s— u s s ar s
’
e on e rv c e — e a !
P t g l
or u d S A th VV ll l y i 1 8 09 S k t h f t h B ttl f Ath
a un er ir r ur e es e n — e c o e a e o en
W t l t P i i 1 8 1 5 T h w ill l b f d th f ll w i g BI G
, ,
in a er o o o ar s , n e re a so e o un e o o n O
CA L M M C pt i S i W illi m H t B t S i H y C l t B t
.
( E OIRs— a a n r a os e, ar — r e nr a ver ar
M j G l R Th l t Li t t C l l K
.
,
t
u e nan t C l lD h
-
o o ne en an i — a or -
e ne ra o ss — e a e e u e na n -
o o ne e
t wo u ld b e hi th
im p ibl
o ss w mp e,f th i W it m t t n e n arro co ass o s a nn o u nc e en , o e
“
t
a e a ll t h bj t w hi h thi m i l l y i d g d t m b
e su ec s c Th P b l is sc e an s eS i ne o e ra c e . e u s
l on l yth f d d th t t i
e re o re a d t d by Offi ,
i h aM j ty S i
i s c on uc e c e rs n is a es
’
s e rv c e , v
e e n s u re d th ff ti p ti f g tl m f high p f i l d li t
e e ec ve co o -
e ra on o en e en o ro e s s o n a an er
t
rac e r, a n d t h t it w ill b if ml y im t d by th m d t p i it f
a e un or an a e e sa e ar e n s r o
t m is d l y l ty w hi h
an o h i d th t i m ph f T f lg
a , c d f W t l
ac eve e i u s o ra a ar a n o a e r oo .
T E ST I M N I N A R TH I S W R O Y F VOU OF O K.
Th i i s m t bl
s a d i t
os ti g m i
a ll y th m
e an it h t k
n e re s n sc e an — e o re s o , a s as a e n ii
ar tm t f p i d i l li t
en o t hi th t l m t ti l y gl t d It t i
er o ca e ra u re er o a os en re ne ec e c er a
bj t f p i th t th A m y d N y f G t B i t i t w h i h
.
su ec o sur r se a e r an av o re a r a n— o c
t y w
n r o l g e so h f it p
ar e mi a t p p i ty
s d gl y
a re o h ld s ro e -
ne n ro s er an or —
s ou l
e p d
o s s e ss e p t d pp p i t M g i
a se ara e h l f th i
an a m ro r a e a a z ne , a s a c ann e or e r c o ni u
o ns , a n d d f th i p
as a i e c o r di g im p m t d p l it N p
o e r ro c e e n s, ro v e e n s, an ex o s . o
i on i m s p d t i i i t d p il d d t
o re e x o se d
o v c ss q tl y u e s, er s, an a v e n u re , a n c o n se uen , nc
d
r s sob d t a pp ly f m m g
un an d t
a su Wh t b i o i ga us a ne c o e. a c an e so nte re s t n ,
c l y t th p f o e b t t th g l d
ro e S S Io n , th u ti f b ttl
o e e ne ra re a e r, as e na rra ves o a es 3
th m i g id t by fl d d fi l d f w hi h th l ’—
es e ov n acc en s t oo an e o c e re c e n a nn a s
ti h w
s f f i h m y m m bl i t
ar a re urn s ? W
so p l d th t
an e o ra e n s an c e s e a re e as e , e re o
.c c th p e t tt m p t t
re s e n pp l y th i d fi i y t
a e t t t w
o su s e c e nc — o c o n c e n ra e , as i e re ,
f oc us , th tt d y f i f m ti
e sc a e re d f i h
ra p i t y f th p
s o n or a o n , an u rn s a re os or or e re s
MR . COL B U R N h as j u st c o m m e n ce d t h e p blicat i o n u of a
NEW l
WE E K L Y P A P E R c a ll e d ,
T H E C OU R T J O U R N A L .
T HE l ea p e c l i o bj ect o f t hi P p e is t o su p
di n g an d u ar s a r
p yl w h t h al n g b e n fe l t
as os d e s id e et m in t h e H igh e a a ra u r
Ci l e f t h e B i t i s h M e t o p oli I t s p ge w i ll f n i h
rc s o r r s . . a s ur s a
m i n gl e d R e co d n d R e i e w f al l m t t e r a nd e en t
(
v P O o a rs a v s,
l itic al bj e c t s l o n e e ce p te d ) w hic h e c l c l at d t o in t e
su a x
,
ar a u e
re s t t h t c l ss Ofa e de a w h o c o m e w it hi n w h t is n d e t o d
r a rs a u rs o
by “ T he C o t Ci le S c h w ill b e t h e p e li b t b y
”
ur rc . u cu a r, u
n o m e n s th e a l e o bj e ct o f th e C O U R T J O U R N A L I t w ill
so .
,
in f c t e m b c e
a , y f
ra
e t e we hi c h fver o bl y d i t i n g i sh e s
a ur av u ra s u
t h m o s t pp o e d L i t e J n l f h d
e a
y
r v o t e y ra r ur a s o a .
I n c on f m i tyw it h t he p e c li
or ie w s n d o bj e c t s o f t h u ar v a e
C O U R T J O U R N A L p t n d n o ti e w ill b e g l l yf ,
re or s a c s re u ar ur
n ish e d o n l l th m o t o n p i c o
a em t t e s an d e e n t s o n n e c t
s c s u us a r v c
e d w i th C o t nd F ur h i o n bl e S cie ty
a as a o .
A m o n g t h e e g l W k ly R p t o n p s i n g m tt e
r u ar ee e or s a s a rs
t h o se m e e ti n g w i t h m k d n o t ic w i ll b t h I t l i n O p e a
ar e e e e a a r
the E ng l i h D m s th F h P l y t h C e t l l im
ra a, e re n c a s, e onc r s, a
p t n t E hi bi ti n c n n e ct e d w i th t h Fi n e A t s ; S i e n t i fi c
or a x o s o e r c
n d L ite M e e t i n g s O igi n l R e p t s f o m F o ig n C o n
a
y ra r ,
r a or r re u
t ie s & c
r ,
.
F i n ll y n d t h h e ad o f Li te at e e e yi m p o t n t
a , u er e r ur , v r r a
w o k w hi h i
r e s f o m th e E n gl i h p e
c s su w i ll b e c e f ll y
r s r ss ar u
d e s c i e d n d i m p ti ll yc h
r b , a t i e d W i t h th e e p ess n d
ar a a ra c e r z , x r a
s ol e ie w t o th t
v i l bl e i nf m ti o n w hic h l l l e s s ee k
a av a a or a a c as s
in t h e p e s n t d y n d w hi h s o f e w
r e a , e sa e ss f l in fi n di n g c ar u cc u .
T he C n d ctO o f th e C O U R T J O U R N A L
u I S o ent e to dd v ur a
a n e p xs i n o f t h ei
re s o b e l i f t h a t o n d e e am i n t i o n o f
r e , , a u x a
t hei w r k it w ill b e f n d t o s p e k f i t e l f in m an ne
or ou a or s a r
t h t w i ll e n d e i t i m p o si bl f o
,
a r r n
y o e t o b e m i s t k e n as t o s e r a n a
the n t ea ur f it es oe n d th es l f p t o n ge u n d e
r ou rc s, a c as s o a r a r
w hi c h it i he e d in t the w o l d
s us r t d b t t h t t h e se a e
o r or o ou a r
su ch s we a ne e b ef e p o sse s e d b y p bl i c J n l
re v r or s a u ou r a .
T h e C O U R T J O U R N A L i p bl i n e d e e y S t d y Mo n s u s v r a ur a r
in g h n d m e l y p i n t e d o n
,
a so q to rh e e t o f 1 6 p ge s co n a u ar s a ,
t ai n in g 4 8 c o l m n p i ce 8 d o s t am p e d f o Ci c l at io n in
u s, r .
,
r r r u
t h e C o n t y f e o f p o t ge l s
u r
,
re s a
d b y l l B o o k se ll e s n d N e w s e n d e s an d
.
,
O de r e ei rs r c ve a r a v r ,
b y t h e C le k o f th r R d C o n t y R e sid e n t e p t i
s e oa s . u r s ar ar
c ul l ya d i d t o gi e t h e i
ar v se d e t t h B k s e ll e o N e w s
v r or rs o e oo r r
m e n in t h e i w n i m m di t e n e igh b o
r o h o o d s th e b es t m o d e
e a ur ,
a
o f Ob t i n i n g i ta eg l ly r u ar .
C omm ni c t i n s f o t h e E di to m y b e a dd e s se d t o th e
u a o r r a r
c ar e of M C o lb n O ffi c e o f P bl i c t i o n 1 9 C th e in e
r . ur . u a , ,
a r
S t ee t S t an d w h e re al on e A d v e ti sem e n t s s h o u l d be s e n t
r
,
r
,
r .

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T HE N E W FORE S T .

A UTH O R OF B R AMB L ET Y E H O USE , S

And h ath b e e n t u t o re d in th e ru dim e n ts

ON the souther n ve rge of the N ew F orest in

stands a large and populou s v i llag e t o which , ,

fo rspecial reason s of our own we shall assign ,

the ﬁctitiou s appellation of T haxted I ts s i .

t u a tio n and app earance were m uch m ore pie

I t s vicinity to the sea a n element which i n our

northern latitudes generally imparts a sterile

and unlovely character to the contiguous shores ,

either preventing altogether the growth o f

ca nkered appearan ce to those that struggle

as to make the m rather disﬁguri n g than o r

case at T haxted which was su fﬁ ciently re

m oved from the great la nd scape spoiler to be -

beyon d the reach o f its ban eful i nﬂ uen ce an d ,

yet near e n ough to derive from it all those

ing occasional glimpses o f the gleami n g s e a o r ,

a white sail ca u gh t beneath

n oble trees ath wart the u n dulati ng hollows o f

th e interve ni ng dow n s or over an e n closed an d

cultivated level T he v illage stood upon the

extreme edge o f a heath n o t o f such exten t ,

as some o f those which formi ng spacious open,

ings in the interior o f th e N ew F orest are ,

extensive enough to deserve the name o f

and yet su fﬁciently large to give breadth dis ,

tance and picturesqueness to the surro u ndi n g

scenery I ts opposite extrem i ty wa s bounded by

the F orest f ormi ng woody bays and p rem o n

tories alternately receding f rom an d advan cing

i n to t h e heath ; n o w open ing u pon some d eep

da rk vista athwart whose dista nt gloom th e

deer were occasi o nally seen to bound or from ,

which a timber wain in H ampshire called a

tu g was slowly emergi n g u nder th e e ff ort s o f

a nu me ro u s t e am o f oxen now throwi ng for —

ward som e promi nen t grove so far upon the

fell into rich masses of light a n d shade relieved ,

by the umbrageou s back g rou n d Of the F orest - .

N or was th e heath i tself by any m ean s s o for

I ts broken surface t ufted w i th every variety

f urze , fern and other wild plants and p resen t

ing here and there t h e red ochreou s b ank s of a

served to u nite its woody bo u ndaries with its

pied its centre was n early bisected b y a long

proj ecting tongue Of lan d u pon which espe , ,

c ial l in th e su nn y eve ni ngs o f summer migh t

be see n groups o f cattle or forest mares with

their foal s se ndi ng their l o ng shadows a t hwar t

th e golden bloom o f the little lake T he view .

from the opposite side Of th e ge n tle emi ne nce

meadows till it reached the I sle o f Wight the

in sularity o f which no t bei ng perceptible to th e

e a ra n c e O f a n exte n sive lak e bo u n d ed by rug

ged cli ff s a n d dista n t mou n tai n s .

A clump O f lofty elms a nd lime trees br a nch -

less f o r so m e dista nce from th e grou nd but ,