Braddon_Aurora_Floyd.txt topic ['13', '324', '378', '393']
heaving chest.
y 2
310 .
moment, and in the dim moonlight,
the candle had been thrown down and trampled
upon in the beginning of the scuffle, the heir of
saw fumbling
with his disengaged hand in his breast-pocket.
moment more, and . heard
that sharp metallic noise only associated with the
opening of a clasp-knife.
" 'es," hissed the " ," with his hot breath
close upon the fallen man's cheek, "you wanted
t' see th' weskit, did you ; but you sha'n't, for 'll
serve you as served him. ' loikely 111
let you stand between me and two thousand
pound."
had a faint notion
that a broad blade flashed in the silvery
moonlight; but at this moment his senses grew
confused under the iron grip of the " 's "
hand, and he knew little, except that there was a
sudden crashing of glass behind him, a quick
trampling of feet, and a strange voice roaring
some seafaring oath above his head. suffo-
cating pressure was suddenly removed from his
throat ; some one, or something, was hurled into
a comer of the little room; and .
. 311
sprang to his feet, a trifle dazed and bewildered,
but quite ready to do battle again.
" is it ?" he cried.
" 's me, ," answered the voice
that had uttered that dreadful seafaring oath.
" were pretty nigh done for, mate, when
came aboard. aint the first time 've been up
here after dark, takin' a quiet stroll and a pipe,
before turning in over yonder." . indi-
cated by a backward jerk of his thumb.
" 'd been watchin' the light from a distance, till it
went out suddenly five minutes ago, and then
came up close to see what was the matter. don't
know who you are, or what you are, or why you've
been quarrelling ; but know you've been pretty
near as nigh your death to-night as ever that chap
was in the wood."
" waistcoat !" gasped . ; " let
me see the waistcoat !"
sprang once more upon the "," who
had rushed towards the door, and was trying to
beat out the panel with his iron-bound clog ; but
this time . had a stalwart ally in the
m erchant-captain.
" bit of rope comes uncommon handy in these
312 .
cases," said ; "for which reason
always make a point of carrying it somewhere
about me."
plunged up to his elbow in one of the capa-
cious pockets of his tourist peg-tops, and produced
a short coil of tarry rope. he might have
lashed a seaman to a mast in the last crisis of a
wreck, so he lashed . now,
binding him right and left, until the struggling
arms and legs, and writhing trunk, were fain to
be still.
" , if you want to ask him any questions,
make no doubt he'll answer 'em," said . ,
politely. " 'll find him a deal quieter after that."
" can't thank you now," answered
hurriedly ; " there'll be time enough for that
by-and-by."
", ay, to be sure, mate," growled the cap-
tain ; " no thanks is needed where no thanks is
due. there anything else can do for you ?"
" , a good deal presently ; but must find
this waistcoat first. did he put it, won-
der ? , 'd better try and get a light.
your eye upon that man while look for it."
only nodded. looked upon
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his scientific lashing of the " " as the triumph
of art ; but ho hovered near his prisoner in com-
pliance with 's request, ready to fall upon
him if he should make any attempt to stir.
was enough moonlight to enable .
to find the lucifers and candlestick after
a few minutes' search. candle was not im-
proved by having been trodden upon ; but
contrived to light it, and then set to work to look
for the waistcoat.
bundle had rolled into a corner. was
tightly bound with a quantity of whip-cord, and
was harder than it could have been had it con-
sisted solely of the waistcoat.
" the light for me while undo this,"
cried, thrusting the candlestick into .
's hand. was so impatient that he
could scarcely wait while he cut the whipcord
about the bundle with the " 's " huge clasp-
knife, which he had picked up while searching
for the candle.
" thought so," he said, as he unrolled the
waistcoat ; " the money's here."
money was there, in a small -leather
pocket-book, in winch had given it to the
314 .
murdered man. there had been any confirma-
tion needed for this fact, the savage jftl of rage
which broke from. 's lips would have
afforded that confirmation.
"'s the money," cried . "
call upon you, sir, to bear witness, whoever you
may be, that find this waistcoat and this pocket-
book in the possession of this man, and that
take them from him after a struggle, in which he.
attempts my life."
" , ay ! know him well enough," muttered
the sailor ; he's a bad 'un ; and him and me have
had a stand further, before this."
" call upon you to bear witness that this
man is the murderer of ."
" ?" roared ; " him !
, the double-dyed villain : it was him that put
it into my head that it was my sister 's chi
that it was . "
", yes, know. we've got him now.
you run to the house, and send some of the
men to fetch a constable, while stop here ?"
. assented willingly. had as-
sisted in the first instance without any idea
of what the business was to lead to. he was
. 315
quite as much excited as . .
scrambledPthrough the lattice, and ran off to the
stables, guided by the lighted windows of the
groom's dormitories.
waited very quietly while he was gone.
stood at a few paces from the " ," watch-
ing . as he gnawed savagely at his
bonds, in the hope perhaps of setting himself free.
" shall be ready for you," the young -
man said quietly, " whenever you're ready for me."
crowd of grooms and hangers-on came with
lanterns before the constables could arrive ; and
foremost amongst them came . ,
very noisy and very unintelligible. door of
the lodge was opened, and they all burst into the
little chamber, where, heedless of grooms, gardeners,
stable-boys, hangers-on, and rabble,
fell on his friend's breast and wept aloud.
'.
more have to tell of this simple drama
of domestic life ? end has come.
element of tragedy which has been so inter-
mingled in the history of a homely
squire and his wife, is henceforth to be banished
316 .
from the record of their lives. dark story
which began in 's folly, culmi-
nated in the crime of a half-witted serving-man,
has been told from the beginning to the end.
would be worse than useless to linger upon the de-
scription of a trial which took place at at the
. evidence against
was conclusive ; and the gallows out-
side ended the life of a man who had
never been either help or comfort to any one of
his fellow-creatures. was an attempt made
to set up a plea of irresponsibility upon the part
of the " ," and the sobriquet which had been
given him was urged in his defence ; but a set of
matter-of-fact-jurymen looking at the circum-
stances of the murder, saw nothing in it but a most
cold-blooded assassination, perpetrated by a wretch
whose sole motive was gain ; and the verdict
winch found guilty, was tem-
pered by no recommendation to mercy. con-
demned murderer protested his innocence up to
the night before his execution, and upon that
night made a full confession of his crime, as is
generally the custom of his kind. related
how he had followed into the
. 317
wood upon the night of his assignation with
, & how he had watched and listened
during the interview. had shot the trainer
in the back while . sat by the
water's edge looking over the notes in the
pocket-book, and he had used a button off his
waistcoat instead of wadding, not finding anything
else suitable for the purpose. had hidden the
waistcoat and pocket-book in a rat-hole in the
wainscoat of the murdered man's chamber, and,
being dismissed from the lodge suddenly, had been
compelled to leave his booty behind him, rather
than excite suspicion. was thus that he had
returned upon the night on found
him, meaning to secure his prize and start for
at six o'clock the following morning.
and her husband left im-
mediately after the committal of the " " to
prison. went to the south of ,
accompanied by , and once more
travelled together through scenes which were
overshadowed by no sorrowful association.
lingered long at , and here and
joined them, with an impedimental train of luggage
and servants, and a nurse with a blue-
318 .
eyed girl-baby. was at that another baby
was born, a black-eyed child a boy, believe but
wonderfully like that solemn-faced infant which
. carried to the widowed
banker two-and-twenty years before at
.
is almost supererogatory to say that
, the sea-captain, was cordially received
by hearty and his wife. is to
be a welcome visitor at the whenever he
pleases to come ; indeed, he is homeward bound
from at this very time, his cabin-presses
filled to overflowing with presents which he is
carrying to , in the way of chillis preserved
in vinegar, guava-jelly, the strongest rum,
and other trifles suitable for a lady's acceptance.
may be some comfort to the gentlemen in -
land to know that acted libe-
rally to the detective, and gave him the full re-
ward, although had been the
captor of the " ."
we leave , a little changed, a shade
less defiantly bright, perhaps, but unspeakably
beautiful and tender, bending over the cradle of
her first-born; and though there are alterations
. 319
being made at , and loose-boxes for brood
mares bundling upon the site of the north lodge,
and a subscription tad-gallop being laid across
's , doubt if my heroine will
care so much for horseflesh, or take quite so keen
an interest in weight-for-age races as compared to
handicaps, as she has done in the days that are
gone.