Mr Willet, in his frenzy, was so near keeping his word to the veryletter (Solomon Daisy"s eyes already beginning to roll in analarming manner, and certain guttural sounds, as of a choking man,to issue from his throat), that the two bystanders, recovering insome degree, plucked him off his victim by main force, and placedthe little clerk of Chigwell in a chair. Directing a fearful gazeall round the room, he implored them in a faint voice to give himsome drink; and above all to lock the house-door and close and barthe shutters of the room, without a moment"s loss of time. Thelatter request did not tend to reassure his hearers, or to fillthem with the most comfortable sensations; they complied with it, however, with the greatest expedition; and having handed him abumper of brandy-and-water, nearly boiling hot, waited to hear whathe might have to tell them.
"Oh, Johnny," said Solomon, shaking him by the hand. "Oh, Parkes.
Oh, Tommy Cobb. Why did I leave this house to-night! On thenineteenth of March--of all nights in the year, on the nineteenthof March!"
They all drew closer to the fire. Parkes, who was nearest to thedoor, started and looked over his shoulder. Mr Willet, with greatindignation, inquired what the devil he meant by that--and thensaid, "God forgive me," and glanced over his own shoulder, and camea little nearer.
"When I left here to-night," said Solomon Daisy, "I little thoughtwhat day of the month it was. I have never gone alone into thechurch after dark on this day, for seven-and-twenty years. I haveheard it said that as we keep our birthdays when we are alive, sothe ghosts of dead people, who are not easy in their graves, keepthe day they died upon.--How the wind roars!"
Nobody spoke. All eyes were fastened on Solomon.
"I might have known," he said, "what night it was, by the foulweather. There"s no such night in the whole year round as this is,always. I never sleep quietly in my bed on the nineteenth ofMarch."
"Go on," said Tom Cobb, in a low voice. "Nor I neither."
Solomon Daisy raised his glass to his lips; put it down upon thefloor with such a trembling hand that the spoon tinkled in it likea little bell; and continued thus:
"Have I ever said that we are always brought back to this subjectin some strange way, when the nineteenth of this month comes round?
Do you suppose it was by accident, I forgot to wind up the church-clock? I never forgot it at any other time, though it"s such aclumsy thing that it has to be wound up every day. Why should itescape my memory on this day of all others?
"I made as much haste down there as I could when I went from here,but I had to go home first for the keys; and the wind and rainbeing dead against me all the way, it was pretty well as much as Icould do at times to keep my legs. I got there at last, opened the church-door, and went in. I had not met a soul all the way, andyou may judge whether it was dull or not. Neither of you wouldbear me company. If you could have known what was to come, you"dhave been in the right.
"The wind was so strong, that it was as much as I could do to shutthe church-door by putting my whole weight against it; and even asit was, it burst wide open twice, with such strength that any ofyou would have sworn, if you had been leaning against it, as I was,that somebody was pushing on the other side. However, I got thekey turned, went into the belfry, and wound up the clock--which wasvery near run down, and would have stood stock-still in half anhour.
"As I took up my lantern again to leave the church, it came upon meall at once that this was the nineteenth of March. It came upon mewith a kind of shock, as if a hand had struck the thought upon myforehead; at the very same moment, I heard a voice outside thetower--rising from among the graves."
Here old John precipitately interrupted the speaker, and beggedthat if Mr Parkes (who was seated opposite to him and was staringdirectly over his head) saw anything, he would have the goodness to mention it. Mr Parkes apologised, and remarked that he was onlylistening; to which Mr Willet angrily retorted, that his listeningwith that kind of expression in his face was not agreeable, andthat if he couldn"t look like other people, he had better put hispocket-handkerchief over his head. Mr Parkes with great submissionpledged himself to do so, if again required, and John Willetturning to Solomon desired him to proceed. After waiting until aviolent gust of wind and rain, which seemed to shake even thatsturdy house to its foundation, had passed away, the little mancomplied: