Rumours of the prevailing disturbances had, by this time, begun tobe pretty generally circulated through the towns and villages roundLondon, and the tidings were everywhere received with that appetitefor the marvellous and love of the terrible which have probablybeen among the natural characteristics of mankind since thecreation of the world. These accounts, however, appeared, to manypersons at that day--as they would to us at the present, but thatwe know them to be matter of history--so monstrous and improbable,that a great number of those who were resident at a distance, andwho were credulous enough on other points, were really unable to bring their minds to believe that such things could be; andrejected the intelligence they received on all hands, as whollyfabulous and absurd.
Mr Willet--not so much, perhaps, on account of his having arguedand settled the matter with himself, as by reason of hisconstitutional obstinacy--was one of those who positively refusedto entertain the current topic for a moment. On this very evening,and perhaps at the very time when Gashford kept his solitary watch,old John was so red in the face with perpetually shaking his headin contradiction of his three ancient cronies and pot companions,that he was quite a phenomenon to behold, and lighted up theMaypole Porch wherein they sat together, like a monstrous carbunclein a fairy tale.
"Do you think, sir," said Mr Willet, looking hard at SolomonDaisy--for it was his custom in cases of personal altercation tofasten upon the smallest man in the party--"do you think, sir, thatI"m a born fool?"
"No, no, Johnny," returned Solomon, looking round upon the littlecircle of which he formed a part: "We all know better than that.
You"re no fool, Johnny. No, no!"
Mr Cobb and Mr Parkes shook their heads in unison, muttering, "No,no, Johnny, not you!" But as such compliments had usually theeffect of making Mr Willet rather more dogged than before, hesurveyed them with a look of deep disdain, and returned for answer:
"Then what do you mean by coming here, and telling me that thisevening you"re a-going to walk up to London together--you three-you--and have the evidence of your own senses? An"t," said MrWillet, putting his pipe in his mouth with an air of solemndisgust, "an"t the evidence of MY senses enough for you?"
"But we haven"t got it, Johnny," pleaded Parkes, humbly.
"You haven"t got it, sir?" repeated Mr Willet, eyeing him from topto toe. "You haven"t got it, sir? You HAVE got it, sir. Don"t Itell you that His blessed Majesty King George the Third would nomore stand a rioting and rollicking in his streets, than he"d standbeing crowed over by his own Parliament?"
"Yes, Johnny, but that"s your sense--not your senses," said theadventurous Mr Parkes.
"How do you know? "retorted John with great dignity. "You"re acontradicting pretty free, you are, sir. How do YOU know which itis? I"m not aware I ever told you, sir."
Mr Parkes, finding himself in the position of having got intometaphysics without exactly seeing his way out of them, stammeredforth an apology and retreated from the argument. There thenensued a silence of some ten minutes or a quarter of an hour, atthe expiration of which period Mr Willet was observed to rumble andshake with laughter, and presently remarked, in reference to hislate adversary, "that he hoped he had tackled him enough."
Thereupon Messrs Cobb and Daisy laughed, and nodded, and Parkes waslooked upon as thoroughly and effectually put down.
"Do you suppose if all this was true, that Mr Haredale would beconstantly away from home, as he is?" said John, after anothersilence. "Do you think he wouldn"t be afraid to leave his housewith them two young women in it, and only a couple of men, or so?"
"Ay, but then you know," returned Solomon Daisy, "his house is agoodish way out of London, and they do say that the rioters won"tgo more than two miles, or three at the farthest, off the stones.
Besides, you know, some of the Catholic gentlefolks have actually sent trinkets and suchlike down here for safety--at least, so thestory goes."
"The story goes!" said Mr Willet testily. "Yes, sir. The storygoes that you saw a ghost last March. But nobody believes it."
"Well!" said Solomon, rising, to divert the attention of his twofriends, who tittered at this retort: "believed or disbelieved,it"s true; and true or not, if we mean to go to London, we must begoing at once. So shake hands, Johnny, and good night."
"I shall shake hands," returned the landlord, putting his into hispockets, "with no man as goes to London on such nonsensicalerrands."
The three cronies were therefore reduced to the necessity ofshaking his elbows; having performed that ceremony, and broughtfrom the house their hats, and sticks, and greatcoats, they badehim good night and departed; promising to bring him on the morrowfull and true accounts of the real state of the city, and if itwere quiet, to give him the full merit of his victory.
John Willet looked after them, as they plodded along the road in the rich glow of a summer evening; and knocking the ashes out ofhis pipe, laughed inwardly at their folly, until his sides weresore. When he had quite exhausted himself--which took some time,for he laughed as slowly as he thought and spoke--he sat himselfcomfortably with his back to the house, put his legs upon thebench, then his apron over his face, and fell sound asleep.
How long he slept, matters not; but it was for no brief space, forwhen he awoke, the rich light had faded, the sombre hues of nightwere falling fast upon the landscape, and a few bright stars werealready twinkling overhead. The birds were all at roost, thedaisies on the green had closed their fairy hoods, the honeysuckletwining round the porch exhaled its perfume in a twofold degree, asthough it lost its coyness at that silent time and loved to shedits fragrance on the night; the ivy scarcely stirred its deep greenleaves. How tranquil, and how beautiful it was!
Was there no sound in the air, besides the gentle rustling of thetrees and the grasshopper"s merry chirp? Hark! Something veryfaint and distant, not unlike the murmuring in a sea-shell. Now itgrew louder, fainter now, and now it altogether died away.