 | XXV.
TOWARDS MIDNIGHT. Neighbor Jackwood |  |
25. XXV.
TOWARDS MIDNIGHT.
Charlotte remained some minutes at the door. The old trees
before the house groaned, and creaked, and tossed their desolate,
naked arms, in the blast. The thin, white moon was setting;
phantom clouds careered in the sky; the startled stars seemed
flying from their spheres. The apparition of a dim, gliding figure,
skulking away as she gazed, served to heighten Charlotte's apprehensions.
It disappeared in the direction Hector and Robert had
taken. Could it be an accomplice of the latter? She ventured
out upon the steps; but she strained her eyes in vain to penetrate
the darkness, and she shrank back breathless into the hall.
How fearful, at such times, it is to sit alone and wait! How
the ear throbs to catch every sound; how awful the silence; how
dreary the moan of the wind! Charlotte, alone in the parlor,
listened till the air seemed all alive with invisible intelligences,
that hovered to and fro, that groaned in the chimney, that sighed
beneath the tables, that ticked in the wall, that clattered at the
casement, and tapped, with elfish laughter, on the panes. Twice
she thought she heard distant pistol-shots. An hour dragged by,
each moment heaping its weight upon her anxious mind. Two
hours elapsed. Surely, surely, some evil had arrived to Hector;
else he would return. She divided the time 'twixt gazing from
the window, listening at the door, walking nervously up and
down, and lying upon the sofa, with her face buried in her hands.
She was on the point of seeking the family, to inform them of
the cause of her alarm, when she heard an approaching tread.
She flew to the window; she recognized the welcome cloak and
hat. She was at the door in an instant.
“O, Hector! I was never glad” — till now, she would have
added; but her voice died in her throat. What new suspense was
this? With the sombre cloak thrown across his chest, muffling
his face, he stood motionless upon the threshold.
“Hector! why is this? Come in!”
Still muffled in the cloak, he entered without speaking, and
moved slowly towards the room in which the lamp was burning.
Charlotte uttered a cry.
“You are not Hector!”
The figure turned, and stood regarding her from beneath the
shadow of the hat. The hat was certainly Hector's; likewise the
cloak; but the form, the step, the manner — how changed! Charlotte
waited for a word or look of explanation. A solemn obeisance;
then the hat was slowly raised, and the folds of the cloak
fell from the hidden face.
“Edward!”
Another stately bow from the hat and cloak.
“Your majesty!”
“Where is Hector?”
“Five fathoms deep, where the salamanders sleep! — I inquired
for the Duchess of Dingledom, and they said she had gone to the
moon. With rings on her fingers, and bells on her toes, that she
may have music wherever she goes. Quippe!”
And the prime minister, pirouetting on his left foot, whirled
three times, and stood before Charlotte, solemn and stately as
ever.
“Edward! Edward! do not do so!”
“The other way?” — And, pirouetting on his right foot, he
turned thrice in the opposite direction, and stood facing her, as
before. “There shall be dancers in our kingdom. Dancers,
prancers, and the light fantastic toe. As a religious exercise,
only. I am the centre of the universe: when I turn, all creation
whirls!”
“O! tell me, Edward! where is Hector?”
“There are some in rags, and some in shags, and some in velvet
gowns!” Edward distended the wings of the mantle. “This
is princely costume. When the warrior falls, his pockets are
and his hound, and his ladye-fair.”
“He has been hurt!” cried Charlotte.
“The new moon was just over the old church steeple. It
looked like a rind of cheese on a toasting-fork. We 'll have three
moons in our kingdom, — one yellow, one white, and one pea-green.
Since the duchess has gone to the moon, the man in the
moon will be henpecked. The sparrow's cap was in the trap, the
cat came creeping after, — pounce! they 'll tell you the remainder
of the history, when they bring in the feathers.”
“Edward!” articulated Charlotte; “dear Edward! —”
“The deer is a superb creature; and to all such we 'll give encouragement.
We 'll set a premium on fair women, too; and
Sheba shall swarm with them. But, if there be any more beautiful
than your majesty, they shall wear veils. 'T would peril man's
salvation. I have had experience, and can testify for the race. —
Who comes there? — Stand and deliver!”
It was Mrs. Longman, whom Charlotte had summoned by the
bell. She regarded Edward with astonishment, having all this
time believed him asleep in his chamber. She looked to Charlotte
for an explanation, and imbibed her fears, with quick sympathy,
when the terrified girl spoke of Hector.
“Hector was a Trojan,” said Edward. “He was chased three
times around the walls, when — chuck! Achilles cracked him
over! Achilles' wrath, to grace the direful spring of woes unnumbered
— Andromache was a widow.”
“How did you leave the house?”
“Not by the front threshold. A slimy thing had crept over!”
“Why did you go out?”
“To look after the prince. He lacks attendants, and his state
is beggarly. — Solemn times, — when alligators walk on two feet,
and carry murder in their bosoms!”
“Was there a quarrel?”
“The cat will play, and after slay!” Edward made a horridly
suggestive gesture, by drawing his hand, with a gurgling sound,
across his throat. “Beards shall grow long in our kingdom:
razors being dangerous!”
“Edward,” said Mrs. Longman, kindly, but seriously, “this
will not do. See! you distress Charlotte, who has been so good
to you!”
“Hark to the story!” — Charlotte and the widow listened. —
“'T is short and sweet:
Three on her bosom, and nine in her hair;
But the jewel more precious than any, said I,
Not all Robin's riches are equal to buy.
and her jewels. I know she is called a duchess; but the man is
not her husband. The ten commandments are ten-pins, which
Satan bowls down with the ball of temptation. Since one has been
broken so often, there now exist but nine. When one falls, the
others topple. Set 'em up, Reverend! In our kingdom there
shall be a new system of virtue; which will come through the
exaltation of our lives, and our devotion to old cheese. Green
cheese, innocence; old cheese, virtue; curd is simplicity, — and
development is exhibited under the form of a cheese-press.
There 's whey, — that 's weakness; mould, — excessive morality;
and bigotry breeds maggots.”
Charlotte knew not what to do. Perhaps it was her own excitement
that provoked Edward's wildness; but, whatever the
cause, she appeared to have lost all influence over him. Evading
her questions, he continued to declaim on all sorts of odd subjects,
disconnected, yet not without some subtle ratiocination of his own,
jumbling together fragments of sense and nonsense, with occasionally
a bright gleam of wisdom, shown momentarily, like rays of
diamond flashing from heaps of rubbish. His mind seemed like
some excellent book, with its pages disarranged and torn, and its
index lost. In vain Charlotte attempted to restore order among
the leaves. The widow's attempts to assist but rendered matters
worse, and the young girl was ready to weep in utter despair,
when the sound of wheels at the door sent a thrill to her heart.
She flew to open it.
There was a rustling, a fluttering, a few stifled and hurried
head, and with Charlotte, trembling, laughing, weeping, upon his
arm, marched into the room.
“Ho! Prince of Egypt!” cried Edward, sitting grave and immovable
in the borrowed hat and cloak. “Was it thou in the
carriage? Carriages are of the earth, earthy. Railroads are
intellectual; but when spiritual laws are understood, men will
navigate the air. Meanwhile, majesty creeps.”
“'T was a pretty trick you played me!” exclaimed Hector.
“Her majesty's faith was tested, and she proved herself worthy.
The Seven Wise Men have been discoursing.”
“The Seven Wise Men are dead,” said Hector; “and dead
men, to be consistent, should speak only the dead languages. Reconcile
that!”
“There 's a wisdom that disdains logic; and we know more than
we understand. My feet are ice; but my head is thawed; for
the moon came down and kissed me with her fiery lips. — If ever
I marry,” — Edward's manner changed to airy lightness, — “'t is
the moon shall be my bride! for she is lovely and lonely; and so
she has told me many a night; and I reach out my hand, and pat
her cheek. She smiles! I love the moon, and she loves me!
For nine days, I was Lord Bacon; since then, I am Shakspeare,
and my moods are poetical. What do you think?”
“I think,” said Hector, “you are no great Shaks.”
“The stars shall come to the wedding. One bright-eyed little fellow
winked at me to-night, — he knows! — But —” in a hoarse
whisper — “I 'll be married in HELL! No cold feet there! and
your majesty shall grace the nuptials. Satan reigns; but he 's on
a visit to the grogshops, and we 'll use his imps for camp-stools.”
“When may we expect the ceremony?”
“When the world is righted. At present, it 's upside down.
The coachman is harnessed, and the horses ride and drive. Necessity
has got the whip, and even Genius must skip. The
soul is servant to a trade, and worships what his hands have
made. The mastiff gravely sits at table; the farmer watches
barn and stable. The mule is mounted on the man. The miserable
African is tyrant o'er the Southern master. The proud flock
sow who never reap, many reap who never sow; the devil laughs;
and so we go! Heigh-ho!”
“Be calm,” Hector said to Charlotte and Mrs. Longman, “and
in a little while he will become so. That 's a bad state of affairs
you describe.”
“Good is at the heart of all things; evil is the shuck. The
true commandment is not, `Shun evil,' but `Love the good;' then
evil shall go from you by the law of magnetic repulsion. Evil
with good hath close connection, and vice is virtue's imperfection;
desire is the root of love; and sinning, piety's germinal beginning!
In Sheba, all philosophy shall be promulgated by the
prime minister; and it shall be taught in rhymes, Shakspeare
inspiring. If there is any problem to solve, propose it.”
“One thing,” observed Hector: “with so many people to sleep
for, I don't see how you can afford to sit up so late. I 've no
objection to your stealing my beaver; but don't rob Shakspeare
of his nap. The wise men grow drowsy; and it 's my opinion
you 'd better go to bed.”
“The counsel is salutary; though I yield,” said Edward, graciously,
“not to the man, but to the prince.”
“Will you come, then?” asked Mrs. Longman.
“Sweet Sal, you are irresistible!” Edward adjusted the cloak
to the shoulders of a plaster Byron in the corner, placing the hat
upon the summit. “I was naked, and you clothed me,” turning
to Hector; “therefore, you shall hold high rank in our kingdom.
But do not flatter her majesty, for that puts coldness between us.
Your coming has brought trouble; and we are not what we were.
Heigh-ho! and I can't but grieve, the good old days of Adam and
of Eve! The words may seem puerile, but there 's meaning concealed.
Adam was the first man, Eve was the t' other; Cain was
a wicked man, 'ca'se he killed his brother! Crack the nut, and
the meat is palpable.”
“Well, good-night!”
“Bear witness!” said Edward, solemnly. “You are three, —
tit, tat, to, three in a row! And I do here declare and affirm
before you, that, all envy aside, I bid her majesty a fair good-night,
bow, as the oak said; I take leave of you, answered the wind,
with a whisk; and so the centre of the universe withdraws.”
With a profound reverence, he went backwards out of the room;
but, appearing to consider something still required to render his
exit impressive, he returned, and, putting his head in at the door,
said, “Peep-bo!” with a cunning leer, designed, undoubtedly, as
the most effective diplomatic stroke of the evening.
“What a fright I have had!” said Charlotte. “How did he
get your hat and cloak?”
“I loaned them to him. He came after us, bareheaded, and
thinly clad; I was afraid that, in his feeble state, he would suffer
from the cold; and, as my blood was up, I could very well dispense
with the extra clothing. I advised him to keep near me; but the
temptation to play fantastic tricks in my garments was, it seems,
too great to be resisted.”
“And Robert?”
“O, humanity!” exclaimed Hector; “thou art a riddle!”
“You did not quarrel?”
“No; he acknowledged his wrongs, and made the most solemn
promises for the future.”
“O, Hector! how could you bring him to that point?”
“It was not I, but the truth. But do not count too much upon
his promises. The evil spirit in him, though humbled, is not
killed. He will not trouble us soon, however, I think; he knows
whom he has to deal with. He is engaging in speculations with
Mr. Sperkley, and has pledged himself not to go back to Huntersford.
So there remains nothing to hinder your return with me
to-morrow.”
“But the danger, — should he choose to take revenge! Here,
I am safe —”
“And there you will be safe; for a time, at least. My mother
is dying for you; I will leave you with her, and go at once to
forestall all danger, by striking at the very root of his power.”
“O, that will be too much to do for me!”
“I cannot do too much for you, Charlotte. Your peace and happiness
are the jewels of my life. If money and time can purchase
would not ask you to return. But we must go to her; and while
she lives, there we must live, before the world, free from all apprehension
of evil, and in the face of prejudice.”
An almost fearful sense of happiness suffused Charlotte's entire
being. Could it be real? Would she not soon awake, and weep
for her vanished dreams?
“But, even if this should be, could not the affair be accomplished
without a journey?”
“Possibly. But I should tremble to intrust so sacred a business
to any indifferent person.”
“And your mother,” said Charlotte, — “we owe it to her, —
to seek her sympathy and counsel. Go to her; tell her all;
keep nothing back; then, if she permits it, if she desires it, I will
return!”
| XXV.
TOWARDS MIDNIGHT. Neighbor Jackwood | |