Cruel as the grave
As soon as Sybil found herself alone with her husband, she beckoned him
to that end of the room which was farthest from the door, and when he
was close beside her she whispered in the lowest tone:
"Did you observe anything peculiar in the manner of that younger
bailiff?"
"I observed that he tried to attract my particular attention whenever we
happened to be unnoticed for a moment. But as we were so very closely
watched I had no opportunity of asking, or he of telling, what he
meant," said Lyon Berners.
"Then I will tell you all about it. When Mr. Purley went away with you,
and left that young man guarding me, the first thing he did was to make
himself known to me, and to place himself at my service even to the
death!"
"Who was he?"
"Robert Munson; a boy that I was so fortunate as to be kind to in his
childhood and mine. Afterwards he was a private soldier in Captain
Pendleton's company, and served under him for eight years, fighting the
Indians on the frontier. At Captain Pendleton's suggestion, and with his
own hearty free will, he volunteered for this service of pursuing me,
only that he might more effectually try to free me."
"Sybil, what are you saying? Have we a friend in one of our captors?"
exclaimed Lyon, in astonishment.
"Yes; a friend who will serve us to the death! Listen, dear Lyon, and I
will tell you all about it," answered Sybil.
And she commenced, and related all the circumstances of her acquaintance
with Robert Munson; of his motives for entering upon his present
avocation, and of his discovery of himself to her in the hotel at
Portsmouth.
"Now may heaven grant that some day I may have an opportunity of
rewarding that good fellow for his willing service, whether it ever
avail us or not," said Lyon Berners, earnestly.
"But dear Lyon, we must be very careful not to betray by any word or
look that we have any acquaintance, much less understanding, with
Munson, for to do so would be to ruin our only chance of escape," said
Sybil.
"Of course! of course! I understand that perfectly well!"
"But watch your opportunity, and when you feel it to be perfectly safe,
communicate with Robert Munson.
"I understand, dear Sybil, and I shall be very prudent and very
vigilant," answered Mr. Berners.
And then they retired to rest.
Very early the next morning they were aroused by their keeper who never
left his post at their door until he saw them come out of their room.
And then he drew Mrs. Berner's arm within his own and led her down to
breakfast.
After breakfast they resumed their journey.
This first day and night on the road was a type of all that followed.
The bailiff Purley never lost sight of his charge except at night, and
then he first assured himself that her room was a secure prison, from
which it would be impossible for her to escape; and then, to make
assurance doubly sure, he always locked the door on the outside, put the
key into his pocket, and stretched himself on a mattress across the
threshold.
There was no opportunity afforded to Sybil, Lyon and their new friend to
speak together in private; and as day followed day and night succeeded
night in this hopeless manner, their spirits fell from despondency even
to despair.
But as it is said to be darkest just before dawn, and that when things
are at their worst they are sure to mend, so it proved in their case.
On the evening of the fourth day of their tedious journey, they stopped
to sup and sleep at a lonely farm-house, where for "a consideration,"
the poor farmer consented, whenever he got the chance, to entertain
travellers.
Here their wagon and horses were comfortably stabled, and themselves
were lodged and feasted.
Here, as usual after supper, Mr. Purley accompanied his charge to her
bedroom, which, to his perplexity, he found to have two doors; the one
opening upon the upper hall, and the other communicating with an
adjoining vacant chamber.
After some consideration, he solved the difficulty of guarding his
prisoner by saying to his assistant:
"Well, Munson, all that can be done is this: one of us will have to
sleep across one door, and the other across the other. And as I hav'n't
slept in a room for three nights, I reckon I'll take the vacant room,
and you may take the hall. But mind, don't forget to draw the key out of
the door when you lock it, and put it into your pocket. And mind also,
to be sure to pull your mattress quite up to the door and lay directly
across it, so that if the lock should be picked, no one can pass without
going right over your own body; and, last of all, mind to sleep only
with one eye open, or all the other precautions will be of no use at
all."
"I will be very careful, sir," answered young Bailiff Munson, touching
his hat to his superior officer in military style.
"And now, as your legs are younger than mine, I wish you would run down
stairs and ask the farmer to send me up a mug of that home-brewed bitter
beer he was talking about."
"Yes, sir," answered the young bailiff starting off with alacrity, while
the elder remained on guard at the door of his charge.
In five minutes or less time, Munson returned with a quart measure of
the "home-brewed," which he handed to Purley.
"Souls and bodies! but it is bitter, sure enough! I have heard of bitter
beer, but this beats all for bitterness that ever I tasted! However, the
bitterer the better, I suppose; and this is really refreshing," said
Purley, as he drained the mug, and handed it empty to a negro boy, who
had just brought in and laid down the mattress upon which Munson was to
sleep.
Munson smiled to himself.
Then Purley reiterated all his cautions for the careful guarding of his
charge, and at length bade his comrade good-night, and retired to the
vacant chamber, to guard the door on that side.
Munson drew his mattress across the hall-door as he had been directed to
do, and laid himself down in all his clothes--not to sleep, but to
listen and watch until the house should grow quiet; for on this night he
was resolved to effect the deliverance of Sybil, or perish in the
attempt.
Meanwhile Mr. and Mrs. Berners had retired to their chamber--not to
rest, but to wait for events; for on this night a sure presentiment
informed them that Robert Munson, on guard there at their outer door,
would be sure to use his opportunities for attempting a rescue. So they
quietly cooeperated with what they divined to be his intentions.
First Sybil went and hung a towel over the knob of the lock, so as to
darken the key-hole of the door guarded by Purley. Then she slipped the
bolt, saying:
"He may guard us if he must, but he shall neither look in upon us, nor
intrude upon us, if I can help it."
And then, instead of undressing for bed, they did the opposite thing,
and quietly dressed for an escape. And lastly, they concealed their
money and jewels about their persons, and threw a few of the most
necessary articles for their journey into one travelling bag, and then
sat down to listen and watch on the inside, as their friend was
listening and watching on the outside.
Then they heard Purley arranging and re-arranging his bed against his
door, and tumbling down upon it, like a man utterly overcome by fatigue
and drowsiness; after which all was silent, until the stertorous
breathing of the bailiff assured them of the depth of his sleep. After
that, not a sound was heard in the house. Lyon looked at his watch. It
was but nine o'clock, though the whole house was at rest. In these
remote country places, people go to roost with the fowls, or very soon
after.
Still for another hour of silent, breathless suspense they waited; and
then they heard a faint tapping on the door that was guarded by Munson.
Mr. Berners went up, and tapped gently in response.
"Hist!" breathed the voice from without, through the key-hole.
"Well!" murmured Lyon, through the same channel.
"Take some of the melted tallow on the top of your candle, and grease
the key-hole as well as you can, and then I will come in and talk to
you, if you will let me."
"Thanks; yes."
And Mr. Berners did as he was requested to do, and Munson slipped his
key into the lubricated key-hole, and silently unlocked the door.
"Oh, our deliverer!" fervently exclaimed Sybil, as he softly entered the
room and closed the door behind him, holding up his finger in warning to
them to be silent.
"And now sit close for a few minutes, while I tell you what I have done
and am going to do," said Munson, drawing a stool and sitting himself
upon it, before Mr. and Mrs. Berners.
"Go on," muttered Lyon, fervently pressing the hand of his friend.
"Oh, yes, go on, dear Bob!" eagerly whispered Sybil.
"First I put nearly half an ounce of laudanum in old Purley's bitter
beer, which made him think it so uncommon prime and bitter, that he
drank the whole quart."
"Good heaven! Munson, you have killed the man!" said Lyon, in dismay.
"No, I have only doubled the dose I gave him before, which took no
effect on him, so this will only put him to sleep for twelve hours or
so. Lord, listen how he snores! A thunderstorm wouldn't wake him."
"Well?"
"Next, as soon as he was asleep, I went into his room in my
stocking-feet, and closed all the solid wooden shutters, to make him
believe it is still night when he does awake and feel drowsy, as he will
be sure to feel, so that he shall go to sleep again, and sleep until
evening, and that will give you nearly twenty-four hours start of him."
"Right! Quite right," said Mr. Berners.
"Well, well; but go on, dear Bob," impatiently murmured Sybil.
"I locked his door on the outside, and took away the key, to make the
farmer or any of the family, if they should go into his room to see why
he slept so long, think that he had locked himself in. For the rest I
shall stay here and pretend to sleep very late myself. In fact I shall
sleep until they wake me up, and then I shall be very angry, and tell
them they had better not play that game on Mr. Purley, as he would be in
a fury if his rest should be broken. And so I will guard these two rooms
from intrusion, and your escape from being discovered, as long as I
possibly can."
"But when it shall be discovered, my poor fellow, will you not get
yourself into trouble?" inquired Lyon.
"Even if I should, what will my trouble be to this lady's? But at worst
I shall only be cussed by old Purley, and turned out of my place by the
sheriff; and as I'm used to being cussed, and don't like my place, it
don't matter."
"And in any case, you shall be well rewarded, dear Bob. Not that such a
service as you are about to render us _can_ ever be adequately rewarded;
but, as far as--"
"Oh, dear Madam, don't speak of reward! I owe you a debt of gratitude,
which I am glad to pay. I have told you what I _have_ done, and what I
shall do, to relieve you of anxiety; and now we had better quietly leave
the house. Are you ready?" inquired Munson.
"We have been quite ready for these two hours, in anticipation of your
help."
"Come, then; but come very silently, though there is not the slightest
danger, either, of our being heard. The farmer is a beer swiller, and
sleeps heavily, and his women folks all sleep up in the garret. I saw
them all go up myself; they passed with their candle, as I lay on the
pallet," whispered Munson, as he quietly led the way out into the hall
and softly closed and locked the door, and withdrew the key.
"It is just as well to do this, to guard against the chance of any one
opening the door while I am gone," he added, as he softly preceded the
party down the stairs.
He silently opened the front door, and they passed out into the free
air.
A watch-dog that lay upon the mat outside got up and wagged his tail,