Lorna Doone: A Romance of Exmoor
crooked upon the heavy triggers; and the volley sang with a roar behind
it, down the avenue of crags.
With one thing and another, and most of all the treachery of this
dastard scheme, I was so amazed that I turned and ran, at the very top
of my speed, away from these vile fellows; and luckily for me, they
had not another charge to send after me. And thus by good fortune, I
escaped; but with a bitter heart, and mind at their treacherous usage.
Without any further hesitation; I agreed to take command of the honest
men who were burning to punish, ay and destroy, those outlaws, as now
beyond all bearing. One condition, however, I made, namely, that the
Counsellor should be spared if possible; not because he was less a
villain than any of the others, but that he seemed less violent; and
above all, had been good to Annie. And I found hard work to make them
listen to my wish upon this point; for of all the Doones, Sir Counsellor
had made himself most hated, by his love of law and reason.
We arranged that all our men should come and fall into order with pike
and musket, over against our dung-hill, and we settled early in the day,
that their wives might come and look at them. For most of these men had
good wives; quite different from sweethearts, such as the militia had;
women indeed who could hold to a man, and see to him, and bury him--if
his luck were evil--and perhaps have no one afterwards. And all these
women pressed their rights upon their precious husbands, and brought so
many children with them, and made such a fuss, and hugging, and racing
after little legs, that our farm-yard might be taken for an out-door
school for babies rather than a review ground.
I myself was to and fro among the children continually; for if I love
anything in the world, foremost I love children. They warm, and yet they
cool our hearts, as we think of what we were, and what in young clothes
we hoped to be; and how many things have come across. And to see our
motives moving in the little things that know not what their aim or
object is, must almost or ought at least, to lead us home, and soften
us. For either end of life is home; both source and issue being God.
Nevertheless, I must confess that the children were a plague sometimes.
They never could have enough of me--being a hundred to one, you might
say--but I had more than enough of them; and yet was not contented.
For they had so many ways of talking, and of tugging at my hair, and
of sitting upon my neck (not even two with their legs alike), and they
forced me to jump so vehemently, seeming to court the peril of my coming
down neck and crop with them, and urging me still to go faster, however
fast I might go with them; I assure you that they were sometimes so hard
and tyrannical over me, that I might almost as well have been among the
very Doones themselves.
Nevertheless, the way in which the children made me useful proved also
of some use to me; for their mothers were so pleased by the exertions of
the “great Gee-gee”--as all the small ones entitled me--that they gave
me unlimited power and authority over their husbands; moreover, they did
their utmost among their relatives round about, to fetch recruits
for our little band. And by such means, several of the yeomanry from
Barnstaple, and from Tiverton, were added to our number; and inasmuch
as these were armed with heavy swords, and short carabines, their
appearance was truly formidable.
Tom Faggus also joined us heartily, being now quite healed of his
wound, except at times when the wind was easterly. He was made second in
command to me; and I would gladly have had him first, as more fertile
in expedients; but he declined such rank on the plea that I knew most
of the seat of war; besides that I might be held in some measure to draw
authority from the King. Also Uncle Ben came over to help us with his
advice and presence, as well as with a band of stout warehousemen, whom
he brought from Dulverton. For he had never forgiven the old outrage put
upon him; and though it had been to his interest to keep quiet during
the last attack, under Commander Stickles--for the sake of his secret
gold mine--yet now he was in a position to give full vent to his
feelings. For he and his partners when fully-assured of the value of
their diggings, had obtained from the Crown a licence to adventure in
search of minerals, by payment of a heavy fine and a yearly royalty.
Therefore they had now no longer any cause for secrecy, neither for
dread of the outlaws; having so added to their force as to be a match
for them. And although Uncle Ben was not the man to keep his miners idle
an hour more than might be helped, he promised that when we had fixed
the moment for an assault on the valley, a score of them should come
to aid us, headed by Simon Carfax, and armed with the guns which they
always kept for the protection of their gold.
Now whether it were Uncle Ben, or whether it were Tom Faggus or even my
own self--for all three of us claimed the sole honour--is more than I
think fair to settle without allowing them a voice. But at any rate, a
clever thing was devised among us; and perhaps it would be the fairest
thing to say that this bright stratagem (worthy of the great Duke
himself) was contributed, little by little, among the entire three of
us, all having pipes, and schnapps-and-water, in the chimney-corner.
However, the world, which always judges according to reputation, vowed
that so fine a stroke of war could only come from a highwayman; and so
Tom Faggus got all the honour, at less perhaps than a third of the cost.
Not to attempt to rob him of it--for robbers, more than any other,
contend for rights of property--let me try to describe this grand
artifice. It was known that the Doones were fond of money, as well as
strong drink, and other things; and more especially fond of gold, when
they could get it pure and fine. Therefore it was agreed that in this
way we should tempt them; for we knew that they looked with ridicule
upon our rustic preparations; after repulsing King's troopers, and the
militia of two counties, was it likely that they should yield their
fortress to a set of ploughboys? We, for our part, felt of course,
the power of this reasoning, and that where regular troops had failed,
half-armed countrymen must fail, except by superior judgment and harmony
of action. Though perhaps the militia would have sufficed, if they had
only fought against the foe, instead of against each other. From these
things we took warning; having failed through over-confidence, was it
not possible now to make the enemy fail through the selfsame cause?
Hence, what we devised was this; to delude from home a part of the
robbers, and fall by surprise on the other part. We caused it to be
spread abroad that a large heap of gold was now collected at the mine
of the Wizard's Slough. And when this rumour must have reached them,
through women who came to and fro, as some entirely faithful to them
were allowed to do, we sent Captain Simon Carfax, the father of little
Gwenny, to demand an interview with the Counsellor, by night, and as it
were secretly. Then he was to set forth a list of imaginary grievances
against the owners of the mine; and to offer partly through resentment,
partly through the hope of gain, to betray into their hands, upon the
Friday night, by far the greatest weight of gold as yet sent up for
refining. He was to have one quarter part, and they to take the residue.
But inasmuch as the convoy across the moors, under his command, would
be strong, and strongly armed, the Doones must be sure to send not less
than a score of men, if possible. He himself, at a place agreed upon,
and fit for an ambuscade, would call a halt, and contrive in the
darkness to pour a little water into the priming of his company's guns.
It cost us some trouble and a great deal of money to bring the sturdy
Cornishman into this deceitful part; and perhaps he never would have
consented but for his obligation to me, and the wrongs (as he said) of
his daughter. However, as he was the man for the task, both from his
coolness and courage, and being known to have charge of the mine, I
pressed him, until he undertook to tell all the lies we required.
And right well he did it too, having once made up his mind to it; and
perceiving that his own interests called for the total destruction of
the robbers.
CHAPTER LXXI
A LONG ACCOUNT SETTLED
Having resolved on a night-assault (as our undisciplined men,
three-fourths of whom had never been shot at, could not fairly be
expected to march up to visible musket-mouths), we cared not much about
drilling our forces, only to teach them to hold a musket, so far as we
could supply that weapon to those with the cleverest eyes; and to give
them familiarity with the noise it made in exploding. And we fixed upon
Friday night for our venture, because the moon would be at the full; and
our powder was coming from Dulverton on the Friday afternoon.
Uncle Reuben did not mean to expose himself to shooting, his time of
life for risk of life being now well over and the residue too valuable.
But his counsels, and his influence, and above all his warehousemen,
well practised in beating carpets, were of true service to us. His
miners also did great wonders, having a grudge against the Doones; as
indeed who had not for thirty miles round their valley?
It was settled that the yeomen, having good horses under them, should
give account (with the miners' help) of as many Doones as might be
despatched to plunder the pretended gold. And as soon as we knew that
this party of robbers, be it more or less, was out of hearing from the
valley, we were to fall to, ostensibly at the Doone-gate (which was
impregnable now), but in reality upon their rear, by means of my old
water-slide. For I had chosen twenty young fellows, partly miners, and
partly warehousemen, and sheep farmers, and some of other vocations, but
all to be relied upon for spirit and power of climbing. And with proper
tools to aid us, and myself to lead the way, I felt no doubt whatever
but that we could all attain the crest where first I had met with Lorna.
Upon the whole, I rejoiced that Lorna was not present now. It must have
been irksome to her feelings to have all her kindred and old associates
(much as she kept aloof from them) put to death without ceremony, or
else putting all of us to death. For all of us were resolved this
time to have no more shilly-shallying; but to go through with a nasty
business, in the style of honest Englishmen, when the question comes to
“Your life or mine.”
There was hardly a man among us who had not suffered bitterly from the
miscreants now before us. One had lost his wife perhaps, another had
lost a daughter--according to their ages, another had lost his favourite
cow; in a word, there was scarcely any one who had not to complain of
a hayrick; and what surprised me then, not now, was that the men least
injured made the greatest push concerning it. But be the wrong too great
to speak of, or too small to swear about, from poor Kit Badcock to rich
Master Huckaback, there was not one but went heart and soul for stamping
out these firebrands.
The moon was lifting well above the shoulder of the uplands, when we,
the chosen band, set forth, having the short cut along the valleys to
foot of the Bagworthy water; and therefore having allowed the rest an
hour, to fetch round the moors and hills; we were not to begin our climb
until we heard a musket fired from the heights on the left-hand side,
where John Fry himself was stationed, upon his own and his wife's