The Young Castellan: A Tale of the English Civil War

by George Manville Fenn

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN.

  ROYLAND CASTLE AFTER ITS GROWL.

  Lady Royland received the news calmly enough, and was the first toallude to the flag, which she said would be, though unfinished, suitableenough to hoist whenever her son thought it right to do so.

  "The sooner, then, the better, I should say, mother," cried Roy. "Letthem see it waving when they come near."

  "By all means, my boy. I am glad to find that you have everything in sogood a state of preparation. The guns startled me a little, but Iexpected to hear them some time. Do you think the men will prove trueand come in?"

  "True, mother? Yes, of course."

  A few minutes later Roy came out with the silken flag hanging in foldsacross his arm like a cloak, and hurried to where Ben and the threetroopers were busy loading the two guns, run out now into the gate-wayso as to command the road from each side of the raised bridge.

  The men were all armed, and a look of excitement was in every face,notably in that of Farmer Raynes, who was fidgeting about and lookinganxious.

  Roy handed the flag to Ben, who took it proudly, and nodded hissatisfaction.

  "You'll come up and be there at the hoisting, sir?" he said.

  "Of course. Yes--what is it?"

  "Master Pawson, sir," whispered the old soldier, with a laugh; "wemanaged to wake him up at last."

  Roy smiled and went to where the farmer stood, watching him anxiously,and finally making a sign to him to come.

  "Want to speak to me, Master Raynes?" he said.

  "Yes, sir; I'm in agonies about my men. They'll be coming along soonand falling into a trap, for some of those troopers will be hangingabout the road."

  "Yes, this is serious," said Roy, who grasped the difficulties of thereinforcements he hoped soon to receive.

  Ben was called into counsel, and his suggestion was that the guns on thefour towers should be manned ready to cover the advance of the friends,and keep back the enemy.

  "Mounted men's orders are to keep clear of cannon-shot all they can,sir; and now, if you please, I should like you to arm all the peoplenecessary, while I see to the ammunition."

  This order was carried out, and the flag taken up into thefurnace-chamber, just below where the new flag-staff with halyard hadbeen erected against the staircase turret.

  In a very short time all was ready, so far as so small a force wasavailable, and four men kept ready in the chamber prepared to lower thebridge as soon as any friends approached, when it was to be kept downtill the coming of strangers rendered it necessary that it should beraised again.

  Ten minutes had not elapsed before a shout from the north-east tower washeard, and Roy turned in the direction pointed out by one of the men, tosee a little party of four men who, in obedience to the signal, wereadvancing at a trot from the direction of the village.

  The bridge was lowered, the portcullis raised, and, as the men camehurrying across, they were received with a hearty cheer from the tinygarrison.

  The bridge being down and the portcullis raised, the state ofpreparation was deemed sufficient to warrant their remaining so, as noenemy was in sight; but the precaution was taken of having theport-fires ready and each gun in the gate-way manned so as to sweep theapproach.

  Another shout announced fresh arrivals, men coming up in twos andthrees, every arrival sending a thrill of satisfaction through the youngcastellan's breast as he felt his strength increase, till only twoparties were not accounted for,--six men from the mill and the ten fromthe farm.

  "A terrible loss they would be, Ben," said Roy, as he swept the countryfrom the highest point of the tower, and without effect. "Raynes wantsto go in search of them."

  "Then don't let him, sir. We can't spare him. Mightn't be able to comeback. Wait a bit; they've all got some distance to come. Give 'emtime."

  "But they might have been here by now."

  "Ay, they might, sir," said Ben, drily.

  "Ha! you think they are afraid, now it comes to the pinch."

  "Nay, sir, not yet. They may have a good way round to go to 'scape theenemy, for I dare say they're beginning to occupy the roads. I'm mostanxious about the farm lads, for they're nighest to where the enemyare.--Hi! there! Look! look!"

  Ben had turned his head in a different direction to that in which themen from the mill might have been expected to come; and there,altogether, running in a group, six figures could be seen evidentlymaking for the castle, while a party of a dozen horsemen suddenly rodeinto sight from behind a copse about a quarter of a mile away, andcantered across as if to head the men off.

  "Now, sir, quick! Tell 'em yonder to make ready and wait. Thecorporal's there, and he'll know what to do."

  Roy shouted the orders to the south-west tower, and the trooper-corporalanswered loudly, and they saw him blow his port-fire.

  "Now, sir, wait a bit, till they get nigher. That's it. Now, fire!"

  The race had been growing exciting, for the horsemen were increasingtheir pace as they came on with their weapons glittering in the sun, andit was plain enough that the runners must be cut off and takenprisoners, when just at the right moment Roy's order rang out. Therewas a white puff from the tower, a heavy boom, the ball went whistlingjust over the heads of the horsemen, and a shout of triumphant derisionarose from the towers, as, moved by the same spirit, the little troopwheeled round and went off at full gallop to get out of gunshot.

  "Another shot, men!"

  "Nay, sir, certainly not. That's the young soldier speaking. What for?You might bowl over a horse or two, but what good would that do?You've done what you wanted, and sent 'em to the right-about, saved sixof our lads, and at the same time showed those fellows that we're on thelookout and don't mean to stand any nonsense. That's enough for onebullet, sir, eh?"

  "Splendid! my lads," cried Roy, who leaned over the battlements, wavinghis hand to the panting and nearly exhausted men from the mill, who cameat a steady trot now across the bridge, cheered loudly by all who couldsee them.

  Roy's next thought was to go and tell Lady Royland all about theincident; but he felt that he must live up to his position, and be busythere in sight of his men; so, after watching the enemy's horse tillquite out of sight, he bade Ben keep a sharp lookout, and descended tohear the report of the party who had just come in.

  He found them in the guard-room, scarlet with exertion, and stillpanting from their long race, but evidently in high glee, Sam Donny,their spokesman, the young man who was put first to the front when theycame to him, being full of their adventures,--how the troopers hadpassed the mill three times that morning, and stopped twice to demandcorn for their steeds and water, their leader watching the miller's mencuriously as if suspicious of them.

  "But they went off at last, sir. Let's see: they come agen, though,twice after we'd heard the guns, and that kep' us back. Last of all, Isays to t'others, `Now for it, lads, or young Captin Roy'll be thinkingwe're feared to come.' They says, `That's so,' and off we starts; butwe hadn't gone far 'fore we finds they're on the road, and we had to runback and make for Water Lane. Hadn't gone far 'long Water Lane, when wefinds a couple of 'em there. Back we goes again, and creeps along asideone of the fields, and there they was again, and dozens of 'em on thewatch, as if some one had told 'em we was likely to come over here.Then we all goes back to the mill and talks it over, and some on us saysas we'd better stop till night; but I says, `Nay! They'll think we'reall cowards, and get shooting at us if we comes in the dark,' and atlast we said we'd go two miles round by the common. And so we did, sir,crawling on our stummicks in and out among the furze bushes, and everynow and then seeing the sun shine on one of their caps as they rode hereand there.

  "Last of all, sir, they seemed to have gone away, and I lifts up my headand looks about. `All clear, mates!' I says, and up we gets, keepingas far off as we could, so as to work round. `We've done 'em thistime,' I says, as we went on, and we was coming along splendid, till BobHerries happens to look back, and, `Run, lads,' he says; `
here they comearter us!' I was for hiding, sir, but there was no chance, so we allrun our best, with the castle here seeming a long way off; but we gotnigher and nigher, and so did they; and they'd ha' cut us off if ithadn't been for that gun--though we all thought the next shot might hitus."

  "You did bravely, my lads," cried Roy. "But tell me, what about the menfrom the farm?"

  "What! aren't they here, sir?" said the man.

  "No; we've seen nothing of them."

  "Well, I am glad, then, that we aren't the last," said the man, with agrin of satisfaction; but his face was serious directly. "I don't quitemean that, sir. I mean I'm sorry they're not here. Then some of thosefellows must have took them. But what I want to know is, how could theytell we was a-coming to the castle?"

  "They must have noticed that you all had a military bearing, my lad.You are all very different to what you were when you came to join."

  A look of pride beamed in the man's face and was reflected in those ofhis companions, but he spoke out directly.

  "Well, we have tried to get to be soldiers, sir, hard; haven't us,mates?"

  "Ay!" was growled in chorus.

  "Yes, you have done well," cried Roy, "and I'm heartily glad to see yousafely here."