by James Hogg
CHAPTER VII.
Aboon his skins he sat and rockit, And fiercely up his bonnet cockit; Then at ha' doors he crousely knockit Withouten dread, Till wives and bairns around him flockit, But now he's dead.
Then he wad claw, and he wad hustle, Till all the skins played rap and rustle; While up his thighs, wi' devilish bustle, Ran mony a ked; Now they hae lost their eume and gustle, Sin' Robin's dead.
De'il on the yaud, that I should ban! That brak the neck of sic ane man; Now wha will wucked dames traupan Wi' siccan speed? Or drive the hides to them wha tan, Sin' Robin's dead?
_Rob Paterson's Elegy._
On the same day that Douglas marched his men up the Tweed towardsMelrose, and the Warden his troopers across the Border to the siege ofRoxburgh, a band of twelve men and thirty horses came up out ofEskdale towards Craik-Cross, the most motely group that had ever beenseen traversing that wild country. The men were dressed as Englishpeasants of the lowest order, with broad unshapely hats, made of arude felt of wool and hair mixed; wide coarse jockey-coats that camebelow their knees; and, instead of loops or buttons, these were boundround the middle with a broad buff-belt; the rest of their dress wasall conformable, save that each of them had a noble broad-swordgirded by his side. Some of their horses were loaden, some of themhalf-loaden, and a few had scarcely any thing on their backs at all.But no man will guess what that loading consisted of. Not to keep thereader in suspense, it was of _nolt-hides_; that is, of cow-hides,oxen-hides, bull-hides, and all sorts of hides that ever came from thebacks of cattle. There were raw hides and dried hides, black hides andwhite hides, hides with horns, and hides without horns; and of theseconsisted their loading, and nothing else.
The men alighted at Craik-Cross to bait their horses, and thefollowing conversation ensued, which will let the reader into thesecret who these skin-dealers were, thus strangely accoutred.
"Will Laidlaw o' Craik, ye're a gayan auld-farrant chield. Come nearme, and sit down, and tell me gin ye can hae ony guess what our masterthe Warden can be wanting wi' a' thir confoundit ill-smelled hides?"
"I hae puzzled my brain to nae purpose about it, Dan Chisholm; but amconvinced it is some way connected wi' the siege of that unluckycastle; and the maist part o' us trows that they are for makingraip-ladders, or rather whing-ladders, for climbing ower the wa's; angin that be the case, Dan, there will mony ane o' us throw away ourlives to little purpose."
"Now to hear you talk about fock throwing away their lives! You thatwad risk your life for naething but a broken crown every day o' theyear. Why, Will Laidlaw, I hae foughten often in the same field wi'you afore this time, and I never saw you set your life at a cow'shorn, let be the hide o' ane (for whilk we wad gie a good deal theday.) I hae seen ye ride from your ain party, when that wing wasnahotly enough engaged, and blatter into the very thickest and hettestpart o' the field, just girning and laying on like some lang-noseddeil come out o' the pit. But let me tell ye, Will o' Craik, it is asair fault o' your's, and it is a clagg o' the hale clan,--the deil beyour landlord, (as he has already been mine, quietly,) gin the haletott o' ye be nae ill for saying ae thing an' thinking another. If anehear a Laidlaw complaining of pinching and poverty, ye may amaist besure that he has the best stockit mailings, and the best filledbeef-barrels in the country. If ye hear him complaining, that theEnglish are herrying the Scots up, stoop and roop, ye may rely on itthe Scots hae been getting the upper hand and enriching themsels; andand if ye hear a Laidlaw pretending to be averse to a foray or abattle, ye may depend on it that his very knuckles are itching, andhis teeth watering, to be at it.--Na, ye needna waul wi' your muckleeen, Will, for ye canna deny the thing; and it is a d--n'd provokinggate ye hae."
"Hout, dear Dan! we just hae it by kind to try what fock thinks on thesubject a wee; to sound them like, afore we tell our hale minds. Buta' comes aye freely out ere the hinder-end. But the truth is, aboutthis that we were cracking, ye ken. I dinna mind a bodle what theWarden be gaun to do wi' the skins, provided he keep his promise, andgie me a living English cow for the hides of every three dead anesthat I bring him."
"There it goes now! There you go again! Weel I ken ye carena ae doitabout the kye. Ye hae plenty o' baith kye and ewes already, and, onthe contrary, ye wad _gi'e them a'_ to ken what our chief is gaun tobe about wi' thir hides. But it is needless to fight w'ye! Ye cannahelp that cross gate o' expressing yoursel. Gin ever ye be drowned wemay seek you up the water. There's ae thing, Will,--ye may see theWarden means some general good to us a' by this project, whatever itis, for he has sent ae man o' every name to gather up the skins o' hisnative district. Ae Oliver, ae Armstrong, ae Laidlaw, ae Chisholm,and twa o' the Redhoughs; for ye ken he is always maist behadden tohis ain name. But what can be the meaning o' this ugly disguise, Icanna form a single conjecture; and he is sae strick about it too,that if ane o' us let oursels be found out, we lose a' chance ofreward or advantage. Sae, Will, ye're unco weel kend about Craikand Howpasley, and a' the links o' Borthwick, and so am I aboutCastle-Wearie and Chisholm, and thereabouts. Gang ye into my father'shouse a' night, and I'll gang to Craik; gather ye up the hides o'Teviot, and I shall take Borthwick in my road. My father will maybe bea wee sweer to take ye in, but ye maun make your way on him the bestgate ye can; he has the best stockit pantry on Teviot head, but a bitof a Laidlaw's fault, complaining aye maist when he has least reason.He has a capital stock o' hides, but seeing that English disguise hemay deny them; therefore try him first, and if he winna produce them,gang up the burn about half a mile, and in a lown crook, weel hiddenfrae a' the world, ye'll find a bit housie wi' a dozen o' good hidesin it. If he winna gi'e you them at a fair price, ye maun e'en takethem for naething, as it is a' for his ain advantage."
"Na, na, Dan. Weel I wat I'll do nae sic thing! I wadna dispute wi'the auld man, nor anger him for a' the hides in the hale barony."
"There again! Aye the auld man! Now, the Lord forgi'e ye; for ye nevermet wi' him a' your life but ye baith angered him and disputed wi'him. But nae mair about it. Take ye Sandy Pot o' the Burnfit, thequeer hairum skairum devil, Tam Oliver, Bauldy Elliot, and BauldyArmstrong wi' you; and I'll take Jamie Telfer o' the Dodhead, Jock o'the Delorrin, Jock Anderson o' nae place, and Geordie Bryden o' everyplace, wi' me,--and good luck to the skin trade!"
It was one of those sort of winter days that often occur in January,when the weather is what the shepherds call "in the deadthraw," thatis, in a struggle between frost and thaw. There was a dark cloud ofrime resting on the tops of the hills, which shrouded them in a veilimpervious to vision beyond the space of a few yards, and within thatcloud the whole height appeared to be covered with millions of razors,every pile of bent and heath being loaded with ice on the one side, sothat each had the exact resemblance to a razor blade, all of whichappeared to be cast in the same mould, and of the same beautifulmetal. The feet of the horses as they travelled through this made ajingling noise, as if they had been wading among crystal. As they camelower down on the hills the air became softer, and the ground was freeof those ice-candles; but an uncommon gloom hung over holm and dale.
Old Peter Chisholm was walking on the green to the westward of hishouse, looking at his ewes coming bleating down from among the darkfoldings of the rime, and saying to himself, "I wonder what can beword o' thae dirty herd callants the day, that they are letting thesheep come a' stringing in lang raws, and rairing and bleating, intothe how o' the water that gate. The country's in a loose state e'now,for the strength is a' out o't; a raid o' thirty stout English thieveswad herry the hale water. An sic were to come this gate the day, mystock wad be a' gane."
Peter was proud of his ewes for all that, and, giving them a whistle,he threw the plaid over his shoulder, set his broad bonnet up before,and turned about to go home to look after the shepherd lads. As heturned his face to the north, he naturally cast his eye up toward theLimycleuch hil
ls, where it instantly embraced the appalling sight ofWill Laidlaw o' Craik, and his disguised compeers, with their fifteenhorses, coming stretching down the ridge, right opposite to PateChisholm's hirsel of bonny wheel-horned ewes. The old man's eyes weredazzled in his head, and a paralytic affection seized his whole frame."Lord pity us! Now see what's coming yonder," said Peter: "I tauldthem aye what wad happen! but no ane wad heed me! O dool to the day! Aman may soon hae muckle, and soon hae naething in this wearifu'country. O Dan, Simon, and Jock, the strength o' my house! whereforeare ye a' gane and left your gear to gang as it came! Dear bought!far sought! and little for the haudding."
By the time Peter got thus far with his soliloquy he was quite out ofbreath; for he was not only walking fast, but he was absolutely runningtowards home, with a sore stoop, and knees bent much forward. Still ashe hobbled he continued to apostrophise in short sentences, as he couldgather a little breath now and then to utter a small portion of theconcatenation of repulsive ideas that presented themselves one afteranother--"Naething but trash left--Heh-heh--Rob-in-Laid-law!--Ihae seen--Heh-heh the--day, but--Heh--that's--gane,--Lasses,too!--Hoh--oh!--O ay!--Half--breed--bring--up--Oh--Dan--Dan, &c. &c.Daughter! Bessy Chisholm--Heh! Are ye therein? May Chisholm--where'syour titty? Poor tafferel ruined tawpies! What are ye gaun gainderingabout that gate for, as ye didna ken whilk end o' ye were uppermost?""That's easily kend father. What has come ower ye? Hae ye seen a warlockthat ye are gaping and glowring at sic a dismal rate?" "War than onywarlock, ye twa glaikit idle hizzies. Off wi' jerkin and wilycoat, andon wi' doublet, breeks, and buskins instantly. Belt on bow, buckler, andbrand, and stand for life, limb, gear, and maidhood, or a's gane in aekink. O dool be to the day! dool be to the day! What are ye standingglinting, and looking at ane anither there for? Cast your een up to theCarlin-rigg, and see what's coming. A' harried! ravaged! and murdered!Come, come: Don your billies' claes; let us make some show; it willmaybe save something. Warn the herd callants; let the stoutest of themarm, and the weakest rin and drive sheep and cattle an' a' out o' sightamang the clouds. O dool to the day! Na, na; for a' the houses that arein the country here they come straight! Nae winning by this place."
The lasses seeing their father in such a querulous mood, and themotely troop fast approaching, acquiesced in his mandate, and withoutdelay mounted themselves each in a suit of their younger brother'sclothes, while old Peter stood over them to see that they put all torights, always giving such directions as these: "Come, come, come!strap, clasp, belt and buckle; and gude-sake fauld up your cuffs. Yourarms hing at your shoulder blades as they were off joint. Hout fie!hout fie! Wha ever saw young chields hae sic luchts o' yellow hairhingin fleeing in the wind? Come, come, strap and string down; swaddleit round wi' sax dizzen o' wheelbands, and fasten a steel-belted furcap ower aboon a'. Yare, yare! Lord sauff us! Here they come! What'sto be our fate? Keep close for a wee while."
"Hilloa! Wha hauds the house!" was vollied from the door by thedeep-toned voice of Will Laidlaw.
"There's nae body in but me, and I downa come to the door. Ye hadbetter ride on," cried old Peter, in a weak tremulous voice.
"Wilt thou answer to thy name, or hast thou a name to answer to?" saidWill, feigning to speak the broad Northumberland dialect, which sortedvery ill with his tongue: "An thou be'st leel man and true, coome andbid thee guests wailcome. It is God speed, or spulzie wi' thee inthree handclaps."
"Spulzie, quo the man!" exclaimed Peter: "The muckle fiend spulzie theunmannerly gab that spake it!"--and with that he came stooping overhis staff, and coughing to the door, speaking in a quavering treblekey. "A bonny like purpose! What wad ye spulzie frae a poor auld manthat hasna as muckle atween him and the grave as will pay for howkingit, and buy a hagabag winding sheet? Spulzie, quo he! That is a goodjoke!--he--he--he, (cough) hoh--hoh--hoh. I'm sae ill wi' that host!Eh? wha hae we a' here? Strangers, I think!
"Goodman, we were directed to your house for a night's entertainmentor two, if you are the old rich yeoman ycleped Patrick Chisholm ofCastle-Weary."
"Na, na! I'm nae rich yeoman! I'm naething but a poor herried,forsaken, reduced auld man! I hae nae up-putting for ought better thana flea. Ye had better ride on down to Commonside. There's plentythere baith for man and horse. Come away, I'll set you down the lengtho' the ford, and let ye see the right gate."
"Come neighbours, let us go away as he says, We'll never make ourquarters good on this auld carle," said Sandy Pot, in a whisper to hiscompanions: "And troth do ye ken I wad rather lie at the back of thedike, before I imposed myself on ony body. Od my heart's wae for thepoor auld niggard."
"Come away, lads, come away," cried Peter. "The days are unco shorte'now; ye haena time to put off."
"Stop short there, my good fellow," cried Laidlaw, "We have some otherfish to fry with you before we go. I am informed you have a largestock in hand of the goods in which we deal. You have had lucky liftsthis year. Plenty of good hides with you?"
"Rank misprision, and base rascally jests on a poor auld man. Not asingle hide about the hale town, foreby the ane on my back," cried oldPeter.
"My orders are, worthy old yeoman, to give fair prices to such asproduce their hides," said Laidlaw. But whoever refuses, I am obligedto search for them; and if I find any I take them at my own price."
"O dear, honest gentlemen, I downa joke wi' ye: hoh, hoh," coughedPeter. "Gin ye be for a place to stay in a' night, come away as langas it is daylight."
"Why, with your leave my good fellow, we must lodge with you to-night.Hearth-room and ha'-room, steed-room and sta'-room, is the friendlystranger's right here. Small things will serve: a stone of Englishbeef or so, and two or three pecks of oats."
"Beef, quoth the man? Ye may as weel look for a white corby as beef inmy pantry, or aits in my barn. Will ye no come away."
"Not till I makes a search for your nolt hides, honest yeoman. To thatam I bound."
The four skin-dealers next the door alighted and went in, leavingtheir horses with the other two, who went and put them up in a goodlarge stable with plenty of stalls. Peter ran back to the house inperfect agony, speaking to himself all the way. "They are verymisleared chaps thae. They maun surely either be Low Dutch, or elsesutors o' Selkirk, that they are sae mad about skins. I little wat howI am to get rid o' them."
The two lasses appeared armed cap-a-pee like two young men; and thoughBess was Will Laidlaw's own sweetheart, he did not recognize herthrough the disguise, neither did she once suspect him. The two made alittle swaggering about the _pelt-dealers_ as they called thementering the pantry, but not choosing to measure arms with them, theweak suffered the strong to pass; and Will having his cue, soondiscovered the huge barrels of beef below the ground, with empty onesabove them. Old Peter shed tears of vexation when he saw this huge andhighly-valued store was all discovered, but had not a word to say forhimself, save now and then "A' fairly come by, and hardly won; andthere is nae right nor law that says honest men should be eaten up wi'sorners. May ane speir where ye come frae, or by wha's right ye dothis!"
"Why man dost thou no hear and dost thou no see that we're coome joostfrom Nworthoomberland!"
"Aha!" thought Peter to himself; "English thieves after a! I had somehopes that I could distinguish Scots tongues in their heads. But a'sgane, a's gane!"
"Now auld yeoman, if thou hast a word of trooth in thee, tell us wherethe hides are, and we will pay thee for them."
"No ae hide about the town. No ane, either little or muckle."
"Why soore am I them coos doodnae coome to thee withoot heydes, didthey? That I can answer for, they had a' heydes and bonns baith whenthey came from hwome."
"Waur than ever! Waur than ever!" exclaimed Pate Chisholm to himselfas he sought another apartment: "The very men that the kye were reavedfrae come to take revenge! Callant, come here and speak wi' me. Hasteto a neighbour's house, and raise the fray. We shall never be a'quietly put down wi' half a dozen."
"Dearest father," said May, "I dinna think the men mean ony ill, ifye wad be b
ut civil."
"Civil or no civil, wench, it is as good to have half a dozen armedmen lying concealed near us," said Peter: "An we dinna need them, thebetter. Rin your ways, and gar raise a' the auld men and the younglads in the two neist towns, for there is nae ither left. Pith's goodin a' play."
The maid did as she was ordered, and Peter, seeing that no betterwould be, tried to compel himself to a sort of civility, which,however, sat on him with a very bad grace. But, hides! hides!--nothingbut hides was the burden of their enquiries; while Peter durst not forhis life produce the hides, deeming that every man would know thehides of his own kine, and wreak tenfold vengeance on himself andhousehold. He knew not, he said, what his son Dan, who took care ofall these matters, had made of them,--sold them he supposed to thecurriers and sutors of Selkirk,--and more than this Pate would notacknowledge. There was no other thing for it, nor perhaps did Laidlawwant any thing else, than for him and his companions to walk up theburn and make a seizure of the whole of Peter's excellent hides, withwhich they returned loaden to his dwelling. His confusion and distressof mind were most appalling when Laidlaw spread them all out beforehim, and asked in a very particular manner to be informed where he hadgot them. O! Peter knew nothing about them. They were not his at all.He did not know to whom they belonged. But he would not stand tospeak, turning his back always on the men, and hasting away, coughingand speaking to himself. He could have seen these presumptuousskin-men roasted on a brander, for they had now put him out of allpatience, and all hope!
"Pray thee now, mine good friend, inform me this," said Laidlaw;"Did'st thou nwot get this seame fleckered one, and this brwoad onehere, on the third of the last mwonth; and here's wother three, did'stthou nwo get them on the twentieth of the seame mwonth? Now tell methis I say? Why where is thou gwoing groombling inte theesel? Turnabout thee feace to the heydes, and answer to the pwoint."
"Aff hands is fair play," said old Pate: "I winna be forced wi' onyunmannerly English lown that ever I saw atween the een;" and with thathe heaved his staff and struck Laidlaw across the shoulders, and overthe steel bonnet repeatedly, who was like to burst with repressedlaughter, but still persisted in his queries.
"What ails the owld catwiddied carle," said he, "that he winno answera ceevil question? I's jwost wanting to tauk to thee aboot boosiness,and thou flees out in a reage and breaks me head. Come tourn again,and tell me when and where thou got'st this one, see, this wheyte onehere! What's 't moombling at? Wolt thou tell me the price of them,then?"
"I want to hae naething to do wi' you, and as little to say to you;therefore, gang about your business, and dinna plague a poor auldunfeiroch man. The gate is afore ye, and your company's wantedelsewhere."
Will would take none of those hints; he followed his uncourteous hostabout and about, till at last he fairly holded him beyond the fire;and then he took his seat over against him and conversed on, while hiscompanions dropped in one by one and joined in it. For a while theygot it all to themselves, but at length Pate, not being able to makebetter of it, suffered himself to be drawn in by degrees to join them,still preserving the same strain of disingeniousness. They asked whothe two handsome striplings were that attended him, and spread theboard with provisions? He answered that they were two sons of his own."Sons of thine?" said Laidlaw, "Whoy, what are their neames?" "Simonand John," answered he; "or rather Sim and Jock, for that's how we ca'them."
"Whoy, mon, that is the queerest thing I ever heard," said Laidlaw:"Then thou hast two swons of the neame of Jock, and other two of theneame of Sim, for I saw two of that neame, strapping youths, in theWarden's camp."
Peter wist not well what answer to make; and, therefore, only added,"Ay, Ay! Were you in the Warden's camp? Then tell me, is their onyword frae my son Dan?"
"Ay man, I can tell thee sic news of Dan as thou never heard'st; hehas sitten at his supper hand and neive wi' the deil." At these wordsone of the young men behind them (May Chisholm to wit,) uttered asuppressed scream, and from that moment Will Laidlaw smelled a rat,and soon discovered his own beloved Bess Chisholm standing gazing athim as he related the wonderful story of her brother's adventures withthe devil, the warlock, and the three evil spirits; of his racewith those infernals along the marble pavement of the air; histransformation into a horned beast; and of his eating and drinkingwith the prince of darkness. But the two striplings were most of allshocked at hearing of the devil's burning stomach, and how the wine_fizzed_ as it went down.
After listening and wondering while all these things were in relation,Bess said to the skin-dealer next to her, who chanced to be Sandy Pot,"Pray, Sir, when you were in the camp of Sir Ringan Redhough, did younote a brave trooper, a friend of ours, named Laidlaw?"
"Oh, yes, that I did," said Sandy: "I know him well." This was aglorious joke for Pot, and his comrades were afraid he would perseverein it till he put their secret out altogether.
"How is he reported in the army?" said she: "Is it still alleged thathe is the bravest and most successful battler in the baron's array?"
"_Bottler_, I suppose you mean," said Sandy, "for as to his battling,God mend that. He is not noted for ought that I ever heard of, exceptfor keeping a flunkey, or a wall-i'-the-chamber, as the Frenchmen ca'it; and it is reported thro' all the army, that that _wally_ o' his isan English girl. I can tell you that your neighbour, Will Laidlaw, isnotorious for nothing else beside this."
"It is false as thyself, and thy perjured ungenerous nation," said thedisguised maiden. "I know my friend to be honour's self, and of ahouse whose courage and integrity were never called in question. Theman that dares to slander him had better do it somewhere else than inmy presence, and under my father's roof. But I degraded him myself, byputting his name into the mouth of such a mean forager as thou art!The man whose actions are base, always accuses the brave and generousof deeds such as his own."
"Bless me, what ails the chiel?" said Sandy, laughing goodhumouredly:--"What's the great ill o' keeping _a wally_? I aincekeepit ane mysel, there's nae doubt o't, till my uncle, Gideon Scott,set up his birse, and gart me part wi' the creature."
The rest laughed at Sandy being put out of countenance by theindignant stripling; but Bessy Chisholm turned on her heel, and walkedout at the door, muttering expressions about vulgarity, raw hides, andmaggots; and Will Laidlaw, not able to contain himself, rose andwalked out after her, in a visible state of mental agitation. As heapproached the stable door quietly, into which she had turned, heheard her saying to herself. "Laidlaw keep an English mistress indisguise! No, the fellow is a poltroon, and a liar, and I will notbelieve it." Will entering at that moment, seized her hand betweenboth his, and kissed it, saying, in a passionate style, "My own dearand high-spirited Bess Chisholm still!"
Never was there seen such a statue of amazement! The tones of thevoice, now uttered in its natural key, were familiar to her. But thefigure that uttered them! To be addressed in that style by a greatburly thief of an English skin-buyer, outwent all comprehension. Shewas in a man's dress, be it remembered,--and there she stood, with herface half raised, her ruddy lips wide apart, and her set eyes oflucent blue showing a mixture of astonishment and disdain. "What?what? Sir," was all that she could say, until the ragamuffin figurereminded her of the weaponshaw at Mountcomyn, and some love-tokens andvows, of which none knew save one. But, with a woman's naturalcaprice, she now was angry at him in turn having discovered her truesentiments, and refused to acknowledge him as her lover in thathateful disguise, unless the meaning of it was explained to her. Hetold her, that the meaning of it was unknown to himself; that he tookit at his captain's command; but that his fortune depended on thesecret being kept.
"There you are safe, at all events," said she; "and it is well youhave disclosed yourself in time, for my father has raised the country,and it is not improbable that, before to-morrow, you should have beenall dead men."
"I think we have been in greater jeopardies," said he: "But in themean time keep up your disguise, that my comrades may not discoveryour sex;--and
we two must have some private discourse during thenight, for I have much to say to you."
"Not I, master, I winna court ae word wi' a man in the dress of avulgar English boor; for it is sae hatefu' to me, I can like noughtthat's within it. Ah me! I wot ill how it is; but I think I hardlydetest it sae sair already."
"My bonny, haughty, pawkie, sweet Elizabeth!" cried Laidlaw.--ButIsaac the curate says, that, being himself a married man, he couldnot go on with all the overcharged outrageous stuff that passedbetween these two fond lovers; so he passes it over, as well as theconversation at their evening meal, which Bess took care to make aplentiful and savoury one; and in the mean time, she was in such highspirits herself, that the troopers, who did not know her, took theyoung man for the most swaggering puppy they had ever seen. Shechallenged Sandy Pot to fight her with single rapier, knowing wellthat Laidlaw would find some means of preventing it; but it wasevident that old Peter thought her entirely out of her senses, for hetried to get her away from about the house to the residence of one ofthe neighbouring gentlemen yeomen for the night, but the experimentwas vain.
When he saw such a goodly supper, or dinner, (for they were both inone,) set down to these uncouth, and, to him, unwelcome guests, hecould not contain his chagrin, and at first refused to turn out tothe board, or partake with the rest. But when he saw that the goodfare would all go, he grew as restless as if he had been sitting onpins, till Bess, who knew his way, took him by the arm, and pretendedto force him jocularly out to the table. But Peter was not ill toforce; for in place of receding, he made all the haste into the headof the board that he could, though at the same time always repeating,"I tell ye, callant, it is downright wastery." He, however, plied asgood a knife and as good a horn-spoon as any of them all.
While they were yet busily engaged at their meal, the tramp of horseswas heard approaching the door in a cautious and uncertain manner, andby a circuitous way. The two disguised maids, (whom, by-the-by, weshould distinguish by the names of Sim and Jock, as they sustainedthese that night,) were standing eating at the hall-dresser, behindthe backs of the troopers; and when the trampling was first heard,Jock grew as pale as death, but Sim, who knew what guests werewithin, which the other did not know, shewed a courage so undaunted,that it appeared wonderful to all present, save one, but to Jock inparticular: "O ho! The nearer night the mae beggars," cried Sim. "Whohave we next?"
"That beats ought I ever heard in my life!" exclaimed Pate: "I thinkthe fock be gane distractedly mad! What brings them a' here? Is thereno another ha' house and pantry in the hale country but mine? It ishard to be eaten out o' house and hald wi' sorners and stravaegersthis gate. May Liberton's luck befa' the hale o' them. Callant Jock,set by that meat out o' sight." "Stop for a wee bit, an ye like,goodman," said Bauldy Armstrong: "It is best aye to do ae thing aforeanother."
By this time the dialogue had commenced in the court; Simmy wentbriskly to the door by himself, and demanded of the strangers who theywere, and what they wanted? They answered, with hesitation, that theysupposed they had lost their way, and requested to know who held thehouse, and how it was called? "The house is held by my father, a leelScottish yeoman," said the youth; "and already full of strangers tothe door, as well as every stall of his stable with their horses. Passon your way, and peace be with you." "Did not I tell you we had _lost_our way," said the first speaker, riding up to the door. "Pray, whoare the strangers within? We have lost a party of our friends."
"The men are from the south, master: free-traders, they may be called.Men of horns, hides, and hair, Sir. You, I suppose, are of the sameprofession?" "Precisely of the same," said the stranger, alightingfrom his horse, and entering the house.
He was followed by other two, for there were but four in all, and thefourth was a a boy whom they left holding their horses. When they camein upon Peter and his jolly hide-merchants, they were visiblydisappointed, and viewed the grotesque-looking group with markedcuriosity. These were not the men they expected to have found, thatwas evident; but perceiving their English habits, they ventured toaddress them. They were answered in blunt cutting terms; for ourtroopers knew, although the disguise prevented their being knownagain. Having learned the name of the house and its owner, they beganforthwith to inquire if any thing of a young nobleman had been seen atthat place, with such and such attendants; for they had traced them tothat very house, they said, and if the possessors could give noaccount of them they would be held as responsible. Old Peter said,there were so many people came to that house, that it was impossiblehe could tell a tale of one of them distinct from another; but theintrepid Sim, knowing his back friends, told him the whole story in afew words, and then asked them in turn what they had to say concerningit.
"Whoy, I has joost to say this, young chap, that I am to boond theeand all the faymilie, and carry you all to answer before a meeting ofthe wardens."
"Ay, and it is prwoper reyght and prwoper reason too, that theyshould, friend," said Laidlaw, pretending to take his part, to seewhat he would say. Will knew the three men to be three notoriousEnglish thieves, of the set of the Halls and Reids, and that theycould not, in fact, be sent in search of the Lady Jane Howard; but hecould not divine their motive for coming there, or making the inquiry;therefore he took the Northumberland tongue as well as he could, andencouraged them in conversation till a late hour. Yet he could learnnothing; only he was sure they were come about no good end. As for oldPeter, when he saw two parties of Englishmen come upon him, and heardthat they laid their heads together, he gave himself and all that hehad up for lost; and hoping to conciliate their favour in somemeasure, he actually intreated these last comers to sit down and shareof the remnants of their supper, which they did in a right liberalmanner, while Peter went out and in to learn the news. He found bythis time nine men, well armed, assembled in the barn, that hadgathered from the neighbouring houses, whose inhabitants were allbound to rise and assist one another on any emergency. These weremostly old men or very young ones, the flower of the Border districtsbeing all in the Warden's camp. Will likewise informed his sweetheartprivately of his suspicions; and perceiving that the strangers wereextremely well mounted, and heavily armed, he desired her, ifpossible, to find means of concealing their horses. This the supposedSim soon effected. The boy still held them at forage by the side ofthe old castle-wall; and he being brought in, and set down to supper,some of those in the barn were warned to take the horses quietly tothe concealed house up in the hollow burn. They were soon securedthere; and the thieves perceiving that no one left the house, neverhad the smallest suspicion of any trick, the boy being fast asleepbehind the board. At length all of them grew drowsy, andbegan tocompose themselves to rest as they best could, save two fond lovers,that were whispering their vows and their secrets to each other in thelittle chamber mentioned in a former part of this history.
About midnight, when all was quiet, these two heard the cry of_Welhee!_ _Welhee!_ from a neighbouring mountain, which in a shorttime was returned from two different places in the valley.
"Now, I will lay my neck in wad," whispered Will to his sweetheart,"that there is a thief-raid to-night; and that these three have eithercome here to watch you, or to cut your throats in case of resistance;or perhaps they may have indeed lost their party in the mist. But thisI ken, neither a Reid nor a Hall ever came thus far into Scotland forgood. If the fray rise, take you the command, and fear nothing. Myfriends and I will defend you, and clear your way."
"But what shall we do, dear Laidlaw, with these three moss-troopersand the boy?"
"We must either slay or bind them the first thing we do, or perhapsleave them to waddle to the hills in their armour on foot the best waythey can."
The maiden's heart trembled at the thoughts of what lay before her; asfor old Pate, he kept going out and in like a restless spirit; and ifhe had not lost his daughter, and knew not where she was, he proposedto have fastened doors and windows, and burnt all the nine Englishmenwhere they lay, for he had no faith in any of them, and weened themall com
e for the purpose of ruining him. As he was going aboutpreparing matters for this laudable purpose, one of the shepherd ladscame with the fray, and related a dismal tale. He said, that he andhis companions had driven out all the sheep and cattle to the heightsamong the mist, as they had been commanded; that in the course of theevening they heard many calls and whistles around them; and just asthe moon rose, a band of English thieves came round them, and drovethem all off towards Bilhope-head. Peter's assembled friends advisedhim to take the skin-men's fifteen horses, and what remained at homeof his own, and ride off and try to recover the prey, without alarminghis dangerous guests; but Peter was bent on fastening the doors, andburning them skin and bone, for, he said, they would never get soeasily quit of them. The two anxious lovers hearing a bustle without,opened the casement, and overheard a part of these perplexed words andreasonings. Then hastening out to join counsel, they raised the frayopenly. The heroic Sim flew to horse, and desired all that werefriends to the Scots to follow, while Laidlaw addressed his compeers,saying, "Up, lads, and let us ride; our host must not be herried whilewe are under his roof."
"No, no!" exclaimed the thieves, all in a breath; "he must not beherried and we under his roof;" and no one appeared in half such hurryas they were to mount and be gone.
"Stop short, my good fellows, till I speak with you for a minute,"said Laidlaw: "Make me sure which side you will take before you go,else one foot you stir not from that fire-side. I know you for AnthonyReid of Whickhope, and those for two of your cousins of Tersithead,and shrewdly suspect you to be at the head of the foray."
Anthony drew his sword: so did Laidlaw. But the English troopers werebold and desperate fellows; and before Laidlaw's friends could gatherround him to his assistance, the three having covered themselves withtheir bucklers, forced their way out, back to back, and ran Sandy Potthrough the left shoulder, who pressed on them too rashly. When theymissed their horses, and saw that they were clean gone, they foamedlike as many furies, and, setting their backs to the wall, sworethey would fight it out. The combat might have been attended withmuch bloodshed, had not all the people rushed from the barn, andoverpowered them. They were then taken into the house and bound, whilePot and May Chisholm, alias Jock, were left as guards on them, withorders to kill the first that should offer to loose either himself orany of his companions. This whole scene was quite beyond PeterChisholm's capacity. He could in nowise conceive how the one party ofEnglishmen assisted with such energy in detecting and binding theothers. Still he was any thing but satisfied; the matter havingoutgone his comprehension, as well as that of all his associates, saveone.
They now mounted without delay, and rode with all manner of speedtoward the Pass of the Hermitage, by which path they supposed thedroves must necessarily proceed; and just as they went down theRedcleuch, leading their horses, they saw the cattle passing at thefoot of it. The party amounted scarcely to their own number; but thesheep-drivers were not come in view; so they mounted their horses, andinstantly mixed with the men behind the drove, without offering tostop the cattle. At the same time they placed a guard of two fartherbehind, to prevent all intelligence from passing between the twoparties. When this was effected, Simmy challenged the cattle as hisfather's, and desired the drivers to give them up; but to this thecaptain of the gang, whose name was Gabriel Reid, the younger brotherof Anthony, and captain in his absence, only mocked, imitating thesharp treble notes of the petulant younker, and telling him that hewould not give them up for three score such men as _he_ was, else hewas better than he looked. As he said this, however, he kept a curiouseye on the rough exterior of the tall athletic English peasants bywhom the youth was surrounded, which Laidlaw perceiving, accosted himin his feigned tone.
"Whoy, friend, we are countrymen of thee own, and know thee full weel.Thou's Gabriel Reid of Trochend. But thee billy Anty is taken prisonerthis seame mworning, and if thou disna gie up the kie, his head willbe chappit off, as weel as these of thee twa coosins the Ha's. Saethou hast ney choice left but to yield up thee ill gotten gain."
"And what dog art thou, that takest part against thee own countrymen?"said Reid.
"Oo, I's a dealer in the leather line, as weel as all my friendsthere. We have our free passages and warranty for the good of bothcountries; but we are honest men, and by chance were lodged in thehouse of the owner of these coos, and must see joostice doone to him.I boond thee brwother with mee own hands."
"Then the devil bind thee, thou traitor knave! and for thee reward,this to thy harnpan!" said Gabriel, drawing out his sword, andattacking Laidlaw without more ado. Will, who was never backward at abrulzie, received the encounter without flinching, and, calling forfair play and elbow-room, both proceeded to decide the day by singlecombat, while the rest drew aloof and looked on, encouraging them onlywith cheers and applausive words. Laidlaw was mounted on AnthonyReid's gallant steed, which Gabriel remarked, and that added to hisrancour against the skin-man at least ten degrees. The ground wasexceedingly bad, so that they could not wheel for weapon-space withouta parley; but neither would ask it. They fought close together, firstwith their sword-blades, and afterwards, as their horses came incontact, they dashed each other with their hilts. Both were slightlywounded, but Laidlaw rather had the worst of it. "Beshrew thine heart,if thou hast been a skin-merchant all thy life," said Gabriel, as heturned his horse in the path for another encounter. They had nowchanged sides, and this encounter was longer and more inveterate thanthe first. Laidlaw not being quite master of his mighty and furioussteed, was twice in imminent danger, losing his broad slouched hat inthe struggle, the crown of which was cross-barred with steel.
Poor Sim had changed colours ten times since the combat began; and, onseeing this last struggle, he lost all command of himself, and rushedwith his sword drawn to Laidlaw's rescue. _Himself_, did I say? alas,no one knew the true sex, save her lover, and no one interfered tillshe was met by an English trooper half-way, who unhorsed and woundedher with as much ease, of course, as she had been a child. Will's eyecaught the first glance of her, as she was falling, and galloping upto the rescue, bare-headed as he was, he clove the trooper's burgonet,and slew him at the first stroke. Reid followed him up; but Laidlaw'sspirit, now fully proportioned to the high mettle of his steed, was amatch for any thing. He rode against his antagonist with all his fury,and having the advantage of the brae, overthrew horse and man, andgalloped over them. Then throwing himself from his horse, and seizingthe forlorn warrior by the throat, called out with a voice offury,--"Rescue or no rescue?" "No rescue! Redsdale to the fray!" wasthe resolute and fatal reply. Will could not stand to reason any moreat that time, so, without more ado, he ran him through the body, andflew to the rescue of his beloved and heroic Elizabeth, for there thecombat began to thicken. She was on her feet ere he arrived, and wellguarded, and, mounting her palfrey, she bade her lover head the fray,and pay no regard to her, for she was nothing the worse. He, however,saw the blood upon her bassonet, and was roused to perfect fury. Thebattle now became general; but it was no regular engagement, beingscattered here and there through all the drove--some fought before thecattle, some behind them, and some in the middle. It was reported,that at one time there were fifteen single combats all going on atthe same instant. Therefore, to have been an engagement on a smallscale, it proved a very bloody one, many being slain and wounded onboth sides. But the tremendous skin-merchants bore down all beforethem wherever they went. These were inured to battle, while thethieving moss-troopers, as well as the hinds on the Scottish side,were only used to desultory warfare. The bare-headed leather-merchant,in particular, was a dismal sight to the forayers, for having soon ridhimself of his first antagonists, he continued galloping about thefield wherever he saw two engaged, and cut down all of the adverseparty as he went, or rode them down, giving, with every stroke, a hardgrin and a grunt. The men thought the devil was come among them, orelse that he had fairly taken possession of a skin-merchant; and,giving up the contest, a few of them tried to escape by flight, whichthey did by quitt
ing their horses, and gaining some inaccessibleground. The drivers of the sheep likewise made their escape, for theyfound the droves deserted in the Hope. The weakest of the men havingbeen left behind with them, they had come in view of the field ofcombat, and, marking how it terminated, had sped them away out ofdanger.
Chisholm's party brought home five prisoners with them, twelve Englishhorses well caparisoned, and all the prey, save one ox that WillLaidlaw had ridden over and slain in the plenitude of his wrath. TheScots had no fewer than nine killed and grievously wounded out oftheir small party, of whom one of the latter was the brave and lovelyBess Chisholm, who was so faint, that Will was obliged to carry herall the way home on his horse before him, clasped to his bosom, he notfailing to kiss her pallid cheek many a time by the way, while all therest wondered at Laidlaw's great concern about the youth. When Petersaw his child borne into the house pale and wounded, he lost allrecollection of the secret of her sex, and cried out "O my poor Bess!my dear daughter! What had I ado making a man of thee! Thy blood ison thy old father's head. "Alas, for my beloved daughter!"
"Daughter!" exclaimed they all again and again, "Daughter!" re-echoedWill Laidlaw, as if he had not known well before. "Daughter?" criedthe skin-men: "Have we then been led to the field by a maid? Shame onour heads that suffered the overthrow! against the rules of chivalryas her attempt was! Alas, for the gallant and high spirited youngdame!"
They put her to bed, and dressed her wounds, and from all appearanceshad high hopes that she was more afraid and fatigued than hurt. Shesoon fell into a quiet slumber, in which they left her, and retired totake some refreshment, and talk over their morning's adventure. Itturned out as suggested, that their three prisoners were the threechief men of the gang, who had completely lost themselves and alltraces of their companions among the mist; and having heard a reportof the seizure formerly made at that place, they cunningly triedto pass themselves off as messengers sent in search of the losttravellers. If they had been with their own party, that would haveproved an overmatch for the Chisholms. The Reids and Halls had beenherried of their whole live stock by the Warden's people, and learningthat the greater part of it was driven up into these mountains, theynaturally wanted to make some reprisals and recover their own again.Had it not been for their misfortune in separating, and the exertionsof the gallant hide-men, they would have effected their purpose withthe utmost ease. It proved a luckless raid for them, for they lost alltheir horses, the greater part of their men, and the chief, squireAnthony, and six of his friends, were sent prisoners to the castle ofMountcomyn.
The country people at Chisholm's board were loud in praise of theskin-men, and of their trusty and gallant behaviour; in particular,they averred that Laidlaw had killed the half of the thieves with hisown hand, for that he rode about the field like a resistless angel,destroying all before him. When Peter heard that he fought sovaliantly for the recovery of his stock, and regained his darlingdaughter's life, his heart warmed toward him, and he bid him ask anything of him he chose that was in his power to give, and he should notbe said nay. Will at once asked the maid whose life he had saved forhis wife. Peter hesitated, and said it was hard to bestow the flowerof all the Chisholms on an English skin-merchant, a man who seemed tohave neither house nor name, or was ashamed to own them. However, ashe had proved himself a warrior and a hero, Peter consented, providedthe maid grew better, and was herself satisfied with the match. Willsaid he asked her on no other terms, and went ben to see her beforehe departed. She was still sound asleep, or pretended to be so;therefore, unwilling to disturb her, he breathed a blessing over her,and impressed two or three warm affectionate kisses on her lips. As hecame away he felt a slight pressure of her arms around his neck.
When Sandy Pot learned that the lovely youth with whom he had watchedthe prisoners all the night and morning of the battle was a maid, andthe younger sister of his gallant friend Dan, Sandy's wound grew soill that he could not be removed, so he remained where he was, and theother four went off with their uncouth loading. They found DanChisholm at Hawick waiting for them in the utmost impatience, havingcollected no fewer than twenty horse-loads of hides, every one of themin size like a hay-stack; and away the motely train marched and joinedthe Warden on the night after his arrival before the walls ofRoxburgh.
