For Love of Country: A Story of Land and Sea in the Days of the Revolution
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CHAPTER XXXIII
_Two Proposals_
"Oh, you know, Miss Wilton, if the colonies--" began one of theofficers, vehemently.
"Pardon me, Mr. Hollins, that is hardly the correct term. The _late_colonies would be better," interrupted Katharine, with much spirit.
"Oh, well, you know, I am merely anticipating, of course; we 'll havethem back fast enough, after while. Now, if they--"
"Pardon me again, sir, but that is another contention I can hardlyadmit. You 'll never have them back,--never, never!"
"Oh, come, Miss Wilton," said another, "you surely do not think thecolonies--oh, well, the late colonies, if you will insist upon it--canmaintain a fight with the power of Great Britain, for any length oftime! Why, madam, the English spirit--"
"Well, sir, what else have we but the English spirit? What other bloodruns in our veins, pray? Just as you love and prize your liberty, sotoo do we, and we will not be dominated and ruled over, even by ourbrothers. No, no, Mr. Beauchamp, or you, either, Mr. Hollins; it is nouse. We are just as determined as you are; and there is but one way towin back the colonies, as you call them, to their allegiance."
"And how is that, pray?"
"Why, by depopulating them, overwhelming them, killing the people, andwasting the land. Only a war of extermination will serve your purpose."
"Well," said Hollins, doggedly, "if they must have it, they must--letit be extermination! The authority of the king and the power ofParliament must be upheld at all hazards."
"Ah, that is easy enough to say," replied Katharine, "but threemillions of English-speaking liberty-loving people are not to beblotted out by a wave of the hand; they are not so easily exterminated,as you will find. Besides, it is easy to speak in general terms; butthousands and thousands are young and helpless, or old andfeeble,--grandsires or women or children,--how about them? As long asthere is a woman left or a child, your task is yet unfulfilled. Make apersonal application of it; I am one of them. Do you wish toexterminate me, sir?" she said, looking up at him brilliantly, with herglorious brown eyes.
"Oh, you--you are different, of course," said the lieutenant,hesitatingly, not liking to face this intensely personal application ofhis intemperate remark.
"Not I! I am just like the rest--"
"Treason! I won't hear it," said Desborough, softly. "There are noothers like you on earth."
"Just like the rest," she continued emphatically, unheeding theinterruption, which the others had hardly caught, "and I will tell youthat never again will that flag at the gaff there be the flag ofAmerica. You have lost us for good."
"Oh, don't say that. Make a personal exception of yourself at least,Miss Wilton, and give us room to hope a little."
"No, no," she laughed. "You have lost us all--me included."
There was a chorus of expostulation and argument immediately, but MissWilton was not to be overborne.
"Father!" she called quickly to the colonel, who, followed by thecaptain, at once joined the little group of officers. "These gentlemenseem to doubt me when I say their sometime colonies are gone for good.Won't you help me to state the point so they will understand it?"
"Gentlemen," said the old colonel, slowly and impressively, "thecolonies were the most loyal and devoted portion of the king's dominionat one time. I have been up and down the length and breadth of them, Iknow the feeling. I was for years a soldier of the king myself,--withyour fathers, young sirs,--and I can bear witness that no part of thekingdom responded with such alacrity to every legitimate demand upon itby the home government. Never did men so readily and willingly offerthemselves and their goods for the service of the king. But it is allchanged now. The change came slowly, but it came inevitably andsurely, and you could no more change the present conditions than youcould turn back the sun in its course. England has lost her colonies--"
"Her late colonies," corrected Katharine, softly.
"Yes, yes, of course, her late colonies, that is, beyond possibility ofrecovery. We will not be taxed without representation."
"But suppose that we gave you the representation for which you asked,colonel. How then? Would not there be a general return to allegiancein that event?" queried the captain.
"Sir," replied the colonel, proudly, "the child who has once learned towalk alone does not afterward go back to creeping and crawling, orstumbling along by the aid of his mother's hand. We have tasted ourindependence, enjoyed it, and now we mean to keep it."
"Splendid, sir! splendid, father!" cried the delighted Katharine."There speaks the spirit of Runnymede, and Naseby, too, gentlemen!"
"Hush, hush, my child!" chided the colonel, half amusedly; "it is onlythe spirit of a plain man who has learned to love liberty by studyingthe history of his ancestry and his people."
"Ah, but, colonel, how are you going to get that liberty withoutfighting for it?" asked Beauchamp, with rash temerity. "Howe andCornwallis, for instance, have been pursuing Washington for six months,and could never get near enough to fire a shot at him, so they say."
"Fight, sir, fight!" exclaimed the colonel, in astonished wrath; "why,God bless me, sir, I am willing to stand out now and show you how theycan fight!"
But Miss Katharine sprang to her feet: "And Bunker Hill, Mr. Beauchamp,and Long Island!" she cried impetuously.
Beauchamp backed away precipitately from before her in great confusion,which invoked much mocking comment from the laughing officers roundabout him.
"Here is one time the English forces are routed by a rebel!" saidHollins.
"Yes," added Desborough, "but then Beauchamp is no worse off than therest of us would be, if Miss Wilton were opposed to us."
"Well," continued another, coming to the rescue, "we won both of thoseengagements, you know, Miss Wilton, after all."
"Won! Who said anything about winning, sir? Anybody can win, if theyhave men enough or strength enough and money enough--we were talkingabout fighting, sir."
"But really, you know," went on Beauchamp, recovering, and returning tothe charge, "Washington's army haven't fought since those days youspeak of, and they must be wiped out of existence by now, I shouldsuppose."
"Not if George Washington is still alive," interrupted the colonel, hisanger at the inconsiderate officer having somewhat abated. "I know himwell. I have known him from a boy,--met him first when I used to goshooting with Lord Fairfax out at Greenway Court. I knew his family;his brother Lawrence too, I was with him at Cartagena,--where I metyour father, Lord Desborough, by the way,--and the world does not yetknow the quality of that man. If he retreats, it is because heabsolutely has to; and you will see, he will turn and strike Howe andCornwallis some day such a blow as will make them reel. I should notwonder if he had done so already. 'T is six long weeks since we haveheard any news from home. Trust me, gentlemen, the Americans willfight; and if there is a God of justice, they will win too."
"I would fight myself, had I but the opportunity," said Katharine,resolutely. "And there are hundreds of other women with the samefeeling."
"Oh, Miss Wilton, you would find no enemies here to fight. We are allcaptives of your bow and spear now, and crave your mercy," saidDesborough, meaningly.
"True, Mistress Katharine. I hardly know now who commands this ship,you or I!" said the captain, smiling at her.
"Alas, you do, Captain Vincent; were I the commander, we would be goingthat way," she replied, pointing off over the quarter, and gazingwistfully over the cool, sparkling water, the white-capped wavesbreaking beautifully away in every direction. "Oh, my poor, poorcountry, when shall I see you again?" she murmured; "when--"
"Sail ho!" floated down from the foremast head at this moment, and theidle ship awoke again.
"Where away?"
"Right ahead, sir."
Holmes and Beauchamp walked forward to get a look at the stranger, andthe captain and the colonel stepped across to the weather side of thedeck. Chloe was sent below to procure a wrap for her mistress, andKatharin
e was left alone for a few moments with Desborough. It was hisfirst opportunity.
"Have you no curiosity as to the sail reported, Lieutenant Desborough?"
"No, Mistress Katharine, none whatever. I take no interest in anythingbut you. No, please don't go now," he went on in humble entreaty. "Iwish to speak to you a moment. When you came aboard I hoped to see youoften, to be with you alone--to win you--" His voice sank to apassionate whisper.
"My lord, my lord! it were best to go no further," she interruptedgravely. "'T is no use; you remember."
"Yes, yes, I remember everything,--everything about you, that is. Ishut my eyes and feel the soft touch of your cool hand on my feveredhead again, as when I had that bullet in my breast. Oh, it thrills me,maddens me! I 'd be wounded so again, could I but feel those handsonce more-- Listen to me, you must listen! It cannot hurt you to hearme, and I am sure one of the others will be back in a moment; you arenever alone," he said, detaining her almost forcibly. "I love you; youmust know that I do. What is that land, or any land, beside my love?You are my country! I can give you lands, title, rank, luxury-- Bepitiful to me, Mistress Katharine. What can I do or say or promise?You shall grace the court of the king, and be at the same time queen ofmy heart," he went on impetuously, his soul in his eager whisper. Sheturned and walked over to the lee rail, whither he followed her.
"I 'd rather be in that land off yonder than be the king himself. Ihate the king, and I could not love the enemy of my country! No, no,"she replied, "it cannot be--it can never be!"
"Pshaw! Your country,--that's not the reason; you love him still," hewent on jealously, "that sailor."
"Yes, 't is true; I love a sailor--you are not he."
"But he is dead! You left him lying there on the floor in the hall,you remember, and since then have heard nothing. He is surely dead."
"It is cruel of you to say it," she went on relentlessly, "but I shalllove his memory then. No, 't is useless--I respect you, admire you, amgrateful to you, but my heart is there!" and she pointed away again.
"Won't you let me try to win you?" he persisted. "Don't say me nayaltogether, give me some hope. If he be dead, let me have a chance.Oh, Katharine Wilton, I would give up anything for--"
A midshipman touched him on the arm. "Captain wants to see firstlieutenant, sir!" he said with a wooden, impassive face, saluting thewhile.
With a smothered expression of rage, Desborough sprang across thedeck,--for such a summons is not to be disregarded for an instant; evenlove gives way to the captain, on shipboard at least. The littlemidshipman was a great favorite with Katharine, and, grateful for theinterruption, she accordingly laid her hand lightly and affectionatelyon the shoulder of the Honorable Giles Montagu, aged thirteen, one ofthe youngest and smallest middies in the ship; but he stood verystraight and rigid, the personification of dignity, and endeavored tolook very manly indeed.
"Thank you, Mr. Montagu," she said, somewhat to his surprise.
"Don't mention it, nothing at all, madam--orders! Got to obey orders,you know."
Katharine laughed. "You dear sweet child!" she said, and suddenlystooped and kissed him. The Honorable Giles turned pale, then flushedviolently and burst into unmanly tears.
"Why, what is it? Don't you like to have me kiss you?" she said,amazed.
"It is n't that, Miss Wilton. I 'd rather kiss you than--thananything; but you call me a boy, and treat me like a child, and--and Ican't stand it. I--I 've challenged all the men in the steerage aboutyou already," alluding to the other little fellows of like rank; "theycall me a baby there, too, because I 'm so little and so young. But I'll grow. And--I love you," he went on abruptly and determinedly,choking down his sobs and swallowing his tears, while fingering thehandle of his dirk, and furtively rubbing his eyes with his other hand."Oh, madam, if you would only wait until I got a frigate! Won't you?But no! You don't treat me like a man," he exclaimed bitterly,stamping his foot and turning away.
"Well, I never!" cried the astonished and abashed Katharine, completelyoverawed for the moment by this novel declaration. "What next?"
Truly, they made men out of boys early in those days. The next momentthe hoarse cries of the boatswain and his mates, and the beating drums,called all hands to clear the ship for action and startled everybodyinto activity at once. The Honorable Giles, the manly if lachrymosemidshipman, sprang forward to his station as rapidly as his small butsturdy legs could carry him.