by G. A. Henty
CHAPTER III.
John Thorndyke opened the shutters of the parlor window, and stepped outinto the garden alone, for the Rector was too unnerved and shattered togo out with him, but threw himself on the sofa, completely prostrated.Half an hour later the Squire re-entered the room. The morning was justbeginning to break. Mr. Bastow raised his head and looked sadly at him.
"I can see no way out of it, old friend. Were it not that he is incharge of the constable, I should have said that your only course wasto aid your son to escape; but Knapp is a shrewd fellow as well asan honest one. You cannot possibly get your son away without hisassistance, for he is handcuffed to the bed, and Knapp, in so serious amatter as this, would not, I am sure, lend himself to an escape. I haveno doubt that with my influence with the other magistrates, and, indeed,on the circumstances of the case, they will commit him on a minor chargeonly, as the passengers of the coach will, I hope, give evidence that itwas stopped by mounted men alone. I think, therefore, that he wouldonly be charged with consorting with and aiding the highwaymen after theevent, and of aiding them to conceal stolen goods--that is, if any arefound in his room.
"That much stolen property has been hidden there, there is little reasonto doubt, but it may have been removed shortly afterwards. It was, ofcourse, very convenient for them to have some place where they couldtake things at once, and then ride on quietly to London the next day,for, if arrested; nothing would be found upon them, and it would beimpossible to connect them with the robbery. Later on they might comeback again and get them from him. Of course, if nothing is found in hisroom, we get rid of the charge of receiving altogether, and there wouldbe nothing but harboring, aiding, and abetting--a much less seriousbusiness. Look here, old friend, I will strain a point. I will go outinto the garden again and walk about for an hour, and while I am out, ifyou should take advantage of my absence to creep up to your son's roomand to search it thoroughly, examining every board of the floor to seeif it is loose, and should you find anything concealed, to take it andhide it, of course I cannot help it. The things, if there are any, mightsecretly be packed up by you in a box and sent up to Bow Street, with aline inside, saying that they are proceeds of robbery, and that you hopethe owners will be traced and their property restored to them. Not, ofcourse, in your own hand, and without a signature. There might be somelittle trouble in managing it, but it could, no doubt, be done."
John Thorndyke went out into the garden without another word. The hourwas nearly up when Mr. Bastow came out; he looked ten years older thanhe had done on the previous day. He wrung his friend's hand.
"Thank God I have been up there," he said. "I do not think they willfind anything."
"Say nothing about it, Bastow; I don't want to know whether you foundanything. Now I am going to fetch two or three of the men from thevillage, to get them to aid the constable in keeping guard, and anotherto go up to the house at once and order a groom to saddle one of myhorses and bring it here."
As it was now past five o'clock, and the Squire found most of the mengetting up, he sent one off to the house with the message, and returnedwith two others to the Rectory. He told them briefly that two highwaymenhad been arrested during the night, and that as young Mr. Bastow was intheir company at the time, it had been necessary as a matter of form toarrest him also. He went upstairs with them.
"I have brought up two men to sit with you, Knapp, until the Reigateconstables come up. You can take those handcuffs off Mr. Bastow, butsee that he does not leave the room, and do you yourself sit in a chairagainst the door, and place one of these men at the window. How aboutothers?"
"The man you hit first, Squire, did not move until a quarter of an hourago; he has been muttering to himself since, but I don't think he issensible. The other one has been quiet enough, but there is no doubtthat his arm is broken."
"I am going to ride down to Reigate at once, and will bring back asurgeon with me."
"You will repent this night's business, Thorndyke!" Arthur Bastow saidthreateningly.
"I fancy that you will repent it more than I shall, Bastow; it is likelythat you will have plenty of time to do so."
It was not long before the groom with the horse arrived. John Thorndykerode at a gallop down to Reigate, and first called on the headconstable.
"Dawney," he said, as the man came down, partially dressed, at hissummons, "has anything taken place during the night?"
"Yes, Squire, the up coach was stopped a mile before it got here, andthe passengers robbed. It was due here at one, and did not come in tillhalf an hour later. Of course I was sent for. The guard was shot. Therewere two of the fellows. He let fly with his blunderbuss, but he doesnot seem to have hit either of them, and one rode up and shot him dead;then they robbed all the passengers. They got six gold watches, somerings, and, adding up the amounts taken from all the passengers, about ahundred and fifty pounds in money."
"Well, I fancy I have got your two highwaymen safe, _Dawney_."
"You have, sir?" the constable said in astonishment.
"Yes. I happened to be at the Rectory. Mr. Bastow had had a quarrel withhis son, and had forbidden him the house."
The constable shook his head. "I am afraid he is a very bad one, thatyoung chap."
"I am afraid he is, Dawney. However, his father was afraid that he mightcome in during the night and make a scene, so I said I would stop withhim, and I took our village constable with me. At two o'clock thismorning the young fellow came with two mounted men, who, I have nodoubt, were highwaymen. We had locked up down below. Bastow took aladder, and the three got in at a bedroom window on the first floor.Knapp and I were waiting for them there, and, taking them by surprise,succeeded in capturing them before the highwaymen could use theirpistols. The constable and two men are looking after them, but as onehas not got over a knock I gave him on the head, and the other has abroken arm, there is little fear of their making their escape. You hadbetter go up with two of your men, and take a light cart with you withsome straw in the bottom, and bring them all down here. I will rideround myself to Mr. Chetwynde, Sir Charles Harris, and Mr. Merchison,and we will sit at twelve o'clock. You can send round a constable withthe usual letters to the others, but those three will be quite enoughfor the preliminary examination."
"Well, Squire, that is good news indeed. We have had the coach held upso often within five miles of this place during the past three months,that we have been getting quite a bad name. And to think that youngBastow was in it! I have heard some queer stories about him, and fanciedbefore long I should have to put my hand upon his shoulder; but I didn'texpect this."
"There is not a shadow of proof that he had anything to do with therobbery, Dawney, but he will have difficulty in proving that he did notafterwards abet them. It is serious enough as it is, and I am terriblygrieved for his father's sake."
"Yes, sir; I have always heard him spoken of as a kind gentleman, andone who took a lot of trouble whenever anyone was sick. Well, sir, Iwill be off in twenty minutes. I will run round at once and send Dr.Hewett up to the Rectory, and a man shall start on horseback at seveno'clock with the summons to the other magistrates."
John Thorndyke rode round to his three fellow magistrates, who, livingnearest to the town, were most regular in their attendance at themeetings. They all listened in surprise to his narrative, and expressedgreat pleasure at hearing that the men who had been such a pest tothe neighborhood, and had caused them all personally a great deal oftrouble, had been captured. All had heard tales, too, to Arthur Bastow'sdisadvantage, and expressed great commiseration for his father. Theyagreed to meet at the court half an hour before business began, to talkthe matter over together.
"It is out of the question that we can release him on bail," thegentleman who was chairman of the bench said. "Quite so," John Thorndykeagreed. "In the first place, the matter is too serious; and in thenext, he certainly would not be able to find bail; and lastly, for hisfather's sake, it is unadvisable that he should be let out. At the sametime, it appears to
me that there is a broad distinction between hiscase and the others. I fear that there can be no question that he hadprior acquaintance with these men, and that he was cognizant of thewhole business; something I heard him say, and which, to my regret, Ishall have to repeat in court, almost proves that he was so. Still, letus hope none of the stolen property will be found upon him; whether theyhad intended to pass it over to his care or not is immaterial. If theyhad not done so, I doubt whether he could be charged with receivingstolen goods, and we might make the charge simply one of aiding thesetwo criminals, and of being so far an accessory after the crime.
"If we could soften it down still further I should, for his father'ssake, be glad; but as far as he himself is concerned, I would do nothingto lighten his punishment. He is about as bad a specimen of human natureas I ever came across. His father is in bodily fear of him. I saw theyoung fellow yesterday, and urged him to enlist, in order to breakhimself loose from the bad companionship he had fallen into. His replywas insolent and defiant in the highest degree, and it was then that inhis father's name I forbade him the house, and as his father was presenthe confirmed what I said, and told him that he would not have anythingmore to do with him. This affair may do him good, and save his neck froma noose. A few years at the hulks or a passage to Botany Bay will do himno harm; and, at any rate, his father will have rest and peace, which henever would have if he remained here."
A somewhat similar conversation took place at each house. John Thorndykebreakfasted at Sir Charles Harris', the last of the three upon whom hecalled, and then mounting rode back to Reigate.
"We have found the plunder on them," the head constable said, comingout of the lockup as he drew rein before it, "and, fortunately for youngBastow, nothing was found upon him."
"How are the two men?"
"The fellow you hit first is conscious now, sir, but very weak. Thedoctor says that if he hadn't had a thick hat on, your blow would havekilled him to a certainty. The other man's arm is set and bandaged, andhe is all right otherwise. We shall be able to have them both in courtat twelve o'clock."
The Squire rode up to his house. He was met at the door by his son, in astate of great excitement.
"Is it all true, father? The news has come from the village that youhave killed two men, and that they and Arthur Bastow have all been takenaway in a cart, guarded by constables."
"As usual, Mark, rumor has exaggerated matters. There are no dead men;one certainly got a crack on the head that rendered him insensible forsome time, and another's arm is broken."
"And are they highwaymen, father? They say that two horses were fastenedbehind the cart."
"That is what we are going to try, Mark. Until their guilt is proved, noone knows whether they are highwaymen or not."
"And why is Arthur Bastow taken, father?"
"Simply because he was in company with the others. Now, you need not askany more questions, but if you like to get your pony saddled and ridedown with me to Reigate at eleven o'clock, I will get you into thecourthouse, and then you will hear all about it."
At greater length the Squire went into the matter with Mrs. Cunningham,his lady housekeeper, and his ward's governess.
"It is a bad business, Mr. Thorndyke," she said, "and must be terriblefor poor Mr. Bastow."
"Yes, it is a bad business altogether, except that it will rid him ofthis young rascal. If I were in his place I should be ready to suffer agood deal to obtain such a riddance."
"I suppose that you won't sit upon the bench today?"
"No; at least I shall take no part in the deliberations. I shall, ofcourse, give evidence. The affair is not likely to last very long; mystory will take the longest to tell. Knapp's will be confirmatory ofmine, and the Reigate constable will depose to finding the watches,rings, and money upon them; then, of course, the case will be adjournedfor the attendance of the coachman and some of the passengers. I don'tsuppose they will be able to swear to their identity, for no doubtthey were masked. But that is immaterial; the discovery of the stolenproperty upon them will be sufficient to hang them. No doubt we shallhave some Bow Streets runners down from town tomorrow or next day, andthey will most likely be able to say who the fellows are."
"Will Mr. Bastow have to give evidence against his son?"
"Not before us, I think; but I imagine he will have to appear at thetrial."
"It will be terrible for him."
"Yes, terrible. I sincerely hope that they will not summon him, but I amafraid that there is very little doubt about it; they are sure to wantto know about his son's general conduct, though possibly the testimonyon that point of the constable at Reigate will be sufficient. My ownhope is that he will get a long sentence; at any rate, one long enoughto insure his not coming back during his father's lifetime. If you hadseen his manner when we were talking to him yesterday, you would believethat he is capable of anything. I have had a good many bad charactersbefore me during the year and a half that I have sat upon the bench, butI am bound to say that I never saw one who was to my eyes so thoroughlyevil as this young fellow. I don't think," he added with a smile, "thatI should feel quite comfortable myself if he were acquitted; it willbe a long time before I shall forget the expression of his face whenhe said to me this morning, 'You will repent this night's work,Thorndyke.'"
"You don't mean that you think he would do you any harm, Mr. Thorndyke?"
"Well, I should not care to meet him in a lonely place if he was armedand I was not. But you need not be nervous, Mrs. Cunningham, there isnot the smallest chance of his being out for years; and by that time hisblood will have had time to cool down, and he will have learnt, at anyrate, that crimes cannot be committed in this country with impunity."
"It is all very shocking," the lady said. "What will poor Mr. Bastow do?I should think that he would not like to remain as clergyman here, whereeveryone knows about it."
"That must be for him to decide," the Squire said; "but if he wishes toresign I certainly shall not press him to continue to hold the living.He is a very old friend of mine. My father presented the living to himwhen I was nine or ten years old, and I may say I saw him daily up tothe time when I went down into Sussex. If he resigns I should urge himto take up his residence here and to act as Mark's tutor; and he mightalso relieve you of some of Millicent's lessons. You have plenty to doin looking after the management of things in general. However, that isfor the future."
At eleven o'clock the Squire drove down to Reigate, taking Mark withhim, as it would save all trouble about putting up the horse and pony.On arriving he handed Mark over to the head constable, and asked him topass him into a seat in the courthouse, before the public were let in.
Reigate was in a state of unusual excitement. That the coach should havebeen stopped and robbed was too common an event to excite much interest,but that two highwaymen should have been captured, and, as was rumored,a young gentleman brought in on a charge of being in connection withthem, caused a thrill of excitement. Quite a small crowd was assembledbefore the courthouse, and the name of Squire Thorndyke passed frommouth to mouth.
"There is some talk of his being mixed up with it in some way or other,"one said. "I saw him myself ride in here, about half past five, andI wondered he was about so early. Some do say as he caught the twohighwaymen single handed; but that don't stand to reason. Besides,what could he have been doing out at such an hour as that? He is a goodlandlord, and they say that Crowswood has been quite a different placesince he came to be master. He is a tight hand as a magistrate, andcleared out half the village the first two or three months he was there;but he spent a mint of money on the place, and the people there say thatthey could not have a better master. Ah, here is Squire Chetwynd. He wassure to be here. There is Sir Charles' gig turning the corner. I expectmost of them will be on the bench; they don't get such a case as thisevery day."
"It may be there will be nothing for us to hear when the court opens,"another said. "I hear both the fellows have been shot or knocked aboutso bad that they cannot be b
rought up. Of course the court cannot sit ifthey aint before it."
"That is not so, Master Jones. I spoke to one of the constables half anhour ago--he lives next door to me--and he said that they would be wellenough to appear. Neither of them have been shot, though they have beenhurt pretty bad."
All this added to the desire of those around to get into the court, andthere was quite a rush when the doors were opened two minutes beforetwelve, and it was at once crammed, the constable having some difficultyin getting the doors shut, and in persuading those who could not get inthat there was not standing room for another person. There was a buzz oftalk in court until the door opened and six magistrates came in. It wasobserved that John Thorndyke did not seat himself with the others, butmoved his chair a little apart from them, thus confirming the reportthat he was in some way connected with the matter, and did not intend totake any part in the decision. Then another door opened, and the threeprisoners were brought in. The two first were pale and evidently weak;one had his head wrapped in bandages, the other had the right sleeve ofhis coat cut off, and his arm bandaged and supported by a sling. Bothmade a resolute effort to preserve a careless demeanor. The third, whowas some years younger than the others, looked round with a smile on hislips, bowed to the magistrates with an air of insolent bravado whenhe was placed in the dock, and then leaned easily in the corner, asif indifferent to the whole business. A chair was placed between hiscomrades for the use of the man whose head was bandaged. Many amongthose present knew Arthur Bastow by sight, and his name passed frommouth to mouth; but the usher called loudly for silence, and then themagistrates' clerk rose.
"William Smith and John Brown--at least, these are the names given--arecharged with stopping the South Coast coach last night, killing theguard, and robbing the passengers; and Arthur Bastow is charged withaiding and abetting the other two prisoners, and with guilty knowledgeof their crime."
It was noticed by those who could see the prisoners' faces that, inspite of Bastow's air of indifference, there was an expression ofanxiety on his face as the charge was read, and he undoubtedly feltrelief as that against himself was mentioned. The first witness was JohnKnapp, and the constable stepped into the witness box.
"What do you know of this business, Knapp?" the chairman asked. "Justtell it your own way."
"I am constable of Crowswood, your honor, and yesterday Squire Thorndykesaid to me--"
"No, you must not tell it like that, Knapp; you must not repeat whatanother person said to you. You can say that from information receivedyou did so and so."
"Yes, your honor. From information received I went to the Rev. Mr.Bastow's house, at a quarter to nine last night. At nine o'clock SquireThorndyke and the Parson came in together. They sent the servant up tobed, and then the Squire sent me round to examine the fastenings of thedoors. I found that one back door had been left unfastened, and lockedand bolted it. The Squire told me to lie down until one o'clock, and hewould watch, and Mr. Bastow went up to bed."
"Do you know of your own knowledge why these precautions were taken?"
"Only from what I was told, your honor. At one o'clock the Squire wokeme, and he lay down in the parlor, telling me to call him if I heardany movement outside. About two o'clock I heard two horses come into theParson's yard. I called Squire Thorndyke, who went upstairs to an openwindow; presently someone came and tried the back door. I heard voicesoutside, but could not hear what was said. The Squire came down andcalled me upstairs. I went up and took my place at one side of thewindow, and the Squire took his on the other. I had this cudgel in myhand, and the Squire his riding whip. A ladder was put up against thewindow, and then someone came up, lifted the sash up high and got in.There was light enough for me to see it was young Mr. Bastow. Then thetwo other prisoners came up. When the third had got into the room Mr.Bastow said, 'Follow me, and then you won't tumble over the furniture.'"
"How was it that they did not see you and Mr. Thorndyke?" the chairmanasked.
"We were standing well back, your honor. The moon was on the other sideof the house. There was light enough for us to see them as they got inat the window, but where we were standing it was quite dark, especiallyto chaps who had just come in from the moonlight. As they moved, theSquire hit the last of them a clout on the head with his hunting crop,and down he went, as if shot. The man next to him turned, but I did notsee what took place, for, as the Squire had ordered me, I made a rush atMr. Bastow and got my arms round him pretty tight, so as to prevent himusing his pistols, if he had any. He struggled hard, but without sayinga word, till I got my heel behind his and threw him on his back. I camedown on the top of him; then I got the pistols out of his belt and threwthem on the bed, slipped the handcuffs onto one wrist, lifted him up abit, and then shoved him up against the bedpost, and got the handcuffonto his other wrist, so that he could not shift away, having the postin between his arms.
"Then I went to see if the Squire wanted any help, but he didn't. Ifirst handcuffed the man whose head he had broken, and tied the legsof the other, and then kept guard over them till morning. When theconstables came up from town we searched the prisoners, and on twoof them found the watches, money, and rings. We found nothing on Mr.Bastow. I went with the head constable to Mr. Bastow's room and searchedit thoroughly, but found nothing whatever there."
The evidence created a great sensation in court. John Thorndyke hadfirst intended to ask Knapp not to make any mention of the fact thatArthur Bastow was carrying pistols unless the question was directly putto him. But the more he had thought over the matter, the more convincedwas he that the heavier the sentence the better it would be for theRector; and when he had heard from the latter that there was nothingleft in his son's room that could be brought against him, and that hecould not be charged with the capital crime of being a receiver, hethought it best to let matters take their course.
The head constable was the next witness. He deposed to the finding ofthe articles produced upon the two elder prisoners and the unsuccessfulsearch of the younger prisoner's room.
"You did not search the house further?" the chairman inquired.
"No, sir; I wanted to get the prisoners down here as fast as I could,seeing that two of them were seriously hurt."
The chairman nodded.
"You will, of course, make a careful search of the whole house,constable."
"Yes, sir; I left one of my men up there with instructions to allow noone to go upstairs until I returned."
"Quite right."
John Thorndyke was the next witness, and his evidence cleared up whathad hitherto been a mystery to the general body of the public, as tohow he and the constable happened to be in the house on watch when thehighwaymen arrived. The most important part of his evidence was therepetition of the words young Bastow had used as he mounted the ladder,as they showed that it was arranged between the prisoners that thestolen goods should be hidden in the house. The Squire was only askedone or two questions.
"I suppose, Mr. Thorndyke, that you had no idea whatever that theyounger prisoner would be accompanied by anyone else when he returnedhome?"
"Not the slightest," the Squire replied. "I was there simply to preventthis unfortunate lad from entering the house, when perhaps he might haveused violence towards his father. My intention was to seize him if hedid so, and to give him the choice of enlisting, as I had urged him todo, or of being brought before this bench for breaking into his father'shouse. I felt that anything was better than his continuing in the evilcourses on which he seemed bent."
"Thank you, Mr. Thorndyke. I must compliment you in the name of mybrother magistrates, and I may say of the public, for the manner inwhich you, at considerable risk to yourself, have effected the captureof the two elder prisoners."
After consulting with the others the head constable was recalled.
"Do you know anything about the character of the youngest prisoner?"
"Yes, sir. We have had our eye upon him for some time. He was broughtbefore your honors a week ago charged wi
th being drunk and disorderly inthis town, and was fined 5 pounds. He is constantly drinking with someof the worst characters in the place, and is strongly suspected ofhaving been concerned in the fray between the poachers and Sir CharlesHarris' gamekeepers. Two of the latter said that they recognized himamongst the poachers, but as they both declined to swear to him we didnot arrest him."
John Knapp was then recalled, and testified to Bastow's drinking habits,and that the landlord of the alehouse at Crowswood had been ordered bythe Squire not to draw any liquor for him in future on pain of havingthe renewal of his license refused.
"Have you any more witnesses to call?" the chairman asked the headconstable.
"Not at present, your honor. We have sent up to town, and on the nextoccasion the coachman will be called to testify to the shooting of theguard, and we hope to have some of the passengers there to identify thearticles stolen from them."
"It will be necessary that the Rev. Mr. Bastow should be here. He neednot be called to give evidence unless we think it to be of importance,but he had better be in attendance. The prisoners are remanded untilthis day week."
An hour later the three prisoners, handcuffed, were driven under anescort of three armed constables to Croydon Jail. When again brought upin court the passengers on the coach identified the articles taken fromthem; the coachman gave evidence of the stopping of the coach, and ofthe shooting of the guard. The head constable testified that he hadsearched the Rectory from top to bottom, and found nothing whatever ofa suspicious nature. None of the passengers were able to testify to thetwo elder prisoners as the men who had robbed them, as these had beenmasked, but the height and dress corresponded to those of the prisoners;and the two Bow Street runners then came forward, and gave evidencethat the two elder prisoners were well known to them. They had long beensuspected of being highwaymen, and had several times been arrested whenriding towards London on occasions when a coach had been stopped thenight before, but no stolen goods had ever been found upon them, and inno case had the passengers been able to swear to their identity. One wasknown among his associates as "Galloping Bill," the other as the"Downy One." At the conclusion of the evidence the three prisonerswere formally committed for trial, the magistrates having retired inconsultation for some time upon the question of whether the charge ofreceiving stolen goods ought to be made against Arthur Bastow.
"I think, gentlemen," the chairman said, after a good deal had beenurged on both sides of the question, "in this case we can afford to takea merciful view. In the first place, no stolen goods were discoveredupon him or in the house. There is strong presumptive evidence of hisintention, but intention is not a crime, and even were the evidencestronger than it is, I should be inclined to take a merciful view. Therecan be no doubt that the young fellow is thoroughly bad, and the bravadohe has exhibited throughout the hearing is at once unbecoming anddisgraceful; but we must remember that he is not yet eighteen, and that,in the second place, he is the son of a much respected clergyman, who isour neighbor. The matter is serious enough for him as it stands, and heis certain to have a very heavy sentence.
"Mr. Thorndyke, who takes no part in our deliberations, is most anxiousthat the prisoner's father should be spared the agony of his son beingplaced on trial on a capital charge, though I do not think that therewould be the smallest chance of his being executed, for the judges wouldbe certain to take his youth into consideration. Had there been primafacie evidence of concealment, we must have done our duty and sent himto trial on that charge; but as there is no such evidence, I think thatit will be in all respects better to send him on a charge on which theevidence is as clear as noonday. Moreover, I think that Mr. Thorndyke'swishes should have some weight with us, seeing that it is entirely dueto him that the important capture of these highwaymen, who have longbeen a scourge to this neighborhood, has been effected."
Mr. Bastow had not been called as a witness. John Thorndyke had broughthim down to Reigate in a closed carriage, and he had waited in thejustices' room while the examination went on; but the magistrates agreedthat the evidence given was amply sufficient for them to commit uponwithout given him the pain of appearing. John Thorndyke had taken him toanother room while the magistrates were consulting together, and when heheard the result drove him back again.
"I have fully made up my mind to resign my living, Thorndyke. I couldnot stand up and preach to the villagers of their duties when I myselfhave failed so signally in training my own son; nor visit their housesand presume to lecture them on their shortcomings when my son is aconvicted criminal."
"I quite see that, old friend," the Squire said. "And I had no doubt butthat you would decide on this course. I will try not to persuade you tochange your decision, for I feel that your power of usefulness is at anend as far as the village is concerned. May I ask what you propose todo? I can hardly suppose that your savings have been large."
"Two years ago I had some hundreds laid by, but they have dwindled awayto nothing; you can understand how. For a time it was given freely, thenreluctantly; then I declared I would give no more, but he took it allthe same--he knew well enough that I could never prosecute him forforgery."
"As bad as that, eh?" Thorndyke said sternly. "Well, we won't talkfurther of him now; what I propose is that you should take up your abodeat the Hall. I am not satisfied with the school where Mark has been forthe last two years, and I have been hesitating whether to get a privatetutor for him or to send him to one of the public schools. I know thatthat would be best, but I could not bring myself to do so. I have sometroubles of my own that but two or three people know of, and now, thateverything is going on smoothly on the estate and in the village, Ioften feel dull, and the boy's companionship does me much good; and ashe knows many lads of his own age in the neighborhood now, I think thathe would do just as well at home.
"He will be taking to shooting and hunting before long, and if he isto have a tutor, there is no one I should like to have better thanyourself. You know all the people, and we could talk comfortablytogether of an evening when the house is quiet. Altogether, it will bean excellent arrangement for me. You would have your own room, and if Ihave company you need not join us unless you like. The house would notseem like itself without you, for you have been associated with it aslong as I can remember. As to your going out into the world at the ageof sixty, it would be little short of madness. There--you need not giveme an answer now," he went on, seeing that the Rector was too brokendown to speak; "but I am sure that when you think it over you will cometo the same conclusion as I do, that it will be the best plan possiblefor us both."
