The Day of Wrath

by Mór Jókai

  CHAPTER XV.

  OIL UPON THE WATERS.

  The whole of the broad street was entirely covered with caps.

  It was impossible to see anything but caps. Here and there a scythe or apitchfork projected from the midst of the throng, but the larger portionof the mob was unarmed, unless slender canes, of which there were agreat number, be accounted weapons.

  Here and there in the midst of the surging crowd might be distinguishedsundry honest citizens still in plain clothes indeed, but carrying alongwith them bayonetted muskets, thereby inspiring the rabble with peculiarvalour, the common people always imagining in such cases that thenational guard with its bayonets is quite equal to the military.

  "Halt!" a voice rung out in front of the crowding mass.

  At the sound of that voice the hubbub for an instant grew still. The mobstopped short.

  "Load your muskets!"

  The soldiers, like a single, many-handed machine, instantly brought downtheir weapons to their sides with a clash, and the clatter of theloading-sticks in the barrels of the muskets was distinctly audible.Then there was another clatter, and every musket was instantly pointed.

  The rioters began to look at one another, and those in front envied theposition of those in the rear, who could freely use their lungs withoutthe slightest risk.

  And now the General rode along in front of the noisy mob and shouted tothem in a hard, stern voice:

  "What do you want? What is the matter with you? Why are you obstructingthe street?"

  The fellows kept elbowing each other forward, and, at last, one of themexclaimed:

  "Here is Master Matthias! Let Master Matthias speak!"

  "Bravo, Master Matthias!"

  And suddenly from the midst of the mob arose the form of a citizen in aleather apron, with a shako on his head, and a musket with a bayonetattached thereto in his hand. He was passed along over the heads of thecrowd, from shoulder to shoulder, and finally planted on his feet rightin front of the General. This was Master Matthias.

  Even if his hands, the knuckles whereof were unwashably embalmed withpitch, had not of themselves betrayed the fact, the awl hanging besidehis leather apron, and evidently left there by accident, would havedeclared that the individual in question belonged to that estimablesection of the community whose business in life it is to providehumanity with corns. His moustache was twisted with seven-and-seventyringlets, and he had the habit every time he opened his mouth ofviolently shaking his head and shrugging his shoulders by way of makinghis words the more emphatic.

  Master Matthias was a famous orator of the market-place, a toast-masterof the city guilds, a finished wedding-feast chairman, and a recognisedchampion swine-slayer, he was consequently renowned throughout the town.

  Nor was he the least afraid of the town, or the county either, or evenof the General himself, as he now intended to show him.

  So there he stood manfully in front of Vertessy, twirling his crookedmoustache from end to end, and banging his musket on the ground asviolently as if he meant to smash its butt end to pieces. Then hecleared his throat, and in a hoarsely strident voice gave expression tothe following sentiments:

  "My Lord General, whereas it has happened, so to speak, that our humanmasses in this comitavus[18] have attained to extraordinary dimensions,and inasmuch as the honourable imposteratus[19] has decided inconsequence thereof that this is not a right state of things at all, farfrom it, and right they are too, say I, for the members of the cityguilds have far too many qualifications; but, on the other hand, theyare quite wrong, inasmuch as our journeymen are in countlessly smallnumber therein, therefore we have resolved that as everyone is talkingabout it, so it must be, and not otherwise. For great is the desire ofthe enemy to make an impulse in this kingdom. Moreover, as for theavoidance and confirmation thereof, the plenipotentiaries havefurthermore resolved that the 'pothecaries are concocting a certainmiasma, by which decree we men are to be kept within salutaryboundaries. Such finally being the case, and the people havingcognisance thereof, the secular inhabitants of the neighbouringdistricts and sequestrations have arisen, and want to know what it isall about and wherefore. I myself am not able to say a word there anent,inasmuch as I wish not to apprehend it; but so much I can say forcertain, that one of my journeymen on his way to the fair had his feettwisted double with cramp, and I know what I know. If, therefore, myLord General so wishes it, and considers it seasonable that men for thecommon good of the kingdom should make a revolution, therefore we mosthumbly and respectfully petition for the same. And we are not foolseither."

  [Footnote 18: _I.e._, "Comitatus" county.]

  [Footnote 19: _I.e._, "Compossessoratus," a local committee of landedproprietors for assessing taxation, &c.]

  During this brilliant and particularly lucid harangue, the bolder massesof the mob had pushed right forward, and it seemed highly probable thatwithin the next few moments the arguments of the great popular oratorwould be emphasized by fist-law. Vertessy, on the other hand, quiteapart from general feelings of humanity and patriotism, had stillstronger reason for avoiding tumult and bloodshed. At that very momenthis sick wife lay at the threshold of death. A mere volley, a singlehour of street-fighting, might perhaps be the death of her.

  In this agonising situation a horseman was seen approaching from theopposite side of the road. Only with the utmost difficulty could heforce his way through the densely packed mob. Indeed, they would nothave stirred a stump had he not kept on waving in his hand a piece ofpaper, and shouting incessantly that this was a proclamation addressedto the people, and he wanted to speak with their leader.

  "Who is the worthy leader of these patriots?" he exclaimed.

  Vertessy recognised in the horseman that mysterious Pole whom thecondemned man could not recollect, and by this time he was a triflesuspicious of the fellow himself. After all, he began to think, theremight be some coherency in the words of the prisoner, though only anhour ago he had looked upon them as the mere ravings of a lunatic.

  "Where is the leader of the people?" cried Kamienszka, urging on thesweating horse towards the nearest open space.

  Master Matthias proudly pointed to the warm swelling bosom which laybeneath his leather apron, by way of indicating that he was the man.

  With an air of pathetic dignity Kamienszka handed to the worthy patriotthe proclamation of Numa Pompilius, in which that worthy confided tothe tailors, cobblers, and bakers of the city the honourable task ofmaking, stitching, and baking some thousands of boots, hose, and rollsfor headquarters to be delivered immediately.

  "What are you doing?" cried the General in French. "At the very firstmovement I shall scatter these men."

  "I am pouring oil upon the waters," replied the young horseman in thesame language. "Within an hour every man of them will go home."

  Master Matthias seized the document with both hands, pressed his musketbetwixt his knees, and read the proclamation attentively from beginningto end.

  The impression it made upon him could be imagined from the conduct ofhis moustache, which gradually lost its martial fierceness, and at lasthung meekly down.

  "Six thousand pairs of boots--whew!"

  Meantime, a skinny fellow-citizen, buttoned up to the chin, kept onstretching his scraggy neck a monstrous distance across the heads ofthree rows of other burghers standing in front of him, with his eyesglued all the time upon the distant document in Master Matthias' hands.This was Master Csihos, known by the token over his shop as a member ofthe honourable guild of tailors.

  "There it is!--read it for yourself!" cried Master Matthias.

  The long arm stretched all the way across three rows of fellow-citizensstanding in front of it, and a little group of tailors having put theirheads together around the master-tailor, he read out the proclamation ina loud voice.

  "Three thousand pairs of trousers!"

  The head of the guild of bakers had not heard all that had been said,but the words "bread" and "rolls" had tickled his ears uncomfortably.


  The fatal proclamation had in a few moments made the round of theassembly, gradually disappearing among the back rows of the mob. And,wherever it passed, it left behind it long faces and gaping, speechlessmouths; the tumult subsided into a low murmur and an uneasy whispering.Master Matthias, Master Csihos, and the chief of the Guild of Bakersheld counsel together cheek by jowl. Those in the rear began to edgeaway along the wall as if it was no concern of theirs.

  At last Master Matthias leaned his musket against the back of a friend,took off his cap, smoothed out his moustache, and approached the Generalwith a very dubious expression of countenance, at the same timeviolently scratching the back of his neck.

  "Your pardon, my Lord General!" cried he, "possibly your honour did notquite understand me. Although I never said that things were this orthat; neither did I mean the other thing, whether more or less.Nevertheless, and be this as it may, and without prejudice, I am wellaware, as also are all my friends, that it is not for us to sit injudgment on the county tribunals or on you, my Lord General--very much,the other way in fact; and if impudent disturbers of the public peaceare carrying on their games amongst us, such are to be regarded as thedregs of humanity, and we on the contrary see ourselves obliged to turnto the worshipful county magistrates and to your honour that ye maydeign to have these evil-minded rioters who approach our peaceful townswith firearms and pitchforks kept far away therefrom, whereunto we alsoand the trainbands of this town volunteer our services, giving it to beand understood that, at my Lord General's command, we shall be foundready to pour out our life-blood in defence of our country, our town,our county, and our prince. To the gallows say I, with all who demand ofus six thousand pairs of boots! Your poor humble servant!"

  Vertessy could not forbear from quietly smiling at this discreetcoat-turning rhetoric. With his drawn sword he motioned to his soldiersto lower their weapons, and return to the barracks, simply leaving theusual sentries at their posts.

  The noisy assembly then gave one long cheer for the General, and afterthreatening every sort of distant object with their sticks and clenchedfists, tumultously dispersed.

  Kamienszka, after the odd dispersal of the rioters, trotted alongsidethe General into the courtyard of the barracks, where they bothdismounted and hastened into the waiting room. Each of them hadsomething urgent to say to the other which could not be expressed inpublic.

  "Sir," the General hastened to say, he was determined to have the firstword--"whoever you are, you have rendered me a very important servicewhich I hope to be able to repay."

  "I come from the midst of danger, General," replied the heroic lady veryquickly, like one anxious to economize his moments and count his words;"a dangerous rebellion has broken out in the midst of the county, and bymere accident I have got the leading strings of it in my hands. For amoment, however, I ran the risk of being strung up myself. Thevisitation of this strange epidemic has afforded a band of desperatefanatics with the opportunity of accomplishing a long-cherished design.Here is the proclamation which in a few days will fly over the wholerealm."

  The General read through the document handed to him with the utmostastonishment.

  "Love of loot, revenge, popular stupidity, will be powerful allies insuch a frantic enterprise, which, if it but gain the upper hand, will,in a few weeks, change the whole appearance of the map of Europe. Atpresent the flame is but a tiny one. It has only burst forth in a fewvillages. To-night they are going to attack the Castle of Hetfalu. Thatwill be the beginning of it."

  The General's face quivered. So the words of the condemned man had beentrue!

  "There they will murder both master and servants. Murdered they must bein order that the participators in the outbreak may find retreatimpossible. This will be the beginning of a desperate struggle."

  The General rang a bell. He whispered a few words in the ear of theadjutant who answered the summons, and then sat down and began writingvery rapidly, at the same time beckoning to Kamienszka to go on.

  "General, at present the conflagration may be stamped out by a singleeffort. A bold hand, which does not shrink from a bad burn, may cover upthe mouth of the volcano if instant action be taken. But not a day, notan hour, not a moment, should be lost. The thing must be done at once.In a day, an hour, a moment, things might happen which could never bemade good again."

  A rattle of chains was audible at the door, two sentries were bringingin the prisoner, behind them came the provost-martial.

  The General, who never ceased writing, thus addressed him:

  "Young man! have those chains taken off your hands, ask my adjutant fora sword, and gird it on!"

  Young Hetfalusy opened his eyes wide with astonishment. He allowed themto take the chains off his hands, and gird a sword to his side, and didnot at once observe that a couple of yards away from him stood a strangeyouth, who found it very hard not to burst into tears, and fall upon hisneck at the sight of him, so miserable did he look.

  The General had at last finished his correspondence, and gave his wholeattention to young Hetfalusy.

  "Now listen patiently to all that I am going to say. Take these letters,choose the best horse from my stables, and hasten to the leaders of themilitary cordons one after the other. Each one of them will place at thedisposal of the captain accompanying you one half of his effectivestrength. As soon as you have gathered together half a battalion, hastenwith them to Hetfalu, as to the rest that will be provided for bywritten instructions. Your own heart will tell you what you ought to do.You are going to rescue and defend your family. There the hand of Godwill be over you. If it please Him to carry your sentence into executionHis will be done, if you return alive the past shall be forgotten."

  The youth did not know what to answer, his voice died away in histhroat. All he could do was to sink down in silence by the General'sside, press his hand to his lips, and shed tears.

  "Get up, get up, and be off! You have not to thank me for this. You mustthank God and this worthy gentleman who has dared so much for yoursake."

  Only then did the youth cast a glance upon Kamienszka, and it seemed tohim as if he dimly saw, conjured up before him, through the misty veilof his tears, the vision of a form from other days.

  The Polish lady hastened up to him, pressed his hand, and whispered inhis ear:

  "Not a word now! We shall have plenty of time presently."

  "Then you _do_ know each other?" said Vertessy. "What could the youth bedreaming of to deny his friend a little while ago?"

  And with that he gave the heroine's hand a vigorous grip, for he hadevery reason to still call her a man.

  "Sir," said he, "I fancy I am not making you a bad offer if I ask you tocome and have a hasty breakfast with me and your young friend, and thenchoose one of my horses and buckle on one of my swords. You are not theman I take you for if you do not feel inclined to follow your comradeand share his danger."

  Hetfalusy, with an expression of alarm, would have interrupted him; butthe girl thrust him aside, and her flashing eyes seemed to imposesilence upon him.

  "Thank you, General," she manfully replied. "I anticipated that offer,and I accept it. As for our breakfast we can have that in our saddles.We have no time to stay."

  "You are right," said Vertessy, squeezing the soft downy hand whosesteel-like muscles did not betray the woman, "you must hasten. This madrebellion must be overthrown as rapidly as it has arisen. Should themovement extend to other parts of the county you will not find meunprepared."

  Meanwhile the steeds were led out below the gate. The attendant captainrushed out, half dressed, bringing a sword with him for Kamienszka,which she hastily buckled on like a man.

  The General escorted them down to the horses, and the three cavaliersswung themselves into their saddles. Vertessy pressed once more theheroine's hand, and said to her with soldierly frankness:

  "Mr. Kamienszki, I have a great regard for you!"

  "Not Kamienszki but Kamienszka!" murmured the lady softly, and with thatshe spurred her horse and galloped
after her comrades.

  And now for the first time a light dawned in Vertessy's mind, and heunderstood it all.

  "A marvellous woman!" he muttered, gazing after her till the distancehid her from his eyes.

  The streets were quite quiet, nobody was about, the General's own heartwas afflicted by the stillness. A beneficent calm, so often the reactionfrom extreme excitement, came over him.

  And now he had time to hasten back to the peaceful house opposite.

  His heart beat so violently with joyful anticipation, the pulses of hishands and temples throbbed so tumultuously as he strode through thequiet rooms.

  In the ante-chamber he encountered the doctor, who advanced towards himwith a smile and stretched out his hand.

  "You have a joyful house now," said he.

  "What do you mean?" exclaimed Vertessy, stammering with delight; he knewvery well, all the time, what the doctor meant.

  "A wee, wee cherub has arrived," whispered the doctor--"and 'tis a boycherub too," he added with a still broader smile.

  The next moment Vertessy was kneeling down before his wife, and pressingher hands hundreds and hundreds of times to his burning lips.

  And the wife, with a sweet and blissful smile, looked down upon herhusband like one of those whom the prayers of their beloved have calledback from the world beyond the grave.

  "With God there is mercy!" was all that she could say.