Chapter vi.
The trial of Partridge, the schoolmaster, for incontinency; theevidence of his wife; a short reflection on the wisdom of our law;with other grave matters, which those will like best who understandthem most.
It may be wondered that a story so well known, and which had furnishedso much matter of conversation, should never have been mentioned to MrAllworthy himself, who was perhaps the only person in that country whohad never heard of it.
To account in some measure for this to the reader, I think proper toinform him, that there was no one in the kingdom less interested inopposing that doctrine concerning the meaning of the word charity,which hath been seen in the preceding chapter, than our good man.Indeed, he was equally intitled to this virtue in either sense; for asno man was ever more sensible of the wants, or more ready to relievethe distresses of others, so none could be more tender of theircharacters, or slower to believe anything to their disadvantage.
Scandal, therefore, never found any access to his table; for as ithath been long since observed that you may know a man by hiscompanions, so I will venture to say, that, by attending to theconversation at a great man's table, you may satisfy yourself of hisreligion, his politics, his taste, and indeed of his entiredisposition: for though a few odd fellows will utter their ownsentiments in all places, yet much the greater part of mankind haveenough of the courtier to accommodate their conversation to the tasteand inclination of their superiors.
But to return to Mrs Wilkins, who, having executed her commission withgreat dispatch, though at fifteen miles distance, brought back such aconfirmation of the schoolmaster's guilt, that Mr Allworthy determinedto send for the criminal, and examine him _viva voce_. Mr Partridge,therefore, was summoned to attend, in order to his defence (if hecould make any) against this accusation.
At the time appointed, before Mr Allworthy himself, at Paradise-hall,came as well the said Partridge, with Anne, his wife, as Mrs Wilkinshis accuser.
And now Mr Allworthy being seated in the chair of justice, MrPartridge was brought before him. Having heard his accusation from themouth of Mrs Wilkins, he pleaded not guilty, making many vehementprotestations of his innocence.
Mrs Partridge was then examined, who, after a modest apology for beingobliged to speak the truth against her husband, related all thecircumstances with which the reader hath already been acquainted; andat last concluded with her husband's confession of his guilt.
Whether she had forgiven him or no, I will not venture to determine;but it is certain she was an unwilling witness in this cause; and itis probable from certain other reasons, would never have been broughtto depose as she did, had not Mrs Wilkins, with great art, fished allout of her at her own house, and had she not indeed made promises, inMr Allworthy's name, that the punishment of her husband should not besuch as might anywise affect his family.
Partridge still persisted in asserting his innocence, though headmitted he had made the above-mentioned confession; which he howeverendeavoured to account for, by protesting that he was forced into itby the continued importunity she used: who vowed, that, as she wassure of his guilt, she would never leave tormenting him till he hadowned it; and faithfully promised, that, in such case, she would nevermention it to him more. Hence, he said, he had been induced falsely toconfess himself guilty, though he was innocent; and that he believedhe should have confest a murder from the same motive.
Mrs Partridge could not bear this imputation with patience; and havingno other remedy in the present place but tears, she called forth aplentiful assistance from them, and then addressing herself to MrAllworthy, she said (or rather cried), "May it please your worship,there never was any poor woman so injured as I am by that base man;for this is not the only instance of his falsehood to me. No, may itplease your worship, he hath injured my bed many's the good time andoften. I could have put up with his drunkenness and neglect of hisbusiness, if he had not broke one of the sacred commandments. Besides,if it had been out of doors I had not mattered it so much; but with myown servant, in my own house, under my own roof, to defile my ownchaste bed, which to be sure he hath, with his beastly stinkingwhores. Yes, you villain, you have defiled my own bed, you have; andthen you have charged me with bullocking you into owning the truth. Itis very likely, an't please your worship, that I should bullock him? Ihave marks enow about my body to show of his cruelty to me. If you hadbeen a man, you villain, you would have scorned to injure a woman inthat manner. But you an't half a man, you know it. Nor have you beenhalf a husband to me. You need run after whores, you need, when I'msure--And since he provokes me, I am ready, an't please your worship,to take my bodily oath that I found them a-bed together. What, youhave forgot, I suppose, when you beat me into a fit, and made theblood run down my forehead, because I only civilly taxed you withadultery! but I can prove it by all my neighbours. You have almostbroke my heart, you have, you have."
Here Mr Allworthy interrupted, and begged her to be pacified,promising her that she should have justice; then turning to Partridge,who stood aghast, one half of his wits being hurried away by surprizeand the other half by fear, he said he was sorry to see there was sowicked a man in the world. He assured him that his prevaricating andlying backward and forward was a great aggravation of his guilt; forwhich the only atonement he could make was by confession andrepentance. He exhorted him, therefore, to begin by immediatelyconfessing the fact, and not to persist in denying what was so plainlyproved against him even by his own wife.
Here, reader, I beg your patience a moment, while I make a justcompliment to the great wisdom and sagacity of our law, which refusesto admit the evidence of a wife for or against her husband. This, saysa certain learned author, who, I believe, was never quoted before inany but a law-book, would be the means of creating an eternaldissension between them. It would, indeed, be the means of muchperjury, and of much whipping, fining, imprisoning, transporting, andhanging.
Partridge stood a while silent, till, being bid to speak, he said hehad already spoken the truth, and appealed to Heaven for hisinnocence, and lastly to the girl herself, whom he desired his worshipimmediately to send for; for he was ignorant, or at least pretended tobe so, that she had left that part of the country.
Mr Allworthy, whose natural love of justice, joined to his coolness oftemper, made him always a most patient magistrate in hearing all thewitnesses which an accused person could produce in his defence, agreedto defer his final determination of this matter till the arrival ofJenny, for whom he immediately dispatched a messenger; and then havingrecommended peace between Partridge and his wife (though he addressedhimself chiefly to the wrong person), he appointed them to attendagain the third day; for he had sent Jenny a whole day's journey fromhis own house.
At the appointed time the parties all assembled, when the messengerreturning brought word, that Jenny was not to be found; for that shehad left her habitation a few days before, in company with arecruiting officer.
Mr Allworthy then declared that the evidence of such a slut as sheappeared to be would have deserved no credit; but he said he could nothelp thinking that, had she been present, and would have declared thetruth, she must have confirmed what so many circumstances, togetherwith his own confession, and the declaration of his wife that she hadcaught her husband in the fact, did sufficiently prove. He thereforeonce more exhorted Partridge to confess; but he still avowing hisinnocence, Mr Allworthy declared himself satisfied of his guilt, andthat he was too bad a man to receive any encouragement from him. Hetherefore deprived him of his annuity, and recommended repentance tohim on account of another world, and industry to maintain himself andhis wife in this.
There were not, perhaps, many more unhappy persons than poorPartridge. He had lost the best part of his income by the evidence ofhis wife, and yet was daily upbraided by her for having, among otherthings, been the occasion of depriving her of that benefit; but suchwas his fortune, and he was obliged to submit to it.
Though I called him poor Partridge in the last paragraph, I would hav
ethe reader rather impute that epithet to the compassion in my temperthan conceive it to be any declaration of his innocence. Whether hewas innocent or not will perhaps appear hereafter; but if the historicmuse hath entrusted me with any secrets, I will by no means be guiltyof discovering them till she shall give me leave.
Here therefore the reader must suspend his curiosity. Certain it isthat, whatever was the truth of the case, there was evidence more thansufficient to convict him before Allworthy; indeed, much less wouldhave satisfied a bench of justices on an order of bastardy; and yet,notwithstanding the positiveness of Mrs Partridge, who would havetaken the sacrament upon the matter, there is a possibility that theschoolmaster was entirely innocent: for though it appeared clear oncomparing the time when Jenny departed from Little Baddington withthat of her delivery that she had there conceived this infant, yet itby no means followed of necessity that Partridge must have been itsfather; for, to omit other particulars, there was in the same house alad near eighteen, between whom and Jenny there had subsistedsufficient intimacy to found a reasonable suspicion; and yet, so blindis jealousy, this circumstance never once entered into the head of theenraged wife.
Whether Partridge repented or not, according to Mr Allworthy's advice,is not so apparent. Certain it is that his wife repented heartily ofthe evidence she had given against him: especially when she found MrsDeborah had deceived her, and refused to make any application to MrAllworthy on her behalf. She had, however, somewhat better successwith Mrs Blifil, who was, as the reader must have perceived, a muchbetter-tempered woman, and very kindly undertook to solicit herbrother to restore the annuity; in which, though good-nature mighthave some share, yet a stronger and more natural motive will appear inthe next chapter.
These solicitations were nevertheless unsuccessful: for though MrAllworthy did not think, with some late writers, that mercy consistsonly in punishing offenders; yet he was as far from thinking that itis proper to this excellent quality to pardon great criminalswantonly, without any reason whatever. Any doubtfulness of the fact,or any circumstance of mitigation, was never disregarded: but thepetitions of an offender, or the intercessions of others, did not inthe least affect him. In a word, he never pardoned because theoffender himself, or his friends, were unwilling that he should bepunished.
Partridge and his wife were therefore both obliged to submit to theirfate; which was indeed severe enough: for so far was he from doublinghis industry on the account of his lessened income, that he did in amanner abandon himself to despair; and as he was by nature indolent,that vice now increased upon him, by which means he lost the littleschool he had; so that neither his wife nor himself would have had anybread to eat, had not the charity of some good Christian interposed,and provided them with what was just sufficient for their sustenance.
As this support was conveyed to them by an unknown hand, theyimagined, and so, I doubt not, will the reader, that Mr Allworthyhimself was their secret benefactor; who, though he would not openlyencourage vice, could yet privately relieve the distresses of thevicious themselves, when these became too exquisite anddisproportionate to their demerit. In which light their wretchednessappeared now to Fortune herself; for she at length took pity on thismiserable couple, and considerably lessened the wretched state ofPartridge, by putting a final end to that of his wife, who soon aftercaught the small-pox, and died.
The justice which Mr Allworthy had executed on Partridge at first metwith universal approbation; but no sooner had he felt itsconsequences, than his neighbours began to relent, and tocompassionate his case; and presently after, to blame that as rigourand severity which they before called justice. They now exclaimedagainst punishing in cold blood, and sang forth the praises of mercyand forgiveness.
These cries were considerably increased by the death of Mrs Partridge,which, though owing to the distemper above mentioned, which is noconsequence of poverty or distress, many were not ashamed to impute toMr Allworthy's severity, or, as they now termed it, cruelty.
Partridge having now lost his wife, his school, and his annuity, andthe unknown person having now discontinued the last-mentioned charity,resolved to change the scene, and left the country, where he was indanger of starving, with the universal compassion of all hisneighbours.
History of Tom Jones, a Foundling Page 21
