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Wacousta

J >> John Richardson >> Wacousta




"And is it really my brother, Morrison? Are you quite
certain that it is Captain de Haldimar?" asked the young
officer, in the eager accents of one who, with the fullest
conviction on his mind, yet grasps at the faintest shadow
of a consoling doubt. "Tell me that it is not my brother,
and half of what I possess in the world shall be yours."

The old soldier brushed a tear from his eye. "God bless
you, Mr. de Haldimar, I would give half my grey hairs to
be able to do so; but it is, indeed, too truly the captain
who has been killed. I saw the very wings of his regimentals
as he lay on his face on the litter."

Charles de Haldimar groaned aloud. "Oh God! oh God! would
I had never lived to see this day." Then springing suddenly
up in his bed.--"Morrison, where are my clothes? I insist
on seeing my slaughtered brother myself."

"Good Heaven, sir, consider," said the old man approaching
the bed, and attempting to replace the covering which
had been spurned to its very foot,--"consider you are in
a burning fever, and the slightest cold may kill you
altogether. The doctor's orders are, you were on no
account to get up."

The effort made by the unfortunate youth was momentary.
Faint from the blood he had lost, and giddy from the
excitement of his feelings, he sank back exhausted on
his pillow, and wept like a child.

Old Morrison shed tears also; for his heart bled for the
sufferings of one whom he had nursed and played with even
in early infancy, and whom, although his master, he regarded
with the affection he would have borne to his own child. As
he had justly observed, he would have willingly given half
his remaining years to be able to remove the source of the
sorrow which so deeply oppressed him.

When this violent paroxysm had somewhat subsided, De
Haldimar became more composed; but his was rather that
composure which grows out of the apathy produced by
overwhelming grief, than the result of any relief afforded
to his suffering heart by the tears he had shed. He had
continued some time in this faint and apparently tranquil
state, when confused sounds in the barrack-yard, followed
by the raising of the heavy drawbridge, announced the
return of the detachment. Again he started up in his bed
and demanded his clothes, declaring his intention to go
out and receive the corpse of his murdered brother. All
opposition on the part of the faithful Morrison was now
likely to prove fruitless, when suddenly the door opened,
and an officer burst hurriedly into the room.

"Courage! courage! my dear De Haldimar; I am the bearer
of good news. Your brother is not the person who has been
slain."

Again De Haldimar sank back upon his pillow, overcome by
a variety of conflicting emotions. A moment afterwards,
and he exclaimed reproachfully, yet almost gasping with
the eagerness of his manner,--

"For God's sake, Sumners--in the name of common humanity,
do not trifle with my feelings. If you would seek to
lull me with false hopes, you are wrong. I am prepared
to hear and bear the worst at present; but to be undeceived
again would break my heart."

"I swear to you by every thing I have been taught to
revere as sacred," solemnly returned Ensign Sumners,
deeply touched by the affliction he witnessed, "what I
state is strictly true. Captain Erskine himself sent me
to tell you."

"What, is he only wounded then?" and a glow of mingled
hope and satisfaction was visible even through the flush
of previous excitement on the cheek of the sufferer.
"Quick, Morrison, give me my clothes.--Where is my brother,
Sumners?" and again he raised up his debilitated frame
with the intention of quitting his couch.

"De Haldimar, my dear De Haldimar, compose yourself, and
listen to me. Your brother is still missing, and we are
as much in the dark about his fate as ever. All that is
certain is, we have no positive knowledge of his death;
but surely that is a thousand times preferable to the
horrid apprehensions under which we have all hitherto
laboured."

"What mean you, Sumners? or am I so bewildered by my
sufferings as not to comprehend you clearly?--Nay, nay,
forgive me; but I am almost heart-broken at this loss,
and scarcely know what I say. But what is it you mean?
I saw my unhappy brother lying on the common with my own
eyes. Poor Valletort, himself--" here a rush of bitter
recollections flashed on the memory of the young man,
and the tears coursed each other rapidly down his cheek.
His emotion lasted for a few moments, and he pursued,--"Poor
Valletort himself saw him, for he was nearly as much
overwhelmed with affliction as I was; and even Morrison
beheld him also, not ten minutes since, under the very
walls of the fort; nay, distinguished the wings of his
uniform: and yet you would persuade me my brother, instead
of being brought in a corpse, is still missing and alive.
This is little better than trifling with my wretchedness,
Sumners," and again he sank back exhausted on his pillow.

"I can easily forgive your doubts, De Haldimar," returned
the sympathizing Sumners, taking the hand of his companion,
and pressing it gently in his own; "for, in truth, there
is a great deal of mystery attached to the whole affair.
I have not seen the body myself; but I distinctly heard
Captain Erskine state it certainly was not your brother,
and he requested me to apprise both Sir Everard Valletort
and yourself of the fact."

"Who is the murdered man, then? and how comes he to be
clad in the uniform of one of our officers? Pshaw! it is
too absurd to be credited. Erskine is mistaken--he must
be mistaken--it can be no other than my poor brother
Frederick. Sumners, I am sick, faint, with this cruel
uncertainty: go, my dear fellow, at once, and examine
the body; then return to me, and satisfy my doubts, if
possible."

"Most willingly, if you desire it," returned Sumners,
moving towards the door; "but believe me, De Haldimar,
you may make your mind tranquil on the subject;--Erskine
spoke with certainty."

"Have you seen Valletort?" asked De Haldimar, while an
involuntary shudder pervaded his fame.

"I have. He flew on the instant to make further enquiries;
and was in the act of going to examine the body of the
murdered man when I came here.--But here he is himself,
and his countenance is the harbinger of any thing but a
denial of my intelligence."

"Oh, Charles, what a weight of misery has been removed
from my heart!" exclaimed that officer, now rushing to
the bedside of his friend, and seizing his extended
hand,--"Your brother, let us hope, still lives."

"Almighty God, I thank thee!" fervently ejaculated De
Haldimar; and then, overcome with joy, surprise, and
gratitude, he again sank back upon his pillow, sobbing
and weeping violently.

Sumners had, with delicate tact, retired the moment Sir
Everard made his appearance; for he, as well as the whole
body of officers, was aware of the close friendship that
subsisted between the young men, and he felt, at such a
moment, the presence of a third person must be a sort of
violation of the sacredness of their interview.

For some minutes the young baronet stood watching in
silence, and with his friend's hand closely clasped in
his own, the course of those tears which seemed to afford
so much relief to the overcharged heart of the sufferer.
At length they passed gradually away; and a smile,
expressive of the altered state of his feelings, for the
first time animated the flushed but handsome features of
the younger De Haldimar.

We shall not attempt to paint all that passed between
the friends during the first interesting moments of an
interview which neither had expected to enjoy again, or
the delight and satisfaction with which they congratulated
themselves on the futility of those fears, which, if
realised, must have embittered every future moment of
their lives with the most harrowing recollections. Sir
Everard, particularly, felt, and was not slow to express,
his joy on this occasion; for, as he gazed upon the
countenance of his friend, he was more than ever inclined
to confess an interest in the sister he was said so much
to resemble.

With that facility with which in youth the generous and
susceptible are prone to exchange their tears for smiles,
as some powerful motive for the reaction may prompt, the
invalid had already, and for the moment, lost sight of
the painful past in the pleasurable present, so that his
actual excitement was strongly in contrast with the
melancholy he had so recently exhibited. Never had Charles
de Haldimar appeared so eminently handsome; and yet his
beauty resembled that of a frail and delicate woman,
rather than that of one called to the manly and arduous
profession of a soldier. It was that delicate and Medor-like
beauty which might have won the heart and fascinated the
sense of a second Angelica. The light brown hair flowing
in thick and natural waves over a high white forehead;
the rich bloom of the transparent and downy cheek; the
large, blue, long, dark-lashed eye, in which a shade of
languor harmonised with the soft but animated expression
of the whole countenance,--the dimpled mouth,--the small,
clear, and even teeth,--all these now characterised
Charles de Haldimar; and if to these we add a voice rich,
full, and melodious, and a smile sweet and fascinating,
we shall be at no loss to account for the readiness with
which Sir Everard suffered his imagination to draw on
the brother for those attributes he ascribed to the
sister.

It was while this impression was strong upon his fancy,
he took occasion to remark, in reply to an observation
of De Haldimar's, alluding to the despair with which his
sister would have been seized, had she known one brother
had fallen by the hand of the friend of the other.

"The grief of my own heart, Charles, on this occasion,
would have been little inferior to her own. The truth
is, my feelings during the last three hours have let me
into a secret, of the existence of which I was, in a
great degree, ignorant until then: I scarcely know how
to express myself, for the communication is so truly
absurd and romantic you will not credit it." He paused,
hesitated, and then, as if determined to anticipate the
ridicule he seemed to feel would be attached to his
confession, with a forced half laugh pursued: "The fact
is, Charles, I have been so much used to listen to your
warm and eloquent praises of your sister, I have absolutely,
I will not say fallen in love with (that would be going
too far), but conceived so strong an interest in her,
that my most ardent desire would be to find favour in
her eyes. What say you, my friend? are you inclined to
forward my suit; and if so, is there any chance for me,
think you, with herself?"

The breast of Charles de Haldimar, who had listened with
deep and increasing attention to this avowal, swelled
high with pleasurable excitement, and raising himself up
in his bed with one hand, while he grasped one of Sir
Everard's with the other, he exclaimed with a transport
of affection too forcible to be controlled,--

"Oh, Valletort, Valletort! this is, indeed, all that
was wanting to complete my happiness. My sister Clara
I adore with all the affection of my nature; I love her
better than my own life, which is wrapped up in hers.
She is an angel in disposition,--all that is dear, tender,
and affectionate,--all that is gentle and lovely in woman;
one whose welfare is dearer far to me than my own, and
without whose presence I could not live. Valletort, that
prize,--that treasure, that dearer half of myself, is
yours,--yours for ever. I have long wished you should
love, each other, and I felt, when you met, you would.
If I have hitherto forborne from expressing this fondest
wish of my heart, it has been from delicacy--from a
natural fear of compromising the purity of my adored
Clara. Now, however, you have confessed yourself interested,
by a description that falls far short of the true peril
of that dear girl, I can no longer disguise my gratification
and delight. Valletort," he concluded, impressively,
"there is no other man on earth to whom I would say so
much; but you were formed for each other, and you will,
you must, be the husband of my sister."

If the youthful and affectionate De Haldimar was happy,
Sir Everard was no less so; for already, with the enthusiasm
of a young man of twenty, he painted to himself the entire
fruition of those dreams of happiness that had so long
been familiarised to his imagination. One doubt alone
crossed his mind.

"But if your sister should have decided differently,
Charles," he at length remarked, as he gently quitted
the embrace of his friend: "who knows if her heart may
not already throb for another; and even if not, it is
possible she may judge me far less flatteringly than you
do."

"Valletort, your fears are groundless. Having admitted
thus far, I will even go farther, and add, you have been
the subject of one of my letters to Clara, who, in her
turn, 'confesses a strong interest in one of whom she
has heard so much.' She writes playfully, of course, but
it is quite evident to me she is prepared to like you."

"Indeed! But, Charles, liking is many degrees removed
you know from loving; besides, I understand there are
two or three handsome and accomplished fellows among the
garrison of Michilimackinac, and your sister's visit to
her cousin may not have been paid altogether with impunity."

"Think not thus meanly of Clara's understanding, Valletort.
There must be something more than mere beauty and
accomplishment to fix the heart of my sister. The dark
eyed and elegant Baynton, and the musical and sonnetteering
Middleton, to whom you, doubtless, allude, are very
excellent fellows in their way; but handsome and
accomplished as they are, they are not exactly the men
to please Clara de Haldimar."

"But, my dear Charles, you forget also any little merit
of my own is doubly enhanced in your eyes, by the sincerity
of the friendship subsisting between us; your sister may
think very differently."

"Psha, Valletort! these difficulties are all of your own
creation," returned his friend, impatiently; "I know the
heart of Clara is disengaged. What would you more?"

"Enough, De Haldimar; I will no longer doubt my own
prospects. If she but approve me, my whole life shall be
devoted to the happiness of your sister."

A single knock was now heard at the door of the apartment;
it was opened, and a sergeant appeared at the entrance.

"The company are under arms for punishment parade,
Lieutenant Valletort," said the man, touching his cap.

In an instant, the visionary prospects of the young men
gave place to the stern realities connected with that
announcement of punishment. The treason of Halloway,--the
absence of Frederick de Haldimar,--the dangers by which
they were beset,--and the little present probability of
a re-union with those who were most dear to them,--all
these recollections now flashed across their minds with
the rapidity of thought; and the conversation that had
so recently passed between them seemed to leave no other
impression than what is produced from some visionary
speculation of the moment.




CHAPTER VIII.

As the bells of the fort tolled the tenth hour of morning,
the groups of dispersed soldiery, warned by the rolling
of the assembly drum, once more fell into their respective
ranks in the order described in the opening of this
volume, Soon afterwards the prisoner Halloway was
reconducted into the square by a strong escort, who took
their stations as before in the immediate centre, where
the former stood principally conspicuous to the observation
of his comrades. His countenance was paler, and had less,
perhaps, of the indifference he had previously manifested;
but to supply this there was a certain subdued air of
calm dignity, and a composure that sprang, doubtless,
from the consciousness of the new character in which he
now appeared before his superiors. Colonel de Haldimar
almost immediately followed, and with him were the
principal staff of the garrison, all of whom, with the
exception of the sick and wounded and their attendants,
were present to a man. The former took from the hands of
the governor, Lawson, a large packet, consisting of
several sheets of folded paper closely written upon.
These were the proceedings of the court martial.

After enumerating the several charges, and detailing the
evidence of the witnesses examined, the adjutant came at
length to the finding and sentence of the court, which
were as follows:--

"The court having duly considered the evidence adduced
against the prisoner private Frank Halloway, together
with what he has urged in his defence, are of opinion,--"

"That with regard to the first charge, it is not proved."

"That with regard to the second charge, it is not proved."

"That with regard to the third charge, even by his own
voluntary confession, the prisoner is guilty."

"The court having found the prisoner private Frank Halloway
guilty of the third charge preferred against him, which
is hi direct violation of a standing order of the garrison,
entailing capital punishment, do hereby sentence him,
the said prisoner, private Frank Halloway, to be shot to
death at such time and place as the officer commanding
may deem fit to appoint."

Although the utmost order pervaded the ranks, every breath
had been suspended, every ear stretched during the reading
of the sentence; and now that it came arrayed in terror
and in blood, every glance was turned in pity on its
unhappy victim. But Halloway heard it with the ears of
one who has made up his mind to suffer; and the faint
half smile that played upon his lip spoke more in scorn
than in sorrow. Colonel de Haldimar pursued:--

"The court having found it imperatively incumbent on them
to award the punishment of death to the prisoner, private
Frank Halloway, at the same time gladly avail themselves
of their privilege by strongly recommending him to mercy.
The court cannot, in justice to the character of the
prisoner, refrain from expressing their unanimous
conviction, that notwithstanding the mysterious
circumstances which have led to his confinement and trial,
he is entirely innocent of the treachery ascribed to him.
The court have founded this conviction on the excellent
character, both on duty and in the field, hitherto borne
by the prisoner,--his well-known attachment to the officer
with whose abduction be stands charged,--and the manly,
open, and (as the court are satisfied) correct history
given of his former life. It is, moreover, the impression
of the court, that, as stated by the prisoner, his guilt
on the third charge has been the result only of his
attachment for Captain de Haldimar. And for this, and
the reasons above assigned, do they strongly recommend
the prisoner to mercy."

(Signed)

NOEL BLESSINGTON,
Captain and President.

Sentence approved and confirmed.

CHARLES DE HALDIMAR,
Colonel Commandant.

While these concluding remarks of the court were being
read, the prisoner manifested the deepest emotion. If a
smile of scorn had previously played upon his lip, it
was because he fancied the court, before whom he had
sought to vindicate his fame, had judged him with a
severity not inferior to his colonel's; but now that, in
the presence of his companions, he heard the flattering
attestation of his services, coupled even as it was with
the sentence that condemned him to die, tears of gratitude
and pleasure rose despite of himself to his eyes; and it
required all his self-command to enable him to abstain
from giving expression to his feelings towards those who
had so generously interpreted the motives of his dereliction
from duty. But when the melancholy and startling fact of
the approval and confirmation of the sentence met his
ear, without the slightest allusion to that mercy which
had been so urgently recommended, he again overcame his
weakness, and exhibited his wonted air of calm and
unconcern.

"Let the prisoner be removed, Mr. Lawson," ordered the
governor, whose stern and somewhat dissatisfied expression
of countenance was the only comment on the recommendation
for mercy.

The order was promptly executed. Once more Halloway left
the square, and was reconducted to the cell he had occupied
since the preceding night.

"Major Blackwater," pursued the governor, "let a detachment
consisting of one half the garrison be got in readiness
to leave the fort within the hour. Captain Wentworth,
three pieces of field artillery will be required. Let
them be got ready also." He then retired from the area
with the forbidding dignity and stately haughtiness of
manner that was habitual to him; while the officers, who
had just received his commands, prepared to fulfil the
respective duties assigned them.

Since the first alarm of the garrison no opportunity had
hitherto been afforded the officers to snatch the slightest
refreshment. Advantage was now taken of the short interval
allowed by the governor, and they all repaired to the
mess-room, where their breakfast had long since been
provided.

"Well, Blessington," remarked Captain Erskine, as he
filled his plate for the third time from a large haunch
of smoke-dried venison, for which his recent skirmish
with the Indians had given him an unusual relish, "so it
appears your recommendation of poor Halloway to mercy is
little likely to be attended to. Did you remark how
displeased the colonel looked as he bungled through it?
One might almost be tempted to think he had an interest
in the man's death, so determined does he appear to carry
his point."

Although several of his companions, perhaps, felt and
thought the same, still there was no one who would have
ventured to avow his real sentiments in so unqualified
a manner. Indeed such an observation proceeding from
the lips of any other officer would have excited the
utmost surprise; but Captain Erskine, a brave, bold,
frank, and somewhat thoughtless soldier, was one of those
beings who are privileged to say any thing. His opinions
were usually expressed without ceremony; and his speech
was not the most circumspect NOW, as since his return to
the fort he had swallowed, fasting, two or three glasses
of a favourite spirit, which, without intoxicating, had
greatly excited him.

"I remarked enough," said Captain Blessington, who sat
leaning his head on one hand, while with the other he
occasionally, and almost mechanically, raised a cup filled
with a liquid of a pale blood colour to his lips,--"quite
enough to make me regret from my very soul I should have
been his principal judge. Poor Halloway, I pity him much;
for, on my honour, I believe him to be the gentleman he
represents himself."

"A finer fellow does not live," remarked the last remaining
officer of the grenadiers. "But surely Colonel de Haldimar
cannot mean to carry the sentence into effect. The
recommendation of a court, couched in such terms as these,
ought alone to have some weight with him."

"It is quite clear, from the fact of his having been
remanded to his cell, the execution of the poor fellow
will be deferred at least," observed one of Captain
Erskine's subalterns." If the governor had intended he
should suffer immediately, he would have had him shot
the moment after his sentence was read. But what is the
meaning and object of this new sortie? and whither are
we now going? Do you know, Captain Erskine, our company
is again ordered for this duty?"

"Know it, Leslie! of course I do; and for that reason am
I paying my court to the more substantial part of the
breakfast. Come, Blessington, my dear fellow, you have
quite lost your appetite, and we may have sharp work
before we get back. Follow my example: throw that nasty
blood-thickening sassafras away, and lay a foundation
from this venison. None sweeter is to be found in the
forests of America. A few slices of that, and then a
glass each of my best Jamaica, and we shall have strength
to go through the expedition, if its object be the capture
of the bold Ponteac himself."

"I presume the object is rather to seek for Captain de
Haldimar," said Lieutenant Boyce, the officer of grenadiers;
"but in that case why not send out his own company?"

"Because the Colonel prefers trusting to cooler heads
and more experienced arms," good-humouredly observed
Captain Erskine. "Blessington is our senior, and his
men are all old stagers. My lads, too, have had their
mettle up already this morning, and there is nothing like
that to prepare men for a dash of enterprise. It is with
them as with blood horses, the more you put them on their
speed the less anxious are they to quit the course.
Well, Johnstone, my brave Scot, ready for another skirmish?"
he asked, as that officer now entered to satisfy the
cravings of an appetite little inferior to that of his
captain.

"With 'Nunquam non paratus' for my motto," gaily returned
the young man, "it were odd, indeed, if a mere scratch
like this should prevent me from establishing my claim
to it by following wherever my gallant captain leads."

"Most courteously spoken, and little in the spirit of a
man yet smarting under the infliction of a rifle wound,
it must be confessed," remarked Lieutenant Leslie. "But,
Johnstone, you should bear in mind a too close adherence
to that motto has been, in some degree, fatal to your
family."

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