Fabiola : or, The church of the catacombs - Digital Repository Services

house, and pa8rd Ropor in th' The man
AN1
> i
cap, and said "Good-night!" Neither of (be I. But
when Peter had hat ho
had promised, a i few re, to .
goL 8 iool for Mitts
Jauo Lance. She hud bn.' litter witk which she trimmed
her grasu edging : the hundlo was r.lill :
quitoKound,
hud asked i'eter to gei her a now iron cutter in place of tho
broken one. This he hud promised to do, saying ho could
fasten the handle in for her himself.
The events of tho lust few days had driven this little Rommission
from his ]iieinrv, l.ml now that it had suddenly come
to his recollection he resolved to turn back, late as it was, and
get it.
This he did. It was Saturday night, and he knew the shop
would be open. He bought the cutter. Several workingmon were
there, overlooking some tools. There were some large claspknives
on the counter of a superior sort. They took Peter's
fancy and he bought one, putting it into his having
pocket without
it wrapped up.
The garden at the back of Miss Lance's house opened into a
road, and on the other side of this road were the sloping fields
the Long Meadows, which skirted the river.
It was now a quicker way home for Peter to get down by
some back lanes into the meadow-walk by the river, and then
to cross up the road and get to Miss Lance's house by the back
garden, than to go by the streets and enter by ihe door at the
front of the house; so Peter ran down" the lane at the side of
the shop, and was soon in sight of the Long Meadows stile.
It was not moonlight, and the sky was cloudy; here, near tho
river, a mist was rolling up, and you could not see to any very
great distance before you. But the way was familiar to Peter.
All the year round the river-path by the Long Meadows was
known to him sometimes fishing, sometimes trying his skill
at sketching, sometimes in spring getting frittalaris for Miss
Lance, who greatly delighted in these beautiful wild flowers.
Then this path led also to the cricket-ground, and two miles of
hard walking by the river's bank took you up to the uncultivated
land, across which there was a path to Stonemoor.
Peter knew every step of his way quite well, and he walked on
through the mist, which gathered thick sometimes, and then
rolled away till he could see every thing around him plainly
enough.
It had rolled away when he got to the stile.
The stile was made of granite posts and cross-pieces. As
Peter placed his hand on the top stone, to throw himself across
and drop to the other side, he "
thought, How slippery the fog
has made the stone !"
As he dropped on the other side his foot slipped and he fell;
he just saved himself from really lying prostrate by his right
hand, which touched the mud. But he was active enough to
save himself in this way; and he stood safe and upright, only
rather astonished at the accident, in a shorter period of time
than it will have taken the reader to arrive at this account of
his safety.
He recovered himself in a moment, and only his right hand
reached the ground.
On he went for a short distance through the meadow; then
he turned across the turf on his left hand, and so reached the
gate which opened on the road nearly opposite the gardendoor.
Tho door was not locked. His right hand felt painful, so he
opened it with his left. This made more noise than usual, on
account of his being awkward with tho latch. Hannah, the
servant, ran out.
" O, is it you?" she said. "I thought some one was playing
;
tricks with the door.'
"I opened it with my left hand," said Peter, and he- walked
into the he
Miss Lauco was in the kitchen, giving some directions as to
ring her, when
Hannah v.'.-dkcd in, li;;v;ii;r i,, ;un-door for the
night.
" You have hurt y<
.;, wiiuf is (he matter V"
; oinan.
Potei iand of ]
.
"
I fe.i I as
go
have fallen if I !
hand. But I did not know I had out it. lh:r.
r.iy room. No,
was pule imd troubled, bee.
of the top stone of tho stii: mhl it
have been V
" Don't touch me; I'll go and wash. Give mo
tho kettle, Hannah."
"I'll bring the kettle," said the woman. "I ain always
careful as to falls. I'll carry it. There! Go first up-stairs. '
Wlicu Peter and Hannah entered the room, which has been
described tho long, narrow room with the bed at one end,
and the other end fitted up as a sitting-room Petev said:
" I feel queer. I must have given myself a shake. Help me
off with my coat."
Hannah performed this service, and then said;
' '
Shall I take the things out of your pockets ?"
' : He said,
Yes "
;" adding, I bought a new knife, and when
I fell over the stilo it dropped out of my breast-pocket. You
may think what a jerk I had. I picked it up and put it back.
It will want wiping, for the ground was wet with the mist aa
well as slippery.
"Here it is," said Hannah.
" But it has not a mark on it.
This knife has never touched the ground !"
" But I picked it up. The light glittered on tho new
steel at the back of the handle, or I should never have seen it
at all."
"Ay!" exclaimed Hannah; "but hero is another;" and
she threw it from her into the basin
water.
she had just filled with
Those two looked in each other's faces.
" God grant thou hast done no wrong this day," said Hannah.
As she spoke there was a loud sound of voices in the
just below tho windows.
street,,
Hannah opened the window and called out:
" What is the matter? Don't stand gossiping a parcel
of lads and men should know better just under our windows
with your noise. "
Hannah was a well-known personage, and no unruly piay
or grouping of persons for gossip and laughter was allowed
opposite Miss Lance's house. But now some ono looked up
and said:
" It's a bad job, missis. James Gardener lies dead by tho
Long Meadow stile, and it is thought that some one has been
hard upon him. "
"Dead!"
" Yes, dead. Has been dead about half an hour ; not more,
'tis fancied."
" What is doing with him?"
" He's earned to the shed by the station. Simon Lysior,
'going back to the meadows with his dog, found him tin
the dog found him and gave a piteous howl ; so Simon 1 ;
to search, and there he lay."
"In the path?"
" Just out of it ; by the ditch that runs down to tho river by
the side of the hedge."
"Come tho first thing to-morrow, and tell us what is
known," said Hannah.
She shut the window hi a hurry, for Peter had given a groan
and fallen back on the bed in a fainting fit.
Speechlessly and with a horrible feeling overpowering her
>.f, for she did not know why sJi :
recovered Peter, and suid :
" Now get to bed, and get there quickly. Ther,
water in the kettle. I am coming back in a short ;
-she-
got to tell the ladies. But do you obey mo ; wash, ,
lied."
She lei I the room; and Peter, after cleansin;' his stained
hand with plentiful ablutions, obeyed her us a child would
'iio. He was so troubled that ho was glad to obey and
and not to think.