Moonfleet

by John Meade Falkner

  CHAPTER 5

  THE RESCUE

  Shades of the dead, have I not heard your voicesRise on the night-rolling breath of the gale?--_Byron_

  When I came to myself I was lying, not in the outer blackness of theMohune vault, not on a floor of sand; but in a bed of sweet clean linen,and in a little whitewashed room, through the window of which the springsunlight streamed. Oh, the blessed sunshine, and how I praised God forthe light! At first I thought I was in my own bed at my aunt's house, andhad dreamed of the vault and the smugglers, and that my being prisoned inthe darkness was but the horror of a nightmare. I was for getting up, butfell back on my pillow in the effort to rise, with a weakness and sicklanguor which I had never known before. And as I sunk down, I feltsomething swing about my neck, and putting up my hand, found 'twasColonel John Mohune's black locket, and so knew that part at least ofthis adventure was no dream.

  Then the door opened, and to my wandering thought it seemed that I wasback again in the vault, for in came Elzevir Block. Then I held up myhands, and cried--

  'O Elzevir, save me, save me; I am not come to spy.'

  But he, with a kind look on his face, put his hand on my shoulder, andpushed me gently back, saying--

  'Lie still, lad, there is none here will hurt thee, and drink this.'

  He held out to me a bowl of steaming broth, that filled the room with asavour sweeter, ten thousand times, to me than every rose and lily of theworld; yet would not let me drink it at a gulp, but made me sip it with aspoon like any baby. Thus while I drank, he told me where I was, namely,in an attic at the Why Not?, but would not say more then, bidding me getto sleep again, and I should know all afterwards. And so it was ten daysor more before youth and health had their way, and I was strong again;and all that time Elzevir Block sat by my bed, and nursed me tenderly asa woman. So piece by piece I learned the story of how they found me.

  'Twas Mr. Glennie who first moved to seek me; for when the second daycame that I was not at school, he thought that I was ill, and went to myaunt's to ask how I did, as was his wont when any ailed. But Aunt Janeanswered him stiffly that she could not say how I did.

  'For,' says she, 'he is run off I know not where, but as he makes hisbed, must he lie on't; and if he run away for his pleasure, may stay awayfor mine. I have been pestered with this lot too long, and only bore withhim for poor sister Martha's sake; but 'tis after his father that thegraceless lad takes, and thus rewards me.'

  With that she bangs the door in the parson's face and off he goes toRatsey, but can learn nothing there, and so concludes that I have runaway to sea, and am seeking ship at Poole or Weymouth.

  But that same day came Sam Tewkesbury to the Why Not? about nightfall,and begged a glass of rum, being, as he said, 'all of a shake', andtelling a tale of how he passed the churchyard wall on his return fromwork, and in the dusk heard screams and wailing voices, and knew 'twasBlackbeard piping his lost Mohunes to hunt for treasure. So, though hesaw nothing, he turned tail and never stopped running till he stood atthe inn door. Then, forthwith, Elzevir leaves Sam to drink at the WhyNot? alone, and himself sets off running up the street to call for MasterRatsey; and they two make straight across the sea-meadows in the dark.

  'For as soon as I heard Tewkesbury tell of screams and wailings in theair, and no one to be seen,' said Elzevir, 'I guessed that some poor soulhad got shut in the vault, and was there crying for his life. And to thisI was not guided by mother wit, but by a surer and a sadder token. Thouwilt have heard how thirteen years ago a daft body we called Cracky Joneswas found one morning in the churchyard dead. He was gone missing for aweek before, and twice within that week I had sat through the night uponthe hill behind the church, watching to warn the lugger with a flare shecould not put in for the surf upon the beach. And on those nights, theair being still though a heavy swell was running, I heard thrice or morea throttled scream come shivering across the meadows from the graveyard.Yet beyond turning my blood cold for a moment, it gave me little trouble,for evil tales have hung about the church; and though I did not set muchstore by the old yarns of Blackbeard piping up his crew, yet I thoughtstrange things might well go on among the graves at night. And so I neverbudged, nor stirred hand or foot to save a fellow-creature in his agony.

  'But when the surf fell enough for the boats to get ashore, and Greeningheld a lantern for me to jump down into the passage, after we had got theside out of the tomb, the first thing the light fell on at the bottomwas a white face turned skyward. I have not forgot that, lad, for 'twasCracky Jones lay there, with his face thin and shrunk, yet all the doitedlook gone out of it. We tried to force some brandy in his mouth, but hewas stark and dead; with knees drawn up towards his head, so stiff we hadto lift him doubled as he was, and lay him by the churchyard wall forsome of us to find next day. We never knew how he got there, but guessedthat he had hung about the landers some night when they ran a cargo, andslipped in when the watchman's back was turned. Thus when Sam Tewkesburyspoke of screams and wailings, and no one to be seen, I knew what 'twas,but never guessed who might be shut in there, not knowing thou wert goneamissing. So ran to Ratsey to get his help to slip the side stone off,for by myself I cannot stir it now, though once I did when I was younger;and from him learned that thou wert lost, and knew whom we should findbefore we got there.'

  I shuddered while Elzevir talked, for I thought how Cracky Jones hadperhaps hidden behind the self-same coffin that sheltered me, and hownarrowly I had escaped his fate. And that old story came back into mymind, how, years ago, there once arose so terrible a cry from the vaultat service-time, that parson and people fled from the church; and Idoubted not now that some other poor soul had got shut in that awfulplace, and was then calling for help to those whose fears would not letthem listen.

  'There we found thee,' Elzevir went on, 'stretched out on the sand,senseless and far gone; and there was something in thy face that made methink of David when he lay stretched out in his last sleep. And so I putthee on my shoulder and bare thee back, and here thou art in David'sroom, and shalt find board and bed with me as long as thou hast mindto.' We spoke much together during the days when I was gettingstronger, and I grew to like Elzevir well, finding his grimness was buton the outside, and that never was a kinder man. Indeed, I think that mybeing with him did him good; for he felt that there was once moresomeone to love him, and his heart went out to me as to his son David.Never once did he ask me to keep my counsel as to the vault and what Ihad seen there, knowing, perhaps, he had no need, for I would have diedrather than tell the secret to any. Only, one day Master Ratsey, whooften came to see me, said--

  'John, there is only Elzevir and I who know that you have seen theinside of our bond-cellar; and 'tis well, for if some of the landersguessed, they might have ugly ways to stop all chance of prating. Sokeep our secret tight, and we'll keep yours, for "he that refraineth hislips is wise".'

  I wondered how Master Ratsey could quote Scripture so pat, and yet cheatthe revenue; though, in truth, 'twas thought little sin at Moonfleet torun a cargo; and, perhaps, he guessed what I was thinking, for he added--

  'Not that a Christian man has aught to be ashamed of in landing a cask ofgood liquor, for we read that when Israel came out of Egypt, the chosenpeople were bid trick their oppressors out of jewels of silver and jewelsof gold; and among those cruel taskmasters, Some of the worst mustcertainly have been the tax-gatherers.'

  * * * * *

  The first walk I took when I grew stronger and was able to get about wasup to Aunt Jane's, notwithstanding she had never so much as been to askafter me all these days. She knew, indeed, where I was, for Ratsey hadtold her I lay at the Why Not?, explaining that Elzevir had found me onenight on the ground famished and half-dead, yet not saying where. But myaunt greeted me with hard words, which I need not repeat here; for,perhaps, she meant them not unkindly, but only to bring me back again tothe right way. She did not let me cross the threshold, holding the doorajar in her hand, and saying she would h
ave no tavern-loungers in herhouse, but that if I liked the Why Not? so well, I could go back thereagain for her. I had been for begging her pardon for playing truant; butwhen I heard such scurvy words, felt the devil rise in my heart, and onlylaughed, though bitter tears were in my eyes. So I turned my back uponthe only home that I had ever known, and sauntered off down the village,feeling very lone, and am not sure I was not crying before I came againto the Why Not?

  Then Elzevir saw that my face was downcast, and asked what ailed me, andso I told him how my aunt had turned me away, and that I had no home togo to. But he seemed pleased rather than sorry, and said that I must comenow and live with him, for he had plenty for both; and that since chancehad led him to save my life, I should be to him a son in David's place.So I went to keep house with him at the Why Not? and my aunt sent down mybag of clothes, and would have made over to Elzevir the pittance that myfather left for my keep, but he said it was not needful, and he wouldhave none of it.