by Neil Munro
CHAPTER XXXVII
I OVERHEAR THE PLAN OF BRITAIN'S INVASION
I began these chronicles with a homily upon the pregnancy of chancethat gives the simplest of our acts ofttimes far-reaching and appallingconsequences. It is clear that I had never become the Spoiled Hornand vexed my parents' lives had not a widow woman burned her batch ofscones, and though perhaps the pair of shoes in the chest bequeathedto me by my Uncle Andrew were without the magic influence he and Igave credit for, it is probable that I had made a different flight fromScotland had they not led me in the way of Daniel Risk.
And even now their influence was not ended. During the months I hadspent at soldiering the red shoes reposed among my baggage; even whenI had changed from the uniform of the Regiment d'Auvergne upon thefrontier of Holland, and made myself again a common citizen of Europe, Ihad some freit (as we say of a superstition) against resuming the shoesthat had led me previously into divers perils. But the day we leftHelvoet in the Hollands Deep hoy, I was so hurried in my departure thatthe red shoes were the only ones I could lay hands on. As luck wouldhave it, when I entered Dunkerque for the last time in my history somedays after, I was wearing the same leather as on the first day of myarrival there, and the fact led, by a singularity of circumstances, tomy final severance from many of those: companions--some of them pleasantand unforgetable--I had made acquaintance with in France.
It was thus that the thing happened.
When we entered Dunkerque, the priest, Kilbride, and I went to an innupon the sea front. Having breakfasted I was deputed to go forth andcall upon Thurot, explain our circumstances, take his counsel, andreturn to the hoy where my two friends would return to wait for me. Hewas out when I reached his lodging, but his Swiss--a different one fromwhat he had before when I was there--informed me that his master wasexpected back at any moment, and invited me to step in and wait for him.I availed myself of the opportunity.
Our voyage along the coast had been delayed by contrary winds, so thatnow it was the Sabbath; the town was by-ordinary still (though indeedSabbath nor Saturday made much difference, as a rule, on the gaiety ofDunkerque), and wearied by the sea travel that had just concluded I fellfast asleep in Captain Thurot's chair.
I was wakened by a loud knocking at the outer door, not the first, asit may be remembered, that called me forth from dreams to new twists offortune, and I started to my feet to meet my host.
What was my chagrin to hear the Prince's voice in converse with him onthe stair!
"Here is a pretty pickle!" I told myself. "M. Albany is the last manon earth I would choose to meet at this moment," and without anotherreflection I darted into the adjoining room and shut the door. It wasThurot's bed-chamber, with a window that looked out upon the courtwhere fowls were cackling. I was no sooner in than I somewhat rued myprecipitation, for the manlier course indubitably had been to bide whereI was. But now there was no retreating, so I sat with what patience Icould command to wait my discovery by the tenant of the place afterhis royal visitor was gone.
It was the Sabbath day as I have said, and the chimes of St. Eloi weregoing briskly upon some papist canticle, but not so loud that I couldnot hear, in spite of myself, all that went on in the next room.
At first I paid no heed, for the situation was unworthy enough of itselfwithout any attempt on my part to be an eavesdropper. But by-and-bye,through the banging of the bells of St. Eloi, I heard M. Albany (stillto give the man his by-name) mention the name Ecosse.
Scotland! The name of her went through me like a pang!
They spoke in French of course; I think I could have understood themhad it been Chinese. For they discussed some details of the intendedinvasion that still hung fire, and from the first of M. Albany'ssentences I learned that the descent was determined upon Scotland. 'Twasthat which angered me and made me listen for the rest with every senseof the spy and deterred by never a scruple. At first I had fanciedThurot would learn from his servant I was in the house, and leave mealone till his royal guest's departure from an intuition that I desiredno meeting, but it was obvious now that no such consideration would haveinduced him to let me hear the vast secret they discussed.
"Twenty thousand men are between Brest and Vannes," said M. Albany. "Weshall have them in frigates in a fortnight from to-day, and then, _monCapitaine_, affairs shall move briskly."
"And still," said Thurot, who had some odd tone of dissatisfaction inhis voice, "I had preferred it had been the South of England. Dumont hasgiven us every anchorage and sounding on the coast between Beachy Headand Arundel, and from there we could all the sooner have thrust at theheart of England. This Scotland--"
"Bah! Captain Thurot," cried his Royal Highness impatiently, "you talklike a fool. At the heart, indeed! With all habitable England like a fatabout it, rich with forts and troops and no more friendship for us thanfor the Mameluke! No, no, Thurot, I cry Scotland; all the chances areamong the rocks, and I am glad it has been so decided on."
"And still, with infinite deference, your Royal Highness, this sameWest of Scotland never brought but the most abominable luck to you andyours," continued Thurot. "Now, Arundel Bay----"
"Oh! to the devil with Arundel Bay!" cried M. Albany; "'tis settledotherwise, and you must take it as you find it. Conflans and his menshall land upon the West--_mon Dieu!_ I trust they may escape its fangs;and measures will be there taken with more precaution and I hope withmore success than in Seventeen Forty-five. Thence they will march toEngland, sweeping the whole country before them, and not leaving behindthem a man or boy who can carry a musket. Thus they must raise the armyto fifty or sixty thousand men, strike a terror into England, and carryall with a high hand. I swear 'tis a fatted hog this England: withfewer than ten thousand Highlanders I have made her thrill at the veryvitals."
Thurot hummed. Plainly there was much in the project that failed to meethis favour.
"And Conflans?" said he.
His Royal Highness laughed.
"Ha! Captain," said he, "I know, I know. 'Twould suit you better if acertain Tony Thurot had command."
"At least," said Thurot, "I am in my prime, while the Marshal is beyondhis grand climacteric."
"And still, by your leave, with the reputation of being yet the best--well, let us say among the best--of the sea officers of France. Come,come, Captain, there must be no half-hearts in this venture; would toHeaven I were permitted to enjoy a share in it! And on you, my friend,depends a good half of the emprise and the _gloire_."
"_Gloire!_" cried Thurot. "With every deference to your Royal HighnessI must consider myself abominably ill-used in this matter. That I shouldbe sent off to Norway and hound-in wretched Swedes with a personage likeFlaubert! Oh, I protest, 'tis beyond all reason! Is it for that I havebeen superseded by a man like Conflans that totters on the edge of thegrave?"
"I hope 'tis England's grave," retorted M. Albany with unfailing goodhumour, and I heard the gluck of wine as he helped himself to anotherglass. "I repeat _gloire_, with every apology to the experience of M. leCorsair. 'Tis your duty to advance with your French and your Swedes uponthe North of England, and make the diversion in these parts that shallinconvenience the English army front or rear."
"Oh, curse your diversions!" cried Thurot. "If I have a talent at all'tis for the main attack. And this Conflans----"
The remainder of the discussion, so far as I remained to hear it, gaveno enlargement upon the plan thus laid bare. But in any case my wholedesire now was to escape from the house without discovery, for I hadnews that made my return to Britain imperative.
I opened the window quietly and slipped out. The drop to the court wasless than my own height. Into the street I turned with the sober stepof leisure, yet my feet tingled to run hard and my heart was stormy. Thebells of St. Eloi went on ringing; the streets were growing busywith holiday-makers and the soldiers who were destined to over-run mycountry. I took there and then the most dreadful hatred of them, andscowled so black that some of the soldiers cried after me with a jeer.
The priest and Kilbride I found were not at the inn where I had leftthem, having gone back to the vessel, so I hurried down to the quayafter them. The hoy had been moved since morning, and in the throng ofother vessels that were in the harbour at the time I lost well-nigh anhour in seeking her. Whether that was well for me or ill would be follynow to guess, but when I had no more than set a foot upon the gunwaleof a small boat that was to take me out to her I was clapped upon theshoulder.
I turned, to see Thurot and two officers of marine!
"Pardon, M. Greig, a moment," said Thurot, with not the kindest oftones. "Surely you would not hurry out of Dunkerque without a _conge_for old friends?"
I stammered some sentences that were meant to reassure him. Heinterrupted me, and--not with any roughness, but with a pressure therewas no mistaking and I was not fool enough to resist--led me from theside of the quay.
"_Ma foi!_" said he, "'Tis the most ridiculous thing! I had nearlymissed you and could never have forgiven myself. My Swiss has justinformed me that you were in the house an hour ago while I was theremyself. I fear we must have bored you, M. Albany and I, with our dullaffairs. At least there was no other excuse for your unceremoniousdeparture through my back window."
I was never well-equipped to conceal my feelings, and it was plain in myface that I knew all.
He sighed.
"Well, lad," said he, rather sorrowfully, "I'd give a good many _louisd'or_ that you had come visiting at another hour of the day, andnow there's but one thing left me. My Swiss did not know you, buthe has--praise _le bon Dieu!_--a pair of eyes in his head, andhe remembered that my visitor wore red shoes. Red shoes and aScotsman!--the conjunction was unmistakable, and here we are, M. Greig.There are a score of men looking all over Dunkerque at this moment forthese same shoes."
"Confound the red shoes!" I cried, unable to conceal my vexation thatthey should once more have brought me into trouble.
"By no means, M. Greig," said Thurot. "But for them we should neverhave identified our visitor, and a somewhat startling tale was over theChannel a little earlier than we intended. And now all that I may do forold friendship to yourself and the original wearer of the shoes is togive you a free trip to England in my own vessel. 'Tis not the _RoiRouge_ this time--worse luck!--but a frigate, and we can be happy enoughif you are not a fool."