by Oliver Optic
CHAPTER III
A NORTHERN FAMILY IN KENTUCKY
Titus's eldest daughter, Mildred, had written to her Uncle Noah in NewHampshire the particulars of the death of his brother after the fact hadbeen telegraphed to him by Colonel Cosgrove. The letter was hardly morethan an announcement of the decease of her Kentucky uncle, and the dateof the funeral. It was not possible for Noah to reach Barcreek in seasonto be present at the last rites; but he wrote to Titus without delay.
A few days after the telegram a letter from Colonel Cosgrove, theexecutor, came to Noah Lyon, containing a copy of the will of hisbrother. The lawyer, who had been the intimate friend and confidant ofColonel Lyon, wrote with entire freedom to the distant brother. Hestated that his deceased friend had little confidence in Titus, and inBarcreek he was not considered as an entirely reliable man.
The most important item in the letter was that Colonel Lyon had passed awhole day with him only a week before his death, talking most of thetime about his estate. He had lived at Riverlawn twenty-five years, haddeveloped the place from a wilderness, and was very much attached to it.In his will he had left it to Noah, and he desired that he should moveto Kentucky and take possession of the estate.
It required a week of consideration in the comfortable home of the Derryfarmer, in which the children, their own and the adopted ones, tookpart, before a conclusion could be reached; but it was a compliance withthe request of Colonel Lyon. Within a year before his death the planterhad spent a month with the New Hampshire farmer, during which he hadtold him all about his estate and his surroundings at Barcreek. They hadnot met before since the elder brother first went to Kentucky; and theKentuckian formed a very high opinion of his New England brother, whichwas quite in contrast with his estimate of Titus, who had been hisneighbor for six years.
The colonel's will was dated within two months of this visit, anddoubtless he was thinking of his last testament when he went to NewHampshire. As soon as it was settled that the family should make theirhome in Kentucky, Noah wrote a long letter to his only survivingbrother, announcing his intention to leave Barcreek as soon as he couldsettle up his business in Derry. He expressed himself with all brotherlykindness, and was glad that they were again to live near each other.
Titus did not even reply to this letter, though his wife wrote to Mrs.Noah, expressing the pleasure she felt that they were again to beneighbors. It was about two months after the death of Colonel Lyon thatNoah and his family arrived at Bowling Green, the county town, which wasthe nearest railroad station to Barcreek, fifteen miles distant. NoahLyon had kept up his correspondence with the executor of his brother,and Colonel Cosgrove was at the station when the family arrived. Tituswas not there, and he did not manifest much interest in the coming ofhis only remaining brother.
The distinguished lawyer extended a hearty welcome to the family, andinvited them all to dinner at his mansion. He wondered that Titus orsome member of his family was not there to greet the new-comers; but hesaid little about him, though enough to show that he had not a veryexalted opinion of him.
"You will find the mansion of your late brother in perfect order, Mr.Lyon," said Colonel Cosgrove, as they rose from the dinner-table. "I wasover there yesterday, and satisfied myself that every thing was incondition for your reception. The furniture remains just as it was inthe time of Colonel Lyon."
"You have been very kind, Colonel Cosgrove, and I am very grateful toyou for all the attention you have given to my brother's affairs and tome," replied Noah, taking the hand of the hospitable executor. "Does mybrother Titus live near Riverlawn?"
"About a mile from it, in the village of Barcreek," answered the lawyer."Your brother, the colonel, had several boats; and when he went to thevillage in the open season he usually made the trip by the river, rowedby half a dozen of his boys."
"I was not aware that he had any boys," added Noah.
"His hands, his negroes; and he always called them boys. He was the bestfriend they ever had," the colonel explained. "That reminds me that Ihave a letter which your late brother required me to deliver personallyinto your hands;" and the lawyer went to his office for it.
He returned in a few minutes, and gave the letter, which was heavilysealed with wax, to the new owner of Riverlawn. He had mentioned thisepistle in one of his letters to the new proprietor, and Noah wonderedas he looked upon its elaborate seals what could be the subject of thecommunication. The colonel was speaking of the boys, which reminded himof the letter; and he suspected that it had some connection with thenegroes. He put it in his pocket very carefully, and then looked at hiswatch.
"How far is it from this town to Barcreek?" he asked, still holding thewatch in his hand.
"Fifteen miles; and as the roads are not in the best condition at thisseason of the year, it will take about two hours and a half to make thetrip," replied the lawyer. "But it is only two o'clock, and you haveplenty of time."
"But I must look up a conveyance," suggested the new proprietor ofRiverlawn.
"A conveyance is all ready for you, Mr. Lyon," added the colonel. "Idirected Mr. Bedford to come over for you and your family, and he hasbeen here since nine o'clock this morning. He came with the road-wagon,which will comfortably accommodate your whole family; and one of theboys came over with another wagon to tote your baggage over."
"You have been very thoughtful and considerate, Colonel Cosgrove, and Iam under very great obligations to you," said Noah.
"Don't mention it, Mr. Lyon. I should be happy to have you spend thenight with me, for we have still a great deal to talk about," answeredthe executor.
"My family, as well as myself, are naturally quite impatient to see ournew home," suggested the New Hampshire farmer. "Fifteen miles is not avery long distance even in New England, and I hope we shall meet often."
"I shall visit Riverlawn often until you are well settled in your newhome. I have a plantation myself on the road to Barcreek, and about halfway there, which I visit two or three times a week; and I shall be gladto give you all the information you need in regard to your surroundings,or in relation to the management of your estate. You will see meoccasionally at Riverlawn, and I shall hope to meet you and your familyhere, or at my estate, which is called Belgrade."
"Thank you, Colonel; I am sure we shall be good friends in spite of myantecedents as a Northern farmer, for I am not a bigot or a fanatic."
"I have no doubt we shall be good friends and good neighbors," said theKentuckian, as he took the hand of his new client, and struck the bellon the table. "Now I will send for Mr. Bedford, who has been theoverseer or manager of your brother for the last ten years. As thecolonel was, he is a bachelor of fifty, and has been one of the familyat Riverlawn. He is a thoroughly reliable man, and one of the latecolonel's best friends."
A servant was sent for the overseer, and presently he appeared. He was arather stout man, and his round face seemed to be overflowing withpleasantry and good-nature. He was duly presented to all the six membersof the family, and heartily shook the hand of each of them. He did notat all answer to the description of plantation overseers which Noah Lyonhad obtained from the books he had read, depicting the horrors ofslavery. In spite of his occupation he took a fancy to him at firstsight; and all the family were pleased with him.
The manager, as Noah preferred to call him, was Levi Bedford. He hadnever been very successful in the management of his own affairs; but hewas a man after Colonel Lyon's own heart, and in his will he had givenhim five thousand dollars, which was one of the grievances Titus hadagainst the testament. One of the virtues of Levi, as his late employeralways called him, was his extreme fondness for horses, with his skillin raising and managing them; for this had been an important branch ofthe planter's business.
"I have started Pink over to the place with all your baggage, MajorLyon, and I am ready to leave with the family when you say the word,"said Mr. Bedford, after they had conversed a few minutes.
"I am not a major, Mr. Bedford," replied Noah; and all the f
amilylaughed when they heard the military title applied to him.
"Your brother was not exactly a colonel; but that is a fashion we havedown here of expressing our respect for a man by giving him rank in themilitary," laughed the manager. "But I want you to call me 'Levi,' asyour brother did, and as Colonel Cosgrove does when there is no companypresent."
"Very well, Levi; I intend to conform to the customs of the country. Weare all ready to leave at once," added Noah.
"My team will be at the door in four minutes and three-quarters, MajorLyon," answered the manager as he left the room.
"Call it five, Levi," added the colonel.
"Less than that, Colonel," replied Levi as he closed the door.
"I would give that man double the wages I pay my present overseer if Icould have him at Belgrade; and I should make money by the change," saidthe host, as he went to the window of the drawing-room, to which theparty had retired from the dining-room. "The only fault he has is thathe is too gentle and indulgent to the negroes. The neighbors say he isspoiling the niggers all over two counties. But I reckon the colonel wasmore to blame for that, if anybody was to blame, for he had a softheart. I never saw two men less alike than your two Kentucky brothers,"continued Colonel Cosgrove, as Noah joined him at the window. "There isyour team, and Levi hasn't been gone quite five minutes."
"Four horses!" exclaimed Noah.
"Levi likes a good team and enough of it," added the lawyer.
"And I never saw four handsomer horses in all my life," added the newowner of Riverlawn, as he gazed with admiration on the magnificentanimals; and all the family hastened to the windows to see the turnout.
"You will find at least thirty more of them when you get to Riverlawn."
The road-wagon was a covered vehicle with four seats, large enough for adozen passengers. It was neatly painted and upholstered, and theharnesses on the horses were elegant enough for a city turnout. Thewhole family promptly realized that they were entering upon a style towhich they had never been accustomed. But Noah Lyon had suddenly becomea rich man.
The colonel gallantly assisted the ladies to their seats. The horsesdanced and pranced; but they were so well trained that they did notoffer to start till Levi drew up his four reins and gave them the wordto go. Hasty adieux were spoken, and the horses went off, gently atfirst, but soon put in a lively pace.
Noah and his wife took the back seat, Dorcas and Hope took the next one,for all of them had been handed to these places by the colonel; Dexterinstalled himself at the side of Levi, and Artemas had a seat all tohimself behind them. All was new and strange to them, and they observedthe buildings in the town till they passed out of the village. Then thescenery was quite different from that of their former home.
Only two of the four children were those of Noah and his wife. Dexterwas his son, and was sixteen years old at this time, while his sisterHope was thirteen. Both of them had received a high-school education inpart, and they were both very bright scholars. People in Derry calledDeck an "old head," which meant that his judgment and knowledge hadripened beyond his years. Without being a "goody," he was a good boy,with high aims and noble impulses.
Ten years before, Cyrus Lyon, one of the four brothers of whom ColonelDuncan was the eldest, was a resident of Hillsburg in the State ofVermont, where he had settled on a valley farm, which he had hired withthe intention of buying it when he was able to do so. He was married inDerry, and had two children, with whom he moved to his new home. Helived in an old house, between which and the public road flowed a smallriver, nearly dry most of the year, but exceedingly turbulent in thespring when the snow melted on the mountains.
A freshet came, and the house was surrounded by water. The bridge overthe stream was raised, and Cyrus went out to secure it. His wifefollowed to assist him, and while both of them were on it, a rush ofwaters came which tore the structure into fragments, and both of themwere swept away by the mad torrent. They were drowned in spite of theefforts of the neighbors to rescue them. But they saved the two childrenwho remained in the house.
Noah had taken these two children and brought them up as his own, forthe father did not leave property enough to pay his debts. Artemas wasfifteen and Dorcas was seventeen. The colonel paid for their support forten years, and left each a handsome legacy, in trust with Noah.
In two hours from the county town, Levi Bedford reined in his fourhorses at the front door of the Riverlawn mansion.