by G. A. Henty
CHAPTER II.
A DESPERATE DEFENCE.
After a short halt the French, having re-formed, changed their courseand marched along parallel to the fortifications. Captain Percival had,on returning from the sortie, joined the officer on the wall, andwatched alternately the movements of the French and the scene in thecity. This was one of wild excitement--the men cheering and shouting,shaking each other by the hand, placing their hats on their bayonets,and waving them in answer to the wild applause of the women on thehousetops. Some, however, were not content at being called back, insteadof being allowed to complete what they considered their partial victory;forgetting that they would have been met in a very different manner bythe troops in support, who would have been prepared for the attack andwould have reserved their fire until the last moment. As soon as itbecame evident that the French intended to make their next move againstthe gate of San Pancrazio, the greater portion of the volunteers marchedin that direction, Captain Percival accompanying them.
"You have done well so far," Garibaldi said, as he joined them. "Now itwill be our turn, and we shall have tougher work than you had, for theywill be prepared. I suppose your loss was not heavy?"
"Very trifling indeed; there were but three dead brought in, and therewere some ten or twelve wounded."
"It was just the sort of action to raise the spirits of the men, andthey are all in the humour for fighting. I shall therefore lead them outhere. But we cannot hope to succeed with a rush as you did--they will beprepared for us this time; the best men would be killed before wereached them, and the mass behind, but few of whom have guns, would besimply massacred."
The volunteers, who had undergone a rough sort of drill, were assembledbefore the French had concluded their preparations for an assault.Garibaldi appointed Captain Percival to take charge of the gate, havingwith him two hundred of the volunteers, behind whom were the armedcitizens. These clamoured to go out as before; but Garibaldi raised hishand for silence, and then told them that he would not lead them to auseless massacre against an army of well-armed soldiers.
"Your duty," he said, "is to remain here. If we have to fall back, youwill open to let us pass. We shall be ready to do our share whennecessary; but the defence of the gate will be for a while entrusted toyou. If the enemy force an entrance, fall upon them as you would uponwild beasts; their discipline and their arms would be of no greatadvantage in a hand-to-hand fight. Each man must fight as he would werehe protecting his family from a band of wolves--hatchet and pike mustmeet musket and bayonet, those who have knives must dive among thethrong and use them fearlessly. It is a great charge that we entrust toyou: we go out to fight; you will guard the city and all you hold dear."
A loud cheer showed that he had struck the right chord, and the mob drewback as he led out some five thousand volunteers. These advanced towithin musket-shot of the enemy, and then scattering, took shelterbehind houses and cottages, walls and ruins. The French cannon openedfire as the movement was going on. These were answered by the guns onthe walls, and as the French advanced a murderous fire was opened bytheir hidden foes. The battle raged for several hours. Sometimes theFrench advanced close up to the position held by the Garibaldians, butas soon as they did so, they were exposed also to the fire from the menon the walls; and in spite of Captain Percival's efforts, groups of menmade their way down the road and joined the firing line, lying downuntil the moment should come when they could spring like wild cats uponthe French.
Once or twice, when the assailants pressed back the Garibaldians inspite of their efforts, they found themselves presently opposed by acrowd that seemed to leap from the ground, and who, with wild shouts,rushed upon them so furiously that they recoiled almost panic-struckbefore so unaccustomed an enemy. Men were pulled down, and as Garibaldihad given strict orders that no French soldier should be killed exceptwhen fighting, these were carried back triumphantly into the city. Atlast General Oudinot, seeing that his troops were making no progress,and that, even if they could force their way into the city, they wouldsuffer terribly in street-fighting with such assailants, gave the orderfor his men to retire. This they did sullenly, while a roar oftriumphant shouting rose from the volunteers, the men on the walls, andthe crowd that covered every house and vantage-ground, from which a viewof what was passing outside could be obtained.
The Italian loss was only about a hundred men killed and wounded,whereas the French lost three hundred killed and wounded and fivehundred prisoners. So unprepared was the French general for such aresistance, that he had to undergo the humiliation of sending in toGaribaldi to ask him to supply him with surgeons to dress the wounds ofthe French soldiers. During the fighting the French artillery had donefar more injury to works of art in Rome than they had inflicted upon thedefenders, as the artillery played principally upon the dome of St.Peter's and the Vatican, both of which buildings were much damaged.
The joy caused in Rome by this victory was prodigious. Fires blazed thatnight on all the hills, every house was illuminated, the people throngedthe streets, shouting and cheering. They had, indeed, much to be proudof: five thousand almost undrilled volunteers had defeated seventhousand of the best troops of France.
"WALKING UP AND DOWN THE ROOM LIKE A CAGED LION"]
The French retired at once to Palo, on the road to Civita Vecchia.Garibaldi gave his troops a few hours' rest, and then moved out toattack the French, and took up a most advantageous position. His troopswere flushed with victory, while the French were cowed and dispirited;and he was on the point of attacking, when General Oudinot sent amessenger to treat for an armistice, and as a proof of his sincerityoffered to give up Ugo Bassi, a priest who had remained by the side of awounded man when the Garibaldians had for a moment retired. Garibaldiwould peremptorily have refused the request, for he was confident thathe should defeat and capture the whole of the French. Mazzini, however,with his two associates in the triumvirate, still clung to the hope thatthe French would aid them, and determined to accept the armistice,fearing that were the whole French army destroyed, the national feelingwould be so embittered that there would no longer be any hopewhatever of an alliance. Garibaldi protested, declaring that thearmistice would but enable the French reinforcements to arrive. Mazzini,however, persisted in the decision, and actually released the fivehundred prisoners in exchange for the priest.
The folly of this violent democrat sealed the fate of Rome. HadGaribaldi been permitted to carry out his plans, the French army wouldhave been destroyed or made prisoners to a man, and the enthusiasm thatsuch a glorious victory would have excited throughout all Italy wouldhave aroused the whole population to burst their bonds. Furious at thisact of folly, Garibaldi and his troops re-entered Rome. He was greetedwith enthusiasm by the people, but disliking such ovations, he slippedaway with Captain Percival to the latter's house. Professor Forli hadtaken no part in the fighting outside the walls, but stationing himselfwith the troops that manned them, had kept up a vigorous fire wheneverthe enemy were within gunshot. After the repulse of the second attack hehad returned home.
"The stupidity of these people is incredible," Garibaldi, who hadscarcely spoken a word since he had turned back towards Rome, burst out,waving aside the chair that the professor offered him, and walking upand down the room like a caged lion. "We held the French in the palms ofour hands, and they have allowed them to escape. A fortnight, and weshall have three times their number to face, and you know what theresult will be. I regard the cause as lost, thrown away by Mazzini--aman who has never taken part in a battle, who kept himself shut up inthe capital when the fighting was going on, a man of the tongue and notof action. It is too disgusting. I am a republican; but if a republicis to be in the hands of men like these, they will drive me to become amonarchist again. Carlo Alberto was weak, but he was at least a man; hestaked his throne for the cause, and when it was lost, retired. Mazzinistakes nothing, for he has a safe-conduct; if he loses, he will set toto intrigue again, careless who may fall or what may come to Italy, ifhis own wild
ideas cannot prevail; he desires a republic, but it is arepublic that he himself shall manipulate. Well, if it must be, it must.I am no statesman, but simply a fighting man. I shall fight till thelast; and the failure must rest upon the head of him who has brought itabout."
"It is a bad business," Captain Percival said quietly. "I thoroughlyagree with you, Garibaldi, in all you say; but as you know of old, I amnot much given to words. I began this thing, and shall go through withit. I think, as you do, the cause is lost; but every blow we strike willfind an echo in Italy, and a harvest will grow from the seeds some day.As to Mazzini and his two companions, I am not surprised. When you stirup muddy water, the scum will at first rise to the top. So it was in thefirst throes of the French Revolution, so it is here; the mob orators,the schemers, come to power, and there they remain until overthrown bymen of heart and action. After Robespierre and Marat came Napoleon, agreat man whom I acknowledge I admire heartily, enemy though he was ofEngland; after Mazzini Italy may find her great men. I know you do notlike Cavour; I admire him immensely. He is obliged to be prudent andcautious now; but when the time comes he will be regarded as thechampion of free Italy; and from what I have heard of him, the youngKing Victor Emmanuel will be a sovereign worthy of him."
"I hope it may prove so," Garibaldi said shortly; "at present theprospect does not seem to me a fair one. And you, professor?"
"I shall carry out my plans, and when Rome falls, as fall it doubtlesswill, I shall, if I escape, join my wife at Leghorn, and go andestablish myself in England. I have friends and correspondents there,and I have my son-in-law, who has promised me a home. Here I could notstay--I am a marked man; and the day that the Pope enters in triumph Ishould be consigned to a dungeon under St. Angelo."
"There should be no difficulty in escaping," Garibaldi said. "Withfifteen miles of wall it would need fifty thousand men to surround them;and the French will want all their strength at the point where theyattack us."
It was evident that some time must elapse before there would be anychange in the situation at Rome. Mazzini was sending despatches to LedruRollin and the French Assembly, imploring them to abstain frominterference that would lead to the destruction of the Roman Republic;and until these could be acted upon, or, on the other hand, fresh troopsarrived from France, matters would be at a standstill. In the meantime,danger threatened from another quarter; for the King of Naples waspreparing to move with ten thousand men to reinstate the Pope. Thisforce, with twenty pieces of cannon, had advanced as far as Albano.Three days after the battle, Garibaldi told Captain Percival that he wasabout to start that evening with four thousand men to meet theNeapolitan army, and asked him to accompany him.
"The troops will not be warned till an hour before we set out. It isimportant that no whisper shall reach the enemy as to our intentions orstrength."
"I shall be glad to go with you," the Englishman said. "After the wayyour men fought against the French, I have no doubt that they will makeshort work of the Neapolitans, however great the odds against them.Bomba is hated by his own subjects; and it is hardly likely that theywill fight with any zeal in his cause. They are very different foes fromthe French."
Accordingly, at eight o'clock on the evening of May 4th, CaptainPercival mounted and joined Garibaldi and his staff, and they rode toTivoli, halting among the ruins of Adrian's Villa.
The next morning scouts were sent off towards Albano, and returned inthe evening with the news that the Neapolitans were still there, andshowed no signs of any intention to advance, the news of the defeat ofthe French having, no doubt, greatly quenched King Ferdinand's ardour.
On the 8th the Garibaldians moved to Palestrina, and the generaldespatched a body of men to drive back the scattered parties ofNeapolitans who were raiding the country. This was done with littleloss, the Neapolitans in all cases retiring hastily when approached.Garibaldi had information that evening that orders had been given forthe main body of the enemy to advance and attack him on the followingday. The information proved correct; and before noon the Neapolitanforce was seen approaching, seven thousand strong. Garibaldi had nocannon with him, having set out in the lightest marching order. Hedistributed a portion of his force as skirmishers, keeping the rest inhand for the decisive moment. The Neapolitan artillery opened fire, andthe main body advanced in good order; but as soon as a heavy fire wasopened by the skirmishers, much confusion was observed in their ranks.Two other parties were at once sent out; and these, taking everyadvantage of cover, soon joined in the fray, opening a galling fire uponeach flank.
Several times the Neapolitans attempted to advance, urged on by theirofficers; but the skirmishing line in their front was strengthened fromthe reserves whenever they did so, until the whole of the Garibaldians,with the exception of a thousand of the steadiest troops, were engaged,and an incessant fire was maintained against the heavy ranks of theenemy, whose artillery produced but little effect against their almostunseen foes. For three hours the conflict continued; then, as theGaribaldian reserve advanced, the confusion among the enemy reached apoint at which it could no longer be controlled, and Ferdinand's armyfled like a flock of sheep. Garibaldi and his staff had exposedthemselves recklessly during the fight, riding about among their troops,encouraging them, and warning them not to be carried away by theirimpetuosity into making an attack, until the enemy were thoroughlyshaken and the orders issued for a general charge.
A heavy fire was maintained upon the staff by the Neapolitans; and itseemed to them that Garibaldi had a charmed life, for although severalof the staff fell, he continued to ride up and down as if altogetheroblivious of the rain of bullets. He did not, however, escape unscathed,being wounded both in the hand and foot. The fugitives did not haltuntil they had crossed the frontier into Neapolitan territory. TheGaribaldians remained for two or three days at Palestrina; and seeingthat the Neapolitans showed no signs of an intention to advance again,returned by a rapid march to Rome.
Mazzini's efforts had been to some extent successful. The FrenchAssembly declared that for France to aid in suppressing a peopledetermined to obtain their freedom was altogether in contradiction withthe condition on which the republic had been instituted, and sent M. deLesseps as an envoy to Rome. Napoleon, however, was of opinion that thereverse to the French arms must be wiped out, and on his own authoritydespatched large reinforcements to Oudinot.
To the indignation of Garibaldi's friends and of the greater part of thepopulation of Rome, it was found, on the return of the force to thecapital, that, in spite of the brilliant successes that had been gained,Mazzini and the demagogues had superseded him in his command, and hadappointed Colonel Roselli over his head. This step was the result oftheir jealousy of the popularity that Garibaldi had gained. His friendsadvised him not to submit to so extraordinary a slight; but the generalsimply replied that a question of this kind had never troubled him, andthat he was ready to serve, even as a common soldier, under any one whowould give him a chance of fighting the enemy of his country. On the14th the Neapolitan army again advanced and occupied Palestrina; and theRoman army, now ten thousand strong, marched out on the 16th. Garibaldi,with two thousand men, moved in advance. Although Roselli was nominallyin command of the army, he was conscious of Garibaldi's greaterabilities, and deferred, on all points, to the opinion of the man whowas regarded by all as being still their Commander-in-chief.
When within two miles of Velletri Garibaldi met a strong column ofNeapolitans; these, however, after but a slight resistance, took toflight, and shut themselves up in the town. Garibaldi sent back forreinforcements, but none arrived until too late in the day for theattack to be made; and in the morning it was found that the enemy hadevacuated the place, the soldiers being so cowed by their superstitiousfear of Garibaldi that the officers in vain attempted to rally them, andthey fled in a disorderly mob. The panic reached the other portion ofthe army, and before morning the whole had again crossed the frontier.Garibaldi, at the head of his division, followed them up; and receivingauthority to carry the wa
r into the enemy's country, was marching uponNaples, when he was recalled in all haste to aid in the defence of Rome,Oudinot having given notice, in spite of a treaty agreed upon between M.de Lesseps, on the part of the French Assembly, and Mazzini, that hewould attack Rome on Monday, June 4th.
Oudinot was, however, guilty of an act of gross treachery, for, relyingupon his intimation, the city was lulled into a sense of security thatno attack would be made until the day named, whereas before daybreak onthe 3rd his troops stole up and took possession of the buildings justoutside the gate of San Pancrazio, and, before the Roman troops couldassemble, captured the Porta Molle, after a desperate resistance by afew men who had gathered together on the alarm being given. The firingwas the first intimation that Rome received of the treacherousmanoeuvre of Oudinot. Again the church bells pealed out, and thepopulace rushed to defend their walls. Garibaldi felt that theoccupation by the enemy of two great villas, a short distance from thewall, would enable them to place their batteries in such close proximityto the San Pancrazio gate that it was necessary at all hazards torecapture them; and, with his brave Lombard volunteers, he sallied outand attacked the French desperately.
All day long the fight continued, both parties being strongly reinforcedfrom time to time; but in fighting of this kind the discipline of theFrench soldiers, and the military knowledge of their officers, gave thema great advantage over the Italians, who fought with desperate bravery,but without that order and community of effort essential in such astruggle. In vain did Garibaldi and Colonel Medici, the best of hisofficers, expose themselves recklessly in their endeavours to get theirmen to attack in military order and to concentrate their efforts at thegiven point; in vain did the soldiers show a contempt for death beyondall praise. When night fell the French still held possession of theoutposts they had gained, and the Italians fell back within the walls.
That night Garibaldi held a council of war, at which Captain Percivalwas present. The latter and Colonel Medici were strongly of opinion thata renewal of the fighting of that day would be disastrous. The loss hadalready been very great, and it had been proved that, however valiantlythey fought, the volunteers were unable to wrest the strong positionsheld by a superior force of well-disciplined men; for the French armynow numbered forty thousand, while that of the defenders was but twelvethousand, and of these more than half had joined within the last threeweeks. A series of such failures as those they had encountered wouldvery quickly break the spirit of the young troops, and would butprecipitate the end. These opinions prevailed, and it was decided thatfor the present they should remain on the defensive, maintaining a heavycannonade from the walls, and making occasional sorties to harass thebesiegers. In the meantime, the bridge across the Tiber should bedestroyed, and, if possible, mines should be driven to blow up thebatteries that would be erected by the French under cover of thepositions they held.
These tactics were followed out. The French engaged upon the erection ofthe batteries were harassed by a continuous cannonade. Sorties werefrequently made, but these were ere long abandoned; the loss suffered oneach occasion being so heavy that the troops no longer fought with thecourage and enthusiasm that had so animated them during the first day'sfighting. The attempt to blow up the bridge across the river by means ofa barge loaded with explosives failed, and none of the defenderspossessed the knowledge that would have enabled them to blow in thecentres of the arches. The mines were equally unsuccessful, as theFrench countermined, and by letting in the water formed a streamlet thatran into the Tiber, filled the Italian works, and compelled thedefenders to desist from their labours. Nevertheless, the progress ofthe siege was hindered; and although it was certain that the city, ifunaided, must fall ere long, Mazzini still clung to the hope that thetreaty made by Lesseps and carried by him to Paris would be recognised.This last hope was crushed by the arrival of a French envoy with thedeclaration that the French Government disavowed any participation inthe Convention signed by M. de Lesseps.
Even Garibaldi now admitted that further resistance would only bringdisaster upon the city, and cause an absolutely useless loss of life.Mazzini and his two colleagues persisted in their resolution to defendthe town to the last, even if the French laid it in ashes, and they evenreproached Garibaldi with cowardice. On the night of the 21st the Frenchgained possession of the San Pancrazio gate, having driven a passage upto it unnoticed by the defenders. They at once seized the wall andcaptured two bastions, after a desperate defence by Garibaldi. They thenplanted cannon upon these and began to bombard the city. Twelve gunswere also planted in a breach that had been effected in the wall, andterrible havoc was made among the villas and palaces in the western partof the city.
Roselli proposed that the whole defending force should join in an attackon the French batteries; but to that Garibaldi would not consent, on thegrounds that these could not be carried without immense loss, and that,even if captured, they could not be held against the force the Frenchwould bring up to retake them. Gradually the assailants pushed their wayforward, encountering a determined resistance at the capture of theVilla Savorelli. On the evening of the 27th no fewer than four hundredof its defenders fell by bayonet wounds, showing how desperately theyhad contested every foot of the advance. On the morning of the 30ththree heavy columns of French advanced simultaneously, and carried thebarricades the Romans had erected. Garibaldi, with the most determinedof his men, flung himself upon the enemy; and for a time the desperationwith which they fought arrested the advance. But it was a last effort,and Garibaldi sent to Mazzini to say that further resistance wasimpossible.
He was summoned before the triumvirate, and there stated that, unlessthey were resolved to make Rome a second Saragossa, there was nopossible course but to surrender. In the end the triumvirate resigned,issuing a proclamation that the republic gave up a defence which hadbecome impossible. The assembly then appointed Garibaldi as dictator,and he opened negotiations with the French. So enthusiastic were thecitizens that, in spite of the disasters that had befallen them, manywere still in favour of erecting barricades in every street anddefending every house. The majority, however, acquiesced in Garibaldi'sdecision that further resistance would be a crime, since it would onlyentail immense loss of life and the destruction of the city. For threedays negotiations were carried on, and then Garibaldi, with fourthousand men, left the city and marched for Tuscany, while the Frenchoccupied Rome. But in Tuscany the patriots met with but a poorreception, for the people, though favourable, dared not receive them.The French had followed in hot pursuit; the Austrians in Tuscany were onthe look-out for them; and at last, exhausted and starving, they tookrefuge in the little republic of San Marino. Here they were kindlyreceived; but an Austrian army was advancing, and the authorities of therepublic were constrained to petition that the Garibaldians, now reducedto but fifteen hundred men, should be allowed to capitulate, and thatthey themselves should not be punished for having given them refuge.
These terms were granted, but the Archduke insisted upon Garibaldihimself surrendering. The general, however, effected his escape with hiswife and twelve followers, embarking on board a fishing-boat, and theyreached the mouth of the Po; the rest of the band were permitted by theAustrians to return to their homes. Garibaldi, alone, with his dyingwife, was able to conceal himself among some bushes near the river; hiscompanions were all taken by the Austrians and shot. Nine other boats,laden with his followers, could not get off before the pursuingAustrians arrived; and a heavy fire being directed upon them, they wereforced to surrender. Garibaldi's faithful wife, who had been hiscompanion throughout all his trials, died a few days later. The Austrianpursuit was so hot that he was forced to leave her body; and after manydangers, he reached Genoa. He was not allowed to remain in Sardinia; andfrom thence took ship to Liverpool, and there embarked for New York.
Fortunately for Captain Percival, he and Professor Forli had, when onJune 27th Garibaldi himself recognised that all further resistance wasuseless, determined to leave the city. When he stated his dec
ision toGaribaldi, the latter warmly approved.
"You have done all that could be done, comrade," he said; "it would beworse than folly for you to remain here, and throw away your life. Wouldthat all my countrymen had fought as nobly for freedom as you have done,for a cause that is not yours!"
"I have a right to consider it so, having made Rome my home for years,and being married to the daughter of a Roman. However, we may againfight side by side, for assuredly this will not be the last time that anattempt will be made to drive out the despots; and I feel sure thatItaly will yet be free. I trust that you do not mean to stay here untilit is too late to retire. You must remember that your life is of thegreatest value to the cause, and that it is your duty, above all things,to preserve it for your country."
"I mean to do so," Garibaldi said. "As soon as all see that furtherresistance is useless, I shall leave Rome. If I find that any spark oflife yet remains in the movement, I shall try to fan it into flame; ifnot, I shall again cross the Atlantic until my country calls for me."
That evening Captain Percival and the professor left the town. Therewas no difficulty in doing so, as the whole French force wasconcentrated at the point of attack. The professor had exchanged hisordinary clothes for some of his companion's, and their appearance wasthat of two English tourists, when in the morning they entered Ostia, atthe mouth of the Tiber, by the road leading from Albano. As manyfugitives from Rome had, during the past month, embarked from the littleport, and it was no unusual thing for English tourists to find their waydown there, they had no difficulty in chartering a fishing-craft to takethem to Leghorn, it being agreed that they should be landed a mile ortwo from the town, so that they could walk into it without attractingany attention, as they would assuredly be asked for passports were theyto land at the port.
The voyage was altogether unattended by incident; and on landing theymade a detour and entered the town from the west, sauntering quietlyalong, as if they had merely been taking a walk in the country. Tenminutes later they entered the lodging that Madame Forli had taken,after staying for a few days at an hotel. Great indeed was the joy whichtheir arrival excited. The two ladies had been suffering terribleanxiety since the fighting began at Rome, and especially since it wasknown that the French had obtained possession of one of the gates, andthat a fierce struggle was going on. They were sure their husbands wouldkeep their promise to leave the city when the situation becamedesperate; but it was too likely that Captain Percival might havefallen, for it was certain that he would be in the thick of the fightingby the side of Garibaldi. It was, then, with rapturous delight that theywere greeted, and it was found that both were unharmed.
It was at once decided to start by a steamer that would leave the nextday. Both the ladies possessed passports: Muriel that which had beenmade out for her husband and herself on their return from their visit toEngland; while her mother had one which the professor had obtained forboth of them when the troubles first began, and he foresaw that it wasprobable he might have to leave the country. Therefore no difficulty wasexperienced on this score; and when the party went on board the next daythe documents were stamped without any questions being asked. Not theleast delighted among them to quit Leghorn was Frank, who was now fouryears old. He had found it dull indeed in their quiet lodging atLeghorn, and missed his father greatly, and his grandfather also, forthe professor was almost as fond of the child as its parents.
There were but few passengers besides themselves, for in the disturbedstate of Italy, and, indeed, of all Europe, there were very few Englishtourists in 1848; and even those who permanently resided in Italy hadfor the most part left. The passengers, therefore, were, with theexception of the two ladies and Captain Percival, all Italians, whowere, like Signor Forli, leaving because they feared that the liberalopinions they had ventured to express--when it seemed that with theaccession of a liberal pontiff to the papal chair better times weredawning for Italy--would bring them into trouble now it was but tooevident that the reign of despotism was more firmly established thanever.
The steamer touched at Genoa, and here the greater portion of herpassengers left, among them Professor Forli's party. They took train toMilan, where they stopped for a few days, crossed the Alps by the St.Gothard's Pass, spent a fortnight in Switzerland, and then journeyedthrough Bale, down the Rhine to Cologne, and thence to England. Theywere in no hurry, for time was no object to any of them, as they werewell supplied with money; and after the excitement and trouble of thelast few months, the quiet and absence of all cause for uneasiness wasvery pleasant to them. On their arrival at Tom Percival's town residencein Cadogan Place sad news awaited them. Only a fortnight before, hisyacht had been run down at sea, and he and the greater part of the crewhad perished.