Ten Thousand a-Year Volume Ii Part 10

"For mercy's sake, open the window; I feel suffocated," faltered Miss Aubrey. Mrs. Aubrey hastily drew up the window, and the cool refres.h.i.+ng breeze of evening quickly diffused itself through the apartment, and revived the drooping spirits of Miss Aubrey, who walked gently to and fro about the room, supported by Lady De la Zouch and Mrs. Aubrey, and soon recovered a tolerable degree of composure. The three ladies presently stood, arm-in-arm, gazing through the deep bay-window at the fine prospect which it commanded. The gloom of evening was beginning to steal over the landscape.

"How beautiful!" exclaimed Miss Aubrey, faintly, with a deep sigh.

"The window in the northern tower of the Castle commands a still more extensive view," said Lady De la Zouch, looking earnestly at Miss Aubrey, who, as if conscious of some agitating allusion, burst into tears. After standing gazing through the window for some time longer, they stepped back into the room, and were soon engaged in deep and earnest conversation.

For the last three weeks Mr. Aubrey had addressed himself with calmness and energy to the painful duties which had devolved upon him, of _setting his house in order_. Immediately after quitting the dinner-table that day--a mere nominal meal to all of them--he had retired to the library, to complete the extensive and important arrangements consequent upon his abandonment of Yatton; and after about an hour thus occupied, he went forth to take a solitary walk--a melancholy--a last walk about the property. It was a moment which severely tried his fort.i.tude; but that fort.i.tude stood the trial. He was a man of lively sensibilities, and appreciated, to its utmost extent, the melancholy and alarming change which had come over his fortunes.

Surely even the bluntest and coa.r.s.est feelings which ever tried to disguise and dignify themselves under the name of STOICISM--to convert into bravery, and fort.i.tude, a stupid, sullen insensibility--must have been not a little shaken by such scenes as Mr. Aubrey had had to pa.s.s through during the last few weeks--scenes which I do not choose to distress the reader's feelings by dwelling upon in detail. Mr. Aubrey had no mean pretensions to real philosophy; but he had still juster pretensions to an infinitely higher character,--that of a CHRISTIAN. He had a firm unwavering conviction that whatever befell him, either of good or evil, was by the ordination of the Almighty--infinitely Wise, infinitely Good;--and this was the source of his fort.i.tude and resignation. He felt himself here standing upon ground which was immovable.

To avert the misfortune which menaced him, he had neglected no rational and _conscientious_ means. To retain the advantages of fortune and station to which he had believed himself born, he had made the most strenuous exertions consistent with a rigid sense of honor. What, indeed, _could_ he have done, that he _had_ not done? He had caused the claims of his opponent to be subjected to as severe a scrutiny as the wit of man could suggest; _and they had stood the test_. Those claims, and his own, had been each of them placed in the scales of justice; those scales had been held up and poised by the pure and firm hands to which the laws of G.o.d, and of the country, had committed the administration of justice: on what ground could a just and reasonable man quarrel with or repine at the issue? And supposing that a perverse and subtle ingenuity in his legal advisers could have devised means for delaying his surrender of the property to the individual who had been solemnly declared its true owner, what real and ultimate advantage could have been obtained by such a dishonorable line of conduct? Could the spirit of the CHRISTIAN RELIGION tolerate the bare idea of it? Could such purposes or intentions consist for one instant with the consciousness that the awful eye of G.o.d was always upon every thought of his mind, every feeling of his heart, every purpose of his will? A thorough and lively conviction of G.o.d's moral government of the world secured Aubrey a happy composure--a glorious and immovable resolution.

It enabled him to form a true estimate of things; it extracted the sting from grief and regret; it dispelled the gloom which would otherwise have settled portentously upon the future. Thus he had not _forgotten the exhortation which spoke unto him, as unto a child: My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him_. And if, indeed, religion had not done this for Mr. Aubrey, what _could_ it have done, what would it have been worth? It would indeed have been that which dull fools suppose it--a mere name, a melancholy delusion. What hopeless and lamentable imbecility would it not have argued, to have acknowledged the reality and influence of religion in the hour of prosperity--and to have doubted, distrusted, or denied it in the hour of adversity? When a child beholds the sun obscured by dark clouds, he may think in his simplicity that it is gone forever; but a MAN knows that behind is the sun, magnificent as ever; and that the next moment, the clouds having rolled away, its glorious warmth and light are again upon the earth. Thus is it, thought Aubrey with humble but cheerful confidence, with the Almighty--who hath declared himself _the Father of the spirits of all flesh_--

"Behind a frowning Providence He hides a smiling face!

Blind unbelief is sure to err, And scan His works in vain!

G.o.d is His own interpreter, And He will make it plain!"

"Therefore, O my G.o.d!" thought Aubrey, as he gazed upon the lovely scenes familiar to him from his birth, and from which a few short hours were to separate him forever, "I do acknowledge Thy hand in what has befallen me, and Thy mercy which enables me to bear it, as from Thee."

The scene around him was tranquil and beautiful--inexpressibly beautiful. He stood under the shadow of a mighty elm-tree, the last of a long and n.o.ble avenue, which he had been pacing in deep thought for upwards of an hour. The ground was considerably elevated above the level of the rest of the park. No sound disturbed the serene repose of the approaching evening, except the distant and gradually diminis.h.i.+ng sounds issuing from an old rookery, and the faint low bubbling of a clear streamlet which flowed not far from where he stood. Here and there, under the deepening shadows cast by the lofty trees, might be seen the glancing forms of deer, the only live things visible. "Life," said Aubrey, to himself, with a sigh, as he leaned against the trunk of the grand old tree under which he stood, and gazed with a fond and mournful eye on the lovely scenes stretching before him, to which the subdued radiance of the departing sunlight communicated a tone of tender pensiveness; "life is, in truth, what the Scripture--what the voice of nature--represents it--a long journey, during which the traveller stops at many resting places. Some of them are more, others less beautiful; from some he parts with more, from others with less regret; but _part he must_, and pursue his journey, though he may often turn back to gaze with lingering fondness and admiration at the scene which he has last quitted. The next stage may be--_as all his journey might have been_--bleak and desolate; but, through _that_ he is only pa.s.sing: he will not be condemned to stay in it, as he was not permitted to dwell in the other; he is still journeying on, along a route which he cannot mistake, to the point of his destination, his journey's end--the sh.o.r.es of the vast, immeasurable, boundless ocean of eternity--HIS HOME!"

The deepening shadows of evening warned him to retrace his steps to the Hall. Before quitting the spot upon which he had been so long standing, he turned his head a little towards the right, to take a last view of an object which called forth tender and painful feeling--it was the old sycamore which his sister's intercession had saved from the axe. There it stood, feeble and venerable object! its leafless silvery-gray branches becoming in the fading light, dim and indistinct, yet contrasting touchingly with the verdant strength of those near it. A neat strong fence had been placed around it; but how much longer would it receive such care and attention? Aubrey thought of the comparison which had on a former occasion been made by his sister; and sighed heavily as he looked his last at the old tree. Then he slowly walked on towards the Hall. When about halfway down the avenue, he beheld two figures apparently approaching him, but undistinguishable in the gloom and the distance. As they neared him, he recognized Lord De la Zouch, and Mr. Delamere. Suspecting the object of their visit, which a little surprised him, since they had taken a final leave, and a very affecting one, the day before, he felt a little anxiety and embarra.s.sment. Nor was he entirely mistaken. Lord De la Zouch, who advanced alone towards Aubrey--Mr. Delamere turning back--most seriously pressed his son's suit for the hand of Miss Aubrey, as he had often done before; declaring, that though undoubtedly he wished a year or two first to elapse, during which his son might complete his studies at Oxford, there was no object dearer to the heart of Lady De la Zouch and himself, than to see Miss Aubrey become their daughter-in-law. "Where," said Lord De la Zouch, with much energy, "is he to look elsewhere for such an union of beauty, of accomplishments, of amiability, of high-mindedness?" After a great deal of animated conversation on this subject, during which Mr. Aubrey a.s.sured Lord De la Zouch that _he_ would say everything which he honorably could to induce his sister to entertain, or at all events, not to discard the suit of Delamere; at the same time reminding him of the firmness of her character, and the hopelessness of attempting to change any determination to which she might have been led by her sense of delicacy and honor,--Lord De la Zouch addressed himself in a very earnest manner to matters more immediately relating to the personal interests of Mr. Aubrey; entered with lively anxiety into all his future plans and purposes; and once more pressed upon him the acceptance of most munificent offers of pecuniary a.s.sistance, which, with many fervent expressions of grat.i.tude, Aubrey again declined. But he pledged himself to communicate freely with Lord De la Zouch, in the event of an occasion arising for such a.s.sistance as his Lords.h.i.+p had already so generously volunteered. By this time Mr. Delamere had joined them, regarding Mr.

Aubrey with infinite earnestness and apprehension. All, however, he said, was--and in a hurried manner to his father--"My mother is waiting for you in the carriage, and wishes that we should immediately return."

Lord De la Zouch and his son again took leave of Mr. Aubrey. "Remember, my dear Aubrey, remember the pledges you have repeated this evening,"

said the former. "I do, I will!" replied Mr. Aubrey, as they each wrung his hands; and then, having grasped those of Lady De la Zouch, who sat within the carriage powerfully affected, the door was shut; and they were quickly borne away from the presence and the residence of their afflicted friends. While Mr. Aubrey stood gazing after them, with folded arms, in an att.i.tude of melancholy abstraction, at the Hall door, he was accosted by Dr. Tatham, who had come to him from the library, where he had been, till a short time before, busily engaged reducing into writing various matters which had been the subject of conversation between himself and Mr. Aubrey during the day.

"I am afraid, my dear friend," said the doctor, "that there is a painful but interesting scene awaiting you. You will not, I am sure, forbear to gratify, by your momentary presence in the servants' hall, a body of your tenantry, who are there a.s.sembled, having come to pay you--good souls!--their parting respects."

"I would really rather be spared the painful scene," said Mr. Aubrey, with emotion. "I am nearly unnerved as it is! Cannot you bid them adieu, in my name? and say G.o.d bless them!"

"You _must_ come, my dear friend! If it _be_ painful, it will be but for a moment; and the recollection of their hearty and humble expressions of affection and respect will be pleasant hereafter. Poor souls!" he added with not a little emotion, "you should see how crowded is Mr. Griffiths'

room with the presents they have each brought you, and which would surely keep your whole establishment for months!--Cheeses, tongues, hams, bacon, and I know not what beside!"

"Come, Doctor," said Mr. Aubrey, quickly, and with evidently a great effort, "I will see them, my humble and worthy friends! if it _be_ but for a moment; but I would rather have been spared the scene." He followed Dr. Tatham into the s.p.a.cious servants' hall, which he found nearly filled by some forty or fifty of his late tenantry, who, as he entered, rose in troubled silence to receive him. There were lights, by which a hurried glance sufficed to show him the deep sorrow visible in their countenances. "Well, sir," commenced one of them, after a moment's hesitation--he seemed to have been chosen the spokesman of those present--"we've come to tak' our leave; and a sad time it be for all of us, and it may be, sir, for you." He paused, and added abruptly--"I thought I could have said a word or two, sir, in the name of all of us, but I've clean forgotten all; and I wish we could all forget that we were come to part with you, sir;--but we sha'n't--no, never!--we shall never see your like again, sir! G.o.d help you, sir!" Again he paused, and struggled hard to conceal his emotions. Then he tried to say something further, but his voice failed him.

"Squire, it may be law; but it be not justice, we all do think, that hath taken Yatton from you, that was born to it," said one, who stood next to him who had first spoken. "Who ever heard o' a scratch in a bit of paper signifying the loss o' so much? It never were heard of afore, sir, an' cannot be right!"

"You'll forgive me, Squire," said another, "but we shall never tak' to t'new one that's coming after you!"

"My worthy--my dear friends," commenced Mr. Aubrey, with melancholy and forced composure, as he stood beside Dr. Tatham, "this is a sad trial to me--one which I had not expected, and am quite unprepared for. I have had lately to go through many very painful scenes; but few more so than the present. My dear friends, I can only say from my heart, G.o.d bless you all! I shall never forget you, whom I have always respected, and indeed been very proud of, as my tenantry, and whom I now, of course, look at as my friends only. We shall _never_ forget you"----

"Lord Almighty bless you, sir, and Madam and Miss, and little Miss--and the little squire!" said a voice, in a vehement manner, from amid the throng, in tones which went to Mr. Aubrey's heart. His lips quivered, and he ceased speaking for some moments. At length he resumed.

"You see my feelings are a little shaken by the sufferings which I have gone through. I have only a word more to say to you. Providence has seen fit, my friends, to deprive me of that which I had deemed to be my birthright. G.o.d is good and wise; and I bow, as we must all bow, to His will with reverence and resignation. And also, my dear friends, let us always submit cheerfully to the laws under which we live. We must not quarrel with their decision, merely because it happens to be adverse to our own wishes. I, from my heart--and so must you, from yours--acknowledge a firm, unshaken allegiance to the laws; they are ordained by G.o.d, and He demands our obedience to them! society cannot exist without them"--He paused. "I have to thank you," he presently added in a subdued tone, "my worthy friends, for many substantial tokens of your good-will, brought with you this evening. I a.s.sure you sincerely that I value them far more"--he paused, and it was some moments before he could proceed--"than if they had been of the most costly and splendid description"----

"Lord, only hearken to t'squire!" called out a voice, as if on an impulse of eager affection, which its rough, honest speaker could not resist. This seemed entirely to deprive Mr. Aubrey of the power of utterance, and he turned suddenly towards Dr. Tatham with an overflowing eye and a convulsive quivering of the lips which showed the powerful emotions with which he was contending. The next moment he stepped forward and shook hands with those nearest. He was quickly surrounded, and every one present grasped his hands, scarcely any of them able to utter more than a brief but fervent "G.o.d bless you, sir!"

"I am sure, my friends," said Dr. Tatham, almost as much affected as any of them, "that you cannot wish to prolong so afflicting a scene as this.

Mr. Aubrey is much exhausted, and has a long journey to take early in the morning--and you had better now leave."

"Farewell! farewell, my kind and dear friends, farewell!--May G.o.d bless you all, and all your families!" said Mr. Aubrey; and, most powerfully affected, withdrew from a scene which he was not likely ever to forget.

He retired, accompanied by Dr. Tatham, to his library; where Mr.

Griffiths, his steward, was in readiness to receive his signature to various doc.u.ments. This done, the steward, after a few hurried expressions of affection and respect, withdrew; and Mr. Aubrey had then completed all the arrangements, and transacted all the business, which had required his attention before quitting Yatton: which, at an early hour in the morning, he was going to leave; having determined to go direct to London, instead of accepting any of the numerous offers which he had received from his friends in the neighborhood, to take up with them his abode for, at all events, some considerable period. That, however, would have been entirely inconsistent with the plans for his future life, which he had formed and matured. He left the whole estate in admirable order and condition. There was not a farm vacant, not a tenant dissatisfied with the terms under which he held. Every doc.u.ment, all the accounts connected with the estate, after having been carefully examined by Mr. Parkinson, and Mr. Aubrey, and Mr. Griffiths, were in readiness for the most scrupulous and searching investigation on the part of Mr. Aubrey's successor and his agents.

Mr. Aubrey's library was already carefully packed up, and was to follow him, on the ensuing day, to London, by water, as also were several portions of the furniture--the residue of which was to be sold off within a day or two's time. How difficult--how very difficult had it been for them to choose which articles they would part with, and which retain! The favorite old high-backed easy-chair, which had been worked by Miss Aubrey herself; the beautiful ebony cabinet, which had been given by her father to her mother, who had given it to Kate; the little chairs of Charles and Agnes--and in which Mr. Aubrey and Kate, and all their brothers and sisters--long since deceased--had sat when children; Mrs. Aubrey's piano; these, and a few other articles, had been successfully pleaded for by Mrs. Aubrey and Kate, and were to accompany or rather follow them to London, instead of pa.s.sing, by the auctioneer's hammer, into the hands of strangers. The two carriage-horses, which had drawn old Mrs. Aubrey in the family coach for many years, were to be turned to gra.s.s, for the rest of their days, at Lady Stratton's. Poor old Peggy was, in like manner, to have to herself a little field belonging to Dr. Tatham. Little Charles's pony, a beautiful animal, and most reluctantly parted with, was sent as a present, in his name, to little Sir Harry Oldfield, one of his play-fellows. Hector, the magnificent Newfoundland dog, was, at the vehement instance of Pumpkin, the gardener, who had almost gone upon his knees to beg for the animal, and declared that he loved the creature like a son--as I verily believe he did, for they were inseparable, and their attachment was mutual--given up to him, on his solemn promise to take great care of him. Then there was a poor animal which they hardly knew how to dispose of. It was a fine old favorite staghound, stone-blind, quite gray about the head, and so very feeble, that it could but just crawl in and out of its commodious kennel, and lie basking in the genial suns.h.i.+ne; wagging its tail when any one spoke to it, and affectionately licking the hand that patted it. Thus had it treated Mr. Aubrey, that very morning, as he stood by, and stooped down to caress it for the last time. It was, at his earnest request, a.s.signed to Dr. Tatham, kennel and all; indeed the worthy little doctor would have crammed the whole of his little premises in a similar way, in order to have the more "keepsakes" and "memorials"

of his friends. Miss Aubrey's beautiful Blenheim spaniel, with its brilliant black eyes, and long glossy graceful ears, was to accompany her to London.

As for the servants--the housekeeper was going to keep the house of her brother, a widower, at Grilston, and the butler was going to marry, and quit service. As for the rest, Mr. Parkinson had, at Mr. Aubrey's desire, written about them to Messrs. Quirk, Gammon, and Snap; and Mr.

Gammon had sent word that such members of the establishment as chose, might continue at Yatton, at all events till the pleasure of Mr.

t.i.tmouse, upon the subject, should have been known. All the servants had received a quarter's wages that morning from Mr. Griffiths, in the presence of Mr. Aubrey, who spoke kindly to each, and earnestly recommended them to conduct themselves respectfully towards his successor. Scarce any of them could answer him, otherwise than by an humble bow, or courtesy, accompanied by sobs and tears. One of them did contrive to speak, and pa.s.sionately expressed a wish that the first morsel Mr. t.i.tmouse ate in the house might choke him--a sally which received so very grave a rebuke from Mr. Aubrey, as brought the hasty offender to her knees, begging forgiveness; which, I need hardly say, she received, but with a very serious admonition. Many of them most vehemently entreated to be allowed to accompany Mr. Aubrey and his family to London, and continue in their service, but in vain. Mr. Aubrey had made his selection, having taken only his own valet, and Mrs.

Aubrey's maid, and one of the nursery-maids, and declaring that on no consideration would he think of being accompanied by any other of the servants.

There were some twenty or thirty poor old infirm cottagers, men and women, who had been for years weekly pensioners on the bounty of Yatton, and respecting whom Mr. Aubrey felt a painful anxiety. What could he do?

He gave the sum of fifty pounds to Dr. Tatham for their use; and requested him to press their claims earnestly upon the new proprietor of Yatton. He also wrote almost as many letters, as there were of these poor people, on their behalf to his friends and neighbors. Oh, it was a moving scene which had occurred at each of their little cottages, when their benefactors, Mr. Aubrey, his wife, and sister, severally called to bid them farewell, and receive their humble and tearful blessings! But it was the parting with her school, which neither Kate nor her brother saw any probability of being kept up longer than for a month or two after their departure, which had occasioned Kate the greatest distress.

There were several reasons, which will occur to the reader, why no application could be made, about the matter, from her, or on her account, to Mr. t.i.tmouse; even if she had not had reason to antic.i.p.ate, from what she had heard of his character, that he was a person unlikely to feel any interest in such an inst.i.tution. Nor had she liked to trouble or burden the friends whom she left behind her, with the responsibility of supporting and superintending her little establishment. She had nothing for it, therefore, but to prepare the mistress, and her scholars, for the breaking up of the school, within a month of her departure from Yatton. She gave the worthy woman, the mistress, a present of a five-pound note; and five s.h.i.+llings to each of the children. She felt quite unequal to the task of personally taking leave of them, as she had intended, and several times attempted. She therefore, with many tears, wrote the following lines, and gave them to Dr. Tatham, to read aloud in the school, when their good and beautiful writer should be far on her way towards London. The little doctor paused a good many times while he read it, and complained of his gla.s.ses.

"My dear little girls,--You know that I have already bid each of you good-by; and though I tried to say something to all of you at once, I was not able, because I was so sorry to part with you, and tell you that my little school must be given up. So I have written these few lines, to tell you that I love you all, and have tried to be a good friend to you. Be sure not to forget your spelling and reading, and your needle. Your mothers have promised to hear you say your catechisms; you must also be sure to say your prayers, and to read your Bibles, and to behave very seriously at church, and to be always dutiful to your parents. Then G.o.d will bless you all! I hope you will not forget us, for we shall often think of you when we are a great way off; and Dr. Tatham will now and then write and tell us how you are going on. Farewell, my dear little girls; and may G.o.d bless and preserve you all! This is the prayer of both of us--Mrs. Aubrey and "CATHERINE AUBREY.

"_Yatton, 15th May 18--._"

The above was not written in the uniform and beautiful hand usual with Miss Aubrey; it was, on the contrary, rather irregular, and evidently written hastily; but Dr. Tatham preserved it to the day of his death, and always thought it beautiful.

On the ensuing morning, at a very early hour, Dr. Tatham left the vicarage, to pay his last visit to friends whom it almost broke his heart to part with, in all human probability forever. He started, but on a moment's reflection ceased to be surprised, at the sight of Mr. Aubrey approaching him from the direction of the little churchyard. He was calm, but his countenance bore the traces of very recent emotion. They greeted each other in silence, and so walked on for some time, arm-in-arm, slowly, towards the Hall. It was a dull heavy morning, almost threatening rain. The air seemed full of oppression. The only sounds audible were the hoa.r.s.e clamorous sounds issuing from the old rookery, at some distance on their left. Mr. Aubrey and Dr. Tatham interchanged but few words, as they walked along the winding pathway to the Hall. The first thing which attracted their eyes, after pa.s.sing under the gateway, was the large old family carriage, standing opposite the Hall door, where stood some luggage, sufficient for the journey, ready to be placed upon it; the remainder having been sent on the day before to London. How mournful was the sight! On entering the Hall, they found its heart-broken inmates all up, and dressed. The children were taking their last breakfast in the nursery; Charles making many inquiries of the weeping servants, which they could answer only by tears and kisses. In vain was the breakfast-table spread for the senior travellers. There sat poor Kate, in travelling trim, before the antique silver urn, attempting to perform, with tremulous hand, her accustomed office; but neither she, nor Mrs. Aubrey, was equal to the task; which, summoning the housekeeper into the room, they devolved upon her, and which she was scarce able to perform. Mr. Aubrey and Dr. Tatham were standing there; but neither of them spoke. A short time before, Mr.

Aubrey had requested the servants to be summoned, as usual, to morning prayer in the accustomed room, and requested Dr. Tatham to officiate. As soon, however, as the sorrowful little a.s.semblage was collected before him, he whispered to Mr. Aubrey that he felt unequal to go through the duty with the composure which it required; and after a pause, he said, "Let us kneel down;" and in a low voice, often interrupted by his own emotions, and the sobs of those around him, he read, with touching simplicity and solemnity, the ninety-first psalm; adding the Lord's prayer, and a very tremulous benediction.

The bitter preparations for starting at an early hour, seven o'clock, were soon afterwards completed. Half smothered with the kisses and caresses of the affectionate servants, little Charles and Agnes were already seated in the carriage, on the laps of their two attendants, exclaiming eagerly, "Come, papa! come, mamma! What a while you are!"

Just then, poor Pumpkin, the gardener, scarce able to speak, made his appearance, his arms full of nosegays, which he had been culling for the last two hours--having one a-piece for each of the travellers, servants, and children, and all. The loud angry bark of Hector was heard from time to time, little Charles calling loudly for him; but Pumpkin had fastened him up, for fear of his starting off after the carriage. At length, having scarcely tasted breakfast, the travellers made their appearance at the Hall door. Kate and Mrs. Aubrey were utterly overcome at the sight of the carriage, and wept bitterly. They threw their arms pa.s.sionately around, and fervently kissed, their venerable friend and pastor, Dr. Tatham, who was grievously agitated. Then they tore themselves from him, and hastily got into the carriage. As he stood alone, bareheaded, on their quitting him, he lifted his hands, but could scarce utter a parting benediction. Mr. Aubrey, almost overpowered with his emotions, then grasped his hand, whispering, "Farewell, my dear and venerable friend! Farewell!" "The Lord G.o.d of thy fathers bless thee!"

murmured Dr. Tatham, clasping Mr. Aubrey's hand in both of his own, and looking solemnly upward. Mr. Aubrey, taking off his hat, turned towards him an unutterable look: then, waving his hand to the group of agitated servants standing within and without the door, he stepped into the carriage; the door was shut; and they rolled slowly away. Outside the park gates were collected more than a hundred people, to bid them farewell--all the men, when the carriage came in sight, taking off their hats. The carriage stopped for a moment. "G.o.d bless you all! G.o.d bless you!" exclaimed Mr. Aubrey, waving his hand, while from each window was extended the white hand of Kate and Mrs. Aubrey, both of which were fervently kissed and shaken by those who were nearest. Again the carriage moved on; and quickening their speed, the horses soon bore them out of the village. Within less than half an hour afterwards, the tearful eyes of the travellers, as they pa.s.sed a familiar turning of the road, had looked their last on Yatton!

NOTE _concerning the law of_ ERASURES _and_ ESTOPPELS.

I. ERASURES.--The question--What is the effect of an erasure, an interlineation, or alteration apparent in a material part of a deed above thirty years old, when offered in evidence?--has led to much discussion both among professional and general readers of this work, as well at home as abroad; and many communications upon the subject have been received by the author. Lord Widdrington at the trial, and subsequently he and the full court, held, in the case of _Doe_ d.

_t.i.tmouse_ v. _Jolter_, that such an erasure was fatal to the case of the party who relied on the instrument in which it was exhibited. In constructing this portion of the story, the author, aware of some difference of opinion on the subject among lawyers, relied upon the following pa.s.sage in a work of great and long-established authority, (BULLER'S _Nisi Prius_, p. 255,) in which the law is thus laid down--"If there be any [material] blemish, by razure or interlineation, in a deed, it ought to be proved, though it were above thirty years old, by the witnesses if living, and if dead, by proving the handwriting of at least one of the witnesses, and also the hand of the party, _in order to encounter the presumption arising from the blemishes in the deed_."

Such, also, is the law laid down in Lord Chief Baron Gilbert's Treatise on Evidence, (p. 89,) and the proposition appears adopted, and these two high authorities cited, in the last edition, (the ninth,) of that celebrated standard text-book, PHILLIPS _on Evidence_, p. 205, published since the former edition of this work. There is an impression, however, that this strict rule would not _now_ be acted upon; on the ground that the presumption resulting from a continued possession, in conformity with the effect of a deed with erasure or interlineation, is strong enough to overcome the presumption of forgery afforded by the alterations themselves. Still it is possible to foresee great danger arising out of the adoption of such a rule: for a man enjoying an estate in lands, less than one of fee simple, may alter the deed so as to give to himself that superior estate, and then, after a lapse of thirty years, produce the deed so altered, and thereby defeat the innocent party challenging his t.i.tle to the property. Possibly it would now be submitted as a question for a jury to decide, _whether the alteration had been made previously or subsequently to the delivery of the deed?_ for if _previously_, the deed remains valid and binding. A deed thirty years old is called "an ancient doc.u.ment," and is said to "prove itself"--_i. e._ to require no proof of its execution, provided it shall have been produced from a custody which may be reasonably and naturally explained, even though not the strictly proper legal custody.--See the late case of Doe _d._ Neale _v._ Sampler, 8 _Adolphus and Ellis' Rep._ 151; and Doe _d._ Wildgoose _v._ Pearce, 2 _Moody and Robinson_, 240. As to the point made by the Attorney-General, at the trial, that where the right is once vested--_i. e._ the instant after the execution of the deed--_such execution_ creating a t.i.tle to the land in question--that right and t.i.tle cannot be affected by any subsequent alteration of the deed;--it has been affirmed to be good law in a recent solemn decision of the Court of Exchequer, and confirmed in a Court of Error.--_See Davidson_ v. _Cooper_, 11 Meeson _v._ Welsley, 799-800. "The moment after the execution of the deed, it has become valueless," said Lord Abinger, "except as affording _evidence_ of the fact that it had been executed." In this case, in which the author was engaged, (in 1843,) the whole doctrine of erasures was thoroughly canva.s.sed; and it was decided, on error, that when an instrument, (whether under seal or not,) which is _the foundation_ of a right sought to be enforced, is altered in a material part, even by a stranger, without the privity of the party affected by it, such alteration makes the instrument utterly void. The Scotch law respecting erasures is exceedingly stringent; and even goes farther than that laid down by Lord Widdrington.

II. ESTOPPEL.--Both this doctrine, and that of erasures, as ill.u.s.trated by this work, formed the subject of elaborate investigation in an article in the _American Jurist_ for 1842, (vol. xxvii. pp. 50, et sec.) The question relating to estoppel, is thus stated there in abstract terms. "If the son and heir-apparent of a tenant in fee-simple, conveys the land thus held, and afterwards dies in his father's lifetime, is the heir of the father, who also makes his pedigree through the son, estopped by that son's conveyance?" The conclusion arrived at is, that, according to Lord c.o.ke, if such conveyance had been with warranty, the heir would be bound, if a.s.sets descended to him from the son.[A] But statute 4 and 5 Anne, c. 16 -- 22, makes void as against his heir all collateral warranties made by an ancestor who has no estate of inheritance, in _possession_; and the Act just pa.s.sed, (1844--stat. 7 and 8 Vict. c. 76 -- 5,) permitting the alienation of contingent interests, expressly declares that it shall not enable any heir to dispose of his _expectancy_.

[A] By "Warranty," is meant the clause with which deeds of feoffment formerly concluded, and by which the feoffor agreed that he and his heirs would "warrant, acquit, and forever defend the feoffee and his heirs against all persons." This old form has long been obsolete; and may be considered to have been, by two late statutes, abolished.

In this story an heir is represented as conveying away his expectancy; and the author has received an obliging communication on the subject, from one of the greatest conveyancers who ever lived--Mr. Preston--to the following effect. "The rule of law is--_Qui non habet, ille non dat: nemo potest plus juris in alium transferre, quam ipse habet._ Therefore a grant by an expectant heir, _simpliciter_, is void. But the doctrine of _estoppels_ (a 'cunning learning,' says Lord c.o.ke) affords exceptions to this general rule." A feoffment with warranty binds an heir, however, not by estoppel, but by _reb.u.t.ter_, "in order to avoid circuity of action, which is not favored by the law."--(Co. Litt. 265 a.) He might be estopped by a lease for years, and by matter of record--or by fine and recovery, before those methods of a.s.surance were abolished; but a conveyance by Lease and Release would not bind the heir, on the subsequent descent of the estate: for he had _no right at all_ at the time of the release, made, but that once in the ancestor; after whose decease the heir may enter in to the land against his own release.--(Co.

Litt. 265 a.) "The late vice-chancellor, Sir John Leach," says Mr.

Preston, "once decided that a release _did_ operate as an estoppel, in conformity with my argument before him; but Lord Lyndhurst on appeal, contrary to his own first impression, on Sir Edward Sugden's handing up to him my own Book on Conveyancing, as a _contre projet_ to my attempt to support the vice-chancellor's decision, overruled that decision."

CHAPTER V.

Rank is very apt to attract and dazzle vulgar and feeble optics; and the belief that such is its effect upon mankind generally, is unspeakably gratifying to a vain and ignorant possessor of that rank. Of the truth of one part of this observation, take as an ill.u.s.tration the case of t.i.ttlebat t.i.tmouse; of the other, that of the Earl of Dreddlington. The former's dinner engagement with the latter, his august and awful kinsman, was an event of such magnitude as to absorb almost all his faculties in the contemplation of it, and also occasion him great anxiety in preparing for an effective appearance upon so signal an occasion. Mr. Gammon had repeatedly, during the interval, instructed his anxious pupil, if so he might be called, as to the manner in which he ought to behave. He was--Heaven save the mark, poor t.i.tmouse!--to a.s.sume an air of mingled deference, self-possession, and firmness; not, on the one hand, to be overawed by the greatness with which he would be brought into contact, nor, on the other, unduly elated by a sense of his own suddenly acquired importance. He was, on the contrary, to steer evenly between the extremes of timorousness and temerity--to _aim_, at least, at that happy mean, so grateful to those able to appreciate the effort, and object, of those who had attained to it. t.i.tmouse was to remember that, great as was the Earl of Dreddlington, he was yet _but a man_--related, too, by consanguinity, to him, the aforesaid t.i.tmouse; who might, moreover, before many years should have elapsed, become himself Lord Drelincourt, and by consequence equally ent.i.tled, with the present possessor of that resplendent rank, to the homage of mankind. At the same time that the earl's advanced years gave him a natural claim to the reverence of his young kinsman--(whom his Lords.h.i.+p was about to introduce into the sublime regions of aristocracy, and also of political society)--t.i.tmouse might extract a few ingredients of consolation from the reflection, that his income probably _exceeded_, by a third, that of the Earl of Dreddlington. This is the sum of Mr. Gammon's _general_ instructions to his eager and excited pupil; but he also gave t.i.tmouse many minor hints and suggestions. He was to drink very little wine--(whereat t.i.tmouse demurred somewhat vehemently, and asked "How the d--l he was to _get his steam_ up without it?")--and on no account to call for beer or porter, to which plebeian beverages, indeed, he might consider himself as having bid a long and last adieu;--to say occasionally, only, "my Lord" and "your Lords.h.i.+p," in addressing the earl--and "your Ladys.h.i.+p," in addressing Lady Cecilia;--and, above all, never to appear in a hurry, but to do and say whatever he had to do and say calmly; for that the nerves of aristocracy were very delicate, and could not bear a bustle, or the slightest display of energy or feeling.