No Surrender! Part 20

"When you get near Nantes, keep close to the river, and enter the last large copse before you get there. Andre or Pierre are likely to be there first, and will be on the lookout for you. They will join me in the town and bring you orders when necessary, and will send two or three of you in, daily, to buy food for the rest.

"I can give you no orders beyond that. Now, I hope I shall meet you all, in three days' time, at your rendezvous.

"Pierre and Andre, you will, on the evening after you arrive, enter Nantes, following the river bank. You will go along to a spot where a church faces the river. Sit down on its steps and wait for us, until the clock strikes ten. If we are not there, return and come back the next evening. If we are still not there, you will know that some bad luck has befallen us; and the band will then disperse, and you will all find your way up home.

"I should advise you all to travel by night, when you have once crossed the Loire. In that way you will avoid any risk of being questioned."

The boys then dispersed, and Leigh returned to the priest's. He and Martin had already talked over their disguises, and had agreed that those of fishermen would be the most appropriate; but until they could obtain the necessary clothes, they would go in the attire of fairly well-to-do people in a country town.

"We should only have to put on a tricolour scarf, Jean, and should look like munic.i.p.al authorities."

"It would go against the grain to put that rag on," Martin said; "but your idea is a good one, and I would dress up as a general of the Blues, or as Robespierre himself, on such an errand as we are bound on.

"We cannot do better than go to Clisson. The place is in the hands of our people, and the village authorities will not dare to ask us any questions."

After dining with the cure, they mounted and rode to Clisson, arriving there at five o'clock in the afternoon. They went to the leader of the force there, as he was a friend of Jean's.

"I will send and get you the things," he said, when they told him the object of their visit. "It is just as well, if any of the people here are acting as spies for the Blues--which is likely enough--that they should not be able to give any description of you. We are all three about the same size, therefore I will go out and buy two suits.

"As to the scarves, I am more doubtful. I doubt if any shopkeeper here would admit that he had even a bit of tricolour ribbon in his possession."

"It will not matter about that," Martin said; "and, at any rate, when we get beyond the ground held by us, we shall find no difficulty whatever in getting a couple of c.o.c.kades of those colours.

"Thank you very much indeed," he went on. "Here are five louis. I have no doubt that you will be able to lay them out well for us.

But remember, please, that although we are all three the same height, I am some four or five inches bigger round the shoulders than Leigh; and want more room for my arms, also."

"I will remember," the other laughed. "Just let me pa.s.s this string round you, and then round Monsieur Stansfield, and tie two knots in it; and I will also measure you round the waist and leg."

In an hour he returned with one of his men, carrying two parcels.

"I had no difficulty in getting the clothes for your brother-in-law," he said, "but I had to go to two or three shops before I could get coat and breeches wide enough for you. What do you intend to do with your horses?"

"We shall ride into Nantes as we are, after nightfall, and shall put them up at a small inn. I know of one near the water. It is kept by a man who was at one time in my lugger, but he had his leg crushed in a storm, and had to have it taken off. He was a good sailor, so I set him up, and can rely upon him. He will get fishermen's clothes for us and, should we have to stay there any time, buy a boat and nets. We may want such a thing, badly."

The clothes were tried on, and found to fit fairly well. In our days the short-waisted coats with their long tails, and the waistcoats extending below the waist, would be deemed laughable; but as it was then the fas.h.i.+on among the middle cla.s.ses, and especially the Republicans, Jean saw nothing ridiculous in it, while Leigh smiled at the figures they cut. Both had bright yellow breeches and stockings, and low shoes.

They waited till midnight at Clisson, and then mounted again, and by morning they were within a mile or two of a ferry, a short distance above Nantes. They stopped at a small village, and there purchased two tricolour c.o.c.kades from the one shop it boasted, these forming conspicuous objects in the window, as a proof of the warm adherence of its owner to the Convention.

At the little cabaret they took breakfast, and saw that the horses were fed, then they rode on to the ferry. The boat was on the opposite side, and in half an hour it crossed. Then they took their places, and were ferried over. A party of soldiers were posted at the landing place.

"You are going to Nantes, I suppose, citizens?" the officer in command asked.

"We are. We come from Vallet, and are going to consult the commissary of the republic concerning some taxes that, as we consider, it is impossible for the town to pay, which the commissary there has imposed upon us."

"I should imagine that your errand is scarcely likely to meet with success," the officer said, with a light smile. "I hear the same complaints at Nantes, but have not heard that any remission has been made. Well, citizens, at any rate I can wish you luck on your errand."

It was still very early when they rode into Nantes, and but few people were about the streets. Trade was almost at a standstill.

The town, which had been strongly Republican, was at once deeply discontented with the crus.h.i.+ng taxation imposed upon it, and horrified at the constant executions that took place. Almost every house had soldiers billeted on it, as it was considered necessary to keep a large force there in order to overawe the south of Brittany and, if necessary, to send supports to the generals operating in the west of La Vendee.

There was scarcely any s.h.i.+pping in the river, and even the fishermen had almost given up plying their business; their best customers had fallen under the guillotine, and there was no demand for fish on fast days--for to practise any of the observances of religion was considered to be, in itself, a proof of hostility to the Convention. Therefore Jean and Leigh rode into the courtyard of the little inn without having attracted any attention, whatever.

Chapter 10: Preparations For A Rescue.

"I have no accommodation for you here, citizens," a voice said, as Jean Martin and Leigh rode into the little courtyard, and a man with a wooden leg came out from the side door of the inn.

"I think you might be able to manage for us, Brenon," Jean said.

"Mon Dieu! it is--"

Jean held up his hand sharply.

"Yes, it is I, Citizen Gallon, from Vallet. It is not often that I stir so far from home, but I had business here."

"Well, well, I will see what I can do for you, comrade; but as you know, I don't profess to take in horses. My clients come from the waterside, and generally my stable is full of their baskets and ropes. However, I will see what I can do. I will tie them up in that shed, for the present, and then clear out a stall for them afterwards."

The horses were led to a shed, enc.u.mbered with fis.h.i.+ng gear of all sorts.

"What madness has seized you, mon capitaine, to put your head into this lion's den?"

"I will tell you presently, Brenon, when we get inside. I am glad that you are able to take the horses in. We don't want to be stared at, or talked about. We have come along the river bank and, so far, we have been quite unnoticed."

"All the better, all the better; to be noticed here means to have one's head cut off. Now, I will take you to a little room upstairs, where there is no chance of anyone seeing you."

"Get us up, if you can, without our being noticed by your servants, Brenon. We shall be differently dressed when we come down again."

The man nodded.

"The boy is in the front room," he said. "There are three or four fishermen there, having their morning gla.s.s. I have no other servants. My wife does what is needful, for I was obliged to discharge the girl we had, everything has been so slack of late."

He led them up to a chamber looking on to the quay. Jean was puzzled at the man's manner, for he spoke in a confused and hesitating way. When he closed the door behind him, he stood rubbing his hands together nervously.

"Have you heard lately from Nantes, Monsieur Jean?"

"No, it is five weeks since I had any news; except, of course, what was known about the troops that were here. What is it, old friend?

Is there bad news?"

"There is terrible news," Brenon said, "so bad that I don't know how to tell you."

"Speak out, old friend. I have had one blow so heavy that I can scarcely be hurt more than I am."

"Well, then, monsieur, your father has been arrested and is in the prison; and you know what that means!"

"Father arrested!" Jean exclaimed; "on what grounds? He never expressed an opinion as to public affairs. That at heart he hated what has been going on, I know; but he never spoke strongly, even to me, and when I have heard his opinion asked, he has always replied that he was a trader, and that a man could not give his attention to business if he worried himself over politics. He attended to his trade, and left it to those who liked, to manage the government of the country.

"What of my mother and sister?"