Chronicles of Dustypore: A Tale of Modern Anglo-Indian SocietyCunningham, H. S. (Henry Stewart), Sir
History
Chronicles of Dustypore: A Tale of Modern Anglo-Indian Society
Cunningham, H. S. (Henry Stewart), Sir
British -- India -- Fiction; India -- History -- British occupation, 1765-1947 -- Fiction
There was only one thing left to do, one good, one hope left--to fly to
her husband's side, to pour out the pent-up stream of confession,
repentance, and love, and, if only God would spare him, never, never
leave him again!
When Boldero came in again Maud was herself again. 'I am better and
stronger now,' she said; 'the news came upon me too suddenly, but now I
am calm. I have settled what I ought to do, and you must help me. I
shall go down to him at once.'
'Indeed, you cannot do that,' Boldero said, decisively; 'it would be
excessively wrong.'
'Indeed, indeed I will!' cried Maud; 'I feel that I ought and must. What
is there to stop me?'
'It is out of the question,' said the other; 'you will be running into a
great deal of danger unnecessarily.'
'I have no strength to talk about it,' said Maud, 'but I must go or I
shall die, and you must help me. Do you mean me to stay quietly here,
and Jem dying by himself? My God, my God! why did I ever leave him?'
Here Maud threw herself on the sofa, and cried a longer, sadder, more
heartfelt cry than ever in her life before. Boldero went again into the
garden in despair, for it was in vain, he saw, to try to soothe her.
It ended, of course, in Boldero telegraphing for two relays of horses to
be sent out from the Camp, and sending out two more as fast as possible,
to get as far as might be on the way for the forced march of fifty miles
which Maud and he were, it was settled, at once to undertake. She was
to rest for a few hours, start at three o'clock, get on as far as they
could in the cool, rest through the day, and complete the remainder of
the journey the following night. They would be at the Camp, Boldero
reckoned, by the morning of the day after to-morrow.
It required all his official resources to organise such a journey, but a
Collector on his march can do anything; and Boldero, with whom Maud was
by a sudden reaction of sentiment rapidly being promoted from heroine to
saint, was determined that her journey, so far as in him lay, should be
as comfortable as money and care could make it.
CHAPTER XXXVIII.
FLIGHT.
In old days there were angels who came and took men by the hand,
and led them away from the City of Destruction. We see no white
winged angels now; but yet men are led away from threatening
destruction: a hand is put into theirs, which leads them gently
towards a calm and bright land, so that they look no more
backward.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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