The Adventures of Harry Rochester: A Tale of the Days of Marlborough and EugeneStrang, Herbert
General
The Adventures of Harry Rochester: A Tale of the Days of Marlborough and Eugene
Strang, Herbert
Blenheim, Battle of, Blindheim, Bavaria, Germany, 1704 -- Juvenile fiction
They went straight to the sacristan of the Hervormde Kerk, whose cottage
was known to the Dutch youth. By the aid of this interpreter Fanshawe
explained to the old man that, being much interested in church clocks,
he would like to climb the tower and see the mechanism, at the same time
slipping a coin into the man’s hand. The sacristan was a feeble,
tottering old fellow, and was persuaded without difficulty to hand over
the key of the tower, on the promise of the English officer to return it
within an hour. Armed with the key, Fanshawe then hurried under the
boy’s guidance to the chief clock-maker’s in the town. His shop was not
yet open for business, but when he learnt that a clock was in urgent
need of attention he agreed to send a young apprentice to oblige the
Englishman. At twenty minutes to eight Fanshawe with the young
clock-maker ascended the church tower. The boy remained at the door.
The clock chimed the three-quarters.
"Pray God Harry arrive in time!" was Fanshawe’s thought as he returned
to the park gate.
The clock was too far off for any movement of the hands to be noted.
Had it been nearer, a close observer comparing with his own watch might
have seen that from this time the long hand of the clock advanced one
minute for every two.
It still marked ten minutes to eight when Sherebiah, with bound wrists,
came up under guard. He smiled serenely when, entering the park, he saw
Fanshawe, whose pale anxious looks betrayed his suffering.
"Don’t ’ee take on, now, Master Godfrey," he said. "Let ’em aim well and
ha’ done wi’t. Bless ’ee, I bean’t afeard. But, Master Godfrey, where
be Master Harry? To say good-bye, I mean."
"He—he couldn’t come, Sherry."
"Ah! Well, ’tis no sight for a man o’ peace, and he ha’n’t donned the
breastplate yet. Gi’ un my love and respect, an ’ee please, sir; and
axe un to remember the old gaffer." Fanshawe gripped his hand, and he
passed into the park. "Nay, I won’t ha’ my eyes tied up," he said to
one of the firing squad who approached to bandage him. "Must, must I?
Well, I’m not one to go agen the law at the last. Got a clean firelock,
mate? Ah! there’s the bell a-dingen. Tell Robins—nay, I was gwine to
forgive un, but I won’t; I’ll leave that for Them above."
By this time he was standing, with eyes bandaged, against the wall. He
ceased to speak; the last stroke of eight had already sounded from
several steeples; but the clock of the Hervormde Kerk still wanted seven
minutes of the hour. Fanshawe’s eyes were riveted on the hands; the
soldiers stood at ease, waiting.
Meanwhile, what of Harry?
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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