The Battle of the Strong: A Romance of Two Kingdoms — Volume 1Parker, Gilbert
General
The Battle of the Strong: A Romance of Two Kingdoms — Volume 1
Parker, Gilbert
Anglo-French War, 1793-1802 -- Fiction; Channel Islands -- Fiction
The French leader called a sergeant to arrest him. Delagarde instantly
drew his sword and attacked Rullecour, but was cut down from behind by
the scimitar of a swaggering Turk, who had joined the expedition as aide-
de-camp to the filibustering general, tempted thereto by promises of a
harem of the choicest Jersey ladies, well worthy of this cousin of the
Emperor of Morocco.
The invaders left Delagarde lying where he fell. What followed this
oblique retribution could satisfy no ordinary logic, nor did it meet the
demands of poetic justice. For, as a company of soldiers from Grouville,
alarmed out of sleep by a distracted youth, hurried towards St. Heliers,
they found Delagarde lying by the roadside, and they misunderstood what
had happened. Stooping over him an officer said pityingly:
"See--he got this wound fighting the French!" With the soldiers was the
youth who had warned them. He ran forward with a cry, and knelt beside
the wounded man. He had no tears, he had no sorrow. He was only sick
and dumb, and he trembled with misery as he lifted up his father's head.
The eyes of Olivier Delagarde opened.
"Ranulph--they've killed--me," gasped the stricken man feebly, and his
head fell back.
An officer touched the youth's arm. "He is gone," said he. "Don't fret,
lad, he died fighting for his country."
The lad made no reply, and the soldiers hurried on towards the town.
He died fighting for his country! So that was to be the legend, Ranulph
meditated: his father was to have a glorious memory, while he himself
knew how vile the man was. One thing however: he was glad that Olivier
Delagarde was dead. How strangely had things happened! He had come to
stay a traitor in his crime, and here he found a martyr. But was not he
himself likewise a traitor? Ought not he to have alarmed the town first
before he tried to find his father? Had Dormy Jamais warned the
Governor? Clearly not, or the town bells would be ringing and the
islanders giving battle. What would the world think of him!
Well, what was the use of fretting here? He would go on to the town,
help to fight the French, and die that would be the best thing. He
knelt, and unclasped his father's fingers from the handle of the sword.
The steel was cold, it made him shiver. He had no farewell to make. He
looked out to sea. The tide would come and carry his father's body out,
perhaps-far out, and sink it in the deepest depths. If not that, then
the people would bury Olivier Delagarde as a patriot. He determined that
he himself would not live to see such mockery.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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