第 17 页

him, and I doubt if he would be pleased if he knew that you bowed to

a person unknown to him and unknown, I presume, to yourself, save

that he has rendered you a passing service."

"He is a gentleman of the Court, I would have you know," she said

angrily.

"I do not know that that is any great recommendation if the tales one

hears about the Court are true," Cyril replied calmly. "I cannot say

I admire either his companions or his manners, and if he is a

gentleman he should know that if he wishes to speak to an honest

citizen's daughter it were only right that he should first address

himself to her father."

"Heigh ho!" Nellie exclaimed, with her face flushed with indignation.

"Who made you my censor, I should like to know? I will thank you to

attend to your own affairs, and to leave mine alone."

"The affairs of Captain Dave's daughter are mine so long as I am

abroad with her," Cyril said firmly. "I am sorry to displease you,

but I am only doing what I feel to be my duty. Methinks that, were

John Wilkes here in charge of you, he would say the same, only

probably he would express his opinion as to yonder gallant more

strongly than I do;" he nodded in the direction of the man, who had

followed them out of the cathedral, and was now walking on the other

side of the street and evidently trying to attract Nellie's

attention.

Nellie bit her lips. She was about to answer him passionately, but

restrained herself with a great effort.

"You are mistaken in the gentleman, Cyril," she said, after a pause;

"he is of a good family, and heir to a fine estate."

"Oh, he has told you as much as that, has he? Well, Mistress Nellie,

it may be as he says, but surely it is for your father to inquire

into that, when the gentleman comes forward in due course and

presents himself as a suitor. Fine feathers do not always make fine

birds, and a man may ruffle it at King Charles's Court without ten

guineas to shake in his purse."

At this moment the young man crossed the street, and, bowing deeply

to Nellie, was about to address her when Cyril said gravely,--

"Sir, I am not acquainted with your name, nor do I know more about

you save that you are a stranger to this lady's family. That being

so, and as she is at present under my escort, I must ask you to

abstain from addressing her."

"You insolent young varlet!" the man said furiously. "Had I a cane

instead of a sword I would chastise you for your insolence."

"That is as it may be," Cyril said quietly. "That sort of thing may

do down at Whitehall, but if you attempt to make trouble here in

Cheapside you will very speedily find yourself in the hands of the

watch."

"For Heaven's sake, sir," Nellie said anxiously, as several

passers-by paused to see what was the matter, "do not cause trouble.

For my sake, if not for your own, pray leave me."

"I obey you, Mistress," the man said again, lifting his hat and

bowing deeply. "I regret that the officiousness of this blundering

varlet should have mistaken my intentions, which were but to salute

you courteously."

So saying, he replaced his hat, and, with a threatening scowl at

Cyril, pushed his way roughly through those standing round, and

walked rapidly away.

Nellie was very pale, and trembled from head to foot.

"Take me home, Cyril," she murmured.

He offered her his arm, and he made his way along the street, while

his face flushed with anger at some jeering remarks he heard from one

or two of those who looked on at the scene. It was not long before

Nellie's anger gained the upper hand of her fears.

"A pretty position you have placed me in, with your interference!"

"You mean, I suppose, Mistress Nellie, a pretty position that man

placed you in, by his insolence. What would Captain Dave say if he

heard that his daughter had been accosted by a Court gallant in the

streets?"

"Are you going to tell him?" she asked, removing her hand sharply

from his arm.

"I have no doubt I ought to do so, and if you will take my advice you

will tell him yourself as soon as you reach home, for it may be that

among those standing round was someone who is acquainted with both

you and your father; and you know as well as I do what Captain Dave

would say if it came to his ears in such fashion."

Nellie walked for some time in silence. Her anger rose still higher

against Cyril at the position in which his interference had placed

her, but she could not help seeing that his advice was sound. She had

indeed met this man several times, and had listened without chiding

to his protestations of admiration and love. Nellie was ambitious.

She had been allowed to have her own way by her mother, whose sole

companion she had been during her father's absence at sea. She knew

that she was remarkably pretty, and saw no reason why she, like many

another citizen's daughter, should not make a good match. She had

readily given the man her promise to say nothing at home until he

gave her leave to do so, and she had been weak, enough to take all

that he said for gospel. Now she felt that, at any rate, she must

smooth matters over and put it so that as few questions as possible

should be asked. After a long pause, then, she said,--

"Perhaps you are right, Cyril. I will myself tell my father and

mother. I can assure you that I had no idea I should meet him

to-day."

This Cyril could readily believe, for certainly she would not have

asked him to accompany her if she had known. However, he only replied

gravely,--

"I am glad to hear that you will tell them, Mistress Nellie, and

trust that you will take them entirely into your confidence."

This Nellie had no idea of doing; but she said no further word until

they reached home.

CHAPTER VII

SAVED FROM A VILLAIN

"I find that I have to give you thanks for yet another service,

Cyril," Captain Dave said heartily, when they met the next morning.

"Nellie tells me a young Court gallant had the insolence to try to

address her yesterday in Cheapside, on her way back from St. Paul's,

that you prevented his doing so, and that there was quite a scene in

the street. If I knew who he was I would break his sconce for him,

were he Rochester himself. A pretty pass things have come to, when a

citizen's daughter cannot walk home from St. Paul's without one of

these impudent vagabonds of the Court venturing to address her! Know

you who he was?"

"No; I have never seen the fellow before, Captain Dave. I do know

many of the courtiers by sight, having, when we first came over,

often gone down to Whitehall with my father when he was seeking to

obtain an audience with the King; but this man's face is altogether

strange to me."

"Well, well! I will take care that Nellie shall not go abroad again

except under her mother's escort or mine. I know, Cyril, that she

would be as safe under your charge as in ours, but it is better that

she should have the presence of an older person. It is not that I

doubt your courage or your address, lad, but a ruffling gallant of

this sort would know naught of you, save that you are young, and

besides, did you interfere, there might be a scene that would do

serious harm to Nellie's reputation."

"I agree with you thoroughly, Captain Dave," Cyril said warmly. "It

will be far better that you or Mrs. Dowsett should be by her side as

long as there is any fear of further annoyance from this fellow. I

should ask nothing better than to try a bout with him myself, for I

have been right well taught how to use my sword; but, as you say, a

brawl in the street is of all things to be avoided."

Three or four weeks passed quietly. Nellie seldom went abroad; when

she did so her mother always accompanied her if it were in the

daytime, and her father whenever she went to the house of any friend

after dusk.

Cyril one day caught sight of the gallant in Tower Street, and

although he was on his way to one of his customers, he at once

determined to break his appointment and to find out who the fellow

was. The man sauntered about looking into the shops for full half an

hour, but it was apparent to Cyril that he paid little attention to

their contents, and was really waiting for someone. When the clock

struck three he started, stamped his foot angrily on the ground, and,

walking away rapidly to the stairs of London Bridge, took a seat in a

boat, and was rowed up the river.

Cyril waited until he had gone a short distance, and then hailed a

wherry rowing two oars.

"You see that boat over there?" he said. "I don't wish to overtake it

at present. Keep a hundred yards or so behind it, but row inshore so

that it shall not seem that you are following them."

The men obeyed his instructions until they had passed the Temple;

then, as the other boat still kept in the middle of the stream, Cyril

had no doubt that it would continue its course to Westminster.

"Now stretch to your oars," he said to the watermen. "I want to get

to Westminster before the other boat, and to be well away from the

stairs before it comes up."

The rest of the journey was performed at much greater speed, and

Cyril alighted at Westminster while the other boat was some three or

four hundred yards behind. Paying the watermen, he went up the

stairs, walked away fifty or sixty yards, and waited until he saw the

man he was following appear. The latter walked quietly up towards

Whitehall and entered a tavern frequented by young bloods of the

Court. Cyril pressed his hat down over his eyes. His dress was not

the same as that in which he had escorted Nellie to the cathedral,

and he had but small fear of being recognised.

When he entered he sat down at a vacant table, and, having ordered a

stoup of wine, looked round. The man had joined a knot of young

fellows like himself, seated at a table. They were dissipated-looking

blades, and were talking loudly and boisterously.

"Well, Harvey, how goes it? Is the lovely maiden we saw when we were

with you at St. Paul's ready to drop into your arms?"

"Things are going on all right," Harvey said, with an air of

consciousness; "but she is watched by two griffins, her father and

mother. 'Tis fortunate they do not know me by sight, and I have thus

chances of slipping a note in her hand when I pass her. I think it

will not be long before you will have to congratulate me."

"She is an heiress and only daughter, is she not, honest John?"

another asked.

"She is an only child, and her father bears the reputation of doing a

good business; but as to what I shall finally do, I shall not yet

determine. As to that, I shall be guided by circumstances."

"Of course, of course," the one who had first spoken said.

Cyril had gained the information he required. The man's name was John

Harvey, and Nellie was keeping up a clandestine correspondence with

him. Cyril felt that were he to listen longer he could not restrain

his indignation, and, without touching the wine he had paid for, he

hastily left the tavern.

As he walked towards the city, he was unable to decide what he had

better do. Were he to inform Captain Dave of what he had heard there

would be a terrible scene, and there was no saying what might happen.

Still, Nellie must be saved from falling into the hands of this

fellow, and if he abstained from telling her father he must himself

take steps to prevent the possibility of such a thing taking place.

The more he thought of it the more he felt of the heavy

responsibility it would be. Anxious as he was to save Nellie from the

anger of her father, it was of far greater consequence to save her

from the consequences of her own folly. At last he resolved to take

John Wilkes into his counsels. John was devoted to his master, and

even if his advice were not of much value, his aid in keeping watch

would be of immense service. Accordingly, that evening, when John

went out for his usual pipe after supper, Cyril, who had to go to a

trader in Holborn, followed him out quickly and overtook him a few

yards from the door.

"I want to have a talk with you, John."

"Ay, ay, sir. Where shall it be? Nothing wrong, I hope? That new

apprentice looks to me an honest sort of chap, and the man we have

got in the yard now is an old mate of mine. He was a ship's boy on

board the _Dolphin_ twenty-five years back, and he sailed under the

Captain till he left the sea. I would trust that chap just as I would

myself."

"It is nothing of that sort, John. It is another sort of business

altogether, and yet it is quite as serious as the last. I have got

half an hour before I have to start to do those books at Master

Hopkins'. Where can we have a talk in a quiet place where there is no

chance of our being overheard?"

"There is a little room behind the bar at the place I go to, and I

have no doubt the landlord will let us have it, seeing as I am a

regular customer."

"At any rate we can see, John. It is too cold for walking about

talking here; and, besides, I think one can look at a matter in all

lights much better sitting down than one can walking about."

"That is according to what you are accustomed to," John said, shaking

his head. "It seems to me that I can look further into the innards of

a question when I am walking up and down the deck on night watch with

just enough wind aloft to take her along cheerful, and not too much

of it, than I can at any other time; but then, you see, that is just

what one is accustomed to. This is the place."

He entered a quiet tavern, and, nodding to five or six

weather-beaten-looking men, who were sitting smoking long pipes, each

with a glass of grog before him, went up to the landlord, who formed