In Honour's Cause Part 5

A roar of coa.r.s.e laughter followed this sally, which increased as another man shouted in imitation of military commands:

"Heads up; draw skewers; right forward; ma-rr-rr-ch!"

"Sc.u.m!" said Andrew contemptuously, as they left the little crowd behind.

"Is the city always like this?" said Frank, whose face now was as red as his companion's.

"Yes, now," said Andrew bitterly. "That's a specimen of a Whig mob."

"Nonsense!" cried Frank, rather warmly; "don't be so prejudiced. How can you tell that they are Whigs?"

"By the way in which they jumped at a chance to insult gentlemen. Horse soldiers indeed! Draw swords! Oh! I should like to be at the head of a troop, to give the order and chase the dirty ruffians out of the street, and make my men thrash them with the flats of their blades till they went down on their knees in the mud and howled for mercy."

"What a furious fire-eater you are, Drew," cried Frank, recovering his equanimity. "We ought to have stepped out into the road."

"For a set of jeering ruffians like that!" cried Andrew. "No. They hate to see a gentleman go by. London is getting disgraceful now."

"Never mind. There, I've seen enough of it. Let's get down to the river again, and take a boat; it's much pleasanter than being in this noisy, crowded place."

"Not yet. We've a better right here than a mob like that. It would be running away."

"Why, how would they know?" said Frank merrily.

"I should know, and feel as if I had disgraced myself," replied Andrew haughtily. "Besides, I wanted to see a gentleman."

"What, up that court?" said Frank, looking curiously at his companion.

"Yes, a gentleman up that court. There are plenty of gentlemen, and n.o.blemen, too, driven nowadays to live in worse places than that, and hide about in holes and corners."

"Oh, I say, don't be so cross because a lot of idlers would not make way."

"It isn't that," said the youth. "It half maddens me sometimes."

"Then don't think about it. You are always talking about politics. I don't understand much about them, but it seems to me that if people obey the laws they can live happily enough."

"Poor Frank!" said Andrew mockingly. "But never mind. You have got everything to learn. This way."

The boy was thinking that he did not want to learn "everything" if the studies were to make him as irritable and peppery as his companion, when the imperative order to turn came upon him by surprise, and he followed Andrew, who had suddenly turned into a narrower court than the one for which he had first made, and out of the roaring street into comparative silence.

"Where are you going?"

"This way. We can get round by the back. I want to see my friend."

The court was only a few feet wide, and the occupants of the opposing houses could easily have carried on a conversation from the open windows; but these occupants seemed to be too busy, for in the glimpses he obtained as they pa.s.sed, Frank caught sight of workmen in paper caps and dirty white ap.r.o.ns, and boys hurrying to and fro, carrying packets of paper.

But he had not much opportunity for noticing what business was being carried on, for they soon reached the end of the court, where a fresh group of men were standing listening to a speaker holding forth from an open window, and the lad fully expected a similar scene to that which had taken place in the main street.

But people made way here, and Andrew, apparently quite at home, turned to the left along a very dirty lane, plunged into another court, and in and out two or three times in silence, along what seemed to the boy fresh from quaint old Winchester a perfect maze.

"I say, Drew," he said at last, "you must have been here before."

"I? Oh yes! I know London pretty well. Now down here."

He plunged sharply now round a corner and into the wide court he had at first made for, but now from its northern end. So quick and sudden was the movement made that the two lads, before they could realise the fact, found themselves in another crowd, which filled this court from end to end. The people composing it were princ.i.p.ally of the rough cla.s.s they had seen grouped at the lower part, but fully half were workmen in their shirt sleeves, many of them with faces blackened by their occupation, while a smaller portion was well-dressed, and kept on moving about and talking earnestly to the people around.

"Too late," said Andrew, half to himself.

"Yes; we shall have to go round and reach the street farther along,"

said Frank quietly. "We don't want to push through there."

"But it's here I want to see my friend."

"Does he live in this place?"

"No; but he is sure to be there--in that house."

The lad nodded at a goodly sized mansion about half-way down the court; and even from where they stood they could make out that the place was crowded, and that something exciting was going on, the crowd in the court outside being evidently listeners, trying to catch what was said within, the murmurs of which reached the two lads' ears.

All at once there was a loud outburst of cheering, shouting, and clapping of hands, as if at the conclusion of a speech; and this was responded to by a roar of yells, hoots, and derisive cries from the court.

"Oh! too late--too late," muttered Andrew. "Silence, you miserable crew!"

But where heard his words pa.s.sed unnoticed, those around evidently taking them as being addressed to the people in the great tavern.

"Let's get away--quickly, while we can," said Frank, with his lips close to his companion's ear; but the lad shook him off angrily, and then uttered a cry of rage, for at that moment there was a loud crash and splintering of gla.s.s, the mob in the court, evidently under the direction of the well-dressed men, hurling stones, decayed vegetables, and rubbish of all kinds in at the windows of the tavern.

This was responded to by shouts of defiance and a rain of pots, gla.s.ses, and pails of water; and even the pails themselves were hurled down upon the heads of the people in the court, while a long oaken settle which came clattering down fell crosswise, the end coming within a few inches of a man's head.

"Oh, do let's go!" Frank very naturally said, gripping Andrew's arm hard.

But the lad seemed to have suddenly gone crazy with excitement, shouting and gesticulating with the rest, directing his words, which sounded like menaces, at the people crowding at the window of the house.

At this the mob cheered, and, as if in answer to his orders, made a rush for the door, surging in, armed for the most part with sticks, and as if to carry the place by a.s.sault.

"I can't go and leave him," thought Frank; and directly after--as he looked up the court toward the end by which they had entered, and down from which they had been borne until they were nearly opposite the house--"if I wanted to," he muttered, as he saw how they were wedged in and swayed here and there by the crowd.

The noise increased, the crowd beginning to cheer loudly, as crowds will when excited by the chance to commit mischief, and Frank remained ignorant of the reasons which impelled them on, as he watched the exciting scene. The sound of blows, yells of defiance, and the angry, increasing roar of those contending within the house, set his heart beating wildly. For a few minutes, when he found himself shut in by the people around, a feeling of dread came over him, mingled with despair at his helplessness, and he would have given anything to be able to escape from his position; but as he saw man after man come stumbling out bruised and bleeding, and heard the cries of rage uttered by those who hemmed him in, the feeling of fear gave place to indignation, and this was soon followed by an angry desire to help those who, amidst the cheers of their fellows, pressed forward to take the place of those who were beaten back.

It was at this moment that he saw two well-dressed men waving swords above their heads, and, white now with rage, Andrew turned to him.

"The cowards--the dogs!" he whispered. "Frank lad, you will be man enough to help?"

"Yes, yes," panted the boy huskily, with a sensation akin to that which he had felt when hurt in his last school fight, when, reckless from pain, he had dashed at a tyrannical fellow-pupil who was planting blow after blow upon him almost as he pleased.

"Draw your sword then, and follow me."

Frank made a struggle to wrench himself free, but it was in vain.