The Dilemma/Chapter LVII
CHAPTER LVII.
It seemed to the household of "The Beeches" to be yet early in the night, but in reality it was morning, although still quite dark, when its slumbering inmates were aroused by an alarm of fire. But Yorke, jumping up and huddling on some clothes, could make out soon among the hurried questions and answers exchanged between Mr. Peevor inside his room and the butler without, interrupted exclamations from Mrs. Peevor about the children, and general banging of doors and whisperings in the corridors, that the butler was trying to explain that it was not "The Beeches" which was on fire, but some place in the neighbourhood. Johnson the engineer, who slept outside, getting up to tend the furnaces, had seen the glare, and had awakened the butler to know if the engine should be sent; and the word "fire" having been caught up by somebody who heard the noise of Johnson's knocking at the door, the alarm had been spread over the whole house.
"Is there an engine on the place?" called out Yorke to Mr. Peevor; "of course you will send it, sir; I will go with it; I will be ready in a minute."
"And I too," cried Mr. Hanckes from his room; "I'll just get 'old of a few warm things first;" and in a few seconds the two gentlemen were hurrying downstairs, the shutting of doors as they passed along the corridor indicating that the fair inmates of the different chambers had all been aroused by the alarm, and were peering out in dishabille, to know what all the noise was about.
Issuing from the house, Mr. Peevor calling to them, as the butler opened the hall-door to let them out, to be sure and wrap up well or they would take cold, the gentlemen found that by Johnson's exertions the engine had already been brought out into the stable-yard, while harness was being put on a couple of horses. "It was I got Peevor to have an engine on the place," said Mr. Hanckes to Yorke as they stood waiting in the yard; "I can't abide fires. We had a fire in our warehouse once, with fifty thousand gallon of hoil all round — balsam to the tune of fifty thousand gallon all round, ready to blaze up. A nice little bonfire it would have made, I expect. That was a anxious moment, I do assure you; it was touch and go, and no mistake; and we just got it under in time. But we live and learn. I've took precaution enough since, and now we could flood the 'ole place — the whole place could be flooded in five minutes. And then I gave Peevor no peace till he bought an engine too. 'Peevor,' I says, 'you've got a sight of valuables, and everything a man of taste can want, except an engine to keep 'em safe; do you want to be burnt out of 'ouse and 'ome — do you want to be burnt out of house and home some fine night? You must just get a first-class hengine, that's what you must do, and lose no time about it.' And so he got me to choose a engine for him, and a real beauty it is, made to order with all the latest improvements, and it may be of use to the neighbours as well as to him. Not that we shall do much in the salvage line to-night, I expect; the fire seems too much gone for that;" and indeed from where they stood the glare could be seen in the sky, high above the yard-wall and the garden-trees beyond.
"Here comes the horses at last," continued Mr. Hanckes; "if our lads at the shop weren't a trifle smarter than Peevor's own people, it ain't much balsam we should turn out in the course of a twelve-month, nor yet much clarifying neither. Now then, which of you boys are coming? there's room for six besides Johnson and me. Colonel, you'll drive, I hope; it's a case of pace this is." And Yorke taking the reins jumped on the box; and the others, gardeners and stablemen, clambering up on the side seats, the engine rattled out of the yard, and along the avenue, faster than the horses had ever gone before.
As they entered the highroad at the end of the avenue the glare was so bright it seemed as if the fire must be close at hand; but the men said that there was no house near to "The Beeches" in that direction, and Yorke drove furiously along the road, waiting for the first opening to turn towards the fire.
A very few minutes' driving brought them to the point where the road turned down towards the river, the same down which he had made his eventful walk with Lucy, and there an opening in the line of hedge showed them the fire itself, the glare of which had been seen so high in the sky, blazing at the bottom of the hill, evidently on the bank of the river.
"'Tis the inn by the river," said one of the men; "'tis the River Belle; how it do blaze, to be sure!" and in another moment they lost sight of the actual flame, as Yorke turned the horses at a gallop down the steep hill.
The party were silent now, busy in holding on to their narrow seats, as the engine swayed to and fro with the furious driving, the glare becoming brighter every moment.
The bottom of the hill was soon reached, and, rattling round the corner, Yorke pulled up the horses short at the river-bank, as the truth of which he had an uneasy foreboding during the drive was now made clear. On the right, where the inn should be, all was dark and still: the burning house was on their left — it was Olivia's.
While the others jumping from their seats began to set about getting the engine ready to work, Yorke ran forward a few paces through the gate into the little garden.
The house was now all on fire, flames rushing out of the roof and windows. Before it on the lawn stood a few onlookers, gazing idly at the spectacle which lighted up their faces.
"You've a-come along with that there engine, I suppose, sir? " said one of the little group to Yorke, a stout elderly man, whom he at once recognized to be the landlord of the River Belle. "'Taint a bit of good pouring water on that there fire; you might pour the whole river on it now, and nothing come of it."
"And the family?" said Yorke, almost breathless with excitement, — "the lady and children?"
"Oh, they was got out all right, and the nuss too; but the gentleman ——"
"What gentleman?"
"Him as was staying at my place, over at the Belle yonder," said the man, pointing in the direction of the inn; "he saved the lady first and then the children; 'twas wonderful to see how he went up the ladder, and him with only one arm too. 'Twas an uncommon close thing, sure, for the house is that frail it didn't want much lighting; it was all in a blaze afore a soul heerd of it."
Yorke stood silent, and the man went on.
"Yes, 'twas a wonderful sight to see: there was the lady a-wringing of her hands at the winder, and the nuss a-screaming like a railway whistle; and we puts the ladder up agen' the winder, and the gentleman he runs up it, and helps the nuss down — hands her to our Joe — that's our pot-boy — who was close behind of him, and then he wants the lady to follow; I seed it all myself, for I was a-helping to keep the ladder steady; but the lady she calls out that the children are inside, and so the gentleman he goes in at the winder, and brings out the two children, fust one and then the other — for you see he couldn't carry but one at a time because of him only having one arm — brings them right out of the fire, as one may say — for it were burning very fierce even then, almost as fierce as you see it a-burning now — and hands them out to our Joe; and the poor little things, though they was in their night-shifts they wasn't even singed, for he covered them in his big cloak — only frightened a bit; and then the gentleman he wants the lady to step over the window-sill and on to the ladder, but she seemed all dazed like with fear; I could see her a-standing before the window looking as it might be at a ghost. Then the gentleman he calls out to Joe; 'Can you pass me up a bit of rope?' says he. So we soon gets a bit of rope and hands it to Joe, and he hands it to the gentleman, and the gentleman he tried for to tie the lady up with it, but couldn't manage it on account of his having only one hand, you see. So then Joe he goes up, and the two together they passes the rope and a sheet round the lady (who seemed all in a faint like), and lifts her out, and then they all come down, — fust the lady, and then Joe holding one end of the line, and the gentleman a-holding of the other, and every one a-shouting like mad — for there was quite a crowd round here — to see him so gallant and dextrous. And our Joe, he behaved uncommon well too — I must say that for our Joe. Well, sir, we all thought they was quite safe out of it, and a good job too, when just as they had got to the bottom, and the lady was on the ground, a great piece of the eaveboard — that there great piece as you see lying there — came down and struck the gentleman on the head, and he fell off the ladder, stunned like, as well he might be, for it must be a matter of half a hundred-weight if it's a pound. Oh, it were a pity! — it were indeed, and him having acted so gallant and noble."
Yorke had stood still, fascinated by the tale, listening to the man's recital. The words came with difficulty as he asked, "Was the gentleman much hurt?"
"Stunned complete, and his poor face was an awful objec'. The lady, she knelt down by him on the wet ground, and took hold of his hand in hers and began a-rubbing of it; but that wouldn't do no good, of course. We carried him in to the Belle, and my missis is a-looking after him, and Joe has run for the doctor; he ought to be back soon. His face is that ghastly — well, 'tis a sad thing, surelie, to save four lives and maybe lose of his own, and him having acted so gallant and noble."