"You talk boldly to a caged man," said Barnaby, in anger. "If Iwas on the other side of the door and there were none to part us,you"d change your note--ay, you may toss your head--you would!
Kill the bird--do. Kill anything you can, and so revenge yourselfon those who with their bare hands untied could do as much to you!"
Having vented his defiance, he flung himself into the furthestcorner of his prison, and muttering, "Good bye, Grip--good bye,dear old Grip!" shed tears for the first time since he had beentaken captive; and hid his face in the straw.
He had had some fancy at first, that the one-armed man would helphim, or would give him a kind word in answer. He hardly knew why,but he hoped and thought so. The young fellow had stopped when hecalled out, and checking himself in the very act of turning round,stood listening to every word he said. Perhaps he built his feebletrust on this; perhaps on his being young, and having a frank andhonest manner. However that might be, he built on sand. The otherwent away directly he had finished speaking, and neither answeredhim, nor returned. No matter. They were all against him here: he might have known as much. Good bye, old Grip, good bye!
After some time, they came and unlocked the door, and called to himto come out. He rose directly, and complied, for he would not haveTHEM think he was subdued or frightened. He walked out like a man,and looked from face to face.
None of them returned his gaze or seemed to notice it. Theymarched him back to the parade by the way they had brought him, andthere they halted, among a body of soldiers, at least twice asnumerous as that which had taken him prisoner in the afternoon.
The officer he had seen before, bade him in a few brief words takenotice that if he attempted to escape, no matter how favourable achance he might suppose he had, certain of the men had orders tofire upon him, that moment. They then closed round him as before,and marched him off again.
In the same unbroken order they arrived at Bow Street, followed andbeset on all sides by a crowd which was continually increasing.
Here he was placed before a blind gentleman, and asked if he wishedto say anything. Not he. What had he got to tell them? After avery little talking, which he was careless of and quite indifferentto, they told him he was to go to Newgate, and took him away.
He went out into the street, so surrounded and hemmed in on everyside by soldiers, that he could see nothing; but he knew there wasa great crowd of people, by the murmur; and that they were notfriendly to the soldiers, was soon rendered evident by their yellsand hisses. How often and how eagerly he listened for the voice ofHugh! There was not a voice he knew among them all. Was Hugh aprisoner too? Was there no hope!
As they came nearer and nearer to the prison, the hootings of thepeople grew more violent; stones were thrown; and every now andthen, a rush was made against the soldiers, which they staggeredunder. One of them, close before him, smarting under a blow uponthe temple, levelled his musket, but the officer struck it upwardswith his sword, and ordered him on peril of his life to desist.
This was the last thing he saw with any distinctness, for directlyafterwards he was tossed about, and beaten to and fro, as though ina tempestuous sea. But go where he would, there were the sameguards about him. Twice or thrice he was thrown down, and so werethey; but even then, he could not elude their vigilance for amoment. They were up again, and had closed about him, before he,with his wrists so tightly bound, could scramble to his feet.
Fenced in, thus, he felt himself hoisted to the top of a low flight of steps, and then for a moment he caught a glimpse of the fightingin the crowd, and of a few red coats sprinkled together, here andthere, struggling to rejoin their fellows. Next moment, everythingwas dark and gloomy, and he was standing in the prison lobby; thecentre of a group of men.
A smith was speedily in attendance, who riveted upon him a set ofheavy irons. Stumbling on as well as he could, beneath the unusualburden of these fetters, he was conducted to a strong stone cell,where, fastening the door with locks, and bolts, and chains, theyleft him, well secured; having first, unseen by him, thrust inGrip, who, with his head drooping and his deep black plumes roughand rumpled, appeared to comprehend and to partake, his master"sfallen fortunes.
