Finding himself at this supper, surrounded by faces with which hehad been so well acquainted in old times, Mr Willet recurred to thesubject with uncommon vigour; apparently resolved to understand itnow or never. Sometimes, after every two or three mouthfuls, helaid down his knife and fork, and stared at his son with all hismight--particularly at his maimed side; then, he looked slowlyround the table until he caught some person"s eye, when he shookhis head with great solemnity, patted his shoulder, winked, or asone may say--for winking was a very slow process with him--went tosleep with one eye for a minute or two; and so, with another solemnshaking of his head, took up his knife and fork again, and went oneating. Sometimes, he put his food into his mouth abstractedly,and, with all his faculties concentrated on Joe, gazed at him in afit of stupefaction as he cut his meat with one hand, until he wasrecalled to himself by symptoms of choking on his own part, and wasby that means restored to consciousness. At other times heresorted to such small devices as asking him for the salt, thepepper, the vinegar, the mustard--anything that was on his maimedside--and watching him as he handed it. By dint of theseexperiments, he did at last so satisfy and convince himself, that,after a longer silence than he had yet maintained, he laid down hisknife and fork on either side his plate, drank a long draught froma tankard beside him (still keeping his eyes on Joe), and leaningbackward in his chair and fetching a long breath, said, as helooked all round the board:
"It"s been took off!"
"By George!" said the Black Lion, striking the table with his hand,"he"s got it!"
"Yes, sir," said Mr Willet, with the look of a man who felt that hehad earned a compliment, and deserved it. "That"s where it is.
It"s been took off."
"Tell him where it was done," said the Black Lion to Joe.
"At the defence of the Savannah, father."
"At the defence of the Salwanners," repeated Mr Willet, softly;again looking round the table.
"In America, where the war is," said Joe.
"In America, where the war is," repeated Mr Willet. "It was tookoff in the defence of the Salwanners in America where the war is."
Continuing to repeat these words to himself in a low tone of voice(the same information had been conveyed to him in the same terms,at least fifty times before), Mr Willet arose from table, walkedround to Joe, felt his empty sleeve all the way up, from the cuff,to where the stump of his arm remained; shook his hand; lighted hispipe at the fire, took a long whiff, walked to the door, turnedround once when he had reached it, wiped his left eye with the backof his forefinger, and said, in a faltering voice: "My son"s arm-wastook off--at the defence of the--Salwanners--in America--wherethe war is"--with which words he withdrew, and returned no morethat night.
Indeed, on various pretences, they all withdrew one after another,save Dolly, who was left sitting there alone. It was a greatrelief to be alone, and she was crying to her heart"s content, whenshe heard Joe"s voice at the end of the passage, bidding somebodygood night.
Good night! Then he was going elsewhere--to some distance,perhaps. To what kind of home COULD he be going, now that it wasso late!
She heard him walk along the passage, and pass the door. But therewas a hesitation in his footsteps. He turned back--Dolly"s heartbeat high--he looked in.
"Good night!"--he didn"t say Dolly, but there was comfort in hisnot saying Miss Varden.
"Good night!" sobbed Dolly.
"I am sorry you take on so much, for what is past and gone," saidJoe kindly. "Don"t. I can"t bear to see you do it. Think of itno longer. You are safe and happy now."
Dolly cried the more.
"You must have suffered very much within these few days--and yetyou"re not changed, unless it"s for the better. They said youwere, but I don"t see it. You were--you were always verybeautiful," said Joe, "but you are more beautiful than ever, now.
You are indeed. There can be no harm in my saying so, for you mustknow it. You are told so very often, I am sure."
As a general principle, Dolly DID know it, and WAS told so, veryoften. But the coachmaker had turned out, years ago, to be aspecial donkey; and whether she had been afraid of making similardiscoveries in others, or had grown by dint of long custom to becareless of compliments generally, certain it is that although shecried so much, she was better pleased to be told so now, than evershe had been in all her life.
"I shall bless your name," sobbed the locksmith"s little daughter,"as long as I live. I shall never hear it spoken without feelingas if my heart would burst. I shall remember it in my prayers,every night and morning till I die!"
"Will you?" said Joe, eagerly. "Will you indeed? It makes me-well,it makes me very glad and proud to hear you say so."
Dolly still sobbed, and held her handkerchief to her eyes. Joestill stood, looking at her.
"Your voice," said Joe, "brings up old times so pleasantly, that,for the moment, I feel as if that night--there can be no harm intalking of that night now--had come back, and nothing had happenedin the mean time. I feel as if I hadn"t suffered any hardships,but had knocked down poor Tom Cobb only yesterday, and had come tosee you with my bundle on my shoulder before running away.--Youremember?"
Remember! But she said nothing. She raised her eyes for aninstant. It was but a glance; a little, tearful, timid glance. Itkept Joe silent though, for a long time.
"Well!" he said stoutly, "it was to be otherwise, and was. I havebeen abroad, fighting all the summer and frozen up all the winter,ever since. I have come back as poor in purse as I went, andcrippled for life besides. But, Dolly, I would rather have lostthis other arm--ay, I would rather have lost my head--than havecome back to find you dead, or anything but what I always picturedyou to myself, and what I always hoped and wished to find you.
Thank God for all!"
Oh how much, and how keenly, the little coquette of five years ago,felt now! She had found her heart at last. Never having known itsworth till now, she had never known the worth of his. Howpriceless it appeared!
"I did hope once," said Joe, in his homely way, "that I might comeback a rich man, and marry you. But I was a boy then, and havelong known better than that. I am a poor, maimed, dischargedsoldier, and must be content to rub through life as I can. I can"tsay, even now, that I shall be glad to see you married, Dolly; butI AM glad--yes, I am, and glad to think I can say so--to know thatyou are admired and courted, and can pick and choose for a happylife. It"s a comfort to me to know that you"ll talk to yourhusband about me; and I hope the time will come when I may be ableto like him, and to shake hands with him, and to come and see youas a poor friend who knew you when you were a girl. God blessyou!"
His hand DID tremble; but for all that, he took it away again, andleft her.