THE ADIEUS OF WAVERLEY.
It was upon the evening of this memorable Sunday that Sir Everard entered the library, where he narrowly missed surprising our young hero as he went through the guards of the broadsword with the ancient weapon of old Sir Hildebrand, which, being preserved as an heir-loom, usually hung over the chimney in the library, beneath a picture of the knight and his horse, where the features were almost entirely hidden by the knight's profusion of curled hair, and the Bucephalus which he bestrode concealed by the voluminous robes of the Bath with which he was decorated.Sir Everard entered, and after a glance at the picture and another at his nephew, began a little speech, which, however, soon dropt into the natural simplicity of his common manner, agitated upon the present occasion by no common feeling.``Nephew,'' he said; and then, as mending his phrase, ``My dear Edward, it is God's will, and also the will of your father, whom, under God, it is your duty to obey, that you should leave us to take up the profession of arms, in which so many of your ancestors have been distinguished.Ihave made such arrangements as will enable you to take the field as their descendant, and as the probable heir of the house of Waverley; and, sir, in the field of battle you will remember what name you bear.And, Edward, my dear boy, remember also that you are the last of that race, and the only hope of its revival depends upon you; therefore, as far as duty and honour will permit, avoid danger---I mean unnecessary danger---and keep no company with rakes, gamblers, and Whigs, of whom, it is to be feared, there are but too many in the service into which you are going.Your colonel, as I am informed, is an excellent man---for a Presbyterian; but you will remember your duty to God, the Church of England, and the''---(this breach ought to have been supplied, according to the rubric, with the word _king;_ but as, unfortunately, that word conveyed a double and embarrassing sense, one meaning _de facto,_ and the other _de jure,_ the knight filled up the blank otherwise)---``the Church of England, and all constituted authorities.'' Then, not trusting himself with any further oratory, he carried his nephew to his stables to see the horses destined for his campaign.Two were black (the regimental colour), superb chargers both; the other three were active hacks, designed for the road, or for his domestics, of whom two were to attend him from the Hall: an additional groom, if necessary, might be picked up in Scotland.
``You will depart with but a small retinue,'' quoth the Baronet, ``compared to Sir Hildebrand, when he mustered before the gate of the Hall a larger body of horse than your whole regiment consists of.I could have wished that these twenty young fellows from my estate, who have enlisted in your troop, had been to march with you on your journey to Scotland.It would have been something, at least; but I am told their attendance would be thought unusual in these days, when every new and foolish fashion is introduced to break the natural dependence of the people upon their landlords.''
Sir Everard had done his best to correct this unnatural disposition of the times, for he had brightened the chain of attachment between the recruits and their young captain, not only by a copious repast of beef and ale, by way of parting feast, but by such a pecuniary donation to each individual, as tended rather to improve the conviviality than the discipline of their march.After inspecting the cavalry, Sir Everard again conducted his nephew to the library, where he produced a letter, carefully folded, surrounded by a little stripe of flox-silk, according to ancient form, and sealed with an accurate impression of the Waverley coat-of-arms.It was addressed, with great formality, ``To Cosmo Comyne Bradwardine, Esq.of Bradwardine, at his principal mansion of Tully-Veolan, in Perthshire, North Britain.These---By the hands of Captain Edward Waverley, nephew of Sir Everard Waverley, of Waverley-Honour, Bart.''
The gentleman to whom this enormous greeting was addressed, of whom we shall have more to say in the sequel, had been in arms for the exiled family of Stewart in the year 1715, and was made prisoner at Preston in Lancashire.He was of a very ancient family, and somewhat embarrassed fortune; a scholar, according to the scholarship of Scotchmen, that is, his learning was more diffuse than accurate, and he was rather a reader than a grammarian.Of his zeal for the classic authors he is said to have given an uncommon instance.On the road between Preston and London he made his escape from his guards; but being afterwards found loitering near the place where they had lodged the former night, he was recognised, and again arrested.His companions, and even his escort, were surprised at his infatuation, and could not help inquiring, why, being once at liberty, he had not made the best of his way to a place of safety; to which he replied, that he had intended to do so, but, in good faith, he had returned to seek his Titus Livius, which he had, forgot in the hurry of his escape.<*> The simplicity of this anecdote * Note A.<! p51> Titus Livius.
struck the gentleman, who, as we before observed, had managed the defence of some of those unfortunate persons, at the expense of Sir Everard, and perhaps some others of the party.
He was, besides, himself a special admirer of the old Patavinian;and though probably his own zeal might not have carried him such extravagant lengths, even to recover the edition of Sweynheim and Pannartz (supposed to be the princeps), he did not the less estimate the devotion of the North Briton, and in consequence exerted himself to so much purpose to remove and soften evidence, detect legal flaws, _et cetera,_ that he accomplished the final discharge and deliverance of Cosmo Comyne Bradwardine from certain very awkward consequences of a plea before our sovereign lord the king in Westminster.