to watch Meg Merrilies’s incantations, had the appearance of some one who was concealing himself, being half hidden by the buttress behind which he stood. The Captain, for such he styled himself, made a sudden and startled pause, and thrust his right hand into his bosom between his jacket and waistcoat as if to draw some weapon. ‘What cheer, brother? you seem on the outlook, eh?’ Ere Mannering, somewhat struck by the man’s gesture and insolent tone of voice, had made any answer, the gipsy emerged from her vault and joined the stranger. He questioned her in an undertone, looking at Mannering — ‘A shark alongside, eh?’
She answered in the same tone of under-dialogue, using the cant language of her tribe — ‘Cut ben whids, and stow them; a gentry cove of the ken.’5
The fellow’s cloudy visage cleared up. ‘The top of the morning to you, sir; I find you are a visitor of my friend Mr. Bertram. I beg pardon, but I took you for another sort of a person.’
Mannering replied, ‘And you, sir, I presume, are the master of that vessel in the bay?’
‘Ay, ay, sir; I am Captain Dirk Hatteraick, of the Yungfrauw Hagenslaapen, well known on this coast; I am not ashamed of my name, nor of my vessel — no, nor of my cargo neither for that matter.’
‘I daresay you have no reason, sir.’
‘Tausend donner, no; I’m all in the way of fair trade. Just loaded yonder at Douglas, in the Isle of Man — neat cogniac — real hyson and souchong — Mechlin lace, if you want any — right cogniac — we bumped ashore a hundred kegs last night.’
‘Really, sir, I am only a traveller, and have no sort of occasion for anything of the kind at present.’
‘Why, then, good-morning to you, for business must be minded — unless ye’ll go aboard and take schnaps; you shall have a pouch — full of tea ashore. Dirk Hatteraick knows how to be civil.’
There was a mixture of impudence, hardihood, and suspicious fear about this man which was inexpressibly disgusting. His manners were those of a ruffian, conscious of the suspicion attending his character, yet aiming to bear it down by the affectation of a careless and hardy familiarity. Mannering briefly rejected his proffered civilities; and, after a surly good-morning, Hatteraick retired with the gipsy to that part of the ruins from which he had first made his appearance. A very narrow staircase here went down to the beach, intended probably for the convenience of the garrison during a siege. By this stair the couple, equally amiable in appearance and respectable by profession, descended to the sea — side. The soi-disant captain embarked in a small boat with two men, who appeared to wait for him, and the gipsy remained on the shore, reciting or singing, and gesticulating with great vehemence.
4 The outline of the above description, as far as the supposed ruins are concerned, will be found somewhat to resemble the noble remains of Carlaverock Castle, six or seven miles from Dumfries, and near to Lochar Moss.
5 Meaning — Stop your uncivil language; that is a gentleman from the house below.
Chapter 5
You have fed upon my seignories,
Dispark’d my parks, and fell’d my forest woods,
From mine own windows torn my household coat,
Razed out my impress, leaving me no sign,
Save men’s opinions and my living blood,
To show the world I am a gentleman.
Richard II.
When the boat which carried the worthy captain on board his vessel had accomplished that task, the sails began to ascend, and the ship was got under way. She fired three guns as a salute to the house of Ellangowan, and then shot away rapidly before the wind, which blew off shore, under all the sail she could crowd.
‘Ay, ay,’ said the Laird, who had sought Mannering for some time, and now joined him, ‘there they go — there go the free-traders — there go Captain Dirk Hatteraick and the Yungfrauw Hagenslaapen, half Manks, half Dutchman, half devil! run out the boltsprit, up mainsail, top and top-gallant sails, royals, and skyscrapers, and away — follow who can! That fellow, Mr. Mannering, is the terror of all the excise and custom-house cruisers; they can make nothing of him; he drubs them, or he distances them; — and, speaking of excise, I come to bring you to breakfast; and you shall have some tea, that — ’
Mannering by this time was aware that one thought linked strangely on to another in the concatenation of worthy Mr. Bertram’s ideas,
Like orient pearls at random strung;
and therefore, before the current of his associations had drifted farther from the point he had left, he brought him back by some inquiry about Dirk Hatteraick.
‘O he’s a — a — gude sort of blackguard fellow eneugh; naebody cares to trouble him — smuggler, when his guns are in ballast — privateer, or pirate, faith, when he gets them mounted. He has done more mischief to the revenue folk than ony rogue that ever came out of Ramsay.’
‘But, my good sir, such being his character, I wonder he has any protection and encouragement on this coast.’
‘Why, Mr. Mannering, people must have brandy and tea, and there’s none in the country but what comes this way; and then there’s short accounts, and maybe a keg or two, or a dozen pounds, left at your stable-door, instead of a d — d lang account at Christmas from Duncan Robb, the grocer at Kippletringan, who has aye a sum to make up, and either wants ready money or a short-dated bill. Now, Hatteraick will take wood, or he’ll take bark, or he’ll take barley, or he’ll take just what’s convenient at the time. I’ll tell you a gude story about that. There was ance a laird — that’s Macfie of Gudgeonford, — he had a great number of kain hens — that’s hens that the tenant pays to the landlord, like a sort of rent in kind. They aye feed mine very ill; Luckie Finniston sent up three that were a shame to be seen only last week, and yet she has twelve bows sowing of victual; indeed her goodman, Duncan Finniston — that’s him that’s gone — (we must all die, Mr. Mannering, that’s ower true) — and, speaking of that, let us live in the meanwhile, for here’s breakfast on the table, and the Dominie ready to say the grace.’
The Dominie did accordingly pronounce a benediction, that exceeded in length any speech which Mannering had yet heard him utter. The tea, which of course belonged to the noble Captain Hatteraick’s trade, was pronounced excellent. Still Mannering hinted, though with due delicacy, at the risk of encouraging such desperate characters. ‘Were it but in justice to the revenue, I should have supposed — ’
‘Ah, the revenue lads’ — for Mr. Bertram never embraced a general or abstract idea, and his notion of the revenue was personified in the commissioners, surveyors, comptrollers, and riding officers whom he happened to know — ‘the revenue lads can look sharp eneugh out for themselves, no ane needs to help them; and they have a’ the soldiers to assist them besides; and as to justice — you ‘ll be surprised to hear it, Mr. Mannering, but I am not a justice of peace!’
Mannering assumed the expected look of surprise, but thought within himself
