Precious Bane by Mary Webb

Author:Mary Webb [Mary Webb]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-83-8217-176-1
Publisher: Ktoczyta.pl

chapter three: “The Best Tall Script, Flourished”

I MAY say I went over the distance to the town quicker than it’s been done this long while. I hid the carving-knife in the hedge, for fear of tripping over it. The apothecary’s was open, as I thought, for he was churchwarden, and couldna go agen the parson. I never saw the big green and red bottles look so beautiful, as if they were full of water from Paradise river. Inside there was a pleasant dusk, for the little window was so close-set with liniments and medicines, drenches for horses, simples for cows, plaisters, cordials, and bunches of yarbs that you couldna see at all. It smelt very pleasantly of peppermint, yarbs and soap, and the apothecary looked at me kindly over his spectacles and asked what the matter was.

“Why, sir, it’s murder, pretty nigh,” I says. “I do beseech you to shut up the shop and come, or such a man as this town never saw afore, nor will again, will be done to death.”

He pulled on his boots, good man, at that.

“What remedies must I bring?” he says. “You can tell me the rest as we run.”

So I told him summat for dog-bites and summat to bring a man round when he was near death. In a minute he clapped his hat on, and off we went.

“Take a sup of brandy,” he says. “You’re nigh done.”

But I told him, no, only if I fell behind he must hasten on to the bull-ring.

I fell back just afore we got to the carving-knife, and caught up again at the field gate. As we came in I could see an awful struggle going on, for we were only just in time. He’d finished but for Grimble’s dog.

As we came up there was a roar. He’d got the dog chained. Then there was another roar, and I saw (oh, my dear love!) that the dog had got him by the throat.

I caught Grimble’s shoulder.

“Take yer dog off!” I said.

Grimble never stirred.

A second of that grip and he as I loved so dear ud be dead and cold.

I rushed forrard, I, that had never wilfully hurt any living creature, and as the great beast stood reared with his teeth in my maister’s throat, I ran him through the heart.

The blood spurted, and the heavy body fell down all of a heap, and Kester with it.

I pulled him away and dragged the dog’s jaws apart. There seemed to be no life in Kester.

“Water!” I says to Huglet, who chanced to be nighest.

“Fetch water, you murderer! Brandy, Mister Camlet, please!”

He stooped over Kester.

“I mun burn the bite,” he said. “Best do it afore we bring him round. But how to heat the iron?”

I stood up. I cared for nobody. They couldna have been more feared if I’d been a savage queen.

“Six men pick up sticks!” I says. “And quick about it! And you, Grimble, find flint and tinder.”

“I hanna got one,” he muttered.

“Find one!” I screamed like a wild thing, holding up the knife.

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