Few words were spoken, and those few were in a whisper, and the whole
party left the Hall in as noiseless a manner as possible. It was a mild
morning, and yet it was cold at that time of the morning, just as day is
beginning to dawn in the east. There was, however, ample time to reach
the rendezvous. It was a curious party that which was now proceeding towards the spot
appointed for the duel, the result of which might have so important an
effect on the interests of those who were to be engaged in it. It would be difficult for us to analyse the different and conflicting
emotions that filled the breasts of the various individuals composing
that party--the hopes and fears--the doubts and surmises that were given
utterance to; though we are compelled to acknowledge that though to
Henry, the character of the man he was going to meet in mortal fight was
of a most ambiguous and undefined nature, and though no one could
imagine the means he might be endowed with for protection against the
arms of man--Henry, as we said, strode firmly forward with unflinching
resolution. His heart was set on recovering the happiness of his sister,
and he would not falter. So far, then, we may consider that at length proceedings of a hostile
character were so far clearly and fairly arranged between Henry
Bannerworth and that most mysterious being who certainly, from some
cause or another, had betrayed no inclination to meet an opponent in
that manner which is sanctioned, bad as it is, by the usages of society. But whether his motive was one of cowardice or mercy, remained yet to be
seen. It might be that he feared himself receiving some mortal injury,
which would at once put a stop to that preternatural career of existence
which he affected to shudder at, and yet evidently took considerable
pains to prolong. Upon the other hand, it is just possible that some consciousness of
invulnerability on his own part, or of great power to injure his
antagonist, might be the cause why he had held back so long from
fighting the duel, and placed so many obstacles in the way of the usual
necessary arrangements incidental to such occasions. Now, however, there would seem to be no possible means of escape. Sir
Francis Varney must fight or fly, for he was surrounded by too many
opponents. To be sure he might have appealed to the civil authorities to protect
him, and to sanction him in his refusal to commit what undoubtedly is a
legal offence; but then there cannot be a question that the whole of the
circumstances would come out, and meet the public eye--the result of
which would be, his acquisition of a reputation as unenviable as it
would be universal. It had so happened, that the peculiar position of the Bannerworth family
kept their acquaintance within extremely narrow limits, and greatly
indisposed them to set themselves up as marks for peculiar observation. Once holding, as they had, a proud position in the county, and being
looked upon quite as magnates of the land, they did not now court the
prying eye of curiosity to look upon their poverty; but rather with a
gloomy melancholy they lived apart, and repelled the advances of society
by a cold reserve, which few could break through. Had this family suffered in any noble cause, or had the misfortunes
which had come over them, and robbed their ancestral house of its
lustre, been an unavoidable dispensation of providence, they would have
borne the hard position with a different aspect; but it must be
remembered, that to the faults, the vices, and the criminality of some
of their race, was to be attributed their present depressed state. It has been seen during the progress of our tale, that its action has
been tolerably confined to Bannerworth Hall, its adjacent meadows, and
the seat of Sir Francis Varney; the only person at any distance, knowing
anything of the circumstances, or feeling any interest in them, being
Mr. Chillingworth, the surgeon, who, from personal feeling, as well as
from professional habit, was not likely to make a family's affairs a
subject of gossip. A change, however, was at hand--a change of a most startling and
alarming character to Varney--one which he might expect, yet not be well
prepared for. This period of serenity was to pass away, and he was to become most
alarmingly popular. We will not, however, anticipate, but proceed at
once to detail as briefly as may be the hostile meeting. It would appear that Varney, now that he had once consented to the
definitive arrangements of a duel, shrunk not in any way from carrying
them out, nor in the slightest attempted to retard arrangements which
might be fatal to himself. The early morning was one of those cloudy ones so frequently occurring
in our fickle climate, when the cleverest weather prophet would find it
difficult to predict what the next hour might produce. There was a kind of dim gloominess over all objects; and as there were
no bright lights, there were no deep shadows--the consequence of which
was a sureness of effect over the landscape, that robbed it of many of
its usual beauties. Such was the state of things when Marchdale accompanied Henry and
Admiral Bell from Bannerworth Hall across the garden in the direction of
the hilly wood, close to which was the spot intended for the scene of
encounter. Jack Pringle came on at a lazy pace behind with his hands in his
pockets, and looking as unconcerned as if he had just come out for a
morning's stroll, and scarcely knew whether he saw what was going on or
not. The curious contortion into which he twisted his countenance, and the
different odd-looking lumps that appeared in it from time to time, may
be accounted for by a quid of unusual size, which he seemed to be
masticating with a relish quite horrifying to one unused to so barbarous
a luxury. The admiral had strictly enjoined him not to interfere on pain of being
considered a lubber and no seaman for the remainder of his
existence--threatened penalties which, of course, had their own weight
with Jack, and accordingly he came just, to see the row in as quiet a
way as possible, perhaps not without a hope, that something might turn
up in the shape of a _causus belli_, that might justify him in adopting
a threatening attitude towards somebody. "Now, Master Henry," said the admiral, "none of your palaver to me as we
go along, recollect I don't belong to your party, you know. I've stood
friend to two or three fellows in my time; but if anybody had said to
me, 'Admiral Bell, the next time you go out on a quiet little shooting
party, it will be as second to a vampyre,' I'd have said 'you're a liar'
Howsomever, d--me, here you goes, and what I mean to say is this, Mr
Henry, that I'd second even a Frenchman rather than he shouldn't fight
when he's asked"

"That's liberal of you," said Henry, "at all event"

"I believe you it is," said the admiral, "so mind if you don't hit him,
I'm not a-going to tell you how--all you've got to do, is to fire low;
but that's no business of mine.