Lippincott's Magazine of Popular Literature and Science, Volume 26, September, 1880

With no very pleasant remark on the old woman Adam turned to go on.

"Awh, you may rin," she cried, "but you woan't catch up they. They was bound for Nolan Point, and they's past there long afore now."

Then the two he had seen were they! An indescribable feeling of jealousy stung Adam, and, giving way to his temper in a volley of oaths against old Poll, he turned back, repassed her and went toward home, while she stood enjoying his discomfiture, laughing heartily at it as she called out, "I hears 'ee. Swear away! I don't mind yer cusses, not I. Better hear they than be deef."

CHAPTER XXIX

"Joan, you needn't expect me till you see me"—Joan turned quickly round to see Adam at the door, looking angry and determined—"and you can tell Eve from me that as it seems all one to her whatever companion she has, I don't see any need for forcing myself where I am told I should only be one in the way."

"Adam—" But the door was already slammed, and Joan again left in possession of the kitchen.—"Now, there 'tis," she said in a tone of vexation, "just as I thought: a reg'lar piece o' work made all out o' nothin'. Drabbit the maid! If her's got the man her wants, why can't her study un a bit? But somehow there's bin a crooked stick lyin' in her path all day to-day: her's nipped about somethin', I'm positive sure o' that; and they all just come home too, and everythin', and now to be at daggers—drawn with one 'nother! 'Tis terrible, 'tis."

Joan's reflections, interrupted by the necessary attention which her cakes and pasties made upon her, lasted over some considerable time, and they had not yet come to an end when two of the principal objects of them presented themselves before her. "Why, wherever have 'ee bin to?" she said peevishly. "Whatever made 'ee stay away like this for—actin' so foolish, when you knaws, both of 'ee, what a poor temper Adam's got if anythin' goes contrary with un?"

Jerrem shrugged his shoulders, while Eve, at once assuming an injured air for such an unmerited attack, said, "Really, Joan, I don't know what you mean. Old Poll Potter has just been telling us that Adam came flying and fuming up her way, wanting to know if she'd seen us, and then, when she said where we'd gone to, he used the most dreadful language to her—I'm sure I don't know for what reason. He chose to go out without me this morning."

"But that was 'bout business," said Joan.

"Oh, business!" repeated Eve. "Business is a very convenient word when you don't want to tell a person what your real errand is. Not that I want to pry into Adam's secrets—far from it. He's quite welcome to keep what he likes from me, only I'd rather he wouldn't tell me half things. I like to know all or none."

Joan looked mystified, and Jerrem, seeing she did not know what to say, came to the rescue. "I'm sure I'm very vexed if I've been the cause of anything o' this, Eve," he said humbly.

"You needn't be at all vexed: it's nothing at all to do with you. You asked me to go, and I said yes: if I hadn't wanted to go I should have said no. Any one would think I'd committed a crime, instead of taking a simple walk, with no other fault than not happening to return home at the very same minute that it suited Adam to come back at."

"But how is it he's a seed you if you haven't a seed he?" said Joan, fairly puzzled by this game of cross-purposes. "He came home all right 'nuf, and then went off to see whereabouts he could find 'ee to; and 'bout quarter'n hour after back he comes in a reg'lar pelt, and says, 'You tell Eve,' he says, 'that I'm not goin' to foace myself where I'm told I sha'n't be wanted.' Awh, my dear, he'd seed 'ee somewheres," she continued in answer to Eve's shrug of bewilderment: "I could tell that so soon as iver I'd clapped eyes on un."

"And where's he off to now?" said Eve, determined to have an immediate settlement of her wrongs.

"I can't tell: he just flung they words at me and was gone."

Eve said no more, but with the apparent intention of taking off her hat went up stairs, while Joan, bidding Jerrem go and see if Uncle Zebedee was roused up yet, returned to her previous occupation of preparing the tea. When it was ready she called out, "Come 'long, Eve;" but no answer was returned. "Tay's ready, my dear." Still no reply.—"She can't ha' gone out agen?" thought Joan, mounting the stairs to ascertain the cause of the silence, which was soon explained by the sight of Eve flung down on the bed, with her head buried in the pillow.—"Now, whatever be doin' this for?" exclaimed Joan, bending down and discovering that Eve was sobbing as if her heart would break. "Awh, doan't cry now, there's a dear: 't 'ull all come straight agen. Why, now, you'll see Adam 'ull be back in no time. 'Twas only through bein' baulked when he'd a come back o' purpose to take 'ee out."

"How was I to know that?" sobbed Eve.

"No, o' course you didn't, and that's what I told un. But, lors! 'tis in the nature o' men to be jealous o' one 'nother, and with Adam more partickler o' Jerrem; so for the future you must humor un a bit, 'cos there's things atwixt they two you doan't know nothin' of, and so can't allays tell when the shoe's pinchin' most."

"I often think whether Adam and me will be happy together," said Eve, sitting up and drying her eyes. "I'm willing to give in, but I won't be trampled upon."

"And he won't want to trample 'pon 'ee, neither. Only you study un a bit, and you'll soon learn the measure o' Adam's foot. Why, 'tis only to see un lookin' at 'ee to tell how he loves 'ee;" and Joan successfully kept down a rising sigh as she added, "Lors! he wouldn't let a fly pitch 'pon 'ee if he could help it."

"If he'd seen us before he came in first he'd have surely told you?" said Eve.

"Awh, he hadn't seen 'ee then," said Joan, "'cos, though he was a bit vexed, he wasn't in no temper. 'Twas after he went out the second time that he must have cast eyes on 'ee some way. Jerrem wasn't up to none of his nonsense, was he?" she asked. '"Cos I knaws what Jerrem is. He don't think no more o' givin' 'ee a kiss or that than he does o' noddin' his head or crookin' his elbaw; and if Adam caught un at that, it 'ud be enough for he."

Eve shook her head. "Jerrem never takes none of those liberties with me," she said: "he knows I won't allow him to. The whole of the time we did nothing but talk and walk along till we came to a nice place, and then we stayed for a little while looking at the view together, and after that came back."

"'Tis more than I can make out, then," said Joan, "'cos, though I wondered when you set off whether Adam would 'zactly relish your bein' with Jerrem, I never thought 'twould put un out like this."

"It makes me feel so miserable!" said Eve, trying to keep back her tears; "for oh, Joan"—and she threw her arms round Joan's neck—"I do love him very dearly!"

"Iss, my dear, I knaws you do," returned Joan soothingly, "and he loves you too."

"Then why can't we always feel the same, Joan, and be comfortable and kind and pleasant to one another?"

"Oh lors! that 'ud be a reg'lar milk-and-watter set-out o' it. No, so long as you doan't carry on too far on the wan tack I likes a bit of a breeze now and then: it freshens 'ee up and puts new life into 'ee. But here, come along down now, and when Adam comes back seem as if nothin' had happened, and p'r'aps seein' you make so light of it 'ull make un forget all about it."

So advised, Eve dried her eyes and smoothed down her ruffled appearance, and in a short time joined the party below, which now included Uncle Zebedee, Barnabas Tadd and Zeke Teague, who had brought word that the Hart had only that morning returned to Fowey, entirely ignorant of the skirmish which had taken place between the Looe boats and the Lottery, and that, though it was reported that the man shot had been shot dead, nothing was known for certain, as it seemed that the men of Looe station were not over-anxious to have the thing talked about.

"I should think they wasn't, neither," chuckled Uncle Zebedee. "Sneakin', cowardly lot! they was game enough whiles they was creepin' up behind, but, lors! so soon as us shawed our faces, and they seed they'd got men to dale with, there was another tale to tell, and no mistake. I much doubt whether or no wan amongst 'em had ever smelt powder afore our Jerrem here let 'em have a sniff o' his mixin'. 'Tis my belief—and I ha'n't a got a doubt on the matter, neither—that if he hadn't let fly when he did they'd ha' drawed off and gone away boastin' that they'd got the best o' it."

"Well, and more's the pity you didn't let 'em, then," said Joan. "I would, I knaw. Safe bind's safe find, and you can never tell when fightin' begins where 'tis goin' to end to."

"It shouldn't ha' ended where it did if I'd had my way," said Jerrem.

"Awh, well! there, never mind," said old Zebedee. "You'll have a chance agen, never fear, and then we must make 'ee capen. How'd that plaze 'ee, eh?"

Jerrem's face bespoke his satisfaction. "Take care I don't hold 'ee to yer word," he said, laughing. "I've got witnesses, mind, to prove it: here's Barnabas here, and Zeke Teague, and they won't say me nay, I'll wager—will 'ee, lads?"

"Wa-all, bide a bit, bide a bit," said Zebedee, winking in appreciation of this joke. "There'll be two or three o' the oldsters drap in durin' the ebenin', and then us 'll have a bit of a jaw together on it, and weigh sides on the matter."

As Uncle Zebedee anticipated, the evening brought a goodly number of visitors, who, one after another, came dropping in until the sitting-room was pretty well filled, and it was as much as Eve and Joan could manage to see that each one was comfortably seated and provided for.

There were the captains of the three vessels, with a portion of the crew of each, several men belonging to the place—all more or less mixed up with the ventures—and of course the crew of the Lottery, by no means yet tired of having their story listened to and their adventure discussed. Adam's absence was felt to be a great relief, and each one inwardly voted it as a proof that Adam himself saw that he'd altogether made a missment and gone nigh to damage the whole concern. Many a jerk of the head or the thumb accompanied a whisper that "he'd a tooked hisself off," and drew forth the response that "'twas the proper line to pursoo;" and, feeling they had no fear of interruption, they resigned themselves to enjoyment and settled down to jollity, in the very midst of which Adam made his appearance. But the time was passed when his presence or his absence could in any way affect them, and, instead of the uncomfortable silence which at an earlier stage might have fallen upon the party, his entrance was now only the occasion of hard hits and rough jokes, which Adam, seeing the influence under which they were made, tried to bear with all the temper he could command.

"Don't 'ee take no notice of 'em," said Joan, bending over him to set down some fresh glasses. "They ain't worth yer anger, not one among 'em. I've kept Eve out of it so much as I could, and after now there won't be no need for her to come in agen; so you go outside there. Her's a waitin' to have a word with 'ee."

"Then wait she may," said Adam: "I'm goin' to stop where I am.—Here, father," he cried, "pass the liquor this way. Come, push the grog about. Last come first served, you know."

The heartiness with which this was said caused considerable astonishment.

"Iss, iss, lad," said old Zebedee, his face glowing under the effects of hot punch and the efforts of hospitality. "That's well said. Set to with a will, and you'll catch us up yet."

During the laughter called forth by this challenge, Joan took another opportunity of speaking. "Why, what be 'bout, Adam?" she said, seeing how unlike his speech and action were to his usual self. "Doan't 'ee go and cut off your naws to spite yer face, now. Eve's close by here. Her's as sorry as anythin', her is: her wouldn't ha' gone out for twenty pounds if her'd knawed it."

"I wish you'd hold yer tongue," said Adam: "I've told you I'm goin' to stop here. Be off with you, now!"

But Joan, bent on striving to keep him from an excess to which she saw exasperation was goading him, made one more effort. "Awh, Adam," she said, "do 'ee come now. Eve—"

"Eve be—"

But before the word had well escaped his lips Joan's hand was clapped over his mouth. Too late, for Eve had come up behind them, and as Adam turned his head to shake Joan off he found himself face to face before her, and the look of outraged love she fixed upon him made his heart quail within him. What could he do? what should he say? Nothing now, for before he could gather up his senses she had passed by him and was gone.

A sickening feeling came over Adam, and he could barely put his lips to the glass which, in order to avert attention, he had caught up and raised to his mouth. At a blow all the resolutions he had forced himself to were upset and scattered, for he had returned with the reckless determination of plunging into whatever dissipation chanced to be going on.

He had roamed about, angry and tormented, until the climax of passion was succeeded by an overpowering sense of gloom, to get away from which he had determined to abandon himself, and, flinging all restraint aside, sink down to that level over which the better part of his nature had vainly tried to soar. But now, in the feeling of degradation which Eve's eyes had flashed upon him, the grossness of these excesses came freshly before him, and the knowledge that even in thought he had entertained them made him feel lowered in his own eyes; and if in his eyes, how must he look in hers?

Without a movement he knew every time that she entered the room: he heard her exchange words with some of those present, applaud a song of Barnabas Tadd's, answer a question of Uncle Zebedee's, and, sharpest thorn of all, stand behind Jerrem's chair, talking to him while some of the roughest hits were being made at his own mistaken judgment in holding back those who were ready to have "sunk the Looe boats and all aboard 'em."

In the anguish of his heart Adam could have cried aloud. It seemed to him that until now he had never tasted the bitterness of love nor smarted under the sharp tooth of jealousy. There were lapses when, sending a covert look across the table, those around him faded away and only Eve and Jerrem stood before him, and while he gazed a harsh, discordant laugh would break the spell, and, starting, he would find that it was his own voice which had jarred upon his ear. His head seemed on fire, his senses confused. Turning his eyes upon the tumbler of grog which he had poured out, he could hardly credit that it still stood all but untasted before him. A noisy song with a rollicking chorus was being sung, and for a moment Adam shut his eyes, trying to recollect himself. All in vain: everything seemed jumbled and mixed together.