"Hold up your head, and let me have a closer sight of you; you and I have met before, or I am grossly mistaken."
So saying, the Squire took a candle from the wall, and passed it before the man's face, and I saw it was Vliet.
"Let every man in the room go elsewhere for a few minutes, barring the landlord and the gentlemen who accompanied me."
When the order had been obeyed, the Squire bade Hind to pinion the prisoner. Vliet looked at me with murderous eyes, but sullenly submitted.
"Now I have saved you from being made dogs' meat," said the Squire. "If the honest fellows in the house knew you were the Sebastian Vliet who escaped from arrest on the charge of attempted murder, and guessed you were lurking here, disguised, expecting that it would be easy to shoot a man, merry with wine, and thinking no evil, they would tear you limb from limb--small blame to them. Do you understand me?"
"If you permit," said John to the Squire, "I will be your interpreter."
Squire Stovin nodded, and there ensued some interchange of speech between the two.
"You have said much more than I did," quoth the Squire.
"I added a word of advice about the ape's bite, for which I received some choice Dutch blasphemy."
"To allow me to apply a white-hot poker to the wound. The bite of an ape is a nasty thing."
"Stripped of the cursing, it was to the effect that my gentleman could make better use of a hot poker than to burn himself with it. Excuse me from repeating the precise terms: they were not in the best taste."
"Give him to understand that he will be removed to the lock-up, where he will be strongly guarded, and committed to Lincoln to-morrow."
"And you will give order that his hurt be looked to, will you not, Squire?" I put in.
"Why, in Heaven's name, should I concern myself about his rascally carcase? Why you should, God only knows."
I certainly did not know; but, nevertheless, a sort of pity had filled me for the wretched man, who had lost so much; love, above all, health, as his bloated face and body showed, his money, as I suspected from his threadbare garments, and every remnant of gentility and self-respect, as he proved by look and word and tone. Poor soldier of fortune though I was, I had infinite wealth in comparison.