"I have been making inquiries this morning whether Halliday returned to the town last night. I find he has not been here since eight or nine o'clock, and I cannot discover where he has gone. This strikes me as somewhat strange; and I should propose, that as soon as they are awake and up, to inquire of the three young ladies whom he brought in, if they saw anything of Bessy and her companion. I dare say we shall be able to get speech of them presently; for people's minds have been too much agitated for much sleep to have hung over Jerusalem last night."
"In the meantime, however," I said, "I will ride over to the sheriff's quarters, and inquire if anything has been heard of the dear girl there."
"You had better wait till these young ladies have risen," rejoined Mr. Thornton. "They cannot be very long, I think; and they might give us information which would lead us in a totally different direction." I was too impatient to wait, and Billy Byles seconded me.
"Oh, they will sleep better now the daylight's come in," he said. "You won't have them up for these three hours; and by that time Sir Richard and I will be back again." A difficulty, however, occurred to me which I had not thought of before. I had no horses but those I had borrowed of Doctor Blunt for the purpose of riding into Jerusalem; and I did not think myself altogether justified in taking them any farther. The objection, however, was easily met by Billy Byles, who exclaimed,--
"Oh, there are lots of horses here, belonging to everybody and nobody. Come away over to the inn-stable, and you'll soon be able to provide yourself with a steed." I succeeded in doing so sooner than even he expected; for, on entering the stable, in the third stall to the left, what should I see but my own horse, which I had bought in Norfolk; and a little further on, that on which I had mounted Zed. Of course I had no hesitation in taking possession of my own property, though the ostler was inclined to make some opposition; but the word of Billy Byles was omnipotent with all who had to do with horse-flesh in that part of Virginia, and he declared he could swear to my horses amongst ten thousand. The ostler fairly owned that he did not know who had brought the beasts in, and the only further question was about saddles and bridles.
"Oh, take any one, take any one," said the ostler, with a grin; "we have been in such a state of confusion that nobody knows whether the saddle is on the right horse or not."
"Here's yem, master, here's yem," cried Zed, who had followed us into the stable; "but where mine is, Lord help us, I cannot tell. So I had better take the best I can find." These matters being at length arranged, we looked to the charging of our arms, and prepared to set out; but Zed approached my horse's side, asking what he was to do with Doctor Blunt's horses.
"Would you be afraid to take them back to Doctor Blunt's alone, Zed?" I asked.
"Oh dear, no, massa," he answered; "nobody hurt old Zed; and, besides, I think them fellers is had enough of it." I accordingly gave him money to pay for the animals' food, with orders to take them back to their master's house at once. Billy Byles and I set off at a rapid pace; but I could easily discover that my horse, although he had hardly been worked at all for the last two months, had been so hard ridden during the preceding four-and-twenty hours as to abate his strength and spirit considerably. Indeed, I afterwards found that he had been stolen by the insurgents from Mr. Stringer's house, on the night of the massacre, and had been used incessantly, without food, till the man who rode him was captured by a party of the militia. It was thus nearly an hour before we reached the lane which led down to the sheriff's plantation, upon or near which, we were told, aunt Bab's old servants were now quartered. We had not been able to find that tall and worthy functionary before we set out; and, consequently, we were without any specific information as to where the poor negroes were to be found. We rode direct towards the house, however; and, as we approached, saw a worthy gentleman--who might perhaps have some shade of colour in his blood, though very slight--quietly mounting a stout horse, of that round, compact form which generally betokens great powers of endurance.
"Here's the overseer," said Billy Byles. "We'll ask him where we can find the poor people." He accordingly rode up, and put his questions; and the good overseer, bowing civilly, said,--