A few minutes later there passed a riotous group of violent anti-papists, bearing a banner with “No popery” on it, carried reluctantly by a scarlet woman, or rather a man dressed in woman’s clothes of bright red, supposed to represent the Church of Rome. On one side of her was a man in Geneva gown and bands, on the other another in a long surplice, hood, and stole, carrying a large book, and these two, with a great deal of rough horseplay, kept the scarlet woman up to the mark. This centre group was surrounded by men and boys carrying torches and screaming, “Down with popery!” at the top of their voices.
“That group will have a row before they are satisfied,” said Rex, turning away, and looking in the opposite direction, as the group passed on to the Market-place. “But look, Fairy, who is this good-looking man masquerading without a mask as a shepherd? See, he is looking up here,” said Rex.
Fairy looked, and saw by the light of the torches cast behind by the anti-papist group, a tall, handsome man, dressed in a smock-frock and carrying a crook, a face which, in spite of a beard and moustache, she knew very well.
“Why, Rex, it is Jack; it is, it is! I must speak to him. Jack, Jack, where do you come from? Come up and speak to me directly. Fancy Jack being here! I must go, Rex, and let him in. Oh, Mr. Leslie, here is Jack!” and Fairy ran into the drawing-room, the red shawl falling off her head, and her beautiful hair, which was disarranged by the shawl, streaming down her shoulders in wild confusion. Her cheeks were flushed with excitement, her great brown eyes sparkling with delight, as she went forward with both hands outstretched, to meet Jack at the top of the stairs.
Rex was at first quite put out of countenance by this unfortunate contretemps, as he could not help thinking it; it would undo all the good impression Fairy had made upon his father; for not knowing Jack, Rex supposed he was like the rest of his family, and trembled for the consequences if his father now discovered Fairy was the foster-daughter of a shepherd. How he wished he had not called Fairy’s attention to the young man, and how pleased they were to see each other again. There really was no occasion for that very long handshaking. But here Mr. Leslie, seeing Rex looked very crestfallen, went up to him and whispered it was all right; Mr. de Courcy would only suppose the truth, that Jack was masquerading. Moreover, he added, he is an excellent young fellow—very superior, too, to his family; he might pass very well in a crowd.
Rex was somewhat reassured; and when Fairy drew him to Jack, whispering that this was her fiancé, he tried to be as pleased as Fairy could wish to make his acquaintance, but somehow both young men felt instinctively they were rivals, and their intercourse was constrained on both sides. Indeed, Jack was anxious to get away as quickly as possible, although he had come all the way from America to see Fairy, and judge for himself if the stories he had heard in his mother’s last letter were true. It did not require long to see that they were, and his errand accomplished, he felt his only safety was in flight. That demon of jealousy which, two years ago, had changed the whole course of his life, and so nearly caused him to be guilty of a terrible crime, was again rising in his bosom, as he watched the tender protecting air which Rex assumed over Fairy. Though he had learnt a severe lesson in self-control, and had so far profited by it that he was able to subdue the feeling of envy towards his rival, and to mask from Fairy the bitter sense of disappointment he felt on seeing her the betrothed bride of another, he felt the strain he was putting upon himself would not last long, and so he hastened to find an excuse in order to be gone, inwardly resolving that when he left the room he would never of his own free will set eyes on Fairy again.
She had drawn him out on to the balcony, where he had a few minutes’ conversation with Mr. Leslie, to whom he confided in an undertone that he was going to Liverpool the next day with his mother, on a visit to an uncle, where he would remain until the next mail sailed for America, where he had now decided to remain for the rest of his life. He had excellent prospects out there, and was already getting on far better than he had ever hoped to do in so short a time. Already he had been made cashier, and he had no doubt in a few years he would be appointed manager of the bank, as Mr. Leslie’s friend had taken a great fancy to him. He was now able to carry on his natural history studies, and was making great progress, and had hopes of one day becoming a naturalist, for he now had the means of procuring books which were before far out of his reach, and the new country opened out to him a new field of research.
All this he managed to tell Mr. Leslie while the procession was still preparing to start. He did not tell him what had brought him to England, but Mr. Leslie knew without being told that Fairy was the motive power which had induced him to cross the Atlantic, in the vain hope of persuading her to return with him as his wife. One glance at Rex and Fairy had told Jack this hope was futile, but still it was a satisfaction to see for himself; and he would now go back to his mother, and persuade her to accompany him to Liverpool the next day if possible.
He had only arrived at Lewes that morning, and on finding that Fairy was staying at the Leslies to go to the carnival with them and Mr. de Courcy, he had settled to go too in the hope of seeing her without being seen. He had chosen to wear his smock-frock for the first and only time in his life, partly to please his father, for whom Jack felt he could not do enough to repay his kindness, when he was under that black cloud which had cast a shadow over all his life; partly he wore it because Fairy made it, and partly because he would attract less attention among the masqueraders, who would imagine he was a shepherd come from some of the neighbouring sheep farms to see the carnival, and would not interfere with him; whereas if he had walked about in plain clothes—and he had no others with him—he would probably have been mobbed.
He could not have settled in America until he saw for himself that there was no chance for him of winning Fairy. Now he saw his fate was sealed, his boyish dream shattered; there was nothing left for him but to live it down; and in a distant country, where there was nothing to remind him of the love of his youth, and where he had plenty to interest and occupy him, he would in time learn, not to forget her—that was impossible, she was his first love, and could never be altogether driven out of his heart; one little secret chamber, never peeped into even by himself, would always remain sacred to her memory—but he would learn to live without her; and since the sooner he began this lesson the better, he looked about for an excuse to say good-bye.