Hayslope Grange | Page 4

that young Clayton could not
but remain. He was the more willing to do this, as he had been ordered
by the doctors to leave London and reside in the country before joining
the army again, for he had received a dangerous wound the previous
summer in the battle of Chalgrove, where his kinsman, the brave and
pious John Hampden, was mortally wounded. It was by talking of John
Hampden that Harry first became acquainted with Gilbert Clayton, and
now he wanted to hear more of him and the gentle Sir Bevil Granville,
who had so bravely led on his pikemen at the battle of Lansdowne.
The talks about these heroes generally took place in the most quiet part
of the garden; for Gilbert Clayton, knowing his host's political opinions
differed from his own, was too courteous to bring forward the subject
before him and his family. Master Drury himself rarely talked of public
matters with any one, and loved his books and the quiet of his study too
well to take any active part in such affairs; and he said he could help
the King's cause more by his prayers than anything else; so the two
young men were left to amuse themselves as they pleased, and by a sort
of tacit understanding, these conversations were never carried on in the
presence of Mary or Maud.
Master Drury's household was managed by his sister, an elderly lady,
who looked after children and servants with the greatest watchfulness,
lest a moment of their time should be wasted. It was the rule of the
household that as soon as breakfast was over Mistress Mabel should
take her place in the high-backed chair at the head of the table in the
"keeping room," or general sitting-room, and with Bessie and Bertram
on each side of her, at their lessons, a huge basket of work was brought
to her side by one of the maids, and Mary and Maud were each set to
work, making or mending garments for the family. Fancy-work was
never heard of in those days, and Mistress Mabel would not have
allowed any to be brought forward in her presence, if it had been.
Sometimes, as a rare treat, when the lessons were well learned, a book
was fetched from the library, not a story-book--that would have been a

waste of time, according to this lady's rule--but a learned treatise on
some abstruse science, which generally set Bessie and Bertram
yawning, so that the reading was not much of a treat to them. Talking
was not allowed from any one until the children's lessons were learned,
and not greatly indulged in then. Later in the day, after the dairy had
been visited and the kitchen inspected, the spinning-wheels were
brought out, and the maids, who had finished their household and dairy
work, were set down to spin.
Harry had escaped from his aunt's dominion now, but his idle life was a
great eyesore to her, so that she took care no one else should share it.
Under these circumstances it is easy to understand that, without at all
intending it, a sort of suppression of what was really going on between
the two young men took place when they were with the rest of the
family. That Gilbert Clayton was as staunch a Cavalier as themselves
was taken for granted; while he thought they fully understood his
principles and the cause he was engaged in, and believed it was from
refinement of feeling that the matter was never referred to in his
presence.
That he was helping his friend to see that the cause of the Parliament
was a just, honest cause, and one that must be espoused if civil and
religious liberty were ever to be secured for England, he knew full well;
but in doing this he believed he was only doing his duty, since Harry
had come to him first to talk about these matters.
So the days and weeks went quietly on at Hayslope Grange, and the
pure country air had so invigorated Gilbert Clayton that he began to
talk of returning to London, to make preparations for joining Lord
Kimbolton's army. Maud had heard that he was a soldier, and fully
expected Harry would speak to his father, and go to London with his
friend.
She felt rather jealous of young Clayton, if the truth must be told, for he
quite monopolised Harry's society, so there had been no opportunity of
resuming the conversation that his arrival had interrupted, or she might
have discovered the mistake she had made. Hearing nothing of this, and
the day for Clayton's departure being fixed, she determined to seek

some opportunity of speaking to Harry. She was a noble, unselfish girl,
and though she knew his going would cost her