Griff signed to us to go on, and thundered out on
her to take care what she was about and not be abusive;
but this brought a fresh volley on him, heralded
by a derisive laugh. ’Ha! ha! fine talking
for the likes of you, Winslows that you are.
But there’s a curse on you all! The
poor lady as was murdered won’t let you be!
Why, there’s one of you, poor humpy object—’
At this savage attack on me, Griff waxed furious,
and shouted at her to hold her confounded tongue,
but this only diverted the attack on himself.
’And as for you—fine chap as ye think
yourself, swaggering and swearing at poor folk, and
setting your dog at them— your time’s
coming. Look out for yourself. It’s
well known as how the curse is on the first-born.
The Lady Margaret don’t let none of ‘em
live to come after his father.’
Griff laughed and said, ‘There, we have had
enough of this;’ and in fact we had already
moved on, so that he had to make some long steps
to overtake us, muttering, ’So we’ve started
a Meg Merrilies! My father won’t keep
such a foul-mouthed hag in the parish long!’
To which I had to respond that her cottage belonged
to the trustees of the chapel, whereat he whistled.
I don’t think he knew that we had heard her
final denunciation, and we did not like to mention
it to him, scarcely to each other, though Emily looked
very white and scared.
We talked it over afterwards in private, and with
Henderson, who confessed that he had heard of the
old woman’s saying something of the kind to
other persons. We consulted the registers in
hopes of confuting it, but did not satisfy ourselves.
The last Squire had lost his only son at school.
He himself had been originally second in the family,
and in the generation before him there had been some
child-deaths, after which we came back to a young
man, apparently the eldest, who, according to Miss
Selby’s story, had been killed in a duel by
one of the Fordyces. It was not comfortable,
till I remembered that our family Bible recorded
the birth, baptism, and death of a son who had preceded
Griffith, and only borne for a day the name afterwards
bestowed on me.
And Henderson, who was so little our elder as to discuss
things on fairly equal grounds, had some very interesting
talks with us two over ancestral sin and its possible
effects, dwelling on the 18th of Ezekiel as a comment
on the Second Commandment. Indeed, we agreed
that the uncomfortable state of disaffection which,
in 1830, was becoming only too manifest in the populace,
was the result of neglect in former ages, and that,
even in our own parish, the bitterness, distrust,
and ingratitude were due to the careless, riotous,
and oppressive family whom we represented.
’Ferments arise, imprisoned factions roar,
Represt ambition struggles round the shore;
Till, overwrought, the general system feels
Its motion stop, or frenzy fire the wheels.’
