I
could not sit down quietly in exile, and, being but forty, I am not
too old for service, and shall take a commission if I can obtain
it. There are many Scottish Jacobites who, having fled rather than
acknowledge Dutch William as their king, have taken service in
Sweden, where their fathers fought under the great Gustavus
Adolphus; and, even if I cannot myself take service, it may be that
I shall be able to obtain a commission for you. You are nearly
sixteen, and there are many officers no older.
"Should evil befall your father, Charlie, which I earnestly hope
will not be the case, I shall regard you as my son, and shall do
the same for you as for Harry.
"And now, I will to rest, for I have scarce slept the last two
nights, and we must be in the saddle long before daybreak."
The little bedroom, that Charlie had used the two previous nights,
was given up to Mr. Jervoise; while Harry and Charlie slept on some
sheep skins, in front of the kitchen fire. Two hours before
daybreak they mounted and, guided by the farmer, rode to a
shepherd's hut far up among the hills. Late in the afternoon, a boy
came up from the farm, with the news that the place had been
searched by a party of troopers. They had ridden away without
discovering that the fugitives had been at the farm, but four of
the party had been left, in case Mr.
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