"
Betty, George, and I gathered our hats and cloaks, and George, turning to
me, said:--
"We must find a light coach and four good horses. The road will be heavy
with snow, and we must be prepared to travel rapidly."
"Father has four good horses, as strong and swift as any in London,"
suggested Betty. "He has a light coach, too. Let us return to the Old
Swan and prepare to start at once."
"Betty, you are too wise for one of your age and sex," said George. "But
without your wisdom, I don't know what we should have done this night.
Let us go immediately."
Our coachman put his horses to a gallop, we reached the Old Swan in a
short time, and within less than half an hour, a porter informed me that
a coach and four were awaiting us in the courtyard. Pickering lent us
greatcoats and rugs and all things needful to keep us warm. He did not
know the exact reason for our journey, but had learned from Betty that it
was undertaken in an affair of great moment, involving my cousin's
safety.
George and I each carried a heavy sword and a pistol in addition to two
hand guns, primed and charged, which lay in a box on the coach floor. The
drivers on the box were each armed with a sword and a pistol. They had
been reluctant to leave the kitchen fire to face the storm, but when they
had a hint that a fight was possible, and when Pickering offered them a
guinea each, they changed their minds, quickly wrapped themselves in
greatcoats, and were on the box when we came out.
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