第76章

'Tom has sold us,'said they,'sold us to the yokels;who would have thought it?'Then there was fresh grinding of teeth,and scowling brows were turned to the heaven;but what is this?is it possible,does the heaven scowl too?why,only a quarter of an hour ago ...but what may not happen in a quarter of an hour?For many weeks the weather had been of the most glorious deion,the eventful day,too,had dawned gloriously,and so it had continued till some two hours after noon;the fight was then over;and about that time I looked up-what a glorious sky of deep blue,and what a big fierce sun swimming high above in the midst of that blue;not a cloud-there had not been one for weeks-not a cloud to be seen,only in the far west,just on the horizon,something like the extremity of a black wing;that was only a quarter of an hour ago,and now the whole northern side of the heaven is occupied by a huge black cloud,and the sun is only occasionally seen amidst masses of driving vapour;what a change!but another fight is at hand,and the pugilists are clearing the outer ring;-how their huge whips come crashing upon the heads of the yokels;blood flows,more blood than in the fight;those blows are given with right good-will,those are not sham blows,whether of whip or fist;it is with fist that grim Shelton strikes down the big yokel;he is always dangerous,grim Shelton,but now particularly so,for he has lost ten pounds betted on the brave who sold himself to the yokels;but the outer ring is cleared:and now the second fight commences;it is between two champions of less renown than the others,but is perhaps not the worse on that account.A tall thin boy is fighting in the ring with a man somewhat under the middle size,with a frame of adamant;that's a gallant boy!he's a yokel,but he comes from Brummagem,and he does credit to his extraction;but his adversary has a frame of adamant:in what a strange light they fight,but who can wonder,on looking at that frightful cloud usurping now one-half of heaven,and at the sun struggling with sulphurous vapour;the face of the boy,which is turned towards me,looks horrible in that light,but he is a brave boy,he strikes his foe on the forehead,and the report of the blow is like the sound of a hammer against a rock;but there is a rush and a roar overhead,a wild commotion,the tempest is beginning to break loose;there's wind and dust,a crash,rain and hail;is it possible to fight amidst such a commotion?yes!the fight goes on;again the boy strikes the man full on the brow,but it is of no use striking that man,his frame is of adamant.'Boy,thy strength is beginning to give way,and thou art becoming confused';the man now goes to work,amidst rain and hail.'Boy,thou wilt not hold out ten minutes longer against rain,hail,and the blows of such an antagonist.'

And now the storm was at its height;the black thunder-cloud had broken into many,which assumed the wildest shapes and the strangest colours,some of them unspeakably glorious;the rain poured in a deluge,and more than one waterspout was seen at no great distance:an immense rabble is hurrying in one direction;a multitude of men of all ranks,peers and yokels,prize-fighters and Jews,and the last came to plunder,and are now plundering amidst that wild confusion of hail and rain,men and horses,carts and carriages.But all hurry in one direction,through mud and mire;there's a town only three miles distant,which is soon reached,and soon filled,it will not contain one-third of that mighty rabble;but there's another town farther on-the good old city is farther on,only twelve miles;what's that!who will stay here?onward to the old town.

Hurry-skurry,a mixed multitude of men and horses,carts and carriages,all in the direction of the old town;and,in the midst of all that mad throng,at a moment when the rain-gushes were coming down with particular fury,and the artillery of the sky was pealing as I had never heard it peal before,I felt some one seize me by the arm-I turned round,and beheld Mr.Petulengro.

'I can't hear you,Mr.Petulengro,'said I;for the thunder drowned the words which he appeared to be uttering.

'Dearginni,'I heard Mr.Petulengro say,'it thundreth.I was asking,brother,whether you believe in dukkeripens?'

'I do not,Mr.Petulengro;but this is strange weather to be asking me whether I believe in fortunes.'

'Grondinni,'said Mr.Petulengro,'it haileth.I believe in dukkeripens,brother.'

'And who has more right,'said I;'seeing that you live by them?

But this tempest is truly horrible.'

'Dearginni,grondinni ta villaminni!It thundreth,it haileth,and also flameth,'said Mr.Petulengro.'Look up there,brother!'

I looked up.Connected with this tempest there was one feature to which I have already alluded-the wonderful colours of the clouds.

Some were of vivid green;others of the brightest orange;others as black as pitch.The gypsy's finger was pointed to a particular part of the sky.

'What do you see there,brother?'

'A strange kind of cloud.'

'What does it look like,brother?'

'Something like a stream of blood.'

'That cloud foreshoweth a bloody dukkeripen.'

'A bloody fortune!'said I.'And whom may it betide?'

'Who knows!'said the gypsy.

Down the way,dashing and splashing,and scattering man,horse,and cart to the left and right,came an open barouche,drawn by four smoking steeds,with postilions in scarlet jackets and leather skull-caps.Two forms were conspicuous in it;that of the successful bruiser,and of his friend and backer,the sporting gentleman of my acquaintance.

'His!'said the gypsy,pointing to the latter,whose stern features wore a smile of triumph,as,probably recognising me in the crowd,he nodded in the direction of where I stood,as the barouche hurried by.

There went the barouche,dashing through the rain-gushes,and in it one whose boast it was that he was equal to 'either fortune.'Many have heard of that man-many may be desirous of knowing yet more of him.I have nothing to do with that man's after life-he fulfilled his dukkeripen.'A bad,violent man!'Softly,friend;when thou wouldst speak harshly of the dead,remember that thou hast not yet fulfilled thy own dukkeripen!