rds, but he would not; he reined his
fiery steed into a slow but stately pace, and, with a countenance
scornful and composed, he continued his progress, apparently
unconscious of impediment. Meanwhile, the hooting continued without
abatement, increasing indeed, after the first comparative pause,
in violence and menace. At length a bolder ruffian, excited by the
uproar, rushed forward and seized Cadurcis' bridle. Cadurcis struck
the man over the eyes with his whip, and at the same time touched his
horse with his spur, and the assailant was dashed to the ground. This
seemed a signal for a general assault. It commenced with hideous
yells. His friends at the house, who had watched everything with the
keenest interest, immediately directed all the constables who were at
hand to rush to his succour; hitherto they had restrained the police,
lest their interference might stimulate rather than repress the mob.
The charge of the constables was well timed; they laid about them with
their staves; you might have heard the echo of many a broken crown.
Nevertheless, though they dispersed the mass, they could not penetrate
the immediate barrier that surrounded Lord Cadurcis, whose only
defence indeed, for they had cut off his groom, was the terrors of his
horse's heels, and whose managed motions he regulated with admirable
skill, now rearing, now prancing, now kicking behind, and now
turning round with a quick yet sweeping motion, before which the mob
retreated. Off his horse, however, they seemed resolved to drag him;
and it was not difficult to conceive, if they succeeded, what must
be his eventual fate. They were infuriate, but his contact with his
assailants fortunately prevented their co-mates from hurling stones at
him from the fear of endangering their own friends.

A messenger to the Horse Guards had been sent from the House of Lords;
but, before the military could arrive, and fortunately (for, with
their utmost expedition, they must have been too late), a rumour of
the attack got current in the House of Commons. Captain Cadurcis,
Lord Scrope, and a few other young men instantly rushed out; and,
ascertaining the truth, armed with good cudgels and such other
effective weapons as they could instantly obtain, they mounted their
horses and charged the nearly-triumphant populace, dealing such
vigorous blows that their efforts soon made a visible diversion in
Lord Cadurcis' favour. It is difficult, indeed, to convey an idea of
the e