The death of Colonel Beverley
was a heavy blow to the old forester, and he watched over Mrs Beverley
and the orphans with the greatest solicitude; but when Mrs Beverley
followed her husband to the tomb he then redoubled his attentions, and
was seldom more than a few hours at a time away from the mansion. The
two boys were his inseparable companions, and he instructed them, young
as they were, in all the secrets of his own calling. Such was the state
of affairs at the time that King Charles made his escape from Hampton
Court; and I now shall resume my narrative from where it was broken off.

As soon as the escape of Charles the First was made known to Cromwell
and the Parliament, troops of horse were despatched in every direction
to the southward, towards which the prints of the horses' hoofs proved
that he had gone. As they found that he had proceeded in the direction
of the New Forest, the troops were subdivided and ordered to scour the
forest, in parties of twelve to twenty, while others hastened down to
Southampton, Lymington, and every other seaport or part of the coast
from which the king might be likely to embark. Old Jacob had been at
Arnwood on the day before, but on this day he had made up his mind to
procure some venison, that he might not go there again empty-handed; for
Miss Judith Villiers was very partial to venison, and was not slow to
remind Jacob if the larder was for many days deficient in that meat.
Jacob had gone out accordingly; he had gained his leeward position of a
fine buck, and was gradually nearing him by stealth, now behind a huge
oak-tree, and then crawling through the high fern, so as to get within
shot unperceived, when on a sudden the animal, which had been quietly
feeding, bounded away and disappeared in the thicket. At the same time
Jacob perceived a small body of horse galloping through the glen in
which the buck had been feeding. Jacob had never yet seen the
Parliamentary troops, for they had not during the war been sent into
that part of the country, but their iron skull-caps, their buff
accoutrements, and dark habiliments, assured him that such these must
be; so very different were they from the gaily-equipped Cavalier cavalry
commanded by Prince Rupert. At the time that they advanced, Jacob had
been lying down in the fern near to some low black-thorn-bushes; not
wishing to be perceived by them, he drew back between the bushes,
intending to remain concealed until they should