They entered the ale-house, and soon found out they were held in great
terror. They ordered every thing of the best to be produced, and
threatened to set fire to the house if it was not; they turned the man
and his wife out of their bed, and all three went to sleep in it; and,
in short, they behaved in such an arbitrary manner, that nobody
doubted that they were Cromwell's horse. In the morning they set off
again by Chaloner's advice, paying for nothing that they had ordered,
although they had all of them plenty of money. They now rode fast,
inquiring at the places which they passed through, whether any
fugitives had been seen, and, if they came to a town, inquiring,
before they entered, whether there were any Parliamentary troops. So
well did they manage, that after four days they had gained the skirts
of the New Forest, and concealed themselves in a thicket till night-
time, when Edward proposed that he should conduct his fellow-travelers
to the cottage, where he would leave them till his plans were
adjusted.
Edward had already arranged his plans. His great object was to ward
off any suspicion of where he had been, and, of course, any idea that
the intendant had been a party to his acts; and the fortunate change
of his dress enabled him now to do so with success.
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