Now, at this time there were really three forces fighting for the supremacy in England—the King, the Presbyterians, and the Independents, and men who had eyes to see and ears to hear looked on at the three-cornered contest with eager hearts. The Parliamentary leaders on their side watched it with more than ordinary anxiety, for the new force, the Independents, lay in their own army under the command of that extraordinary farmer of Huntingdon, Oliver Cromwell. Whatever were this man’s faults, and whatever his virtues—and both have been doubtless exaggerated by his friends and enemies—there was one thing about him in which he was great above all Englishmen, namely, his resolute determination not to allow the Presbyterians to stamp out national life and thought in this land which is our own. How he and his Ironsides put the Presbyterian power aside, and indirectly made for the restoration of the English spirit you will see as this history advances. Already Cromwell was becoming a power in the land. The counties of Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Cambridge, Huntingdonshire, and Hertfordshire had at his instigation bound themselves together under the name of the Eastern Association. In August, , the Earl of Manchester took command of the associated forces, Cromwell being really his guiding spirit. Then within these counties Royalism was put down, and after beating the Royalist forces at Winceby on October 11, Cromwell held himself in readiness to attack the King’s army in Yorkshire.
But in Yorkshire at that time men were for the King, and the Royalist forces were largely spread over the county. The Marquis of Newcastle had raised the siege of Hull, and had succeeded in establishing a fair degree of power in many important districts and centres. In Yorkshire, Sir Thomas Fairfax, commanding the Parliamentary troops, was making a hard struggle to retain his ground, and was watching such towns as Leeds and Bradford, while at the same time he kept an eye on the fortified places, like Pontefract and Knaresborough. Little by little, however, Fairfax was being driven back, when an event happened which brought matters to a crisis. The Solemn League and Covenant was signed. A committee of Englishmen and Scotchmen were appointed to superintend the operations of the army. These arrangements duly carried out, the Scotch forces under the command of Leslie, Earl of Leven, crossed the border and advanced into Yorkshire. In June, , Leven joined his forces to those of Manchester and Fairfax, and laid siege to the Marquis of Newcastle at York.
So now at last the red fire of war was close upon us, for the rival armies were, so to speak, but a stone’s-throw away. All day long we heard messages of some sort; now that the Scots were fifty thousand strong and would infallibly sweep away the King and all his army; now that the Royalist troops were on the march northwards to relieve Newcastle at York; and now that ere four-and-twenty hours had passed we should hear the booming of the rival artillery. But we heard no news from Philip or Jack; nay, we had no news of them ’twixt January and June in that year , so that we were oft anxious about their welfare and wondered what had become of them. Those months indeed were remarkably trying ones to all of us, for my mother was anxious and afraid of the war coming our way, and Rose was troubled about her father, and Lucy fretted lest the enemy should shoot Ben in any of their skirmishes round Pontefract, which they seemed likely to besiege; and I was impatient and fretful, wishing that they would make an end of the matter, so that I might marry my dear one and live in peace on my land. For it seemed a long time to wait for her, and I was more impatient every day, and wished Roundhead and Cavalier could adjust their differences more speedily than they seemed desirous of doing.
But perhaps none of us were so anxious and troubled at this time as worthy Ben Tuckett, who, by reason of his residence in Pontefract marketplace, did hear much news on both sides of the question. For Ben never by word or deed let either party see that he favoured or disfavoured them, but talked little and listened much, saying in excuse that it is a deal better to be seen than to be heard, and that silence is pure gold, while speech is but ordinary silver. Nevertheless, whatever Ben heard he turned over in his mind with no little diligence, never forgetting anything nor letting any little matter slip. He mixed freely with men of both parties, each side curiously enough believing him to be one of themselves, and in this way he got to hear matters which ordinary folk did not hear of. But Master Ben’s love of knowledge ere long brought him into much trouble and perplexity of mind, for he presently found out that the Parliamentary troops would certainly besiege the Castle, which was now strongly garrisoned and equipped by the Royalists under Colonel Lowther. This news was disquieting to a peaceable and quiet tradesman like Ben, for he could not help foreseeing there would be bullets and cannonballs flying about the town, and sallies and skirmishes going on, and it occurred to him that a rough-handed soldiery might not be very nice about taking goods out
