C and game programming a beginner s guide Second

Edition Salvatore A Buono pdf download

https://ebookname.com/product/c-and-game-programming-a-beginner-
s-guide-second-edition-salvatore-a-buono/

Get Instant Ebook Downloads – Browse at https://ebookname.com

Instant digital products (PDF, ePub, MOBI) available
Download now and explore formats that suit you...

iPhone SDK Programming A Beginner s Guide 5th Edition

James Brannan

https://ebookname.com/product/iphone-sdk-programming-a-beginner-
s-guide-5th-edition-james-brannan/

Learning Processing a beginner s guide to programming

images animation and interaction 1st Edition Daniel
Shiffman

https://ebookname.com/product/learning-processing-a-beginner-s-
guide-to-programming-images-animation-and-interaction-1st-
edition-daniel-shiffman/

DarkBASIC Pro Game Programming Second Edition Jonathan

S. Harbour

https://ebookname.com/product/darkbasic-pro-game-programming-
second-edition-jonathan-s-harbour/

Jaune Quick to See Smith An American Modernist 1st

Edition Carolyn Kastner

https://ebookname.com/product/jaune-quick-to-see-smith-an-
american-modernist-1st-edition-carolyn-kastner/
Laser Optofluidics in Fighting Multiple Drug Resistance
1st Edition Mihail Lucian Pascu

https://ebookname.com/product/laser-optofluidics-in-fighting-
multiple-drug-resistance-1st-edition-mihail-lucian-pascu/

To Get a Better School System One Hundred Years of

Education Reform in Texas 1st Edition Gene B. Preuss

https://ebookname.com/product/to-get-a-better-school-system-one-
hundred-years-of-education-reform-in-texas-1st-edition-gene-b-
preuss/

What s Wrong with Right Now 3rd Edition Sailor Bob

Adamson

https://ebookname.com/product/what-s-wrong-with-right-now-3rd-
edition-sailor-bob-adamson/

Aqueous Polymeric Coatings for Pharmaceutical Dosage

Forms 3rd Edition Drugs and the Pharmaceutical Sciences
Mcginity James

https://ebookname.com/product/aqueous-polymeric-coatings-for-
pharmaceutical-dosage-forms-3rd-edition-drugs-and-the-
pharmaceutical-sciences-mcginity-james/

Mathematical Excursions to the World s Great Buildings

Alexander J. Hahn

https://ebookname.com/product/mathematical-excursions-to-the-
world-s-great-buildings-alexander-j-hahn/
Critical Thinking for Strategic Intelligence 3rd
Edition Katherine H. Pherson

https://ebookname.com/product/critical-thinking-for-strategic-
intelligence-3rd-edition-katherine-h-pherson/
C# and Game Programming
C# and Game Programming:
A Beginner’s Guide
Second Edition

Salvatore A. Buono

CRC Press
(tf* Taylor &. Francis Group
Boca Raton London New York

CRC Press is an imprint of the

Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
AN A K P E T E R S B O O K
CRC Press
Taylor & Francis Group
6000 Broken Sound Parkway NW, Suite 300
Boca Raton, FL 33487-2742
First issued in hardback 2019

© 2005 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

CRC Press is an imprint of Taylor & Francis Group, an Informa business

No claim to original U.S. Government works

ISBN-13: 978-1-56881-236-6 (pbk)

ISBN-13: 978-1-138-42810-2 (hbk)

This book contains information obtained from authentic and highly regarded sources. Reasonable efforts
have been made to publish reliable data and information, but the author and publisher cannot assume
responsibility for the validity of all materials or the consequences of their use. The authors and publishers
have attempted to trace the copyright holders of all material reproduced in this publication and apologize to
copyright holders if permission to publish in this form has not been obtained. If any copyright material has
not been acknowledged please write and let us know so we may rectify in any future reprint.

Except as permitted under U.S. Copyright Law, no part of this book may be reprinted, reproduced,
transmitted, or utilized in any form by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter
invented, including photocopying, microfilming, and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval
system, without written permission from the publishers.

For permission to photocopy or use material electronically from this work, please access www.copyright.com
(http://www.copyright.com/) or contact the Copyright Clearance Center, Inc. (CCC), 222 Rosewood Drive,
Danvers, MA 01923, 978-750-8400. CCC is a not-for-profit organization that provides licenses and
registration for a variety of users. For organizations that have been granted a photocopy license by the CCC,
a separate system of payment has been arranged.

Trademark Notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used
only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe.

Visit the Taylor & Francis Web site at

http://www.taylorandfrancis.com

and the CRC Press Web site at

http://www.crcpress.com

Library of Congress Cataioging-in-Publication Data

Buono, Salvatore A., 1968-

C# and game programming : a beginner’s guide / Salvatore A. Buono. - 2nd ed.
p. cm.
ISBN 1-56881-236-1
1. C# [Computer program language] 2. Computer games—Programming. I. Title.

QA76.73.C154.B85 20 04
00 5.13 ’3-d c 2 2
2 0 04 05 341 2
 To my unborn son

Though I have already felt your spirit, though I already love your soul, I still w ait in
anticipation, for your presence to make me whole.

M atthew Salvatore Buono, Born 9/28/03

 Table of Contents

Preface xvii

PART ONE: Programming Basics 1

Chapter One: C# from the Beginning 3

An Overview of the C# Language.......................................................................... 3

A Little History on the Cs...................................................................................... 4
W hat is the Net Framework?..............................................................................5
Managed Code and Assemblies...........................................................................6
Algorithms.............................................................................................................7
The Net Compiler................................................................................................. 8
Compiling and Executing..................................................................................... 10
Comments.......................................................................................................... 15
Screen Output.................................................................................................... 16
The Newline Character.......................................................................................18
The WriteLine Command.................................................................................. 20
The Semicolon.................................................................................................... 22

vii
 C# and Game Programming

Whitespaces...................................................................................................... 22
Preprocessor Directives.................................................................................... 22
Indenting............................................................................................................. 23
Nanning Variables............................................................................................... 23
Declaring Variables and the Integer Data Types................................................ 26
The Data Types float and double........................................................................ 28
The Data Type decimal........................................................................................30
The Data Types character and string.................................................................31
Keywords sizeof and unsafe............................................................................... 33
Enabling unsafe mode in C #............................................................................... 33
The Data Type void..............................................................................................35
Assignment Statements.................................................................................... 36
Type Compatibility: Implicit Conversions.............................................................36
Formatting Strings............................................................................................. 37
Arithmetic........................................................................................................... 38
Keyboard Input................................................................................................... 44
Uninitialized Variables......................................................................................... 45
Access Modifiers: constant, Readonly, and volatile........................................... 46
Incrementing and Decrementing Operators...................................................... 48
Type Safety versus Metonym Data Types.......................................................... 49
Keyword Defaults................................................................................................50
Using, System, and Namespace........................................................................ 51
Hungarian Notation............................................................................................ 52
Things to Remember..........................................................................................53
Troubleshooting.................................................................................................. 53
Questions............................................................................................................ 57

Chapter Two: Branches, Loops, and Functions 59

The if Statement................................................................................................. 59
The else Statement............................................................................................ 63
The else-if Statement..........................................................................................64

viii
 Table of Contents

Program Walkthrough....................................................................................... 65
Compound if Statements....................................................................................66
and, or, and n o t...................................................................................................68
Nested if Statements......................................................................................... 69
Mathematical Abbreviations.............................................................................. 71
The while Loop................................................................................................... 73
Battle B it.............................................................................................................77
The do-while Loop............................................................................................... 81
The for Loop....................................................................................................... 83
The switch Statement........................................................................................ 85
Converting from C++ to C # ............................................................................... 88
Boolean Expressions.......................................................................................... 90
Short Circuit Evaluation...................................................................................... 91
The Conditional Operator....................................................................................92
Predefined Functions..........................................................................................93
Type Casting: Explicit Conversions..................................................................... 99
References, Values, and the Boxing Technique..............................................1 □□
Introduction to User-Defined Functions........................................................... 101
Writing Our First User-Defined Function........................................................ 102
Variable Scope................................................................................................. 103
Functions that Return Values.......................................................................... 105
Passing Variables: Calls-By-Value.................................................................... 108
Writing Functions as Black Boxes...................................................................110
Passing Variables: Calls-By-Reference............................................................. 112
The Keyword o u t.............................................................................................. 114
An Introduction to Polymorphism.................................................................... 115
Introducing Recursion......................................................................................118
Inline Functions.................................................................................................119
Troubleshooting................................................................................................119
Things to Remember....................................................................................... 121
Questions..........................................................................................................123

ix
C# and Game Programming

PART TWO: Game Programming Basics 1 27

Chapter Three: Introducing DirectX_______________________ 1 2 9

Writing Games.................................................................................................131
Game 1—Paddle Tennis....................................................................................132
Brainstorming................................................................................................ 132
Drawing Characters......................................................................................... 133
Plotting Motions............................................................................................. 138
Writing an Algorithm......................................................................................139
Displaying Graphics Using Native C + + .......................................................... 143
Displaying Graphics Using C # ..........................................................................143
Displaying Graphics Using DirectDraw.......................................................... 144
Introducing Object-Oriented Programming.................................................... 146
Adding Files to Our Projects...........................................................................146
Programming a Character............................................................................. 148
Directlnput: the Keyboard............................................................................... 149
Erasing Residual Images.................................................................................. 150
Collision Detection: The Players’ Boundaries................................................. 151
Collision Detection: The Ball in M otion........................................................... 152
Collision Detection: Deflecting the Ball........................................................... 154
A Few Minor Details: Scores, Speed Settings, and Additional Graphics 156
Adding Colors................................................................................................. 160
Adding Sounds Using Windows Multimedia....................................................161
Adding Sounds Using DirectSound.................................................................162
Adding in the Mouse...................................................................................... 164
Directlnput: The Mouse.................................................................................. 168
Directlnput: The Joystick.................................................................................. 169
Introducing Menus........................................................................................... 171
Introduction to Artificial Intelligence............................................................... 176
Paddle Tennis: Putting It All Together.............................................................179
Bonus Games................................................................................................. 179
Game 2—Space Fighters................................................................................. 179
 Table of Contents

Brainstorming.................................................................................................. 180
Selecting Characters & Plotting Motions........................................................ 181
Writing the Algorithm.......................................................................................183
Animating Characters: Animating Spaceships................................................ 185
Animating Characters: Projectiles and Explosions........................................ 187
Adding Directlnput: The Keyboard and Joystick...............................................188
OnPaint............................................................................................................ 189
Defining Hyperspace........................................................................................ 190
Boundaries & Projectile Limits........................................................................ 191
Drawing with DirectDraw................................................................................. 194
Artificial Intelligence: Evasion........................................................................... 196
Including Obstacles: The Sun........................................................................... 199
Gaining Momentum......................................................................................... 20 0
Including More Obstacles: Asteroids as Extra Credit...................................... 201
Menus.............................................................................................................. 202
Space Fighters: Putting It All Together.............................................................20 4
Game 3—Asteroid M iner................................................................................. 20 4
Brainstorming..................................................................................................20 4
Asteroid Miner: Putting it All Together.............................................................208
Troubleshooting............................................................................................... 209
Things to Remember....................................................................................... 212
Questions......................................................................................................... 212

Chapter Four: Arrays, Pointers and Strings 215

Arrays...............................................................................................................21 5
Declaring and Referencing Arrays...................................................................217
Assigning Values to A rrays............................................................................. 220
Passing Arrays to Functions............................................................................222
Multidimensional Arrays..................................................................................22 5
Three-Dimensional Arrays................................................................................228
Searching Arrays............................................................................................. 232
Dynamic Arrays in C # ......................................................................................235

xi
 C# and Game Programming

Theforeach loop...............................................................................................237
Enumerating Constant Integers.......................................................................238
Pointers............................................................................................................239
Enabling unsafe Mode......................................................................................240
Pointer Variables.............................................................................................. 242
Call-By-Reference Values with Pointer Arguments..........................................24 4
Pointer Arithmetic............................................................................................246
String and Address Arithmetic........................................................................ 248
The void Pointer............................................................................................... 252
Finding the Mean, Median, Mode, and Range................................................. 25 4
Pointers as Arrays: The Keyword stackalloc...................................................256
Double Asterisk Pointers................................................................................. 258
Functions Returning Pointers.......................................................................... 25 9
Storage Class Specifiers: extern and static.................................................... 260
Manipulating String D ata................................................................................. 262
Converting and Safeguarding D ata.................................................................. 26 4
From Strings to Streams: System.lO............................................................... 265
Exampling Object Types................................................................................... 266
The Keywords checked and unchecked.......................................................... 266
The goto Statement..........................................................................................268
Game 4—Battle W ave......................................................................................269
Brainstorming..................................................................................................270
Brainstorming..................................................................................................270
Drawing Characters and Defining M otions..................................................... 271
Drawing Characters.........................................................................................273
Alternative Rendered Designs.........................................................................277
Animating Characters: Displaying Characters.................................................279
Animating Our Characters: Patterns of Movement........................................ 28 0
Defining Character Limitation.......................................................................... 282
Keyboard Controls........................................................................................... 283
Force Feedback Controls................................................................................ 28 4
Artificial Intelligence..........................................................................................286
Resetting Levels...............................................................................................287

xii
 Table of Contents

Saving and Retrieving D ata.............................................................................. 287

Expanding Our Arsenal.....................................................................................288
Brainstorming..................................................................................................288
Battle Wave: The Heart of the Game.............................................................. 289
Game 5—Battle Tennis.................................................................................... 289
Adding Graphics...............................................................................................29 0
Input Devices: Keyboard, Joystick, and Mouse................................................295
The Properties of Sound...................................................................................297
Three-Dimensional Sound................................................................................ 299
Using Sound Effects.........................................................................................30 0
Changing Levels...............................................................................................303
Completing the Game...................................................................................... 30 4
Troubleshooting............................................................................................... 30 4
Things to Remember....................................................................................... 305
Questions......................................................................................................... 306

Chapter Five: Object-Oriented Oesign 309

Structures........................................................................................................ 309
Declaring and Assigning Fields........................................................................ 3 1 0
Multiple Structures......................................................................................... 313
Complex Structures.........................................................................................315
Structures as Function Arguments: Calls-by-Value......................................... 316
Structures as Function Arguments: Calls-by-Reference..................................318
Passing Entire Structures................................................................................319
Storing and Retrieving Data............................................................................. 321
Introducing Classes......................................................................................... 32 4
Replacing Structures with Classes................................................................. 325
private and protected Fields.............................................................................328
The Internal Access M odifier.......................................................................... 3 3 3
Arrays as Member Fields................................................................................ 335
Overloading Member Functions.......................................................................336
private and protected Member Functions.......................................................338

xiii
 C# and Game Programming

Constructors....................................................................................................34 0
Overloading Constructors................................................................................342
Assigning Instances.........................................................................................343
Reading and Writing to Private M em bers.......................................................34 4
The Keyword th is ............................................................................................. 34 4
Destructors......................................................................................................349
Introducing Operator Overloading.................................................................... 350
Overloading Comparison Operators................................................................ 35 4
Nesting Overloaded Operators........................................................................ 356
Overloading Unary Operators.......................................................................... 358
Introducing Inheritance.................................................................................... 359
Inheritance versus Composition...................................................................... 361
Inheriting Constructors and Destructors........................................................ 362
private versus protected Inheritance...............................................................362
Using Multiply Linked Single-Inheritance.......................................................... 36 4
Overriding and Virtual Methods....................................................................... 366
A bstract........................................................................................................... 371
The Keyword base............................................................................................375
Exception Handling........................................................................................... 376
Nested try Blocks............................................................................................ 378
The Keyword throw .......................................................................................... 379
User-Defined Exception Classes...................................................................... 38 0
Nested Exceptions........................................................................................... 382
The Binary Operator a s ................................................................................... 38 4
Delegates......................................................................................................... 385
Preprocessor Directives..................................................................................387
The external Modifier....................................................................................... 388
The explicit Operator........................................................................................ 389
The implicit Operator....................................................................................... 390
Fixed Pointers...................................................................................................390
The get and set Accessors............................................................................. 391
Linking Interfaces............................................................................................. 393
The is Operator................................................................................................ 396

xiv
 Table of Contents

The Keyword lock............................................................................................. 397

The Keyword param s...................................................................................... 398
The Keyword sealed.........................................................................................399
The Keyword stackalloc................................................................................... 4 0 0
Metafiles Defined............................................................................................. 4 0 0
Building Game Classes.................................................................................... 401
Game Classes—Animatedlmage.es................................................................ 401
Animation......................................................................................................... 40 3
Displaying......................................................................................................... 4 0 4
Adding Substance to Characters.................................................................... 40 5
Creating Infinite Space.....................................................................................4 0 9
Other Types of Deflection................................................................................. 40 9
Inheriting from Animatedlmage.es—Player.cs................................................. 4 1 0
Inheriting from Player.cs—PlayerlmageArray.cs.............................................. 411
Inheriting from PlayerlmageArray.cs-MultilmagePlayer.es...........................41 3
Inheriting from PlayerlmageArray.es—Shapes.cs............................................4 1 4
Inheriting from Shapes.cs—Patterns.es.......................................................... 41 8
GameState.es...................................................................................................4 2 0
GameTimer.es..................................................................................................42 2
TimedEvent.cs..................................................................................................4 2 4
Utils.es............................................................................................................. 42 5
Wall.es............................................................................................................. 42 7
Introducing D irect3D ....................................................................................... 4 2 9
Brainstorming..................................................................................................4 3 0
Game 6—Ground Assault................................................................................ 431
Brainstorming..................................................................................................431
Graphics........................................................................................................... 432
Game 7—Rat Racer.........................................................................................43 2
Adding Animation............................................................................................. 43 2
Brainstorming..................................................................................................43 2
Troubleshooting............................................................................................... 43 5
Assignments.................................................................................................... 4 3 5
Conclusion........................................................................................................ 4 3 5
Questions......................................................................................................... 43 5

XV
 C# and Game Programming

Appendix A: Keywords/ Reserved Identifiers 437

Appendix B: Reserved Identifiers Defined 43 9
Appendix C: Accessors 47 3
Appendix D: Order of Precedence 475
Appendix E: Displaying Message Boxes 477
Appendix F: Graphics 483
Appendix G: Colors 489
Appendix H: Algorithms 491
Appendix I: Adding DirectX References 49 9

Index 501

xvi
 Preface

This is an introductory textbook th a t covers Microsoft’s C# and game program ming a t the
same time with a unique combination of traditional source coding and game program ming
techniques. W ritten in accordance with ECMA (European Computer M anufacturers’Asso­
ciation) certification standards, its purpose is to bring to the student everything tau g h t in
a traditional first sem ester classroom without the traditional first sem ester boredom. This
book would also serve well as a second sem ester tutorial on object-oriented program m ing
and the .Net Base Class Library. W hether you’re a beginner ju st trying to learn the C#
language or an experienced program m er trying to find your way into the .Net program ­
ming environm ent (not to m ention the Microsoft Visual Studio series), C# and Game
Programming is the book for you.

How to Use this Book

W hen 1 designed this book, I knew it had to serve two purposes: The first being to teach the
C# language in a fun, yet practical, context, and the second to introduce the novice program ­
m er to the more advanced concepts of object-oriented programming and .Net design. I ac­
complished both of these tasks by first designing a traditional programming text and then
adding in several programming examples th at sim ulate the old arcade style games of the
late 1970s and early 1980s. While the games are enjoyable and do motivate study, their true
purpose is found in their collective relationship to object-oriented principles. As with the
game programming portions, the order of the traditional source coding is designed to em pha­
size an easy flow and a simple approach to programming. Nevertheless, do not interpret th at
to mean th a t this text won’t be a handful. The m aterial should take several m onths to
complete with its Base Class Libraries serving as an invaluable source for further study.

xvii
 C# and Game Programming

W h a t You’ll Need
The graphics and sound portions of this text are based on the Windows XP (Home or
Professional) and 2000/ME operating system s. C# as a whole will potentially be avail­
able on any num ber of operating system s, including UNIX, Linux, IBM’s 0/S2, BeX
OS, Apple-Macintosh X, and Alpha’s OpenVMS.1The basic requirem ents for learning the
C# language include a com puter and a .Net level compiler. However, due to cu rren t
restrictions, you’ll also need to ru n your compiler under either Windows XP, 2000/NT, or
ME. The hardw are requirem ents listed to ru n M icrosoft’s .Net 1.1/2.0 beta include a
Pentium II Class PC w ith a m inim um of 233 MHz, 64 m egabytes of RAM, 1.5 gigabytes
of free hard drive space, 4x Speed CD-ROM, and a SVGA monitor. Additional components
required and/or referred to in this book include a mouse, sound card (with speakers), and
(optional) modem—see your compiler’s m anual for additional restrictions and/or require­
m ents.

W h a t I Used
The program s w ritten for this text are developed w ith the un d erstan d in g th a t not
everyone can afford the very best in technologies. The compilers referenced include a
list of student, beta, and tria l editions, w ith the more advanced coding progressing
into the sta n d a rd and professional versions. Again, the compilers were installed under
several Windows environm ents including Window’s XP through NT. I also used a host of
hardw are configurations ranging from AMD & In te l’s late st to a few m uch older AMD
and Cyrix type m achines.

About the CD-ROM

The com panion CD-ROM included w ith th is book covers the source code (program ­
m ing text) and several previously compiled program s, all labeled and listed in the
order discussed in the text. Each set of program s is placed in a folder title d a fter its
c h ap ter (as in C hap ter 1, C hapter 2, etc.). In addition, I have included an a s so rt­
m ent of games, all m eant to aid in your learn in g and productivity. To load the source
codes off the CD-ROM ju st follow th e in stru ctio n s listed on the next page.

1 Please check w ith tho se vendors fo r th e a p p ro p ria te com piler(s).

xviii
 Preface

To load and use the source code that accompanies this book:
1. C reate a new directory and/or subdirectory. This will be used to
store the program s from the CD-ROM and the program s you
create on your own. Nam e your folder and note w here you place
it (in the C drive, D drive, etc,), including which subdirectory
and/or subdirectories you chose to place it under. If you use the
default, you’ll more th an likely find your lost files under:
C :\\D o cu m en ts and settings\Y ourU serN am e \M y
D ocum entsW isual Studio Projects\ProjectsNameHere.
2. M ake sure your compiler is installed and working properly.
3. Load and m ake active the C# compiler. Close any and all
nonessential windows (this includes the C# tour box). Closing
unnecessary background program s will also help to speed up
your system.
4. In sert the CD-ROM into the appropriate drive.
5. Select “Open” from the C# compiler’s file menu (see Screen Shot 1).

Screen
Shot 1.

6. From the “Open” Windows menu, select the folder titled “Source”
and then the appropriate subfolder(s). The subfolder titled “MSNET”
contains all of the source code for the Microsoft .Net compiler(s)2 (see
Screen Shots 2 and 3).

2 The p ro g ra m s depicted in th is te x t w ere intended fo r use w ith M ic ro s o ft’s .N et com piler.

 C# and Game Programming

Screen
Shot 2.

Jp f* ?
_! H,_ <>x
1
-J0 Ca*tK2
H'K
^a1rx J^C sutS
:-aJiocavrnsgcS
tK*!^
g? oactdgty?it
giaJstfe
Screen
; 5’A
«top
Shot 3.
*; P_Av±orJ*t« 7
»X

—
1& [isr«: |**"
1

r
=*«»»M»pA<ProtectNkr•*>;*•<*»r;*.aprol;*.vt*;**oro!•dn»J itcc* I ......J

7. Select “Save As” from th a t file’s m enu and save it to the directory
you created in Step 1 (see Screen Shot 4).
Ig jjM B B fr' r> ; - la i XI
7* ® »>!XI l**s &***» ijete
h»* ►j 4 D - a i i o * » ....... m m * Z iff* ?
. Sl» ►]
[4» 0* X
fc*N»Btten> . CW+SM*+* j
ftWExsaiflttw*.. ShftWW+a
................ jtfi

»*;PTOl«* ►
SJ C^-nSofcjbon...
Si C*.«5<*Jtlon jiptio n to r CIo m i .
Screen t t S N r V lb * ^ ' "< *** j
' Classl.cs^...
Shot 4 ft
*kanc"JSa<* Options...
Al CtfU-SWt*S
!*ln(>crlngt) arga)

S**.;ceContrci ►

Prn
« « (H »
COUP
►
.... .................1
...................... ' ■
jtT

PXSftt ProjaCt* ►
: M
|f-:. esr

! ! * Iff
~ >*P' I
__ :::::: ............ . ........... •■»

XX
 Preface

Your program is now linked to th a t directory. You can remove the CD-ROM from its
drive (remember to repeat these steps for each program as needed). To edit the source code
and/or to proceed with compiling, see the instructions listed in C hapter 1.

How to Read this Book

This book is w ritten for everyone w anting to learn the C# language in a fun yet practi­
cal context. The book is broken up to accommodate three skill levels.
Part 1: P rogram m ing B asics covers the most fundam ental portions, including pro­
gram m ing history, how to setup your compiler, and algorithms. It also introduces critical
m aterial on the .Net framework, data types, input and output commands, legacy coding,
the Base Class Library, comparisons and loops, switch statem ents, type casting, boxing
and unboxing, and method m anipulations (arguments, polymorphism, and recursion).
P art 2: G am e P rogram m in g B a sics also covers very basic concepts—nam ely
single and m ultidim ensional arrays, pointers (under unsafe mode), string functions,
and stream s—but eventually leads the reader out of the novice stage. O ther key topics
include an introduction to object-oriented programming, using Window’s applications for
graphics and sounds, and realtim e game program m ing techniques. Seasoned C/C++ pro­
gram m ers can usually jum p in a t this level, using the earlier portions as a convenient
point of reference.
P art 3: O bject-O riented P rogram m in g begins with structures, but quickly m i­
grates into classes and the principles behind object-oriented program ming. Fields, m eth­
ods, and operator overloading are discussed early on, w ith inheritance, virtual func­
tions, delegates, and exception handling expanding our capabilities. Here, we’ll also
expand upon the principles of the .Net environm ent, including reflection, threads, syn­
chronization, CLS (Common Language Specifications) complaints, language specifica­
tions, and a furth er study of the Base Class Library.
This book can also be used by anyone taking C# in a standard college course. Thus, the
text covers topics such as bubble sorting, search algorithm s, and most teachers’ favorite,
default settings (although I personally prefer using parenthetical expressions).
In addition to following the book from chapter to chapter, you could also reroute your
studies to include alternate paths or approaches. One such example would be to proceed
from C hapter 2 straight to C hapter 4, since the gaming portions m ight not interest you.
Alternatively, you could skip some of the more difficult gaming concepts listed in Chapters
3-5 and then retu rn to th a t m aterial after finishing the traditional studies. It is, however,

XXI
 C# and Game Programming

recommended th a t you do eventually work through those games in order to apply some of
the more advanced concepts on object-oriented program m ing and .Net design.

Getting Help from the Author

Since this book is m eant to teach one of the v ast and often expanding C languages, I
felt th a t it was necessary to include a continuously updated e-m ail forum and in te rn et
new sletter, th a t is, a forum th a t will include any new or improved features, including
program m ing errors and ways to fix problems. I’d also like to encourage all beginner
program m ers by generating a list of web sites, source coding (including arcade style
clones), and any other new developm ents. To register for your FREE in te rn et new s­
le tte r, or to w rite in w ith a problem or re q u e st, p lease a d d re ss your em ail to
[email protected].

The Student Perspective

This book was w ritten from the perspective of the student. Every attem pt was m ade to
move the reader along in a logical and progressive m anner. Nearly every keyword and
command has a working (live code) example, and when necessary, the reader is pre­
sented w ith a list of background inform ation and troubleshooting sections th a t are u su ­
ally covered by an instructor or gained in some previous program m ing language.
There are several sections th a t cover the secondary steps of program m ing such as
C# to Windows setups, compiler setups, and topics on game coding. The game coding,
while considered trivial by m any instructors, is one of the most effective ways of dem on­
strating C#’s object-oriented potential. Each new game is constructed w ith the in ten t of
maximizing the use of the coding studied in th a t chapter. The games, while e n te rta in ­
ing, also force the reader to press beyond simple logic and answ er questions th a t are not
staged or lim ited to simple text based outputs.
The chapters follow an alm ost evolutionary p a tte rn th a t begins w ith the basics of C#
and progresses through the techniques of structured, modular, and Object-Oriented Pro­
gram m ing (OOP), with the last section obviously concluding w ith the latest advances in
Microsoft’s .Net architecture. Both our text concepts and the games developed are p a rt of
th a t evolution, which prim arily defines which games can and will be developed w ith the
keywords and commands available.

xxii
 Preface

Remember: for the best results, I suggest using the same compiler and operating system(s)
I use; Microsoft’s Visual C# .Net 2003/2005 beta, under Windows XP Home or Professional.

Book Reviews: The Washington Post said, “I don’t know what to say about it.” The New York Times
raved, “It came in the mail.” And Ebert & Roeper said “We don’t review books, please stop calling!”

About the Author

W hen I was a boy, I had a “TRS Color Computer.” It was hooked up to a TV set and had a
cassette drive. I used it to w rite sim ple text style gam es and AI driven chess program s.
A few years later, my m other bought me an Amiga 500 (a highpowered gaming computer).
I used it to w rite simple games like Tennis, Space Fighter, and R at Racer (all in the nam e
of education, I swear). Shortly after receiving th a t computer, I entered college. From there,
I earned two degrees, the first in M ath and the second in Engineering. Eventually I had to
sell th a t old Amiga and buy/build myself a newer IBM/Intel compatible computer. U pgrad­
ing th a t com puter actually turned into a career of sorts, leading first to online technical
support and eventually to game program ming. After graduating, I tu rn ed my talents
toward writing, or more specifically, toward technical writing, but you should have guessed
th at. I also m anaged to get m arried, buy a little house, win a few Jiu-jitsu tournam ents,
and well, there is th a t whole gaining superpowers thing. As for my TRS Color Computer,
I removed its plug and gave it to my nephew as a toy typew riter—ju st imagine the day
when the Pentium IV becomes th a t outdated.

There’s a mouse on the desk, there’s a mouse on the desk...

I’m sure there’s been a mistake here, does anyone know why there’s a mouse on my desk?

xxiii
Random documents with unrelated
content Scribd suggests to you:
 CHAPTER VIII.
A HEAVY STAKE.
The travellers spent their first night agreeably enough. The weather was fine,
the inn at Hounslow roomy and luxurious. My lady seemed pleased with the
fresh eggs, the country cream. My lord found amusement in the airs and graces
of his hostess, who was more than flattered by the notice of so fine a
gentleman. Even the servants were good enough to express approval of the ale,
the lodging, and the change. Our whole party started next morning in good
humour, and the very waiting-maid, who had been in tears for the first six miles
out of London, protested that under certain conditions the country might be
almost tolerable.
My lord's first footman, a stout high-coloured personage in charge of the
blunderbuss, was unremitting in his attentions, and Mistress Rachel, as she was
called, in the absence of higher game, condescended to receive his homage
with the favour five-and-forty shows to five-and-twenty. At a subsequent period
indeed she declared "he hadn't the heart of a hen!" but for the present seemed
satisfied to accept him as he was.
Such a favourable state of things could not be expected to last four-and-twenty
hours. At noon of the second day it began to rain, a trace broke, a horse cast a
shoe, the man with the blunderbuss proved useless in a difficulty, Mistress
Rachel grew despondent, my lady sulked, my lord swore, the unwieldy vehicle
creaked, groaned, swung, and finally stopped in the middle of a hill.
"Let me out!" screamed Lady Bellinger, whose nervous system was of the
weakest, and on whose temper fear had an exasperating effect. "I'd rather
walk. I will get out, I'll go back,—Richard!—Robin! open the door."
"Don't be a fool!" exclaimed my lord, as the carriage got into motion once more.
"How can you go back, Ellen? You're forty miles from London if you're a yard."
My lady's head-dress vibrated with anger. "I am a fool indeed," she replied, "or I
shouldn't be here! And this is the reward of my devotion as a wife. This is your
return for my accompanying you into exile. Lord Bellinger, I will speak.
Indifference I am accustomed to. Unkindness I have put up with for many a
long day, patient, and forbearing, while my heart was broke, but I have a spirit
("you have indeed," muttered his lordship), though you try your best to crush it,
and ill-usage I will submit to no longer."
It is possible her husband might have entered a more energetic protest than the
"d—d nonsense" he whispered under his breath, but that his attention was
diverted at this juncture to the beauty and action of a horse passing at a gallop,
ridden by a young man whose seat and bearing did justice to the animal he
bestrode. When Lord Bellinger, who thrust himself half out of the carriage to
follow the pair with his eyes, subsided into his seat, he had forgotten all about
their dispute in this new excitement; my lady, however, with her face buried in a
handkerchief, continued to sob at intervals, till they reached their destination for
the night.
This was a comfortable hostelry enough, yet lacking many of the luxuries that
rendered the inn at Hounslow so agreeable a resting-place. Mistress Rachel,
alighting with a hand on the shoulder of her admirer, expressed alarm lest it
might be tenanted by ghosts; whereat the latter's comely cheek turned pale,
while he resolved incontinently to fortify his courage with beer. The new arrivals
had no reason to complain of their reception. The servants were amply regaled
in the kitchen, a good supper was served for my lord and my lady in the parlour.
The choicer meal vanished in profound silence, which Lord Bellinger tried more
than once to break; but, finding his efforts ineffectual, and knowing by
experience the obstinacy of his wife's reserve when she was "out of spirits," he
gave up the attempt, and applied himself to the Burgundy his host brought in
person. He finished the bottle as her ladyship, in dignified silence, retired to
bed; and ringing the bell for another, felt creeping over him the accustomed
longing for cards, dice, company—some excitement in which to spend the
evening.
"Landlord," said he, as that stout and stolid personage entered the room with a
cobwebbed bottle and a corkscrew, "can you play picquet?"
The landlord smiled foolishly. He did not know what his lordship was driving at.
"Fetch a pack of cards," continued my lord, "and I will teach you."
The landlord excused himself in considerable alarm. "It was too much honour,"
he said; "he doubted he was too old to learn. Would his lordship like a toast of
bread and an olive with his wine?"
"I had rather deal than drink," answered Lord Bellinger, "though I'm in the
humour for both. If there's nobody in the house to play a game at whist or
ombre, send round to the stable, and tell the ostler I will try my luck with him at
all-fours."
The landlord stared; but a bright thought struck him, and he observed: "There's
a gentleman in the Sunflower who arrived this afternoon. He looks like a
gentleman who wouldn't object to a game of cards, or anything in that way."
"Bravo, Boniface," was the answer. "Carry him my respects—Lord Bellinger's
respects—with a bottle of your best, and say, if he is at leisure I shall be happy
to wait on him at once."
The landlord delivered his message with alacrity, and in less than five minutes
John Garnet answered it in person at his lordship's door. He had come to this
hostelry for the very purpose of obtaining the introduction he now found so
easy; and rather regretted the amount of thought he had wasted after supper in
considering how he should make Lord Bellinger's acquaintance, and gain his
confidence sufficiently to betray it. With his best bow and pleasantest smile,
"plain John Garnet" stood on the threshold, and assured the other that no
consideration would have induced him to permit his lordship to ascend to the
Sunflower till he had himself come down to conduct him upstairs, if he would so
far honour his humble apartment, where he would at once direct preparations
to be made for the reception of his noble visitor.
"Zounds, man!" answered the other, who at this period of the evening was
seldom disposed to stand on ceremony, "we want nothing but a bottle of
Burgundy and a pack of cards. They are both on that table. Let us sit down at
once and make the most of our time."
"Agreed," replied his guest; "and your lordship shall choose the game and the
stakes."
"What say you to picquet?" asked the nobleman, opening the Burgundy, "Ten
guineas a game. Twenty—fifty, if you like?"
John Garnet, reflecting that he knew nothing of his adversary's force, and was
himself no great performer, modestly chose the lowest stake, and proceeded to
play his hand with as much care as his own preoccupation and the strange
position in which he found himself permitted. Picquet is a game requiring, no
less than skill and practice, undivided attention. John Garnet could not forbear
glancing about the room for some symptoms of the documents he desired to
make his own; wondering if they were kept in his lordship's pockets, in her
ladyship's baggage, under charge of the servants. It is not surprising that at the
end of the first game he found himself the better by two glasses of moderate
Burgundy, and the worse by ten golden pieces stamped with the image of King
George. He ventured a second game, and with the same result.
To do Lord Bellinger justice, he was not a rapacious gambler. He loved winning
well enough, but would rather lose heavily than not play at all. "I am too strong
for you," said he; "I ought to have told you picquet is my especial game."
But when did a loser ever admit the superiority of an adversary's skill?
"Your lordship held good cards," answered John Garnet; "my luck is the likelier
to turn. I call for a fresh pack."
So the waiter was summoned, and more cards, with another bottle of wine,
were brought in. Lord Bellinger began to feel the old wild impulses rising in his
heart; and John Garnet, a desperate man, bound on a desperate errand, had no
disinclination to venture Katerfelto's money in an undertaking that compromised
his own head.
After two more games, Lord Bellinger had won a hundred guineas; and John
Garnet was at the end of his resources.
"My lord," said he, "a man does not journey a-horseback with the Bank of
England in his pocket. I have lost to your lordship as much as I can afford to
pay."
He spoke with some ill-humour, and rose from the table as though to take his
leave.
"One more game," pleaded Lord Bellinger, who would have paid his last guinea
rather than go to bed before midnight. "Sit down again, my good sir; if we
cannot play for money, we can play for money's worth."
John Garnet obeyed, with a forced smile. To be a good loser was considered
one of the essentials in the character of a gentleman; and he would have sunk
in his own, no less than in his companion's esteem, had he declined the unequal
contest for so paltry an excuse as want of means.
"That is a fine horse you rode here," continued his lordship, shuffling the cards.
"If you like to put a price on him, I will stake the sum named against the
animal."
"Five hundred!" answered John Garnet.
"Agreed," said the other, though the five hundred guineas he had borrowed
from Katerfelto constituted all the funds he possessed in the world.
So they played one more game, and again Fortune smiled on Lord Bellinger,
who emptied his glass with a smack, having despoiled his adversary of the grey
horse and one hundred guineas in gold.
It seemed an unpromising beginning, but John Garnet's courage rose with the
exigencies of his position. He pulled a purse from his pocket, and counted down
on the table one hundred guineas, piece by piece, with a good-humoured smile.
"No doubt," said he, "your lordship will give me my revenge at some future
time. I shall leave the horse in charge of your lordship's servants to-morrow
morning. I can pledge you my word he is as good as he looks."
"What do you call him?" asked the other, carelessly.
"Katerfelto," answered John Garnet, taken by surprise, and blurting out the
word that first occurred to him, because it would have seemed so strange to
hesitate at the name of his own horse.
Lord Bellinger started. "Do you know Katerfelto?" said he. "I have always
believed that man must be the devil in person!"
"I got the horse with that name," answered John Garnet, "and his new owner
can alter it at pleasure; but as I must be a-foot, literally a-foot, early to-morrow
morning, I will now take my leave, and wish your lordship good-night."
So, with many profound bows, the pair separated, and the loser, to his extreme
disgust, heard Lord Bellinger's door carefully locked on the inside.
 CHAPTER IX.
STRONG AS DEATH.
To have lost a hundred guineas after supper was bad enough, but to yield
possession of the best horse he ever owned, and pursue Lord Bellinger into the
West on foot, or by the tardy progress of a stage-waggon, was not to be
thought of.
He never intended permanently to part with either, or John Garnet would have
been more loth to risk his horse and to pay up his gold. The money must be
recovered, and Katerfelto, as he now determined to call the animal, must be
retained at all hazards. Pondering these matters deeply, the unlucky card-player
only waited till the lights were out and the hotel became quiet, to put his plans
in execution. An hour after midnight he had drawn off his boots, and satisfied
himself that his lordship's door was securely fastened. He must find another
opportunity of taking by violence that which he now despaired of gaining by
artifice; and he stole out to the stable, there to saddle his horse and effect his
escape. Though by no means satisfied with his night's work, he did not consider
he had entirely wasted time or money. In the course of conversation, he had
made himself acquainted with Lord Bellinger's intended movements, and could
prepare for a bold stroke. "If I had been more fortunate with the cards," he
thought, "I might have improved my acquaintance sufficiently to join them as a
travelling-companion, perhaps accompanying my lord and my lady in their
coach. It would have been easier then to effect my purpose, though I do not
think I could have found it in me to make love to her ladyship any more than to
her waiting-maid. But I never held a card! That hundred guineas I paid down on
the table I must have back again, as surely as I do not mean to part with my
good grey horse. There is only one way. I must seize the warrants, and recover
my money with the strong hand. Some unknown highwayman may bear the
blame, and if I can get off, I will lose no time in gaining the West Country, and
warning the honest squires of Devon and Somerset that they are in danger.
Nothing venture, nothing have! I'm in it now, over shoes, over boots! Let me
think. Highway robbery. It's an ugly word, and a hanging matter, but so is high
treason; and if every neck that risks the noose must be stretched, why, as I
heard those player fellows sing last winter—
 "I wonder there ain't better companie
Under Tyburn tree!"
Thus meditating, John Garnet, who had made himself acquainted with the
geography of the hotel and its surroundings, proceeded noiselessly to the
stable, not without anxious glances toward the East, where that forerunner of
morning, the false dawn, was already visible.
A true horseman, he had identified himself so completely with his steed, and
busied himself so earnestly about its wants, that Katerfelto neighed with
pleasure to acknowledge the friendly presence as he approached its stall thus
stealthily and in the dark. While he hurried to the horse's head, that he might
silence this untoward greeting, a slim figure rose from below the manger and
glided like a phantom to the door. John Garnet was no less prompt than
resolute. In an instant he had seized this shadowy intruder by the throat.
Outcry and escape were alike impossible; but his hand opened as if it grasped
a red-hot iron, when a half-stifled voice, that he remembered only too well,
murmured, "Hold! do not hurt me. I am here to serve you. I will follow you to
the end of the world."
"Waif!" he exclaimed, in an accent that, smothered as it was, denoted the very
extremity of surprise; but even while he spoke, the figure slid through the dark
stable out into the night.
For a few seconds John Garnet was persuaded that he must be dreaming—the
meeting had been so sudden, so unexpected, and so soon over. When he
realised the fact, his surprise amounted to dismay. That this impracticable
gipsy-girl should have followed him, watched him, and made herself
acquainted with his movements, seemed a fatal climax to the disasters of the
night. For one disheartening minute he thought of riding back to London,
returning Katerfelto to his former owner, and abandoning the whole project.
Then he reflected, that under any circumstances he must make his escape
before daylight, and so saddled his horse with what alacrity he might. Dawn
was breaking as he led the animal out of the court-yard softly and at a walk,
though its tramp was smothered in the snores of a stalwart ostler who slept in
a loft above, for protection of the stables, and a red streak of sunrise bound
the eastern horizon, to which he looked back on emerging from a belt of
coppice that skirted the high-road a mile from the inn. Bold as he was,
Katerfelto shied at an object moving in the brushwood, while a slim boyish
figure sprang out, laid its hand on the horse's shoulder, and looked wistfully up
in the rider's face.
Waif—for it was none other—attired as a country lad, and only the more
beautiful for her disguise, seemed to anticipate no less affectionate a greeting
than she was prepared to offer. But already she knew every change of the face
she had studied so fatally, and her own fell, while she marked the displeasure
that settled on the brows and about the lips she loved.
"Speak to me," she murmured, "for pity's sake. I tracked you so patiently, and
followed you so far!"
"Waif, why are you here?" he asked, while his heart smote him to think of the
distance travelled by that slender form, those shapely delicate limbs.
"I could not bear you to go away," replied the girl, laying his hand to her heart
and pressing her cheek against Katerfelto's warm shoulder. "I could not live
without you; and for the matter of that, you could not live without me. If I had
let you go by yourself, every mile you rode was a mile towards your grave."
They were pacing on together, Waif walking at his stirrup with a free untiring
step, that the good horse must have fairly broken into a trot to leave behind.
John Garnet looked at her with an astonishment in which there was no little
interest and admiration.
"What mean you?" said he, "and how came the Doctor to let you go?"
"I never asked the Patron's leave," was her answer, "because, if he had
forbidden me, I should have lain down to die. No; when you rode out of
London, I was scarcely half an hour behind. The Patron must have been very
angry when he found me gone. What do I care? I care for nobody but you. I
knew where to get these clothes well enough. Do you like me in them? I might
have had a horse from our people before I had done a day's journey, but I
thought I could be nearer you on foot, and I've walked all the way. I'm not
tired. I'd walk as far again only to hear your voice."
John Garnet was in utter perplexity. Such a phase in his affairs he had never
contemplated, yet there seemed something so ridiculous in his position, bound
on a political adventure thus attended, that he could not forbear a laugh.
"Nonsense, my lass!" said he kindly enough. "You must go back; indeed you
must. I won't have you come a step farther. You ought never to have followed
me at all."
The tears were in Waif's dark eyes, and she raised them to his face with the
pleading, reproachful look of a dog that you chide when he knows he is doing
right.
"Not follow you!" she repeated. "How am I not to follow you, when you are
going into danger? I can share it even if I cannot keep it off; and you tell me I
must go back to London! You cannot mean it. I don't think you quite
understand."
"That's the truest word you have said yet," was his answer; "but I do
understand that, for your own sake, you ought not to be here now. Still, if you
persist in accompanying 'a beggar on horseback,' you ought to have your
share of the saddle, till we get down."
With these words, he took her by the hand, and braced his foot in the stirrup
to afford a purchase for her ascent. In one bound she stood on his instep, light
and buoyant as a bird; in another, she was seated before him with her arm
round his neck, and her comely smiling face very near his own. It might have
been the exertion, or the novelty of the position, or something he whispered,
with his lips close to hers, that turned Waif crimson, and then deadly pale. She
seemed more out of breath now, clinging to the rider, than she had been
awhile ago walking beside his horse. Katerfelto, in obedience to his master's
hand, broke into a canter; before she spoke another word, they were nearing
a hamlet, of which the smoke was visible above the trees, when she made
shift to ask in a trembling voice if she might not be set down, and taken up
again when they had passed through? For answer, John Garnet laughed, and
increasing his pace, dashed along the street at a gallop. When he relapsed
once more into a walk, the startled villagers had been left two miles behind.
Waif's nerves were of the firmest, and she had now recovered some of her
self-possession, no easy matter for a woman who finds herself seated on the
same horse with the man she loves. Her heart beat fast indeed, and the colour
came and went in her cheek; but she could review the situation calmly, and
resolved that now was the time to explain all she had done, all she intended to
do in John Garnet's behalf. Even those women, whose station renders them
slaves of custom, like other slaves, assume the wildest freedom when they
have elected to throw off the yoke; but this gipsy-girl, an unsophisticated child
of nature, had no scruples to vanquish, no social laws to break, found nothing
to restrain the ardent expression of her feelings, save the innate delicacy of a
proud and loving heart.
It was not, therefore, without such a blush and downward glance, as few men
could have withstood, and none, perhaps, less firmly than John Garnet, that
she announced her resolution.
"I shall hold by you to the last. I shall never desert you till you have performed
your task in safety. It is right you should know it. But—but—I cannot expect to
accompany you like this. Only promise that you will not try to leave me behind,
and never fear, but I can find my way from place to place, and be at hand
when I am wanted, without shaming you by my presence. The gipsy-girl is
proud to give her life for you, though you may blush to acknowledge one of
my people as your friend!"
"Blush!" repeated John Garnet, and perhaps because their faces were so near
together, the blushing seemed all on the other side. "I would never blush to
own a true friend; and Waif, my pretty lass, you have proved yourself more
than a friend to-day. You say that I am in danger; I know well enough that I
soon shall be; but my head is out of the halter as yet, and I see not how you
could help if it were in!"
"Out of the halter!" said Waif. "How little you fear and how little you seem to
care! Do you think I was not listening at the door when Abner Gale came to
the Patron thirsting for the man's blood who took his brother's life? You know
not our people, John Garnet, nor the gifts that nature bestows on us, instead
of hearth and home, bed and board, gold and silver, houses and land. Do you
believe the gipsy can forget a path once trod, a voice once heard, a face once
seen? I was dancing in Taunton Fair, when Abner Gale, one of your priests, as
you call them, tossed me a bit of silver, with a coarse laugh and a brutal jest.
The gipsy has no feelings to wound, no character to sustain, no honour to
defend, but she has the instincts and the memory of a dog for friend or foe!
Parson Gale had better have bitten his tongue through and kept his silver in
his pocket. I know his home, his habits, his haunts, his vices, as I know my
own ten fingers. I listened because I hated him. But when I heard more, I
listened on, because—because I loved you!"
It was wrong, no doubt, scandalous, shocking, if not entirely without excuse;
but something in the proximity of those two young faces again made the girl
blush deeper than before.
"There are no secrets too close for the Patron," continued Waif, "and as you
have seen, people come from far and near to consult his art. This man's
errand was to discover your hiding-place and hunt you down to death. He
gave the Patron money—golden guineas—I heard them jingle. He was in
earnest—bitter earnest, and so am I!"
"But what said the Patron?" asked her listener. "I thought he was my friend."
"The Patron is every man's friend," answered Waif, "who is willing to do him
service, or to pay him gold. He promised to betray you when the moon was
full, but that very night he sent you out of London on his own affairs, and I
followed close, lest evil should befall, for I knew you were journeying to the
West."
Laughing lightly, he asked if that was a dangerous quarter, and whether the
Wise Men, who came there from the East, were ancestors of her own?
But Waif scorned to enter on the subject of genealogy with one who could
neither believe nor understand her claims to a descent co-eval with the earliest
history of man. Her tone was grave and almost stern, while she looked him
steadfastly in the face, and proceeded with her warning.
"When a stag goes down to the water, where an enemy waits to take away his
life, the voice of a child, or the wave of a woman's hand, is enough to turn him
back into the moor. Abner Gale lives in the very country to which you are
bound. I know the man, John Garnet, and I will save you from his vengeance,
though I swing for it—there! Now will you let me come with you and help you
as best I can?"
John Garnet did not hesitate long. True, he was unable to stifle certain
scruples, while he reflected on the dangers into which this wilful girl was
running of her own accord, on her loss of character, if indeed she had any
character to lose, and the inconvenience he would himself experience in
accounting for such a travelling companion, however well disguised; above all,
on the advantage he was taking of a professed devotion, that exchanged, as
he could not but admit, the pure gold of sincere affection for a baser metal,
compounded of gratitude, vanity, and self-indulgence. But men have seldom
far to seek for an excuse when they would do that which is pleasant and
convenient rather than right; so John Garnet persuaded himself that to make
this beautiful girl an assistant of his schemes, and comrade in his dangers, was
an act of self-denial and loyalty vouching for his fealty to the exile whom he
called his lawful king.
"Agreed!" said he; "and, now, Waif, if you are really to help me, I must tell you
my plans."
He never forgot this ride through the summer's afternoon. The yellow light
that glimmered in copse and dingle. The glare on the white road they
travelled. The distant lake that gleamed like a sheet of silver—the brook at his
feet, that brawled and gurgled and broke into bubbles of gold. The bloom of
wild flowers, the song of birds, the murmur of the breeze, the lowing of kine,
the deep rich meadows, the stretching uplands, and, over all, that sunny haze
which veiled without hiding the distance, and added its crowning grace to the
beauties of a landscape that became fairer and fairer, the further he journeyed
towards the West.
Katerfelto paced proudly on, while John Garnet poured in a willing ear the
details of his journey, and the manner in which he proposed to turn the tables
on an adversary who had despoiled him of his money, and could lay claim to
his horse. It was difficult to make her understand how the stake could have
been lost.
"For," said Waif, "the Patron bids the cards come out just as he likes. It seems
so easy, if a man has only the use of eyes and hands! This lord must be very
clever with his fingers, cleverer even than you!"
"It's not all cleverness," he answered, impatiently. "There's such a thing as
luck, and I never held a card all night."
Waif stared and made a motion with her slender fingers, the import of which it
was impossible to misunderstand.
"But that would have been dishonourable," protested John Garnet.
"Dishonourable!" repeated Waif. "Why? When you sit down, you do not mean
to be beat. It is only a trial of skill, like a race or a wrestling-match. Let the
best man win. Why is it dishonourable?"
Despairing to explain to this untutored mind the code of fair-play as practised
amongst so-called men of honour, John Garnet proceeded to discuss the
means by which, in a few hours, he hoped to equalise the chances of Fortune,
and reimburse himself for his previous losses. Of his scheme Waif greatly
approved, holding, nevertheless, to her first opinion, that it would have been
wiser to win by fraud than to lose by ill-luck, but promising her hearty
assistance in all parts of the plan he proposed to carry out.
Thus conversing, they arrived at the outskirts of a country town; and here,
before John Garnet could suggest that he should alight and lead the horse on
foot, thus to avoid the remarks that might be provoked by its double burden,
Waif glided like water from the saddle, slipped through a tangled hedge by the
way-side, and disappeared. In vain, standing high in his stirrups, he peeped
and peered over the obstacle; in vain he galloped to the gate, and searched
and traversed the whole meadow, calling her loudly by name. The girl had
vanished; and riding thoughtfully into the town, her late companion, for the
second time since daybreak, wondered whether he was under the spell of
some unholy witchcraft, or was really awake and in his right mind.
 CHAPTER X.
MARLBOROUGH DOWNS.
"Ah! them was good times for we! I often wish as we'd Galloping Jack back
again."
The speaker, a lame old ostler, clattering about his stable-yard in wooden
clogs, with a bucket in each hand, addressed himself to an unseen individual
at the taproom window, who blew out large clouds of tobacco-smoke in reply.
"He was free, he was!" continued the ostler, "as free with a guinea as you and
me with a shilling. I'll wager a quart as he was a gentleman born, right or
wrong. Such gold lace as he wore! and such horses as he rode, to be sure!"
The old man seemed lost in admiration of the memories called up by Galloping
Jack.
"What's gone with him?" asked the unseen smoker in the taproom.
"What's gone with 'em all?" said the other, angrily. "A nightcap and a nosegay,
I doubt, like the rest. But he loved his perfession, did Galloping Jack; an'
many's the pleasant ride he took across the Down, and what not, afore he
mounted his wooden horse on Tyburn Hill."
"We'll hope it never came to that," replied the other, with something of
amusement in his tone.
"Ah! I'm afeared it's past hoping and praying for too," said the ostler. "But it's
a gentleman's trade," he added, reverting to his own professional view of the
highwayman's calling; "a gentleman's trade—I've always said so. Look what
cattle they can afford to keep!"
"You're a judge of such matters, I suppose," observed the smoker in the
taproom.
"Man and boy," answered the other, "I've been about horses nigh fifty year. If I
don't know a good nag when I see 'un, master, well, I'd better give out, an'
take on with some likelier trade."
"That's the right sort you dressed over awhile ago," continued the smoker,
leaning out of window, and showing a tall, active frame, surmounted by a
swarthy face, with the eager expression of a hawk.
The ostler set his bucket down, and winked.
"You're a judge," said he, "you are, and so you ought. There's a many passes
through your hands, Master Cooper, but I never see you with such a nag as
this here. He's a cut above you, everyway—he is."
"That's a good one!" answered the dark man, with a boastful laugh. "Why, Ike,
you old fool! I tell you I owned that very horse myself, and I gave him—gave
him away as a present to a friend of mine."
"But how came Galloping Jack to part with him?" asked the ostler, much
interested. "I knowed the horse, bless ye, as well as the horse knowed me,
when he came into the yard not two hours back; but he's in the hands of a
real gentleman now, and as pretty a rider as ever drew a rein through his
fingers. There was something about his seat as put me in mind of Jack, too,
and something in the way he carried his hands; but I can't call to mind seeing
Jack without a mask on. Speak up, Master Cooper: it couldn't be the man
himself, could it now? I never heerd as he'd swung for sure."
"Who knows!" answered the other, with a harsh laugh. "You water your
horses, and mind your own business, Ike, and I'll tell the drawer to give you a
pot of ale when you come into the house."
Now John Garnet, sitting after dinner at an open window above the stable-
yard, overheard the foregoing conversation, and resolved straightway to take
advantage of his own likeness to the missing hero, whose horse he had so
strangely appropriated. Katerfelto seemed well known in these parts as the
property of Galloping Jack, and, indeed, an animal of such remarkable beauty
was sure to be recognised by anyone concerned with horses who had ever
seen it before. If the rider's figure, too, resembled the highwayman, who had
been in the habit of concealing his features in a mask, it was quite possible
that he, John Garnet, riding the best horse in England, might, so long as it
suited his purpose, be mistaken for the enterprising person known on the
Great Western Road as Galloping Jack.
At a glance he perceived how such a confusion of characters would facilitate a
project he had been maturing all day—a project that, after a few hours' rest
and refreshment at the wayside inn, it seemed quite practicable to carry out
before nightfall. To rob a coach single-handed, that contained four well-armed
men, of whom he had reason to suppose one at least would fight to the death,
seemed a bold stroke; but while he looked to the loading of his pistols, the
fitting of his saddle, the feeding and bridling of his horse, and all the details on
which his very life depended, he entertained but little fear for the result. His
plan, though desperate in its nature, was not without discretion. He had ridden
for two days ahead of Lord Bellinger's carriage, and had now turned back on
his track. By sunset he calculated that the travellers would arrive at a solitary
clump of trees he had marked in the lonely plain, on Marlborough Downs. Here
he might conceal himself, shoot one of the horses, as it passed, and leaping
out, stun my lord with the butt-end of his pistol. The servants, he hoped,
would be so panic-stricken, that in the confusion he might possess himself of
the papers he required, and rely on Katerfelto's speed to make his escape. All
this he had confided to Waif, and now Waif was not forthcoming, though she
had promised him assistance, of some mysterious nature she seemed unwilling
to explain. Well, he must do it single-handed, that was all, and let Galloping
Jack bear the blame.
The landlord looked after him with approval as he rode out of the inn yard an
hour before sunset. His wife and her maids lavished admiring glances on the
handsome coat and graceful seat of this comely horseman; while old Ike,
drawing his hand down Katerfelto's firm smooth quarters, blessed him as he
went. Golden opinions had the stranger won from each and all; yet each and
all, if examined on oath, would have sworn they believed him to be a man who
earned his daily bread by crimes that the law punished with death. Who but a
highwayman would order so costly a dinner, such choice wine, and leave both
almost untouched? Who but a highwayman would bow to the very kitchen
scullion like a courtier, while he scattered a handful of silver in her dirty apron,
or fling a guinea (his last guinea) at old Ike's head, whilst the ostler held the
stirrup for him to get on. They looked meaningly in each other's faces as he
disappeared, riding steadily towards the endless down, and old Ike, with the
tears standing in his eyes, clattered back to his brooms and stable-pails,
muttering, "He always wur free-handed, an' now he's gone his ways again for
good, an' I sha'n't never see him no more!"
John Garnet rode slowly on at a pace that should husband Katerfelto's powers.
The sun was already set when he arrived at the clump of trees where he
meant to lie in ambush; but he passed it, unwillingly enough, and affected to
proceed on his journey; for lonely as seemed the wide expanse of down, its
solitude was broken by a motionless figure, to all appearance intently on the
watch.
His business admitted of no observers. After a moment's hesitation he turned
on his track, and rode straight to the figure, as if to ask his way.
In the twilight, he made out a tall dark man, who might have been a shepherd
but for want of sheep and sheep-dog, and who never moved a limb while he
approached.
"My friend," said the horseman, "I have forgotten something at the inn I left
an hour ago. If you will take a message back you shall have a crown-piece for
your pains."
The other pointed to the London road. "I can earn a crown-piece without
walking three miles for it," said he, "and so can you, Master Garnet, if you'll
stay where you are."
John Garnet fairly started at the sound of his own name.
"Who the devil are you?" he exclaimed, "and what are you doing here?"
"I am here on your business," was the unexpected answer. "You're about a
tough job, sir, and you'll do it, never fear, but not single-handed."
"I don't know what you mean," replied the other; adding, after a moment's
consideration, "did I not see you this afternoon smoking in the taproom of the
inn?"
"Very like," said the man, composedly. "I've seen you many more times than
ever you've seen me. Why, now, you look quite astonished that a gentleman
can be put down by a plain man! Well, it's no use beating about the bush, I'm
here to look after you because Thyra bade me come."
"Thyra!" repeated John Garnet, with an air of sudden enlightenment: "what,
Waif do you mean? Why you must be Fin Cooper."
"That's my name in your patter," said the gipsy; "now I'll tell you my business.
Stay, all that will keep: I hear the roll of wheels. In ten minutes the coach we
are both looking for will be plodding up the hill. Go in with a will! Do it your
own way, there'll be plenty to help when the time comes. Take what you want,
and leave us, Romanies, the pickings. There's half a score here that go share
and share alike."
John Garnet had little time to demand an explanation, or indeed to make up
his mind. Already he could distinguish Lord Bellinger's coach labouring slowly
up a slight ascent, crowned by the clump of trees before mentioned. He
withdrew himself into their shelter, and scanned, as well as the failing light
permitted, the strength of the party he had determined to attack. It happened
that the servant whose duty it was to ride ahead from stage to stage had
fallen to the rear; and this accounted for his missing that fore-runner, on
whom he had calculated to warn him that his prey was drawing near. This
increased the defending force to five; including my lord, a coachman, and two
footmen; of whom one carried a blunderbuss, and was impeded moreover by
the charge of Mistress Rachel.
Of his own auxiliaries he knew nothing. Wherever the half-score mentioned by
Fin Cooper were concealed, not a man but the tall gipsy had yet shown
himself, and he seemed unarmed by so much as a stick. Nevertheless, the
coach was close upon them now. Lady Bellinger's peevish tones might already
be heard from the inside.
Unseen in the black shadow of the trees, he took a pistol from his holsters—
Katerfelto standing like a rock—and sighted the near wheeler. Simultaneously
with the report of the weapon and two female shrieks, the animal fell dead,
shot through the brain, bringing down its coach-fellow across its body, in a
confused turmoil of snortings, plungings, and broken harness.
In an instant my lord had whipped out of the carriage, sword in hand, with his
coat torn up the back from the vigour with which my lady pulled at it in her
fright. Determined, nevertheless, to sell his life dearly, and ready, to do him
justice, for a fight at any odds, right or wrong.
The mounted servant, crying "Thieves!" and "Murder!" turned his horse, and
rode away at a gallop; while the footman who carried the blunderbuss,
shaking himself clear of Mistress Rachel, dropped on his knees, and begged
pitifully for life.
His fellow, however, being of a bolder nature, snatched the weapon out of his
hand to point it full in John Garnet's face, and pulled the trigger like a hero.
It only flashed in the pan; somebody had been tampering with the firearms at
the last stopping-place. The assailant was in no real danger but from Lord
Bellinger's naked steel. That nobleman made at him fiercely enough; and
though Katerfelto answered rein and spur, as if well-trained in such hand-to-
hand conflicts, John Garnet might have been obliged to use fatal means in
self-defence, but that half-a-dozen figures sprang like magic from amongst the
trees; a cloak was thrown over my lord's head, while he was dragged to the
earth; the servants were securely gagged and bound; my lady and Mistress
Rachel compelled with hideous threats to keep silence; and the original
aggressor found himself at liberty to rifle the carriage unmolested, and take
what he required.
 Vincent Brooks, Day & Son, Lith. London.

WESTWARD-HO!

There was no difficulty in finding the warrants. With these, and the hundred
guineas he had lost, safe in his pocket, John Garnet turned Katerfelto's head
towards the down, pausing one moment to thank the gipsies for their timely
aid, and impress on them the necessity of mercy towards their captives. In
that moment Waif's hand clasped his own, and Waif's voice murmured in his
ear:
"My tribe have done you good service, leave the rest to me. I do not say
farewell, for it would break my heart to think we should not meet again!"
 CHAPTER XI.
A PECULIAR PEOPLE.
It is only fair to state that Lord Bellinger writhed and struggled with a vigour
not to have been expected from his attenuated frame, much to the delight of
his captors, who were inclined to treat him more leniently than if he had
submitted, like his footman, without show of resistance. This champion they
kicked and belaboured to some purpose, while they pinioned his fellow-
servant, from whose readier hands they had wrested the harmless
blunderbuss, and threatened him in frightful language if he ventured to stir a
finger. To my lady, though insisting that she should retain her seat in the
carriage, they behaved with extreme politeness. She was afterwards heard,
indeed, to protest that the robber-chief, as she called Fin Cooper, seemed a
perfect gentleman; that he had a distinguished air, and for a black man—
though, in a general way, she could not abide black men (Lord Bellinger being
as black as a crow)—was by no means ill-looking.
Mistress Rachel, too, while frightened and hysterical, as behoved her station,
clung persistently to the arm of a stout gipsy, who mounted guard over her
person, entreating him, in piteous terms, to respect her youth, and, above all,
to protect her from the insults of his comrades; lavishing on him tender
glances, and contrasting his assured demeanour with the cowardice of her late
admirer, whose very teeth chattered for dismay. My lord, in the meantime, with
a swarthy fellow at each limb, lay helpless on his back, cursing volubly, but
losing neither presence of mind nor temper. Indeed, when he had sufficiently
relieved his feelings by such ebullitions, and perceived that no violence was
offered to Lady Bellinger or her maid, the situation seemed to strike him as
ludicrous, and, bursting into a laugh, he called on the gipsies to release him,
promising, on his honour, that no further resistance should be offered by
himself, or his servants, to the continuation of their frolic.
Fin Cooper took him at his word. Exchanging a few short sentences with Waif
in his own Romany language, unintelligible to the captives, he raised Lord
Bellinger to his feet and restored the rapier which had been wrested from that
struggling nobleman.
"You are a Gorgio Raia," said he, "and I but a Romany Chal. Nevertheless,
there is honour among thieves, and I'll trust yours if you'll trust mine." "I
cannot speak your language," answered his lordship; "but your manners are
those of a perfect gentleman. Pray select from my coach whatever articles you
fancy, except her ladyship, my wife, whose health does not admit of her taking
exercise on foot, and I would venture to suggest that, in rifling the sword case,
no violence be used. It contains three bottles of excellent Chambertin, which it
would be a pity to break. I can only regret that I am not better prepared to
entertain so large a party."
"You're made of the right stuff," answered Fin Cooper; "and another time you'll
know that a Romany Chal means a gipsy lad, and a Gorgio Raia a nobleman of
the Gentiles. We'll drink your health, my lord, never fear, and give yourself and
your lady a share, if you'll condescend to wet your lips on the same cup with
us. Now, pals," he added, turning to the gang, "take what you want and let us
be off. High Toby's a good game for the winner, but it's best to play it out
before the moon gets up."
The gipsies then proceeded to appropriate the contents of the coach,
exchanging grins and smiles and whispered congratulations in their own
language on the value of their prize.
Only Waif stood aloof, gazing into the darkness, where the grey horse and his
rider had long ago disappeared.
Presently a scream from my lady announced that some tawny hand was laid
on her jewel-case. "My diamonds!" she exclaimed; and tears of real distress
rose in her eyes, as she raised them to Fin Cooper's face. "Oh! sir! I beseech
you, let me keep my diamonds. For pity's sake, do not send me back into the
great world naked and ashamed, without so much as a clasp of brilliants to
fasten round my neck!"
"I do believe as her ladyship would rather lose her maid than her jewels,"
whispered Rachel, with a glance at her swarthy guardian, that intimated no
great disinclination to be retained as a pledge instead.
My lord laughed. "I would play you for the set, and welcome," said he. "But
though you will find a pack of cards in every pocket of the coach, the devil a
guinea have I left to stake. It's a pity," he added, "for just now I'm in a vein of
luck. Only last night I won five games running of our friend on the grey horse,
though it seems to be his turn now!"
"Galloping Jack is hard to beat at any game he chooses to play," answered the
gipsy, in whose ear Waif had whispered a few hurried words. "Nevertheless,
win or lose, he's far enough by this time. It takes a bird of the air to catch Jack
when he gets his spurs into the grey."
"Confound him!" said his lordship heartily, reflecting that, by all the rules of
fair-play, this enterprising highwayman was now riding into safety with his
money on his horse. "Drink up your liquor, my good friends, and let us make
some arrangements for the future. I presume you do not wish us to remain
unsheltered on the downs all night?"
"Not an inch will I stir without my diamonds!" exclaimed his wife. "Mind that,
my lord. If they go into captivity, I go too!"
"And I humbly hope, as is my bounden duty, to attend your ladyship," added
Mistress Rachel, trying hard to blush, while she stole another look in her
guardian's gipsy face.
Fin Cooper scratched his handsome black head in some perplexity. Of all
incumbrances, the last he would have chosen was a lady of quality, with her
waiting gentlewoman. How was he to get them to the tents? What was he to
do with them when there? If retained as hostages they would give more
trouble than they were worth; and such a speculation promised no great
profit, for Lord Bellinger's easy indifference seemed to infer neither high
ransom nor prompt payment. Fin would rather have foregone jewels, lady, and
lady's-maid, than be hampered with all three.
Again he consulted Waif, and, after the interchange of a few brief sentences in
their own language, of which my lord, listening intently for all his assumed
carelessness, could only catch the words "fakement" (a piece of work),
"fashono" (fictitious), and "balanser" (a pound sterling), cleared his brows, and
made a profound bow to her ladyship, with all the politeness of a dancing-
master.
"The Romany in his tent," said he, "can be courteous as the Gorgio in his
castle. If the Rawnie (lady) sets such store by her gew-gaws, let her keep
them and welcome! When she walks in her jewels among the great ones of
the earth, she will think not unkindly of the Romany raklo (the gipsy lad) who
wished her good luck and good speed on Marlborough Downs."
He had learned from Waif, whose experience while in the Patron's service
taught her many a strange secret, that the diamonds were but paste, and,
with characteristic promptitude, seized the opportunity of affecting a princely
magnificence at trifling cost.
Her ladyship, who must have known, while she obstinately ignored, the truth,
was disappointed beyond measure. In her own circle many romantic stories
were told of the courtesy shown by highwaymen to ladies of gentle birth. She
expected no less than to redeem her jewels by some such harmless gallantries
as those practised in a game of forfeits, and would have felt little disinclination
to dance a rigadoon by moonlight on the level turf with this well-made gipsy
for a partner. It seemed a bad compliment that he should give her up the best
share of his booty, and never so much as ask to kiss her hand in return.
My lord burst out laughing, and offered his snuff-box. "By St. George," said he,
"you must be the king of the gipsies himself. A man who presents a lady with a
set of diamonds, and makes no more to-do than I would about a bunch of
flowers, ought to sit on a throne; and, excuse my freedom, in an unpatched
pair of breeches. May I ask the gentleman's name to whom her ladyship is so
deeply indebted, and whose generosity is only equalled by the simplicity of his
dress?"
The gipsy's black eyes shot a cunning glance in his lordship's face. Its
expression was so good-humoured and mirthful, that it was obvious no insult
could be intended; and the slender hand that had stolen like lightning to a
knife in his girdle was as quickly withdrawn.
"They call me Fin Cooper," said he, frankly, "in the patter of the Gorgios; but if
your lordship ever condescends to visit our camping-ground, ask for Kaulo
Vardo-mescro (Black Cooper), and you shall receive a brother's welcome in the
tents. Prala (brother), there is my hand upon it!"
With a gravity that was in itself ridiculous, the pair shook hands; while my lady,
in tones of extreme impatience, demanded "how much longer they were to
remain on the open down, and what was to be done next?"
Again there was a whispered consultation among the gipsies, and again Waif
was called into council. Fin Cooper then addressed his prisoners with a calm
dignity, such as Lord Bellinger had many times seen attempted unsuccessfully
in the legislative chamber to which he belonged.
"My lord," said he, "and especially my lady, it gives me great uneasiness that I
should be obliged to cause you inconvenience. My brothers, however, will not
hear of your being released till they have gained two hours' start. By that
time," he added, looking up at the stars, "it will be nearly eleven o'clock. You
will find a good inn, not three miles from this spot, where I will take care that
beds and supper are prepared. You will, I hope, be comfortably lodged before
midnight. In the meantime, it will be necessary to secure your acquiescence by
binding you hand and foot. Excuse the liberty, my lord and my lady, it is but for
a couple of hours."
"And who is to unbind us when eleven o'clock strikes?" asked her ladyship, in
tones of exceeding disquiet.
"Unless you leave somebody on purpose!" added Mistress Rachel, with a titter.
"I don't see the necessity," observed my lord, tapping his snuff-box; "you have
trusted my honour once to-night, why not put me on my parole again?"
Fin Cooper pondered. It seemed a good jest enough to leave the party he had
captured huddled together on the open down, tied hand and foot, as it were,
in imaginary fetters by Lord Bellinger's word of honour alone; but how if his
lordship, treating the whole affair also as a jest, should turn the tables, and
proceed to raise the country in pursuit directly his captors had withdrawn? On
whose side would the laugh be then?
It speaks well, both for gipsy and nobleman, that Fin's hesitation was of no
long continuance.
"I think the Gorgio means fair," he whispered to Waif, "for all he wears a clean
shirt on his back. Am I a fool to trust him, my sister, or is he fool enough to
respect my trust? We could hardly, without hurting them, tie them up so tight
but that they might release one another in the space of two hours; and this
job will look quite black enough as it stands, without cruelty. It's highway
robbery, Thyra, and, I fear, something like what the Gorgios call high treason
to boot! You are wise, my sister, and know these Gentiles well; counsel me
what to do."
Waif reflected for a moment ere she answered, gipsy-like, by a parable.
"Do you remember, brother," said she, "how one night in the apple-water
country, on the banks of the Wye, we took a rooster off his perch, and brought
the poor dazed chiriclo (bird) into our empty barn by the light of a single
lanthorn? How Mother Stanley bade us lay the fowl's bill against the bare
boards, and draw from it a line of white chalk to the far edge of the threshing-
floor? and how the helpless creature never so much as lifted its beak from the
spot to which it believed itself tied? Brother, you speak the truth when you say
I know the Gorgios. They are like that foolish barn-door fowl. This Raya here is
a game-cock of their choicest breed. At his own time, in his own way, he will
strut, and fight, and crow as lustily as the best chanticleer of them all; but tie
him up in his word of honour, and he will no more stir an inch out of that
imaginary circle than Aunt Stanley's fowl moved from the line of chalk on our
barn floor. I have spoken brother, let us go hence."
The gipsy turned to his prisoner. "My lord," said he, "I will trust your lordship's
word. You shall promise, as a gentleman, not to stir in your own person, nor to
permit one of your people to leave this spot, till two hours of the night are
fairly past. On this understanding your whole party shall at once be set free,
and the Romanies will take their leave, humbly wishing your lordship good-
night."
"You'll give me back my watch," said Lord Bellinger, feeling in his empty fob,
with a shrug of his shoulders, "or how shall I know when the time is expired,
and we may put the horses to?"
Fin Cooper laughed. He liked a man who never threw a chance away, while at
the same time he knew the value of a heavy gold watch set in diamonds.
"Look well at that fir-tree, my lord," said he, pointing upwards; "when the
moon, now rising, has cleared the second branch from the top two hours will
have elapsed, and you can depart."
"If you know the time so exactly without a watch," replied his lordship, "you
can have no use for mine. However, it's a pretty keepsake enough, and you're
welcome to it. But harky'e, my friend, one word before you go. Is there no
chance of our being beset by other gentlemen of your profession? You've left
nothing for them to take, 'tis true, except the clothes on our backs; but the
disappointment might make them harder to deal with than you have been
yourselves. You couldn't afford us a guard, could you? That pretty boy, for
instance," glancing at Waif, who shrank hastily behind the others, "and a
couple of stout fellows, in case there should be a fight."
Nobody but Mistress Rachel seemed disappointed at the gipsy's answer.
"It is needless," he said; "our patrin will hold you unharmed, as if your coach
was surrounded by an escort of Light Horse."
"Your patrin? What is that?" asked my lord.
"The sign that none of our people will pass unnoticed," said the gipsy; "that
not one of the profession dare disregard, from the best galloping gentleman
on the road to the poor cly-faker who pulls an old woman's petticoat off a
hedge. I will set it for you at once."
Thus speaking, he drew his knife from the sheath, and cut three crosses, side
by side, in the turf, north, south, east, and west of the party. This done, the
word was given to march; and in less than a minute these strange assailants,
who seemed to have the facility of deer and other wild animals in availing
themselves of any irregularity in the ground, had disappeared from the surface
of the downs, though a moon already nearly full was shining brightly above
the horizon.
My lord looked after them in silence as they vanished. Then, turning to his
wife, observed, with a meaning smile, "They have left you your diamonds, my
dear. I wonder where they learned to know brilliants from paste?"
Welcome to our website – the ideal destination for book lovers and
knowledge seekers. With a mission to inspire endlessly, we offer a
vast collection of books, ranging from classic literary works to
specialized publications, self-development books, and children's
literature. Each book is a new journey of discovery, expanding
knowledge and enriching the soul of the reade

Our website is not just a platform for buying books, but a bridge
connecting readers to the timeless values of culture and wisdom. With
an elegant, user-friendly interface and an intelligent search system,
we are committed to providing a quick and convenient shopping
experience. Additionally, our special promotions and home delivery
services ensure that you save time and fully enjoy the joy of reading.

Let us accompany you on the journey of exploring knowledge and

personal growth!

ebookname.com