Those were busy times at Meade Place, for Mr Hasnip worked me hard; Mr
Rebble harassed me a little whenever he had a chance; and every now and
then the Doctor made a sudden unexpected attack upon me with questions
uttered in the severest of tones.
All this meant long hours of what the masters called "private study" and
the boys "private worry;" while in addition there were the lessons we
inflicted upon ourselves, for we never once failed of being at the lodge
by five o'clock on those summer mornings, to be scolded, punched, and
generally knocked about by our instructor.
Join to these, other lessons in the art of skinning and preserving
birds, given by Mercer up in the loft; compulsory games at cricket, as
they were called, but which were really hours of toil, fielding for Burr
major, Hodson, and Dicksee; sundry expeditions after specimens, visits
to Bob Hopley, bathing, fishing, and excursions and incursions
generally, and it will be seen that neither Mercer nor I had much spare
time.
A busy life is after all the happiest, and, though my lessons often
worried and puzzled me, I was perfectly content, and my friendly
relations with Mercer rapidly grew more firm.
"I say," he cried one morning, after Lomax had grumbled at us a little
less than usual respecting our execution of several of the bits of
guarding and hitting he put us through--"I say, don't you think we are
perfect yet?"
The serjeant opened his eyes wide, and then burst into a hearty laugh.
"Well," he said, "you will grow into a man some day, and when you do, I
daresay you will be a bit modest, for of all the cocksparrowy chaps I
ever did meet, you are about the most impudent."
"Thank-ye," said Mercer, and he went off in dudgeon, while Lomax gave me
a comical look.
"That's the way to talk to him," he said. "If you don't, he'll grow up
so conceited he'll want extra buttons on his jacket to keep him from
swelling out too much."
"Now, Burr, are you coming?" shouted Mercer.
"Yes. Good morning," I said to Lomax, and I hurried out.
"I thought we should have learned long before this," said my companion,
as we strolled leisurely back. "I don't seem to get on a bit further,
and I certainly don't feel as if I could fight. Do you?"
"No," I said frankly.
"You see, it wants testing or proving, same as you do a sum. Shall we
have a fall out with them and try?"
"No," I cried excitedly. "That wouldn't do. They might lick us. We
ought to try with some one else first."
"But who is there? If we had a fight with some other boys, Eely and
Dicksee would know, and we should have no chance to fight them then. I
know. Let you and I fall out and have a set to."