There was a tremendous burst of cheering and a rush for the tent by the
boys who had left their jackets within, and among them Burr major,
disappointed, but at the same time justly proud of the splendid score he
had made, walked up to the door, disappeared amongst plenty of clapping,
and soon after came out again in his jacket and vest.
We had all clustered up round about the players, and two masters shook
hands with the champion, who directly after caught sight of me.
"Hallo! How's the head?" he cried.
"Getting better now."
"I saw you watching the match," he continued. "Nice time you had of it
lying about under that tree, while we fellows did all the work."
"I should have liked to be in it," I said rather drearily; "but I really
was very bad."
His attention was called off soon after, and then there was a summons to
the tent for the festive high tea, which was to come off directly, as
the Hastings boys had a long drive back.
I was much better, but the thought of food in that crowded tent was
nauseating, and, watching my opportunity, I slipped away, seeing Tom
Mercer looking about as if in search of me before going into the tent.
"I know what I'll do," I thought. "I'll walk gently down along the lane
to Bob Hopley's place, and ask Polly to make me a cup of tea and cut me
some bread and butter."
The plan was simple enough, and I strolled out and along the road, and
then entered a gate, to make a short cut along the hedge side of the
fields.
The evening was glorious, and after a broiling day the soft moist odours
that came from the copses dotted here and there seemed delightfully
refreshing, and so I strolled on and on till I was only a short distance
from the cottage, which was separated from me by a couple of fields,
when I turned slowly toward a corner of the enclosure I was in, where
there was a pond and a patch of moist land where weeds never noticed
towered up in abundance, and, to my surprise, I caught sight of Magglin
seated on the bank of the pond, with his feet hanging close to the
water, and apparently engaged in his evening toilet. It seemed to me
that he must have been washing his face, and that he was now wiping it
upon some great leaves which he plucked from time to time.
"No, he isn't," I said to myself the next moment. "He has been
poaching, and saw me coming. It's all a pretence to throw me off the
scent;" and I went on, my way being close by him, and there he was
rubbing away at his face with the leaves, while I glanced here and there
in search of a wire set for rabbit or hare, though I shrewdly suspected
that the wire he had been setting would be over in the copse beyond the
pond, in the expectation of getting a pheasant.
He was so quick of hearing that he could detect a footstep some distance
off, but this time he turned round sharply when I exclaimed,--
"Hallo, Magglin!"
"Eh--I--Oh, how de do, sir?"
"Better than you do," I said sharply. "What have you been doing to your
face?"
"Face? Oh, rubbing it a bit, sir, that's all. Good as washing."
"Dock leaves," I said. "What, have you stung yourself?"
"Oh yes, I forgot that, sir. Just a little bit, sir. I was coming
through the hedge down below there, and a 'ormous old nettle flew back
and hit me acrost the cheek. But it aren't nothing."
More than I should like to have, I thought to myself, as I went on, for
his face was spotted with white patches, and I knew how they must
tingle.
Ten minutes after, I was in the lane, in time to meet Polly Hopley, in
her best bonnet and with a key in her hand, going up to the cottage
door.
She smiled as she saw me, hurried to the cottage, unlocked the door, and
stood back for me to enter.
"Been out, Polly?" I said.
"Yes, sir, of course. Father took me to see the cricket match. Doctor
Browne told father we might come into the field, and it were lovely.
But why didn't you play?"
I told her, and she expressed her sympathy. Then, in a very decided
way,--
"Sweets and puffs aren't good for you, sir, and I won't sell you one
to-day."
"I don't want any, Polly," I replied. "I was going to ask you to sell
me a cup of tea."
"And I won't do that neither, sir; but I'm going to make myself some
directly, and if you'll condescend to sit down in father's big chair and
have some, I should be glad."
To the girl's great delight, I accepted her offer. The kettle hanging
over the smouldering fire of wood ashes was soon boiling, and I partook
of a delicious tea, with fresh water-cresses from the spring, and cream
in my tea from the General's dairy, while Polly cut bread and butter,
and chatted about "father's" troubles with the poachers, and about the
baits he had been getting ready for our next fishing visit to the ponds.
Then again about the cricket match, and we were carrying on an animated
conversation when the door was thrown quickly open, and Bob Hopley
appeared.
"Oh, dad, how you startled me!" cried Polly, jumping up.
"Startled you, my lass? I heerd loud talking and I'd been told young
Magglin had come down this way, and I thought it was him."
"I saw him just before I came in, over by the pond there by the copse,"
I said.
"He wasn't likely to be in here, father," said Polly primly. "I should
like to catch him trying to come in."
"So should I," said the keeper grimly. "I'd try oak that time 'stead o'
hazel."
"Hush, dad! do adone," whispered Polly. Then aloud--
"Master Burr's been poorly all day, and as they were all feasting and
junketing at the school, he come down here to ask me to make him some
tea, and he's very welcome, aren't he, father?"
"I should just think he is, my lass. But fill up his cup again, and
he's got no fresh butter."
"I've done," I said; "and oh, I do feel so much better now! Do you know
what a bad sick headache is?"
"No, my lad, no. I aren't had one since--"
"Oh, father!"
"Come, Polly, don't be hard on a man. That was only the club feast."
"I haven't patience with such feasts," said Polly sharply. "I never go
to feasts, and come back--"
"Poorly, my lass, poorly," said Bob hastily.
"Yes, very poorly," said Polly sarcastically, "and say, `My head's fit
to split,' next day. Seems to me that's all such heads are fit for
then--to split and burn."
"Nay, nay, my lass, they burn quite enough, I can tell 'ee. Man does do
stoopid things sometimes."
Bob was very apologetic about sitting down to tea, with me there. Then
of course I apologised, and sat watching him drinking great draughts out
of a basin and devouring huge slices of bread and butter.
"Rare stuff kettle broth, sir," he said. "Don't give you no headaches;
do it, Polly?"
"No, father."
"She don't make it strong enough for that, Mr Burr, sir," he continued,
giving me a wink.
"Quite as strong as is good for you, father."
"Right, my lass," said Bob, helping himself to some more cream, "and not
so strong as is good for you."
I rose to go soon after, and the keeper joined with his daughter in
absolutely refusing to let me pay for my meal.
"Glad to have seen you, sir; and now mind that as soon as ever your
young friend Mas' Mercer--Mas' Bri'sh Museum, as I call him--is ready,
and you can get a day, I'll take you to our stock pond, where the carps
and tenches are so thick, they're asking to be caught. You shall have a
day."
"Good-bye, Polly," I said, shaking hands. "You've quite cured my head."
"I am so glad, sir!" she cried; and I went back to the school, Bob
seeing me part of the way, and saying to me confidentially as we
walked,--
"You see me leathering that poaching vagabond Magglin, sir. It's like
this. The reason for it was--No, sir. Good-night. You're too young to
talk about that sort o' thing. Don't forget about the fish."
He hurried away without another word, while I went on, and found Tom
Mercer looking for me, and eager to hear where I had been.
"What a shame!" he cried. "The high tea was very jolly, but I missed
you. I wish I'd gone too. I say, we were licked, but it was a splendid
match after all. Hallo! here's Hodson. The chaps all went off on their
'bus cheering and--Hooray, Hodson! what a day!"
"Yes; but I say," said the lad, "Burr major's lost his watch."
"His watch!" cried Mercer, giving quite a jump. "Oh!"
"Yes; he left it in his waistcoat in the tent when he stripped for his
innings, and when he felt for it some time after, it was gone."
"Then he didn't miss it directly?" I said.
"No, not till a little while ago. A lot of the fellows are up in the
field searching for it. Haven't either of you seen it, have you?"
"No," I said, and Mercer shook his head.
"Come on and help look for it," cried Hodson; and we went up to the
field, where the tent was still standing, it being understood that the
men were to come and take it down in the morning.
"Lucky they were not here," I said, "or some of them might have been
suspected of taking it."
"Yes, it would be ugly for them," assented Hodson. "You see, nobody but
our boys and the Hastings chaps went into the tent, except the servants
to lay the tables, and of course they wouldn't have taken it."
"But they may have found it," I said. "He is sure to have dropped it
somewhere in the grass."
"Of course," cried Mercer; "and some one has put his foot on it and
smashed the glass."
"Get out, Senna! you always make the worst of every thing," cried Hodson
merrily; and soon after, we reached the field, where the boys were
spread about, looking in all kinds of possible and impossible places--
impossible because Burr major had never been near them after he had put
on his things.
"Are you sure that you brought your watch out in the field," said Mr
Hasnip, who was one of the group standing by Burr major.
"Oh yes, sir, certain."
"But it does not do to be too certain, my lad. Have you been up in your
bedroom, and looked there?"
"No, sir, because I was so sure I brought it out."
"Why were you so sure?"
"Because--because I thought I would wear it, as we had strangers
coming."
"Never mind, you may have altered your mind. Go and look. You see we
have thoroughly searched every place where you could have been."
"I'll go and look, sir," said Burr major, "but it's of no use."
He went off toward the schoolhouse, and Mr Rebble then coming up, the
two masters began to talk about the missing watch.
"It is so awkward," said Mr Rebble. "We can't write and ask the party
if either of them took a watch by mistake. Stop! I have it."
"The watch?" cried Mr Hasnip eagerly.
"No. Wait till he comes back, and I think I can explain it all."
We had not long to wait before Burr major came back to us.
"No, sir," he said. "I've looked everywhere; it isn't in my room."
"Then I think I can help you," said Mr Rebble. "What jacket and vest
are those you have on?"
"My third best, sir."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, sir," said Burr major wonderingly.
"Look at them," continued Mr Rebble. "Are they really your own things,
and not the clothes of one of our visitors taken by mistake, and he has
taken yours."
Burr major slipped off his jacket and held it up in the dusk to point
out a label inside the collar, where, worked in blue silk upon white
satin, was the name of the maker, his own father.
"Yes, that's yours," said Mr Rebble in a disappointed tone. "I thought
that the mistake might have been made. But the vest--are you sure of
that?"
"Oh yes," said Burr major, who then looked inside the collar and found
the same maker's name.
"I thought that, sir," said Burr major; "but I could feel that they were
my things as soon as I put them on. I say, has any fellow taken my
watch for a game?"
There was silence at first, then a murmur of, "No, no, no;" and, as it
was getting too dark now to resume the search, we all trooped back to
the schoolroom to sit and talk over the one event which had spoiled what
would otherwise have been a most enjoyable day, for, as Tom Mercer said
when we went up to bed,--
"It's nicer for those Hastings chaps to have won. They've gone back
jollier. By and by we shall be going over to play them, and then we
shall be in the eleven, and must win."
A pause.
"I said, `And then we must win.'"
"Yes, I heard you."
"Then why didn't you speak?"
"Because I was thinking about Burr major's watch."
"Oh, bother his watch!" said Mercer hastily. "I'm beginning to be glad
that he has lost it. Now he won't be always flourishing it in your face
and seeming to say, `Poor fellow, I'm sorry you haven't got a watch
too.'"
"Well, you needn't be so cross about it," I said.
"Why needn't I? One gets sick of his watch. There's always been a fuss
about it ever since he came back with it. It's lost now, and a jolly
good job too. Now we've heard the end of it. Old Eely's watch is
regularly wound up."