"I valued that boat very highly, and certainly I've got it back--with
the exception of the stains upon the cushions--very little the worse.
But this was a serious theft, almost as bad as horse-stealing, and I
shall have to make an example of them."
"But one of them has been terribly punished," said the doctor eagerly.
"Pooh! not half enough, sir. Come, Grayson, of course this has
completely cured you of your mad folly!"
"My mad folly!" cried the doctor excitedly. "May I ask you what you
mean?"
"Now, my dear Grayson, pray don't be angry. I only say, as an old
friend and neighbour, surely you must be ready to agree that your wild
idea of making a gentleman out of this boy--one of the dregs of our
civilisation--is an impossibility?"
"Nothing of the sort, sir," cried the doctor angrily. "I never felt
more certain of the correctness of my ideas."
"Tut--tut--tut--tut!" ejaculated Sir James. "Really, Grayson, this is
too much."
"Too much, sir? Nothing of the kind. A boyish escapade. Nothing
more."
"Well!" said Sir James drily, "when such cases as this are brought
before us at the bench, we are in the habit of calling them thefts."
"Theft: pooh! No, no!" cried the doctor stubbornly. "A boyish prank.
He would have sent the boat back."
"Would he?" said Sir James drily. "I suppose you think his companion
would have done the same?"
"I have nothing to do with the other boy," said the doctor shortly. "It
was a most unfortunate thing that Dexter should have made his
acquaintance."
"Birds of a feather flock together, my dear Grayson," said Sir James.
"Nothing of the kind, sir. It was my fault," cried the doctor. "I
neglected to let the boy have suitable companions of his own age; and
the consequence was that he listened to this young scoundrel, and
allowed himself to be led away."
"Do I understand aright, from your defence of the boy, that you mean to
forgive him and take him back!"
"Certainly!" said the doctor.
"Grayson, you amaze me! But if I prove to you that you are utterly
wrong, and that the young dog is an arrant thief, what then?"
"Then," said the doctor, "I'm afraid I should have to--No, I wouldn't.
I would try and reform him."
"Well," said Sir James, "if you choose to be so ultra lenient, Grayson,
you must; but I feel that I have a duty to do, and as soon as we have
had our wine I propose that we have the prisoners here, and listen to
what they have to say."
"Prisoners?"
"Yes. What else would you call them?"
Before the doctor could stand up afresh in Dexter's defence a waiter
entered the room.
"Beg pardon, sir, but your groom says would you be good enough to step
upstairs?"
"Bless my heart!" cried the doctor. "Is it a relapse?"
He hurried up to the room where Dexter had been sleeping, to find that,
instead of being in bed, he was fully dressed, and lying on the floor,
with Peter the groom holding him down.
"Why, what's the matter!" cried the doctor, as he entered the room
hastily, followed by Sir James.
"Matter, sir?" said Peter, "matter enough. If I hadn't held him down
like this here I believe he'd 'a' been out o' that window."
"Why, Dexter!" cried the doctor.
The boy struggled feebly, and then, seeing the futility of his efforts,
he lay still and closed his eyes.
"Went off fast asleep, sir, as any one would ha' thought," said Peter.
"And seeing him like that I thought I'd just go down and fetch myself a
cup o' tea; but no sooner was I out o' the room than he must have
slipped out and dressed hisself--shamming, you know--and if I hadn't
come back in the nick o' time he'd have been gone."
The doctor frowned, and Sir James looked satisfied, as he gave him a
nod.
"Going to run away, eh!"
"Yes, Sir James," said the groom; "and it was as much as I could do to
hold him."
"Get up, Peter," said the doctor.
The groom rose, and Dexter leapt up like a bit of spring, and darted
toward the door.
But Sir James was close to it, and catching the boy by the arm he held
him.
"Take hold, of him, my man," he said; "and don't let him go."
Peter obeyed, getting a tight grip of Dexter's wrist.
"Now, you give in," he whispered. "It's no good, for I shan't let go."
"Bring him down," said Sir James sternly.
Peter shook his head warningly at Dexter, and then, as Sir James and the
doctor went down to their room, Peter followed with his prisoner, who
looked over the balustrade as if measuring the distance and his chance
if he made a jump.
"Now," said Sir James, as the boy was led into the room; "stand there,
sir, and I warn you that if you attempt to run away I shall have in the
police, and be more stern. You, my man, go and tell the gardener to
bring up the other boy."
Peter left the room after giving Dexter a glance, and the doctor began
to walk up and down angrily. He wanted to take the business into his
own hands, but Sir James was a magistrate, and it seemed as if he had a
right to take the lead.
There was a painful silence, during which Dexter stood hanging his head,
and feeling as if he wished he had been drowned, instead of being
brought round to undergo such a painful ordeal as this.
Ten minutes must have elapsed before a scuffling was heard upon the
stairs, and Bob Dimsted's voice whimpering--
"You let me alone, will yer? I never done nothing to you. Pair o'
great cowards, y'are. Don't knock me about, or it'll be the worse for
yer. Hit one o' your own size. I never said nothing to you."
This was continued and repeated right into the room, Dan'l looking very
severe and earnest, and holding on by the boy's collar, half-dragging
him, while Peter pushed behind, and then closed the door, and stood
before it like a sentry.
"You have not been striking the boy, I hope!" said the doctor.
"Strike him, sir? no, not I," said Dan'l; "but I should like to. Been
a-biting and kicking like a neel to get away."
Sir James had never seen an eel kick, but he accepted the simile, and
turning to Bob, who was whimpering and howling--"knocking me
about"--"never said nothing to him"--"if my father was here," etc.
"Silence!" roared Sir James, in his severest tones; and Bob gave quite a
start and stared.
"Now, sir," said Sir James. "Here, both of you; stand together, and
mind this: it will be better for both of you if you are frank and
straightforward."
"I want to go home," whimpered Bob. "Y'ain't no business to stop me
here."
"Silence!" roared Sir James; and Bob jumped.
Dexter did not move, but stood with his eyes fixed to the floor.
"Now!" said Sir James, gazing fiercely at Bob; "you know, I suppose, why
you are here."
"No! I don't," whimpered Bob. "And y'ain't no business to stop me. I
want to go home."
"Silence, sir!" roared Sir James again. "You do not know? Well, then,
I will tell you. You are before me, sir, charged with stealing a boat."
"Oh!" ejaculated Bob, in a tone of wondering innocence.
"And I perhaps ought to explain," said Sir James, looking hard at Dr
Grayson, and speaking apologetically, "that in an ordinary way, as the
boat was my property, I should feel called upon to leave the bench; but
as this is only a preliminary examination, I shall carry it on myself.
Now, sir," he continued, fixing Bob's shifty eyes, "what have you to
say, sir, for stealing my boat?"
"Stealing your boat!" cried Bob volubly; "me steal your boat, sir? I
wouldn't do such a thing."
"Why, you lying young dog!"
"No, sir, I ain't, sir," protested Bob, as Dexter slowly raised his head
and gazed at him. "It wasn't me, sir. It was him, sir. That boy, sir.
I begged him not to, sir; but he would do it."
"Oh, it was Dexter Grayson, was it?" said Sir James, glancing at the
doctor, who was gnawing his lip and beating the carpet with his toe.
"Yes, sir; it was him, sir. I was t'other side o' the river one day,
sir," rattled off Bob, "and he shouts to me, sir, `Hi!' he says, just
like that, sir, and when I went to him, sir, he says, `Let's steal the
old cock's boat and go down the river for a game.'"
"Well?" said Sir James.
"Well, sir, I wouldn't, sir," continued Bob glibly. "I said it would be
like stealing the boat; and I wouldn't do that."
"Oh!" said Sir James.
"Is this true, Dexter!" said the doctor sternly.
"No, sir. He wanted me to take the boat."
"Oh, my!" cried Bob. "Hark at that now! Why, I wouldn't ha' done such
a thing."
"No, you look a nice innocent boy," said Sir James.
"Yes, sir; and he was allus at me about that boat, and said he wanted to
go to foreign abroad, he did, and the best way, he said, was to steal
that there boat and go."
"Oh," said Sir James. "And what more have you to say, sir?"
"It isn't true, sir," said Dexter, making an effort to speak, and he
gazed angrily at his companion. "Bob here wanted me to go with him, and
he persuaded me to take the boat."
"Oh! only hark at him!" cried Bob, looking from one to the other.
"And I thought it would be like stealing the boat to take it like that."
"Well, rather like it," said Sir James sarcastically.
"And so I sent that letter and that money to pay for it, sir, and I
meant to send the rest if it wasn't quite enough."
"Ah!" ejaculated the doctor eagerly.
"What letter? What money?" said Sir James.
"That money I sent by Bob Dimsted, sir, to put in your letter-box."
"I never received any money," cried Sir James. "You sent some money!"
"Yes, sir; before we took the boat, sir."
"Ah!" ejaculated the doctor again.
"And you sent it by this boy?"
"Yes, sir."
"Then where is the money?" cried Sir James, turning upon Bob.
"I dunno, sir. I never had no money."
"You did, Bob, in a letter I gave you," cried Dexter excitedly.
"Oh!" ejaculated Bob, with an astonished look. "Well, if ever!"
"This is getting interesting," said Sir James. "Now, sir, where's that
money?"
"He never give me none, sir," cried Bob indignantly. "I never see no
letter."
"You did. The one I threw across the river to you!" said Dexter.
"Oh, what a cracker!" cried Bob. "I never had no letter, gen'lemen, and
I never see no money. Why don't you tell the truth, and the kind
gentlemen won't be so hard on you?"
"I am telling the truth," cried Dexter, "It was you asked me to take the
boat."
"Only hark at him!" cried Bob. "Why yer'd better say yer didn't take
all yer clothes off and swim acrost and get it."
"I did," said Dexter; "but you made me. You said you'd go."
"Oh, you can tell 'em!" cried Bob.
"And I did give you the money to take."
"Oh, well, I've done," said Bob. "I never did hear a chap tell lies
like you can!"
"I think that will do," said Sir James, with a side glance at the
doctor, who sat with his brows knit, listening. "Now, you will both go
back to the room where you are to sleep, and I warn you that if you
attempt to escape, so surely will you be taken by the police, and then
this matter will assume a far more serious aspect. You, my men, will
have charge of these two boys till the morning. They are not to speak
to each other, and I look to you to take them safely back to Coleby by
the early train. That will do."
Dexter darted one glance at the doctor, but his face was averted.
"Please, sir," he began.
"Silence!" cried Sir James. "I think Dr Grayson understands your
character now, and I must say I never heard a more cowardly attempt to
fasten a fault upon another. No: not a word. Go!"
Bob Dimsted was already outside with Dan'l's knuckles in the back of his
neck.
Peter was more gentle with his prisoner as he led him away.
"You've been and done it now, young fellow," he said. "I would ha' told
the truth."
Dexter turned to him with bursting heart, but he could not speak, and as
soon as he was in his bedroom he threw himself before a chair, and
buried his face in his hands, so as to try and shut out the reproachful
face of Helen, which he seemed to see.
"I wish I had not been saved," he cried at last passionately, and then
he glanced at the window, and listened, while downstairs Sir James was
saying quietly--
"There, Grayson, I think you understand the boy's character now."
"No," said the doctor shortly. "I don't think I do."
"What!"
"And I'd give a hundred pounds," said the doctor, "to know the truth."
"Really," said Sir James, laughing. "You are the most obstinate man I
ever knew."
"Yes," said the doctor. "I suppose I am."