"Oh--ho--ho--ho--ho! What a lubbly bit fun!" cried Pomp, as soon as the
danger had passed away.
"Why, Pomp!" I cried at last, fiercely, for I was too much astonished
to speak at first.
But he was off along the bank, to stop opposite the smaller batch of
reeds, where he stood with both his fists doubled, stamping his bare
feet, and shouting a perfect torrent of abuse at the invisible enemy.
I caught a word here and there, words full of threats of what he would
do to the "ugly 'gator, nex' time." But I was too much upset to shout
till I had scrambled into my clothes, when I went sharply along the edge
of the pool to where the boy was still shaking his fists, and abusing
the reptile which had nearly scared him to death.
But there was another scare ready for Pomp. Indignation was hot within
me, and I made my presence known by a smart kick with my bare foot which
nearly sent him into the pool again, and a cuff on the side of the head
which knocked him back.
"Oh--oh--oh! Don't, Mass' George," he bellowed, as he dropped on his
knees and held up his hands; "don't flog um, Mass' George. I nebber,
nebber do so no more."
"You rascal!" I cried, catching him by the ear. "How came you to play
me that trick?"
"On'y for bit ob fun, Mass' George; on'y for bit ob fun."
"You dog!" I cried, shaking him.
"On'y lil bit o' fun, Mass' George; got de 'gator's head on to frighten
um. Nebber tink no 'gator dah, or not nebber done it."
"No, I suppose not," I cried. "How dare you try to frighten me like
that!"
"Say, Mass' George, you pull dat ear right off."
"Serve you right too, sir. You insolent rascal. But I'll tell my
father, and you shall be flogged."
"Oh no, don't do dat ah, Mass' George. Kick um again and pull um oder
ear. Pomp won't holler much. Don't tell de massa."
"A blackguardly, cowardly trick with that nasty old alligator's head."
"But, Mass' George," cried Pomp, suddenly jumping up, "you no business
beat kick a boy."
"What, sir!"
"Why, if I no do dat, an de ole 'gator get hold ob de head, he get hold
ob you, an where you be now?"
My hand dropped to my side, and I stared in a puzzled way at Pomp, who
began to show his white teeth, as it seemed to me that what he said was
true, and that if the reptile had not dashed at the boy, and seized the
old head thrown at him, he might have seized me and dragged me down.
"Tink I sabe you, Mass' George, and you hab berry narrow scrape; and den
you say you tell de massa, and hab me flog."
"Yes," I said, half aloud, "he might have seized me."
"Oh, he hab you, sure 'nuff, Mass' George, and um be pickin' you bone
now down in de mud--iyah--iyah--iyah!" he roared, in a great burst of
laughter as he turned round to the water, rested his hands on his knees,
and shouted--
"How you like big 'gator head, eh? You find um berry hard? Hope you
like um, sah."
He faced round to me again, showing his teeth, and with his eyes
twinkling with merriment.
"Don't tell a massa," he said, pleadingly.
I was conquered, for it was clear enough to me now that the boy's prank
had in all probability saved my life. But I still hesitated as I seized
him by both ears now, and gently swayed his head to and fro.
"Dat's right, Mass' George, pull um hard. I no mine a bit."
"You rascal!" I cried; "will you promise never to do it again?"
"Can't do it again, Mass' George; ugly great 'gator got de head."
"But will you play me such a trick again?"
"Dunno, Mass' George. You pull hard bofe ears togedder, and kick um."
"Where are your clothes?" I said, quite disarmed now.
"In de tree, Mass' George. Hab noder pull."
"No," I said. "Put on your clothes."
Pomp threw himself on the ground and began to howl.
"What's that for, sir?"
"You go tell de capen, and hab poor nigger flog. Ah, Mass' George, you
bery cruel young massa."
"Get up, Pomp. I'm not going to tell father, but you shouldn't have
played me such a trick."
The boy seemed as if made of india-rubber, for he sprang up, ducked
down, stood on his head, and then went over and over head over heels
three or four times before leaping up with a loud shout.
"Oh, Mass' George, pull um out; got big forn in um back."
It was quite true, and after I had relieved him of the spine, he ran to
the biggest tree near, climbed up into the fork, and descended directly
with his clothes, into which he slipped--not a long job, for he was by
this time dry, and his garments consisted only of a short-sleeved shirt
and a pair of cotton drawers, which came down to mid thigh.
"Now, look here, Mass' George," he cried, excitedly; "you'n me got to
kill dat 'gator."
"Yes," I said, "I must lie in wait and shoot him."
"I tink so. What did he come in young mass' bath for? I go fetch um
gun now."
"No, no," I said. "It would be no use."
"No," said Pomp, thoughtfully, and then showing his teeth; "too busy
fryin' um dinner. Oh, Mass' George, what a bit ob fun!"
Pompey threw himself down, and laughed till the tears rolled down his
cheeks.
"I ten times--hund times more frightum than you, Mass' George. I tought
um catch dis nigger for sartum, an' I felt so sorry for you, Mass'
George, dat I holler out loud."
"Sorry for me?"
"Yes, sah. What you do widout Pomp?"
"Come along," I said, half surlily, half amused at the easy-going,
light-hearted way in which the boy could forget the horrible peril in
which he had placed himself.
"You berry sorry too, Mass' George.--I know."
"Know what?"
"How catch um 'gator?"
"How?"
"Pompey know. Show um a morrow. Good-bye, sah. Bring you 'noder
dinner morrow morning."
He made a mock salutation in the direction he believed the reptile to
have taken, and then together we began to thread our way through the
trees, back toward the clearing, and then after another cautious look
round for snakes made for the garden. But before we were within a
hundred yards, Pomp stopped.
"Ole massa in big garden, Mass' George?"
"I don't know," I said. "He was going to be back to dinner."
"I go round de oder way. Mass' say I chop wood, and I was going to chop
wood till I hear you say Morgan you go for walk, and I know you go for
'wim."
"Well?"
"Pomp very hurt upon Mass' George."
"Oh, were you?" I said.
"Mass' George say cruel fing to Pomp, so um go an' fess de ole 'gator
head, and undress umself, an' get in de water firs, an' fright um."
"Ah, well, you'll be flogged one of these days, Master Pomp, without my
telling tales of you."
"I 'pose I will," he said, thoughtfully. "No like for Mass' George
tell, dough."
"Why not?"
"Cos dat hurt Pomp more dan de floggum."
"Nonsense!"
"Eh? Dat nonsense, Mass' George? I don't know. If Mass' Morgan tell
and get Pomp flog, Pomp holler, `Oh don't, oh don't!' an' fro himself on
de ground, an' squiggle an' kick. But soon as done flog um, Pomp rub um
back up gen tree, an' nebber mine a bit."
"I suppose so," I said.
"But if Mass' George tell an' get Pomp flog, dunno why, but no use rub
back gen de tree. Hurt Pomp all de same."
So Pomp ran off to get round to the wood-shed, where I heard him as I
reached the house chopping away as hard as he could, and making the wood
fly; and I need hardly say I did not tell any tales about the boy's
trick, though I thought about it a great deal.
My ideas of punishment were not of the flogging kind, but connected with
some way of giving Master Pomp tit for tat by means of a scare; but my
invention was rather at fault, and idea after idea was dismissed as soon
as formed. They were not pleasant ideas, some of them, and they were
all wanting in the element I wished to impart.
One of Sarah's wild-plum jam puffs, with a dose of medicine concealed
therein, was dismissed at once. So was a snake in his bed, because
there were objections to the trick. In all probability the snake would
not stop there; and if it did, as it must necessarily be a harmless one,
it would not frighten Pomp a bit, and might suggest the idea of playing
a similar trick on me.
I could push him into the water first time we were on the river-bank,
but he would only laugh and swim out.
I might lasso him suddenly some day, and tie him up to a tree, and leave
him in the forest without anything to eat for a few hours; but I knew
that I couldn't find the heart to torture the poor fellow like that; and
if I could, no knots that I contrived would ever hold him very long.
"Bah! It's waste of time!" I said; and I gave it up, not knowing that
I should soon have something far more serious to think about. For just
as I was deep in my cogitations I heard a step, and my father came into
sight, looking very hot and tired.
That evening, as we sat together by the light of a candle, with the
forest insects humming round, he said suddenly--
"I'm afraid our troubles with the Spaniards are not over, George. These
people are threatening again."
"But that does not matter, does it, father?"
"I don't know yet, my boy. There is a great deal of braggadocio and
pride in your Spanish don, and they have plenty of enterprise and fight
in them sometimes, as we know by what they have done."
"But will they come and fight against us, father?" I said, eagerly.
"I don't know that they will come and fight against _us_," he replied,
dryly.