The Conclusion.
Now this chronicle of the doings of my three boys must come to an end. I
have grown very fond of them, and I hope you have too.
We will take a big jump from the doings recorded in the last chapter,
and look in upon them at a time fraught with importance to each of them.
Their pleasant school with Mr. Meredith is broken up. Frank and Dick are
going to college, and Jimmy is about to be articled to a Norwich
solicitor. They will always remain the best of friends, but still the
new times will never again be like the old. New interests, new
companions, new ambitions, all will leave their mark and have their
influence, although this I am sure of, that the memory of this glorious
partnership of three will always remain green and fresh with them, and
have the greatest of all influences on their future lives.
Mr. Meredith had invited all three of them to dinner, and when Mrs.
Meredith had retired the conversation grew more personal and
confidential. They looked upon Mr. Meredith as an intimate friend and
counsellor, as well as a tutor and schoolmaster, and they told him their
plans and hopes, just as if he were one of themselves.
Presently a silence fell upon the table. Frank looked at Dick, and Dick
looked at Frank, and Jimmy kicked him under the table, and at last Frank
cleared his throat with a preparatory "ahem" and said,--
"I am not good at making speeches, Mr. Meredith, but we wish to express
how very much obliged we have been to you for the kindness and the--in
fact the--the--well, what we mean to say is--that you are a brick of a
good fellow, sir."
"What an awful muddle you have made of it, Frank," said Dick, in a
reproachful whisper, and Jimmy launched a vicious kick at him under the
table.
There was a twinkle in Mr. Meredith's eye as he drank off his wine,
which was partly due to mirth, and partly to a deeper feeling. He
said,--
"I know what you mean, Frank, and in return I may say, that I am both
glad and sorry that the hour has come for us to part for a time. I am
sorry, because I have much enjoyed your companionship for the last three
years, and I believe you have done me as much good as I have done you. I
am glad, because you have become such fine young fellows, and I have had
a hand in the making of you, and you must do us all credit. Jimmy will
make a good lawyer, I think; and he must remember that the law is an
honourable profession, and that lawyers take the place of the knights of
old; they must do all they can to succour the widows and fatherless, and
never allow themselves to be made instruments of oppression. I will give
Jimmy just one piece of advice: Go straight, and never attempt to
finesse. I believe that this clever finessing, and attempting to outdo
other lawyers in cleverness, has been the cause of the moral ruin of
many an able lawyer. Dick, I am sorry to say, will have no need to be of
any occupation, but he must try to get plenty of voluntary work,
nevertheless, for no man's life can be noble unless he does some of the
world's work. And Frank, what are you going to be?"
"I don't know yet, sir," replied Frank, "I should like to be a soldier,
if I could be sure of active service pretty often."
"I wish you would be a soldier in a purer army, my boy. We want some
more men of your strength and energy to fight the devil with. We want
men who will not only do what they have to do with all their might, but
who have plenty of might to use."
"I haven't the gift of the gab, sir," said Frank modestly.
"That would come with practice and study, and, 'out of the fulness of
the heart the mouth speaketh.' But come, we must not leave Mrs. Meredith
so long alone on this your last night here."
So they went into the drawing-room and had a quietly pleasant evening.
When they left, they walked together down by the broad, talking of many
things. It was bright moonlight, and the _Swan_ lay still and distinct
on the water. It was warm, being in the middle of summer, and it was not
late; and as they stood looking at the boat which they had built, and
which had served them so well, they saw Mary and Edith Rose, who was
staying with her, coming towards them, and Mr. and Mrs. Merivale not far
behind.
"Good night," said Jimmy, "I shall see you both in the morning;" and off
he went.
"Poor Jimmy," said Frank, "he does not like both of us going away, and
he to be left behind alone."
The two girls joined them, and Frank and Edith walked off together, and
Dick and Mary did the same in another direction.
"Mary," said Dick, "Mr. Meredith said that I ought to do some work in
the world."
"So you ought, Dick," she replied; "both Frank and Jimmy are going to be
busy, and I did so hope you would do something too."
"I mean to do something," he replied, with a quiet smile, "but I shall
not tell you what it is yet. But if I do something which will show that
I am of some use in the world, and not a mere drone, will you marry me?"
It was not light enough to see if she blushed, but I am sure she did so
very sweetly. What she said, very naively, was this:--
"I thought you would ask me some time, Dick, but I did not want you to
_quite_ ask me until you came from college. We are only boy and girl,
you know."
"I am quite satisfied, Mary," he said, in that quiet, gentle voice of
his which made you like him so much,--and so a compact was made, which
both of them faithfully kept.
Frank had not dared to say half so much to Edith; but the next morning,
when he was saying good bye to them all, and it came to her turn, he
looked her steadily in the face as she took his hand, and, moved by a
sudden impulse, she put up her face to be kissed as Mary had done, and
as he gravely kissed her, he said in a low tone, designed for her ear
alone,--
"I am going to do my very best, Edith, and what I do will be for your
sake."
These were sweet words to the little maiden; but Frank received by the
next morning's post a little Testament from her, with these words
written on the fly-leaf--
"Not altogether for MY sake, Frank," and the half rebuke was of great
service to Frank.
And so, God be with them!
THE END.
LONDON:
R. CLAY, SONS, AND TAYLOR, PRINTERS,
BREAD STREET HILL,
QUEEN VICTORIA STREET.
* * * * *
Transcriber's Notes:
Italics are indicated by _underscores_. Small caps are indicated by ALL
CAPS.
Archaic spelling, and variations in hyphenation, punctuation, and use of
accents appear as in the original. Several words appear both with and
without hyphenation. End-of-line hyphenations in the original are
rejoined here.
Obvious typographical errors have been changed.
Page 4: added comma ("Yes, Frank, he is)
Page 26: "loth" to "loath" (were loath to destroy)
Page 51: added full stop (The Owner.--)
Page 54: added opening quote mark ("What a thing)
Page 54: comma to full stop (said Dick. "Is that)
Page 57: added comma (Mr. ----," said Jimmy)
Page 80: italicized "Swan" (found that the _Swan_)
Page 81: added full stop (fir-tree.)
Page 81: capitalized "Is" ("Is it a crow's)
Page 86: "affect" to "affects" (it sometimes affects)
Page 87: removed opening quote mark (On the ground)
Page 92: added full stop (sixty feet in length.)
Page 93: removed comma (to or from Lake)
Page 96: added comma (said Frank, "is not)
Page 98: added comma (external accident,)
Page 113: added comma (Frank's boat, "but)
Page 122: full stop to comma (I was a fool,")
Page 127: added opening quote mark ("Well, sir, a lot)
Page 142: added full stop (about the birds.)
Page 152: added comma ("So have I," said Frank.)
Page 159: added comma (law of nature,")
Page 160: removed closing quote mark (_Wild Flowers_:--)
Page 164: single to double opening quote mark ("Up with the)
Page 168: removed closing quote mark (its last change)
Page 199: greek character to "omega" (the letter omega,)
Page 227: "Heron.--Hawking." to "Heron-hawking." (chapter heading)
Page 236: added closing quote mark (tempt him by size.")
Page 250: "perfectlv" to "perfectly" (perfectly free from snow.)
Page 253: "fastastic" to "fantastic" (in fantastic masses,)
Page 258: added closing quote mark (last will and testament!")
End of Project Gutenberg's The Swan and Her Crew, by George Christopher Davies