Towards morning Murtagh fell into a disturbed sleep; but almost before
daybreak he was awakened by Bobbo, who exclaimed as he shook him by the
shoulder:
"Get up, Myrrh! We'd better be on the island early if we want to save
the hut."
In an instant Murtagh was out of bed. Save the hut! whatever else he
might give in about he would never relinquish that,--their father's hut.
The passionate thoughts of the night before had now assumed the form of
a dogged determination to resist Mr. Plunkett, and a pleasant sense of
anticipated triumph tingled through his veins as he hurriedly dressed
himself. All the miserable abasement of yesterday's anger was gone. He
was going to fight now!
With his head thrown back and a confident, determined look upon his
face he ran down the stairs, saying to Bobbo: "Call the girls, while I
fetch Royal. We shall see who'll be master this time!"
"But what are you going to do, Murtagh?" inquired Rosie, with a note of
fretful disappointment in her voice. It really was an unkind fate which
had made her the sister of such a brother. She had not the least taste
for adventures.
"You'll see when the time comes," replied Murtagh, whose ideas were in
truth very vague. He felt only sure of one thing, which was that he
meant to do something.
"I don't mind what it is," said Winnie; "I'm ready for anything!"
"So am I," said Bobbo; "only I vote we don't hurt the poor beggars if
we can help it."
"No; because it's not their fault you know, Myrrh," decided Winnie.
"No; but we can't let them land here!" replied Murtagh, determinately.
"If they will get hurt, we can't help it. Now look here, we had better
collect a lot of bits of wood, and clods, and things, and pile them up
in front here, where we can get at them easily. They are sure to come
up this front way."
"Oh," cried Winnie, in delight, "you're going to pelt them! Then let us
get some of that stiff yellow mud from the bank. It will do gloriously!"
"Here they come!" cried Murtagh, springing from his seat by the fire
and hurrying out to reconnoitre.
The others hastily followed. Through a gap in the bushes they saw two
empty carts coming down the road. The driver of each was seated on the
shaft smoking a short pipe, and in the corner of one of the carts were
visible the handles of picks and mallets.
"Yes," exclaimed Murtagh, "it's them! Now we're in for it! Royal, old
boy, are you ready?"
The faces of the other children beamed with excitement. Royal
understood well enough that something unusual was the matter, for he
answered Murtagh's appeal by a short yap and a pricking up of his ears
which meant business. Even Rosie was so carried away by the excitement
of the approaching battle as to exclaim in sympathy with Winnie's
dancing eyes, "Isn't it jolly?"
The carts stopped on the road, and the men taking their tools began
leisurely to descend through the little wood into the bed of the river.
"Now then, steady!" said Murtagh. "I'll talk to them first." He
advanced as he spoke along the little path, and standing at the edge of
the river he called out in a loud firm voice to know what they wanted.
The men were evidently somewhat discomfited at finding the island
already occupied, and Hickey replied evasively, "Sure, Mr. Murtagh, we
didn't expect to find you up here."
"What do you want here?" repeated Murtagh.
"Well, Mr. Plunkett's sent us for a load o' them stones, and you know
orders is orders, so you'll let us have them quiet, like a good young
gentleman, won't you, now? Ye've had yer bit o' play yesterday evenin',
and there's no gettin' on with work when ye're hindered that way!"
"I told you yesterday that you shouldn't touch our hut," replied
Murtagh, "and you shan't! Mr. Plunkett may get his stones from the
quarry."
"It's no good standin' blathering here!" exclaimed Phelim, roughly.
"We've got to have the stones, and there's an end of it! Come on,
Hickey. We got the measure of Mr. Plunkett's tongue last night, and I
don't want no more of it!"
"Take that for your impudence!" cried Bobbo, who without waiting
for more snatched a stick from the heap of missiles and flung it at
Phelim's head.
The stick flew harmlessly past, but a shout from the other children
echoed Bobbo's words, and a rapid volley of mud-balls, sticks, and
clods of earth saluted the onward advance of the men. So true was the
aim, and so hard and fast did the children pelt, that Hickey and Phelim
ran for shelter round the point of the island, and tried to effect a
landing on the other side.
But on the other side the water was deeper, and the only standing-room
was on a belt of shingle close to the shore of the island. The children
knew this well, and when the men emerged upon it from behind the
protecting screen of bushes they were greeted with such a shower of
missiles, that Phelim, whose courage had been considerably undermined
by the sound of Royal's excited barking, turned and fled blindly into
the water.
As he lost his footing and rolled over in the water deep enough
to souse him completely, the children raised a prolonged shout of
triumph, and redoubled their efforts to dislodge Hickey, who, while
returning their attack with whatever he could lay his hands on, was
good-humoredly swearing at them and imploring them to stop their fun.
Suddenly in the midst of all the hubbub, over the noise of the
children's shouting, Royal's barking, Hickey's swearing, Phelim's
lamenting, a stern--"What's the meaning of all this uproar?" made
itself heard, and Mr. Plunkett in shooting costume burst through the
bushes on the right bank of the river.
Missiles were flying in every direction, and the only immediate
answer to Mr. Plunkett's question was a mud-ball which hit him on the
forehead, and a stick that carried away his hat.
He put his hand angrily to his head, and losing all his habitual
command of language, exclaimed, "What the devil do you mean by this?"
"We mean," cried Murtagh, who was perfectly wild with excitement, "that
we won't have our rights interfered with, and you may just as well
know, once for all, that we won't have this hut touched if all the
walls in Ireland go unmended."
"Don't be impertinent to me, sir; you'll have whatever you are told to
have," returned Mr. Plunkett, hotly.
"Where are you going?" he inquired of the men, who, taking advantage
of the cessation of active hostilities, were slinking off towards the
carts.
"Please, sir, them stones is no good at all at all," Hickey ventured in
answer; "they're all rubbish, every one of them, not worth the carting."
"I didn't ask your opinion of the stones. I told you to fetch them. A
set of lazy scoundrels! I believe you're every one of you in league to
prevent anything being decently done," exclaimed Mr. Plunkett.
"League or no league, the hut shall not be touched!" reiterated Murtagh.
"We shall very soon see that," returned Mr. Plunkett. "Go on to the
island, and pull it down at once," he added, turning to the men. "I
stand here till the work is begun."
"I'll set the dog on the first one of you who attempts to land," said
Murtagh, resolutely.
"Do you hear what I say to you?" demanded Mr. Plunkett, as the men
stood doubtfully eying Royal, who was furiously barking.
"Please, sir, the dog's very savage; he nearly killed Phelim last
night," said Hickey, apologetically.
"You pair of cowards! do you mean to tell me you are afraid of the
dog?" exclaimed Mr. Plunkett, contemptuously.
The men did not answer.
"Do you wish me to begin it myself?" demanded Mr. Plunkett, angrily. "I
tell you that hut has to be pulled down before I leave this spot."
He moved along the bank, and prepared to jump on to a little island of
shingle that lay in the bed of the stream.
"If you come one step nearer, I'll set Royal upon you," cried Murtagh,
roused to the last pitch of defiance.
He and Winnie were both of them holding on to Royal's collar, and it
was only with difficulty that they could restrain the dog.
"If you set your wild dog upon me, I give you fair warning that I will
shoot him," retorted Mr. Plunkett.
"As if you dare!" cried Winnie, incredulously.
Mr. Plunkett's only answer was to spring on to the shingle.
"At him, Royal!" cried Winnie and Murtagh, in a breath, loosing their
hold as they spoke. With a furious growl Royal bounded into the river.
Almost instantaneously Mr. Plunkett raised his gun. There was a loud
report, then a piteous whine; the little cloud of smoke cleared away;
there was a broad red streak in the water; and Royal turned his dying
eyes reproachfully to Winnie.
"Oh, Murtagh! He's done it, he's done it!" she cried, with a beseeching
disbelief in her voice that went even to Mr. Plunkett's heart, and
though the water was over her ankles she dashed across to the shingle
bank.
"Help me to take him out, Murtagh. Don't you see the water's carrying
him down? He can't help himself. Royal, darling, I didn't mean it; I
didn't think he would. Where are you hurt? oh, why can't you speak?"
The current swept the dog towards her, she managed to throw her arms
round his neck and to get his head rested upon her shoulder, while
Bobbo and Murtagh going in to her assistance tried to lift his body.
But he groaned so piteously at their somewhat clumsy attempt that they
stopped, and all three stood still, and in speechless dismay watched
the wounded dog. Royal seemed more content, and from his resting-place
on Winnie's shoulder licked away the tears that were rolling down her
face. But after a time the children's wet feet began to grow numb, and
Winnie looked up and signed to Murtagh to try and move him now.
He groaned again. For a moment he seemed to struggle convulsively, his
head fell off Winnie's shoulder, his eyes looked up appealingly to
hers, his limbs suddenly straightened, and then he was quite quiet as
the children supported him through the water, and tried tenderly to
lift him on to the bank. He was too heavy for them, and Mr. Plunkett,
his hot anger past, came forward saying, almost humbly, "Let me help
you;" but though the children none of them answered, they turned their
faces from him in such an unmistakable manner that he fell back and
signed to one of the men to go and help them in his place.
Thus Royal was lifted on to the right bank of the river; and Winnie,
sitting on the ground, took his head into her lap. But he never moved
nor groaned; he was so unnaturally still that a dim terror entered into
the children's minds. Winnie stooped down to kiss him; as she did so
her fear became a certainty.
"Murtagh," she said, raising a white frightened face, "he--he's killed
him."
Murtagh made no answer, but falling on his knees beside Royal, he laid
his cheek against the dog's muzzle to feel if there were any breath.
Then his mournful eyes and sad shake of the head confirmed Winnie's
words. Mr. Plunkett and the two men had known it for some minutes; but
as Mr. Plunkett stood watching the group of children he felt a strange,
unusual moisture rising to his eyes, and he turned and walked away.
As they realized that the dog was dead, Rosie and Bobbo began to cry;
the other two sat dry-eyed, gazing at Royal.
The men stood one side for a few moments, but then they came forward
and began to make remarks and offer consolation.
"He was a beautiful creathure," said Hickey, "and indeed it would serve
old Plunkett right if he got shot with the very same gun. But there,
don't take on so, bless yer hearts; the master'll get yez another dog
as fine as ever this was."
While Pat was speaking Phelim stooped down, and idly taking one of
Royal's paws, shook it slowly backwards and forwards. Winnie put out
her hand to prevent the sacrilege, and looking up at Murtagh said,
"Take them away, Murtagh, all of them."
"We'd better take the dog with us and bury him," said Phelim; "a big
dog like that'll want buryin'."
"No, no," cried Murtagh, with a quick glance towards Winnie, which
seemed to say he would have protected her from the words if he could.
"Come away, all of you, and leave her alone."
And so Winnie was left sitting on the ground with her dead dog's head
resting on her lap. Bobbo and Rosie returned to the house to tell the
sad news to Nessa. The two men went to find Mr. Plunkett, but Murtagh
wandered away by himself into the woods higher up the river.
The men having found Mr. Plunkett at home inquired what they were to do
about the hut. Was it to be taken down?
"Yes, of course."