Nothing could have been better than the appearances of wind and weather
next morning--that long-wished-for "to-morrow," which had at last come,
in spite of the Captain's perpetual procrastination.
The bright sun was glowing in a clear blue sky overhead, that was
unflecked by a single cloud, while a fresh breeze blowing from the
westwards to prevent the air from becoming stagnant; and the barometer,
at "set Fair," made all prophets of evil, if such there were about, keep
their lips tightly closed and say nothing to damp the spirits of the
expectant voyagers.
"Hullo, Nell!" shouted Bob, drumming on the balustrade of the staircase
outside his bedroom to attract her attention and rouse her up. "Are you
awake yet?"
Nellie's answer to this question was a "staggerer" to Master Bob, as he
termed it in his choice phraseology.
She appeared in the passage that passed her door fully dressed.
"I got up when Sarah rose, and have been ready to go downstairs for the
last hour," she said calmly, with a conscious pride. "You'd better look
sharp with your dressing, Bob, for it is past six o'clock. Unless you
start off soon to the beach, too, for your bathe, you'll never be back
in time for breakfast, which is going to be earlier this morning so that
we may catch the steamer comfortably."
"My good gracious!" exclaimed Bob, jamming his right foot into his left
boot in his hurry and wasting a minute or more in wriggling it out
again. "I thought I was ever so early, and up before any one!"
"Ah, me dear," cried out Mrs Gilmour from below; "you'll have to catch
a weasel asleep, sure, before you can hope, sir, to get ahead of us in
this house. I called Sarah long ere either of you were stirring!"
This was a climax; and so, without making any reply to aunt Polly's
pertinent statement of fact, save a stifled laugh at the expense of Miss
Nell, who had prided herself on having, as she thought, got the start of
them all, Bob expediting his dressing in the most summary fashion,
hurried off as speedily as possible across the common for his matutinal
dip.
He was accompanied, as a matter of course, by Rover, who was ready and
waiting for him on the terrace outside, barking and bounding about like
a demented dog who had parted company with his usual stock of common-
sense.
"Down, Rover!" cried Bob, when the faithful fellow, in the exuberance of
his joy on seeing his young master come out of the house, leaped up and
licked his face, preventing him from closing the door properly as he was
about to do. "Behave yourself, sir!"
Rover, however, thought there were different ways of "behaving himself,"
the chief in his estimation being to show his affection to those who
were kind to him, whom he loved with all the intensity of his great
canine heart; and so, ranking obedience to orders as only second to this
potent law of his life, he frisked and jumped and playfully tousled Bob
until he finally made him start at a swinging trot for the beach, the
frolicsome retriever galloping in advance one moment, the next stopping
in his mad career onward to give out a loud bark and wag his tail in
encouragement to his master to try and catch him up, if he could!
Bob bent his steps towards the coastguard-station on the eastern side of
the sea-wall, near the new pier, which was the regular meeting-place for
him and Dick every morning for their bathe; and here, punctually at "six
Bells," or seven o'clock, he found on the present occasion his fellow-
swimmer along with the Captain.
The latter, he could hear as he approached, was having an animated
discussion with Hellyer, the chief boatman, on the subject of torpedoes,
which Hellyer believed in, but which the Captain utterly pooh-poohed,
saying that in his opinion they were of little, if any, use in naval
warfare.
He was laying down the law with great unction when Bob came up to them.
"Don't tell me," he cried, "of your `whitehead' going twenty knots an
hour and exploding its charge of gun-cotton under a ship's bottom; for,
where and what would those on board the ship be doing all the time--
standing still, I suppose, to be shot at and doing nothing in their own
defence?"
"Aye, that's true, sir," said Hellyer; "but--"
"Remember, too," continued the Captain, "the torpedo, even of the most
improved type, can only keep up this speed of twenty knots for a
distance of five hundred yards, within which range the boat discharging
it would have to approach before sending it off at the vessel attacked,
which of course would be fool enough to let it come to such close
quarters without riddling it? Oh, yes, you tell that to the marines!"
Hellyer laughed.
"You carry too many guns for me, sir," said he good-humouredly. "I
can't stand up against you, Captain, once you tackle me fairly!"
"Too strong, eh?" rejoined the Captain, triumphant at getting the better
of his opponent. "Of course I am! Your argument, Hellyer, won't hold
water. Besides, should one of those spiteful little inventions succeed
in getting near an ironclad without being seen and sunk, the torpedo
nets of the ship would prevent the infernal machine, as these new-
fashioned fallals were called in the old days, from exploding against
her hull. I, for my part, would be quite content to stand the brunt of
a torpedo attack on board a ship fitted with protecting nets and quick-
firing guns. By Jove, I'd guarantee that Jack Dresser wouldn't be the
one that was licked!"
"I'd bet that same, sir," agreed Hellyer heartily, but seeing Bob he
added, "Ah, here's the young ge'man I fished out of the sea t'other
night. He doesn't look any the worse for being nigh drownded. He warn'
hurt, sir, much, were he?"
"Not he," said the Captain. "He's learnt to swim, though, since then,
and the other boy, too; so, if they choose to tumble in again off the
ramparts and get into deep water, there won't be so much bother in
hauling them out; eh, Bob?"
"No, Captain," replied Bob, who was busy undressing; and, within a few
moments he had plunged into the sea, and was swimming out with a brave
firm stroke in a way that fully justified the Captain's praise of his
natatory powers, shouting out at intervals his customary war-
cry--"Jolly!"
Nor was Dick far behind, although perhaps not quite so plucky in
venturing beyond his depth, now that he had no especial motive as on
that memorable evening already alluded to by Hellyer the coastguardsman,
for running the risk; while, as for Rover, he fairly revelled in the
water, paddling round and round Bob and Dick, thereby executing a series
of concentric circles never dreamt of by the Egyptian mathematician
whose problems have been the torment of the boys of all ages.
The sea was so warm and pleasant that they stopped in such an
unconscionable time as to necessitate the Captain's hailing them three
times to come out before they obeyed the order, and even then did so
lothfully, making the old sailor sing out to them the more
imperatively--
"Come out, come out of that, you young rascals!" he cried, shaking his
stick menacingly. "If you are not out and dressed in five minutes, by
Jove I'll start without you; for, I can't keep the ladies waiting. By
Jove, I will!"
This threat had the desired result of quickening the boys' movements;
Dick, if the slowest in the water, being the sharper of the two in
getting into his clothes. Rover was even speedier still, having only to
give himself one good shake, administering in the action a shower-bath
of drops to the Captain, when, there he was all ready, with a smart new
curly black coat, glistening from his dip, as if he had just been to the
hairdresser's and had a brush up for the occasion!
On the way back to Mrs Gilmour's house to breakfast, the Captain and
Dick being specially invited this morning, so that they might leave
together immediately afterwards for the steamer without losing any time,
the boys had great fun with Rover and the towels.
These the retriever was always in the habit of carrying home, though Bob
would not let him have them at once, right out, to take in his mouth as
he left the beach.