"You need not mind," he continued, taking my hand. "It isn't so deep as
a well nor so wide as a church-door, as somebody once said. You don't
know who it was?"
"Shakespeare, sir," I said, rather drowsily.
"Bravo, young market-gardener!" he cried, laughing. "Oh! you're not
very bad. Now, then, what are you going to do--lie still here and be
nursed by Mr Brownsmith's maid, or get up and bear it like a man--try
the fresh air?"
"I'm going to get up, sir," I said quickly; and throwing my legs off the
sofa I stood up; but I had to stretch out my arms, for the room-walls
seemed to run by me, the floor to rise up, and I should have fallen if
the doctor had not taken my arm, giving me such pain that I cried out,
and the giddiness passed off, but only came back with more intensity.
He pressed me back gently and laid me upon the sofa.
"Where did I hurt you, my boy?" he said.
"My shoulder," I replied faintly.
"Ah! another injury!" he exclaimed. "I did not know of this. Tendon a
bit wrenched," he muttered as he felt me firmly but gently, giving me a
good deal of pain, which I tried hard to bear without showing it, though
the twitching of my face betrayed me. "You had better lie still a
little while, my man. You'll soon be better."
I obeyed his orders very willingly and lay still in a good deal of pain;
but I must soon have dropped off asleep for a while, waking to find it
growing dusk. The window was still open; and through it I could hear
the creaking of baskets as they were moved, and Old Brownsmith's voice
in loud altercation with Ike.
"Well, there," said the latter, "'tain't no use for me to keep on saying
I didn't, master, if you says I did."
"Not a bit, Ike; and I'll make you pay for the damage as sure as I stand
here."
"Oh! all right! I'm a rich man, master--lots o' money, and land, and
stock, and implements. Make me pay! I've saved a fortin on the
eighteen shillings a week. Here, what should I want to hurt the boy
for, master? Come, tell me that."
"Afraid he'd find out some of your tricks, I suppose."
"That's it: go it, master! Hark at that, now, after sarving him
faithful all these years!"
"Get on with your work and don't talk," cried Old Brownsmith sharply.
"Catch that rope. Mind you don't miss that handle."
"I sha'n't miss no handles," growled Ike; and as I lay listening to the
sawing noise made by the rope being dragged through basket-handles and
under hooks in the cart, I felt so much better that I got up and went
out into the yard, to find that the cart had been carefully reloaded.
Ike was standing on one of the wheels passing a cart-rope in and out, so
as to secure the baskets, and dragging it tight to fasten off here and
there.
He caught sight of me coming out of the house, feeling dull and
low-spirited, for this did not seem a very pleasant beginning of my new
career.
"Hah!" he ejaculated, letting himself down in a lumbering way from the
wheel, and then rubbing his right hand up and down his trouser-leg to
get it clean; "hah! now we'll have it out!"
He came right up to me, spreading out his open hand.
"Here, young un!" he cried; "the master says I did that thar a-purpose
to hurt you, out of jealous feeling like. What do you say?"
"It was an accident," I cried, eagerly.
"Hear that, master," cried Ike; "and that's a fact; so here's my hand,
and here's my heart. Why, I'd be ashamed o' mysen to hurt a bit of a
boy like you. It war an accident, lad, and that's honest. So now
what's it to be--shake hands or leave it alone?"
"Shake hands," I said, lifting mine with difficulty. "I don't think you
could have done such a cowardly thing."
I looked round sharply at Mr Brownsmith, for I felt as if I had said
something that would offend him, since I was taking sides against him.
"Be careful, please," I added quickly; "my arm's very bad, and you'll
hurt me."
"Careful!" cried Ike; "I'll shake it as easy as if it was a young shoot
o' sea-kale, boy. There, hear him, master! Hear what this here boy
says!"
He shook hands with me, I dare say thinking he was treating me very
gently, but he hurt me very much. The grip of his hard brown hand alone
was bad enough, but I bore it all as well as I could, and tried to smile
in the rough fellow's face.
"That's the sort as I like," he said in a good-humoured growl. "Put
that down on the slate. That's being a trump, that is; and we two's
shipmates after this here."
Old Brownsmith did not speak, and Ike went on:
"I say, master, what a bad un you do think me! I'd ha' hated myself as
long as I lived, and never forgive myself, if I'd done such a thing.
Look ye here--my monkey's up now, master--did yer ever know me ill-use
the 'orses?"
"No, Ike," said Old Brownsmith shortly.
"Never once. There's the white, and I give it a crack now and then; but
ask either Capen or Starlit, and see if ever they've got anything agen
me. And here's a man as never ill-used a 'orse, and on'y kicked young
Shock now and then when he'd been extry owdacious, and you say as I
tried to upset the load on young un here. Why, master, I'm ashamed on
yer. I wouldn't even ha' done it to you."
I felt sorry for Ike, and my sympathies were against Old Brownsmith, who
seemed to be treating him rather hardly, especially when he said
shortly:
"Did you fasten off that hind rope?"
"Yes, master, I did fasten off that hind rope," growled Ike.
"Then, now you're out o' breath with talking, go and get your sleep.
Don't start later than twelve."
Ike uttered a low grunt, and went off with his hands in his pockets, and
Old Brownsmith came and laid his hand upon my shoulder.
"Pretty well bed-time, Grant, my boy. Let's go in."
I followed him in, feeling rather low-spirited, but when he had lit a
candle he turned to me with a grim smile.
"Ike didn't like what I said to him, but it won't do him any harm."
I looked at him, wondering how he could treat it all so coolly, but he
turned off the conversation to something else, and soon after he showed
me my bedroom--a neat clean chamber at the back, and as I opened the
window to look out at the moon I found that there was a vine growing up
a thick trellis right up to and round it, the leaves regularly framing
it in.
There was a comfortable-looking bed, and my box just at the foot, and I
was so weary and low-spirited that I was not long before I was lying
down on my left side, for I could not lie on my right on account of my
shoulder being bad.
As I lay there I could look out on the moon shining among the vine
leaves, and it seemed to me that I ought to get out and draw down the
blind; but while I was still thinking about it I suppose I must have
dropped asleep, for the next thing that seemed to occur was that I was
looking at the window, and it was morning, and as I lay trying to think
where I was I saw something move gently just outside.
At first I thought it was fancy, and that the soft morning light had
deceived me, or that one of the vine leaves had been moved by the wind;
but no, there was something moving just as Shock's head used to come
among the young shoots of the plum-trees above the wall, and, sure
enough, directly after there was that boy's head with his eyes above the
sill, staring right in upon me as I lay in bed.