A START IN LIFE
"I SAY, young man, what do you mean by this; coming along the street
at the pace of a steam-engine? I've a good mind to call the police."
Arthur had collided with an elderly gentleman at the corner of the
street, nearly knocking him down, and had paused in his onward career
to make sure that he had not hurt him.
"I am very sorry, sir," he said, as soon as he could get his breath,
for the run and the sudden collision had made him stagger as well as
his victim. "I hope you are not hurt?" he added.
"I—I think I know your voice," said the gentleman, placing his hand on
Arthur's shoulder and peering into his face. "Isn't your name Murray?"
he asked the next moment.
"Oh, yes! And you are Mr. Andrews, who always managed Papa's affairs?"
"Well, as much as he would let me," said the lawyer.
"Perhaps you would not mind helping me to decide about something,"
said the lad eagerly. "Girls don't know much about such things, and my
Mother doesn't care about anything but Persian cats."
There was a bitterness in his tone as he said this that did not escape
the notice of the lawyer, but he made no comment beyond saying: "Tell
me facts, the facts of the case you want me to advise upon."
"Well, sir, you know I must get a situation of some sort; our money has
nearly all gone, and I want to help my sisters, of course."
"The money went years ago," muttered the old gentleman under his
breath, but not so low that Arthur did not catch the words, and
he paused a minute to think of their import before he added: "Mr.
Brading at the 'Great Emporium' has offered me a situation in his
counting-house."
"Has he though?" said the lawyer quickly. "Well, it is uncommonly good
of Brading, and you are a lucky fellow to get such chance to make a
beginning. How came Brading to hear about you?"
"Oh! Jack Brading is in my class at school, and we have always been
good chums, though some of the fellows did not like it, because his
father kept a shop. Thank you, sir! You were a friend of my father's, I
know, and so it will be all right. Good-night!"
And before Mr. Andrews was aware of it, Arthur was off down the street
at the same railroad pace as before.
"That was a wonderful piece of good fortune, to meet Andrews just at
this time. Now I can tell Brading that my mother is not so well, but
that my father's man of business thinks I ought to accept his offer."
Arthur whispered this to himself as he stopped at the fishmonger's door
and looked in at the well-stocked shop.
Arthur had to pause before going in, for he was not in the habit of
fetching errands, and he had almost forgotten what he wanted, until he
heard a customer inside ask the price of sole, and then he remembered
what he had been sent for, and was careful to note the price given to
the other customer.
"Eighteen pence a pound," said the fishmonger, picking up a fish and
holding it up. "That will weigh about a pound," he said, putting it
into the scale.
"It is dreadfully dear," said the customer dubiously.
"Not for sole, ma'am, at this time of year. Can I serve you, sir?"
added the man, turning to Arthur.
"Yes, I want a small sole filleted, enough for a sick lady's supper—for
Mrs. Murray," added Arthur.
The man looked at him for a minute, as if mutely asking a question, and
then served the lady. When she had gone out of the shop, he leaned over
the counter and said in a quiet tone: "You don't want it added to the
account, I hope, sir?"
"Oh, no, I have the money!" replied Arthur. But his face flushed
crimson with pain and shame as he said, "It must be a small sole,
please."
The man weighed several before he could get one to suit Arthur, for the
boy had suddenly decided that he must not spend more than a shilling
for the fish, and at last he got what he wanted and started homeward.
This time he went through the by-streets as the nearest way back, and
came upon another fish shop, where they sold fish ready fried.
"Now this will be just the thing for those beastly cats," said Arthur
to himself, as a man placed a dish of smoking-hot slices of fish in the
window.
In a moment, he dashed in and put twopence on the counter. "Give me two
pennyworth quick," he said.
The man soon handed Arthur a greasy packet of fish wrapped in a piece
of newspaper, and the lad dashed off again.
"What a long time you have been!" said Molly, who opened the door to
him.
And as he entered, a faint mew came from the stairs.
"Poor pussy!" said Arthur, and he held the greasy parcel towards her.
The Persian caught a whiff of the tasty contents, and uttered a louder
mew, while Arthur ran off to the kitchen followed by Tuffy.
The next minute, Mrs. Murray appeared at the top of the stairs, and
Molly ran up to see what had brought her mother out of her room.
"My poor pets are so hungry!" said the lady plaintively.
"Yes, Mamma, and so are you, I am sure. Arthur has brought the fish,
and Annie has gone to cook it before Hannah comes in." And as she
spoke, an appetizing smell of fried fish came up the stairs, and the
other cat pricked up her ears and sniffed, and finally went out of the
room after her rival, closely followed by Molly, whose keener nose
had detected a difference in the smell that had drawn Bob downstairs.
She closed her mother's door, and opened the staircase window as she
passed, and then ran down to the kitchen, where she fully expected to
hear that Arthur was perpetrating some mischief.
There were the cats, each with a plate of nicely-browned fish, which
they were growling over with delight, while Arthur was laughing and
Annie looking on, half-amused, half-alarmed, with the raw fish only
just put into the frying-pan.
"What is it? What have you done?" asked Molly.
"Bought the beasts two pennyworth of fried fish instead of giving
eighteen pence a pound for soles for them. And just see how they enjoy
it too!" added Arthur, as one of the cats looked up at him, licking her
lips, as if asking for more.
"Well, if it doesn't make them ill, I shall be very glad, for it was
such a small fish you brought, Mamma would hardly have had a bit," said
Annie.
"Look here, we must do something like this to lessen our expenses,"
said Arthur. "How much do we owe the fishmonger?" he suddenly asked.
"Oh, a few pounds! I shall have to let Mr. Andrews know that all our
money has gone again."
"But he said you would have to make it last until the end of the
quarter," exclaimed Molly. "But I can't—it's impossible. I have not
been able to pay the bills as it is," retorted Annie. "Mamma must have
what she fancies; it is so little she can eat."
"Well, we must feed the cats down here, and then that will cost less,
though I don't believe I should ever have thought of it, if Arthur had
not bought this fish. Why, they have had a better supper for twopence
than if Arthur had spent another shilling for filleted soles, and I am
sure they have enjoyed it quite as much."
"Of course they have, and the fish is good, or people would not eat it,
even if they are poor," said Arthur.
His elder sister shook her head. She was not so sure about that.
In the narrow and exclusive circle in which she had been brought up,
she knew nothing of the trials and struggles of the poor, and so
Arthur's daring experiment of bringing home food that only poor people
ate was somewhat of a shock to her notions of propriety, even though it
was for the cats and he had been able to save a shilling for her by the
transaction.
Of course she had heard at the time of her father's death that very
little of their property was left, but she thought that, having given
up the old home and sold most of the furniture except what had been
required to furnish her mother's room, the trouble was at an end, and
they could have all they needed for life, with one servant in the
cottage, without thought or stint.
But the bringing of this vulgar fried fish into the house seemed like
bringing an element of unrest to the two sisters.
The next morning Molly was awake very early, and she soon found that
her sister, who slept in an adjoining bed, was also wakeful.
"Did Arthur tell you that the fishmonger as good as asked him for the
money before he served him with the fish last night?" she asked.
"No, dear; but I should not wonder, for other trades-people have asked
me lately to settle their bills. I cannot understand it, for I know
Papa used to let them run for a year, or even longer."
There was silence for a minute or two, and then Molly said: "I have
been thinking it would be better to let Arthur go to Brading's; he said
last night it was downright dishonest to owe money that we cannot pay,
and yet object to him going to earn some to help us. Don't you think
we had better let him try what he can do at this shop?" said Molly
wistfully.
The fact was, Arthur had managed to get hold of his younger sister
before she went to bed, and had poured out all his trouble to her.
"I dawdled along," he said, "for nearly half-way to the fish shop
thinking about Mamma and her cats, until it seemed to me that we were
nothing to her, and that she could not judge fairly what was good for
us.
"Then I started to run, and nearly knocked somebody down, who turned
out to be Papa's man of business, Mr. Andrews. I spoke to him about
Brading's offer, and he thought I could not do better than take such a
chance."
Molly repeated Arthur's story as nearly as she could, word for word.
"Annie," she added, "I am telling you just what Arthur said, and of
course he will take the advice of a man like Andrews; but still, I know
he would be glad if you said to him, 'I am willing that you should try
what you can do for us'."
"It is Mamma who should say this," said Annie with a groan.
"But she won't, you know she won't. She will fret herself ill, and tell
us it is our duty to maintain the family honour, regardless of what our
likes and dislikes may be. The cats come first, I do believe now, and
then the family honour. Arthur says he doesn't think there is much of
it left to take care of."
"Oh, Molly, why do you let him talk to you like that?" said Annie
reproachfully. "He is only an ignorant boy, and quite ready to do or
say anything that is mischievous. You ought not to encourage him to
talk in that fashion, but tell him to remember that he is a Murray, and
therefore bound to take care of the family honour at all costs."
Molly did not answer, for her sister spoke very severely; but she
was glad to see Arthur seated at the breakfast-table when she went
downstairs, for she always waited upon her mother before she went to
her own breakfast. She was relieved to find that Annie was not looking
quite so stern as when she first got up.
Arthur nodded and winked as Molly drew up her chair to the table, and
Annie, as she handed her a cup of coffee, said in a quiet tone: "Arthur
is not going to school this morning, he is going to see Mr. Brading at
ten o'clock."
It was Annie's way of doing most things, and the others knew it. It
was not a very gracious way, perhaps, but Arthur was glad even of this
grudging consent, for Mr. Brading had insisted that he should consult
his friends before giving an answer about the proffered situation.
Arthur went off in good spirits, and Molly began to wonder what she
could do to make a little festival when he came home. At last she
thought she would ask Hannah to make an apple-pudding for dinner, for
Arthur was very fond of apple-pudding, and would be sure to appreciate
this little attention to his taste.
But when she went to the kitchen to prefer her request, she was told
that it was quite impossible for her to have what she wanted.
"I've never served apple-pudding without custard, and Miss Annie says I
must be more careful and not use so many eggs, so you certainly cannot
have any pudding to-day."
"It was for Arthur I wanted it," pleaded Molly.
But Hannah was inexorable. Annie had told her she must lessen household
expenses somehow, and the old servant had turned cross at once. She
had been with them for some years, and neither master nor mistress had
ever told her such a thing before. She resented it now as though it had
been an imputation upon her honesty, and she gave Molly such a rating,
with this for a text, that the poor girl was glad to take refuge in the
needlework that she and Annie had set themselves to do, that they might
save the cost of new table-cloths if they could.
At dinner-time she began to watch for Arthur, for she longed to hear
how he had got on. But the afternoon passed, bringing no news of their
brother, and it was not until between seven and eight o'clock that he
arrived.
"Why, where have you been, Arthur?" exclaimed Molly, jumping up to
greet him as he came in.
"Did you think I was lost, or had gone for a soldier, that I did not
come home to dinner?" asked Arthur teasingly.
"Have you had your tea as well as your dinner?" asked Molly, while his
elder sister looked her questions.
"I think it will be all right, Annie, when I get used to the work," he
said. "The chief accountant is a gentleman, and he says if I am very
careful, he thinks I shall get on very well. It will be a good thing
for your housekeeping, Annie, not to have me home to dinner every
day. We all dine in the house, and have tea too. Sometimes I may have
to go down and help at the shop desk, but, as a rule, I shall not
see much more of the shops than I should if I was in a bank, for the
counting-house is upstairs in another part of the house. I say, Annie,
won't it be a good thing for you that I am to have my dinner there?"
said Arthur again.
"Why?" asked his sister, in genuine astonishment.
"It must cost something to keep a big hungry boy like me in pies and
custards, to say nothing of the meat and vegetables."
"What makes you talk like this, Arthur?" exclaimed Annie scornfully.
"As if the price of a meal could matter. Of course we do not
keep company now as we did—how can we, with only Hannah to do
everything?—But I should think we could afford to have what we needed
for ourselves!"
Annie was very scornful as well as angry, and Arthur was prevented from
saying any more about his new situation to either of his sisters, for
Annie took care that he did not get a chance of talking to Molly before
supper, and when that was over, he was glad to go to bed. Although he
had not said a word about it, he felt tired and sleepy after his close
attention to his work.
Molly noticed the next morning that he still looked a little sleepy
when he got up.
"Yes, I do feel a bit tired," admitted Arthur, with a yawn, "but you
cannot wonder at that, for of course all the work is strange to me."
"But you don't mind it?" queried Molly.
"Mind it! Why, a fellow has got to conquer his distaste for close work
if ever he is to do anything in the world. Dr. Robinson has often told
me that my failing was want of application, and if ever I wanted to be
successful, I must make up my mind to stick to work, whatever it may
be, and I mean to do it too," added Arthur resolutely.
Molly looked at him admiringly. "I do hope you will succeed," she said
in a low, earnest tone.
"Well, I mean to have a good try for it, I can tell you. Andrews seemed
to think I had a very good chance at Brading's. Mind you, the work is
stiff, and Mr. Bristow, the chief accountant, is very particular."
"Of course he would have to be," interrupted Molly, "for I suppose the
figures now mean real money, and if you got any part of the sum wrong,
it would mean loss of money to Mr. Brading, or else that he would cheat
somebody. Oh, Arthur, I do see how particular you have to be! It is
quite different from what it was at school, when, if you got a sum
wrong, it only meant the loss of a mark to yourself. Now your sums mean
the loss of money to other people."
"Well done, Molly! That was just what I was thinking when I was
dressing this morning, but I don't think I could have explained it so
clearly."
"Isn't it rather nice to think it is real things you have to do with
now?" asked Molly, rather wistfully. "Think how much better it is than
our life here at home. All we have to do is to look after Mamma and the
cats, and see that nothing happens to trouble them. Yes, I wish I was a
man, to do real work in the world," added Molly with a sigh.
"If I stay talking here any longer, I shall be late for my work, and
then I shall have Bristow down upon me with a solemn warning. The
cashier's boy told me to-day that he was always down on people if they
don't keep their time, and I have to be at the office ready for work by
a quarter to nine."