1
He stayed at Boveyhayne until the time came to return to Rumpell's, and
the holiday passed so quickly that he could not believe that it was
really over. They had picnicked in the Smugglers' Cave and on Boveyhayne
Common where the gorse was in bloom, and Henry had plucked whinblossoms
to dye Easter eggs when he found that the Grahams did not know that
whinblossoms could be used in this way. "You boil the blossoms and the
eggs together, and the eggs come out a lovely browny-yellow colour. We
always dye our eggs like that in the north of Ireland!" And on the day
they picnicked on Boveyhayne Common, Mrs. Graham took them down the side
of the hill to the big farm at Franscombe and treated them to a
Devonshire tea: bread and butter and raspberry jam and cream, cream
piled thick on the jam, and cake. (But they ate so much of the bread and
butter and jam and cream that they could not eat the cake.) And they
swam every day.... Mary was like a sea-bird: she seemed to swim on the
crest of every wave as lightly as a feather, and was only submerged when
she chose to thrust her head into the body of some wave swelling higher
and higher until its curled top could stay no longer and it pitched
forward and fell in a white, spumy pile on the shore. She would climb
over the stern of a rowing-boat and then plunge from it into the sea
again, and come up laughing with the water streaming from her face and
hair, or dive beneath Ninian and pull his feet until he kicked out....
And then the last evening of his visit came. The vicar of Boveyhayne and
his wife were to dine at the Manor that night, and so they were bidden
to put on their company manners and their evening clothes. Ninian
grumbled lustily when he heard the news, for he had made arrangements
with a fisherman to "clean" a skate that evening when the trawlers came
home. "I bet him thruppence I could do it as good as he could, and now
I'll have to pay up. Beastly swizz, that's what it is!" he said to Henry
in the stable where he was busy rubbing down Peggy, although Peggy did
not need or wish to be rubbed down. "I think Mother ought to give me the
thruppence anyhow!..."
After dinner, Ninian and Henry and Mary had contrived to miss the
drawing-room, whither Mrs. Graham led the Vicar and his wife, and they
went to the room which had been the nursery and was now a work-room, and
lit the fire and sat round it, talking and telling tales and reading
until the time came for Mary to go to bed.
"We're going soon, too!" said Ninian. "We've got to get up jolly early
to-morrow, blow it! I hate getting up early!"
Henry yawned and stretched out his hands to the fire. "I wish I weren't
going to-morrow," he said, half reflectively.
"So do I," Mary exclaimed.
She was sitting on the floor beside him and he turned to look at her, a
little startled by the suddenness of her speech.
"I wish you weren't going," she said, sitting up and leaning against him
as she was accustomed to lean against Ninian. "It's been great fun this
Easter!"
Ninian caught hold of her hair and pulled it. "He isn't a bad chap, old
Quinny," he said. "Soft-hearted, a bit!"
"Shut up, Ninian!" Henry shouted, punching him in the ribs.
But Ninian would not shut up. "Blubs like anything if you kill a rabbit
or anything. He eats them all the same!"
Mary put her hands over Ninian's mouth. "Leave Quinny alone, Ninian,"
she said. "He's much nicer than you, and I do think it's horrid of you
to go gutting fish just for fun. The fishermen have to do it, else we
wouldn't get any breakfast, and of course plaice are very nice for
breakfast...."
"Yahhh!" yelled Ninian.
"Well, anyhow," she continued, "Quinny's much nicer than you are. Aren't
you, Quinny?"
"No, he isn't," Ninian asserted stoutly. "I'm ten times nicer than he
is!"
"No, you're not...."
Henry, embarrassed at first by Mary's admiration, plucked up his spirits
and joined in.
"Of course, I'm nicer than you are, Ninian," he said. "Anybody could see
that with half an eye in his head!"
"All right, then, I'll fight you for it," Ninian replied, squaring up at
him in mock rage.
"I'll box your ears for you, Ninian Graham!" said Mary, "and I won't let
Quinny fight you, and Quinny, if you dare to fight him, I shan't like
you any more...."
"Then I won't fight him, Mary. She's saved your life, Ninian," he said,
turning to his friend.
"Yahhh!" Ninian shouted.
"I'll get up very early to-morrow morning," said Mary, as she prepared
to leave them, "and perhaps mother'll let me drive to Whitcombe with you
to see you off!"
"No," Ninian objected, "we don't want you blubbing all over the
platform!..."
"I shan't blub, Ninian. I never blub!..."
"Yes, you do. You always blub. You blubbed the last time and made me
feel an awful ass!" he persisted.
"Well, I shan't blub this time, or if I do, it won't be about you....
Anyhow, I shall get up early and see Quinny off. I _like_ Quinny!..."
Ninian pointed at Henry, and burst out laughing. "Oh! Oh, he's blushing!
Look at him! Oh! Oh!!"
"Shut up, Ninian, you ass!" said Henry, turning away.
Mary went over to him and took hold of his arm. "Never mind, Quinny,"
she said, "I _do_ like you. Good-night!"
Then she went out and left him alone with Ninian.
"I suppose," said Ninian when she had gone, "we ought to go down and say
something to the Vicar!"
2
That night, Henry went to bed in the knowledge that he loved Mary
Graham. "I'll marry her," he said, as he stripped his clothes off.
"That's what I'll do. I'll jolly well marry her!"
In the excitement of his love, he forgot to wash his hands and face and
clean his teeth, and he climbed into bed and lay there thinking about
Mary. "I suppose," he said, "I ought to tell her about it. That ass,
Ninian'll be sure to laugh if I tell him!" He sat up suddenly in bed.
"Lord," he exclaimed, "I forgot to wash!" He got out of bed and washed
himself. "Beastly fag, cleaning your teeth," he murmured, and then went
back to bed.
"I know," he said, as he blew out the candle and hauled the clothes well
about his neck. "I'll make Ninian look after the luggage and stuff, and
then I'll tell her. On the platform! I hope she won't be cross about
it!" And then he fell asleep.
3
In the morning, they went off, Mary with them, and they stood up in the
carriage and waved their hands to Mrs. Graham until the dip in the road
hid her from their view. Ninian, who had been so disdainful of
"blubbers" the night before, sat down in a corner of the carriage and
looked miserable, but neither Mary nor Henry said anything to him. They
drove slowly down the Lane because it was difficult to do otherwise,
but when they had come into the road that leads to Franscombe, Widger
whipped up the horse, and the carriage moved quickly through the
village, past the schools, until they came to the long hill out of the
village ... and there Jim Rattenbury was waiting for them.
"I brought 'ee a li'l bit o' fish, Mas'er Ninyan," he said, putting a
basket into the carriage.
"I say, Jim!" Ninian exclaimed, forgetting his misery for a while. They
thanked him for the gift and enquired about the baby Rattenbury and
wished him good-luck in the mackerel fishing, and were about to go on
when Ninian recollected his failure to keep his appointment with Tom Yeo
on the previous evening. "Oh, Jim," he said, "I bet Tom Yeo thruppence
I'd 'clean' a skate as good as he can, but I couldn't come ... so here's
the thruppence. You might give it to Tom for me, will you!"
Jim Rattenbury waved the money away. "Ah, that be all right, Mas'er
Ninyan," he exclaimed. "You can try your 'and at it nex' time you comes
'ome. I'll tell Tom. 'Er'll be glad to 'ave longer to get ready for it,
'er will!" He laughed at his own joke, and they laughed, too. "Good luck
to 'ee, Mas'er Ninyan," Jim went on, "an' to 'ee too, sir!" he added,
turning to Henry.
"And me, Jim, _and_ me!" Mary said impetuously.
"Why, of course, Miss Mary, an' to 'ee, too!"
They drove on up the hill, from which they could look down on the
village, tucked snugly in the hollow of the rising lands, and along the
top of the ridge, gaining glimpses of the blue Channel, dotted far out
with the sails of trawlers, and down the hair-pin road where the pine
trees stand like black sentinels, through Whitcombe to the station....
"I wish we weren't going!..." one or other of them said as they drove
on.
"I'd love to have another swim," said Ninian.
"Or go out in a boat," said Henry.
The carriage entered the station-yard and they got out and walked
towards the platform. There were very few people travelling by that
early train, and Henry was glad because, if he could dispose of Ninian
for a few moments, he thought he could settle his affairs with Mary.
"Ninian," he said, trying to speak very casually, "you and Widger can
look after the luggage and tickets, can't you!"
Ninian, who had already induced one of the porters to describe a
thrilling fox-hunt in which the fox took to the river and was killed,
after a hard struggle, in the water, nodded his head and said "Righto!"
"Let's walk up and down," Henry said to Mary, and they walked towards
the end of the platform. "It's been awf'lly nice here!" he added.
"Yes, hasn't it?" she replied. "You'll come again, won't you?"
_"Ra_-ther!" he exclaimed.
"How long will it be before you can come again?"
"I don't know. You see, my father'll expect me to go home in the
summer...."
"Oh!"
"But I might come for part of the hols. I'd like to!"
"Yes," she said, sliding one of her feet in front of her and regarding
the tip of her shoe intently.
They did not speak for a few moments until he remembered that time was
fleeting. "It's an awf'lly nice day," he said, and licked his lips.
"Yes, isn't it?..."
"Awf'lly nice," he continued and broke off lamely.
They could see the train coming into Coly station, and a sense of
despair seized Henry when he thought that it would soon come into
Whitcombe station and then go back again to the junction, carrying
Ninian and him with it. He could feel his nervousness mounting up his
legs until it began to gallop through his body.... He felt frightfully
dry, and when he tried to speak, he could not do anything but cough.
The train had started now from Coly station. He could see the white
smoke rising from the engine's funnel almost in a straight line, so
little wind was there in the valley.... "Oh, Lord!" he said to
himself....
"What age are you?" he suddenly demanded of her.
"Fourteen," she replied.
"I'm sixteen ... nearly!" he continued.
"Ninian's over sixteen," Mary said, and added, "I wish I were sixteen!"
"Why!"
"Oh, I don't know. I just wish I were. When I'm sixteen, you'll be
eighteen ... nearly!"
"So I shall. I say, Mary!..."
"Yes, Quinny?"
He could hear the rattle of the train on the railway lines, and, turning
towards the other end of the platform, he saw that Ninian, having
settled about the luggage and finished listening to the story of the fox
hunt, was approaching them. "Come on," he said, catching hold of Mary's
arm and drawing her to the other end of the platform.
"But that's the wrong end," she protested.
"I say, Mary!..."
"Yes, Quinny?"
"Oh, I say, Mary!..."
"Yes?..."
"I'd like to marry you awf'lly, if you don't mind!"
It was out ... oh, Lord, it was out!...
"Oh, I should love it, Quinny," said Mary, looking up at him and
smiling.
"Would you really!"
"Yes. Of course, I would. Let's tell Ninian and Widger!..."
Her suggestion alarmed him. Ninian would be sure to chaff him about
it.... "Oh, not yet!..." he began, but he was too late. Ninian had come
up to them, grumbling, "I thought you two'd started to leg it to
Rumpell's...."
Mary seized his arm and pressed it tightly. "Quinny and me are going to
get married," she said.
"Silly asses," said Ninian. "Come on, here's the train in!"
4
They climbed into their carriage a few seconds before the train steamed
out of the station again, and jammed themselves in the window to look
out. Ninian was full of instructions to Widger about his terrier and his
ferrets and a blind mouse that was supposed to recognise him with
miraculous ease. There was also some point about the fox-hunt which
required explanation....
"Good-bye, Mary!" Henry said, taking hold of her hand and pressing it.
"I suppose," he whispered, "I ought to give you a ring or something.
Chaps always do that!..."
Mary shook her head. "I don't think mother would like that," she
replied.
"Well, anyhow, we're engaged, aren't we?"
"Oh, of course, Quinny!"
"It's most awf'lly nice of you to have me, Mary!"
"But I like you!"
"Do you really?"
The guard blew his whistle and waved his flag and the train began to
move out of the station. He stood at the window looking back at Mary
standing on the platform, waving her hands to him, until he could see
her no longer.
"What are you looking at?" Ninian asked, taking down the basket of fish
which Jim Rattenbury had given him and preparing to open it.
"I'm looking at Mary," he answered.
"Sloppy ass!" said Ninian, and then he added excitedly, "Oh, I say,
plaice and dabs and a lobster ... a whopping big lobster! It's berried,
too!" He pointed to the red seeds in the lobster's body. "My Heavenly
Father, Quinny!" he exclaimed, "what a tuck-in we'll have to-night!"
"Eh?" Henry replied vaguely.