PREPARATIONS FOR A START.
Every one was astir betimes next morning, for an unusual sense of
excitement pervaded the whole household. Even Yesslett, who was
generally late for everything, was up in good time, and, with his usual
good-nature, lent every one a helping hand. His assistance was,
however, often rendered useless from his ignorance of colonial life,
for he had only been in Australia a month or two.
Yesslett Dudley was Mrs. Law's nephew, who, after the death of his
father and the break-up of his old home in England, had been sent out
by his guardians to Australia, as his health was not good, and his
prospects little better. He was a curly-headed young rascal, with a
smile that was like sunshine in a house, and a voice that rang with
merriment and good humour. He was far wiser in book-learning than his
boy cousins, but could not compare with them in anything else. It is
true he could sit a horse and handle a gun, both after his own fashion,
but his ludicrous riding and his dangerous shooting would have been
subjects for constant ridicule to less kind fellows than his cousins.
They could not help despising him a little as a "jackaroo" and a "new
chum" just at first, but his pleasant hearty way of laughing at himself
and his many mishaps soon won their hearts, and instead of making fun
of him they began to teach him how to do things in a "true colonial
fashion," as they said, and that was their highest standard.
Under their able tuition he soon improved in the manly arts; and as his
health became better in the pure air of those lofty downs and with the
simple life of the station, he not only began to grow stouter and
stronger, but also became more courageous and manly. Not that Yesslett
had ever been a coward, but his weak health had made him more timid and
nervous than strong and hale boys generally are. He possessed an
inexhaustible fund of good humour, and a capacity for fun and mischief
which, fortunately, few boys are blessed with.
Alec's first thought as he left the house was to see whether the two
native boys he had engaged the night before had kept their promise of
coming to the station. There they were, sure enough, sitting by the
strong rails of the stock-yard grinning and laughing and chattering
away, and delighted at the prospect of the coming hunt, as they thought
the expedition to be. These two men were strong, active fellows, and
more to be trusted, perhaps, than the average native; they were
employed on the station at times during mustering and shearing, or when
the run was short-handed. They could both ride like monkeys, and could
speak a few words of queer pigeon English. Alec was glad to see them
there, for without the help of Murri he knew they could never find the
Whanga gully. He walked up to them and said--
"You go drive _yarroman_" (horses) "in um stock-yard."
"_Yohi_" (yes), "all um _yarroman_ in um paddock?" asked Prince Tom.
"Yes, all the lot," answered Alec; and the two black fellows ran off to
get to the other side of the horses and head them to the yard. Just as
thoughtless as children they rushed away without thinking of opening
the stock-yard rails; but Alec had expected as much, and walking round
the yard he removed the two heavy slip-panels himself, and stepped on
one side out of sight of the horses. In a few moments he heard the
heavy thud of hoofs on the dry turf as the little mob was driven from
the paddock and came galloping towards him. One or two of the horses
neighed loudly, resenting the ignominy of being driven by natives, but
after some reluctance they turned to the yard and rushed through the
opening in a little stampede.
How noble the handsome creatures looked! Ten or a dozen of them, and
not a single "screw" amongst them; for it was Alec's pride, as it had
been his father's before him, to have the best horses in the colony.
They stood, quivering with the excitement of the little run, with the
morning sun shining on their burnished coats, as spirited and in as
good condition as horses well could be, though their only feed was the
short sweet grass of the paddock. They all pricked their ears and
looked up as Alec came round the cart-shed. They nearly all knew him,
for he had broken in all the young horses himself for the last five
years. As he came up to the fence, Amber, his favourite horse, which he
allowed no one but himself to mount, pushed his way through the others,
and with a low whinny of pleasure at the sight of his master, put his
head over the top rail for Alec to rub his smooth soft muzzle.
He was a noble beast of a rich golden chestnut colour, and without a
white hair or a blemish on him. His goodly shoulders and grand
hind-quarters showed the strength of the horse, and his flat hocks and
springy though strong-thewed pasterns spoke of his swiftness as plainly
as his broad chest did of his powers of endurance. His head, which was
perhaps a trifle small, was exquisitely shaped, broad in the forehead,
and clean cut. The nostrils were wide, the eyes dark and tender, and
the ears sensitive and small. It could be seen by the whole shape of
the head, and by the slight arch in the curve of his tail, that Arab
blood flowed in his veins. No wonder that Alec loved him, for Amber was
as noble and intelligent a creature as ever man bestrode.
Whilst Alec and the native boys were seeing to the horses, George was
carrying out his arrangements in the store. He finished weighing out
the week's rations for the shepherds on the distant parts of the run,
and put them ready for Yesslett, who was to act as ration-carrier in
his absence, to take to them that afternoon. He then called Dudley into
the store and showed him where everything was kept, and told him to
enter every article he sold to any of the men, or their wives, in the
store book to each man's account, and showed him the board on which the
price of everything was written.
"For you will have to be store-keeper as well as ration-carrier whilst
I am away, besides being protector-in-chief to mother and Margaret. I
wish you were coming, too, Yess, but I don't think you could stand
camping out just yet," said George.
"No," replied Yesslett; "perhaps I could not, and besides that," he
added, with an assumption of a manly manner that delighted and amused
George, though he was little more than a year older than his
cousin--"besides that, I shall have to look after the women."
"Yes, of course," said George, with a little smile.
"I say, Geordie," said Yesslett, in his natural, boyish, inquisitive
way a few moments afterwards, during which time George had been getting
ready the stores to take with them on their expedition, "whatever do
you want all those canvas bags for?"
"Oh, they'll come in useful," said George, who did not mean to tell his
chatterbox of a cousin that he hoped they would be useful for bringing
home the gold they were going to seek. He half blushed at thus counting
his chickens before they were hatched, but with a little laugh he went
on choosing the strongest sewn ones from a little heap of 14-lb. shot
bags that lay in a corner of the store near the door.
Yesslett understood that he would get no further answer from George, so
he remained behind the tall salt-meat cask, silently folding up the
great flour bag they had just emptied.
The same idea seemed to strike some one else, for a moment afterwards
Keggs, who had already made one or two excuses for coming into the
store that morning, appeared again at the door, and looking in, with
what he considered an engaging smile, he entered, and said--
"You seem mighty busy this morning!"
"Yes," said George, shortly, for he did not like the man, and Alec had
told him how he had been watching him the night before.
"And wot might y'all be ser busy for?"
"Because we've got something to do, and can't afford to waste time as
you do," said George, looking up at him.
"P'raps you wouldn't mind sayin' wot all them little bags is for?"
"To put things in--like this," said a deep voice from above him; and
before the astonished man could look up, Yesslett, holding the mouth of
the sack wide open, had leaped down on him from the top of the
salt-meat tub, and enveloped him completely in the rough dusty bag.
They could hear him choking and coughing and cursing as he struggled to
get out. Before he had succeeded in extricating himself, Yesslett, with
a most provoking and impish laugh, had vanished into the house. Keggs'
inflamed eyelids looked redder and more painful than ever from his
white powdered face when at last he had wriggled out of the sack, for
George would not help him; and as he sneaked off he swore that he would
"serve the young beggar out."
Breakfast at Wandaroo was taken, as is general on Queensland runs, at
about half-past seven or eight, when every one had gained an appetite
by the couple of hours' work he had done since sunrise. It was not a
particularly cheerful meal that morning, for Mrs. Law felt losing her
sons for so long a time, and the lads were too excited and busy to talk
very much. Fortunately Yesslett was in capital spirits, as indeed he
generally was, and Macleod, the general manager, was too old and too
hard-headed a man of the world to let so small a circumstance disturb
him. Although fond of the lads, he had known too many partings in his
lifetime to allow this one, which after all was not for so very long a
time, interfere with his breakfast.
"I hope you will be at the head station as much as possible whilst we
are away," said Alec, addressing Macleod. "The South Creek station
doesn't want so much looking after now, and I shall feel more
comfortable if I know you are here."
"Oh, aye, Alec, I s'all be heere," said the old Scotsman. "Yasslutt and
I can ferry weel look after the leddies."
"Don't trouble yourselves about us," said Margaret; "we shall get on
all right, there is nothing to be afraid of, for Starlight and his band
are nowhere in the neighbourhood, and they are the only people we have
to fear."
"How do you know that they are not about here?"
"Macleod brought the news up from Bateman that they have been seen
lately about Bowen, and that they 'stuck up' a bank manager in one of
the new townships near there in his own house, took his keys, emptied
his safe, and rode off scot free, though it was broad daylight and the
town was full of men."
"By Jove! Margaret, I almost believe you admire those sneaking
bushrangers," said George.
"Oh, no, I don't," replied she, blushing a little at the accusation;
"but I do think them bold and daring, and I can't help rather liking
their dash and pluck."
"Weel, Miss Mairgaret, theer's not much chaance o' their comin' to
Wandaroo," said old Macleod, in his caustic Scottish way, "so I greatly
fear you wull not haive the pleasure o' witnessin' 'the pluck and
daring' of ten weel armed and mounted men slinking on to a defenceless
station and robbing a pack o' women and lads o' their little a'.
Theer's nothing at Wandaroo to tempt bushrangers heether."
"Except the horses," muttered Alec.
"And we shall have the best of them with us," said George, turning to
his brother, for he had heard him, as he always did anything that Alec
said.
"Well, it's about time we started," said Alec, when breakfast was over;
"it will be getting fearfully hot directly, and we may as well spare
the horses as much as possible at first."
"Have you taken enough stores for a month for all of you?" asked Mrs.
Law, anxiously. "Those black boys eat such an enormous quantity."
"All right, mother, I've seen to that," said Geordie. "We shall take
two pack-horses, and I've looked out everything and loaded them well.
As to Murri and Prince Tom, they will have to pretty well feed
themselves--there is plenty of kangaroo and wallaby and bandicoot for
them to catch and eat; we shall take Como, too, and he'll help us get
food enough, don't fear."
"I hope you are going well armed," said Margaret the practical. "Take
plenty of powder and shot."
"Thank you, madame, we will, and ball, too. Being so young and
inexperienced in bush life," said Alec, with a laugh at his sister's
advice, "we should probably have forgotten all about these trifles."
"What do you want ball for, Alec?"
"Possibly for natives, my gentle sister," whispered Alec to her, "if
they are unkind enough and unwise enough to interfere with us. But we
shall take care of ourselves, never fear. Don't let mother know that we
think we may meet any _myalls_, she does so worry herself."
Shortly after this, having strapped up in their blankets the very few
clothes they were taking with them, they said good-bye to their mother
as cheerfully as possible, and went out to the yard. The horses, which
had been saddled, although fresh and excited, stood quite quietly, as
they had been trained to do when fastened to a post or rail, and the
two spare horses were loaded with the provisions, the one or two tin
pans and "billies," as the round pots for boiling water are called, and
the two boys' "swags." Prince Tom and Murri were already mounted, their
bare legs looking very ridiculous coming from under the old torn shirt
that each of them wore. They were both armed to the teeth with native
weapons, for in their belts of kangaroo sinew were thrust their
_nullah-nullahs_, and _waddies_ (clubs), their short throwing sticks,
and their most valued weapon, the _boomerang_. Each man had his native
stone hatchet fixed in his belt and lying along his spine, and they
carried, too, a few short spears strapped on to their saddles, and over
which their left legs passed. Kissing Margaret, who had come on to the
verandah to see them start, and shaking hands with Yesslett and
Macleod, the boys unfastened their horses and sprang into the saddle
with the perfect ease of accomplished horsemen.
It was a beautiful sight to see those boys ride; never did their
graceful, well-knit figures show to such advantage as on horseback.
Accustomed to riding from their earliest childhood, they sat a horse as
though it were--as it surely must be--the most natural place for a man
to be. Once in the saddle they seemed to be actually part of the animal
they rode, their swelling thighs and muscular calves clasping the horse
firmly and composedly, but the whole body above the hips swaying and
giving easily to every motion of the horse. They looked two as handsome
lads as could well be seen as they rode out of the yard that morning.
Their dark eyes were flashing and their healthy brown faces were all
aglow with excitement, and they laughed aloud, as their horses pranced
proudly beneath them, from sheer joy in the beauty of the sunshine and
the brightness of the day.
They turned, as they came to the gate of the paddock, and taking off
their soft, grey, broad-brimmed felt hats they waved a farewell to the
group on the verandah. The sun gleamed on the short curls of their
hair, and shone on the bright barrels of their guns and on the steel of
their bridles and stirrups as they shouted a cheery "good-bye."
Everything was bright and promised well. So they left on their wild
search for gold.
"Ah, good-bye, good-bye, my fine fellers," maliciously muttered Keggs,
who had been watching them with his blinking treacherous eyes from the
door of the bachelors' hut, where he was hidden in the shadow. "Better
men nor you are a-walkin' now who may be in your saddles afore long."