The captain, with a muttered Hang it! which was the extent of his swearing, for he was a deacon, followed at as rapid a pace as he could command, leaving Teddy solitary and alone.
The fat boy looked after his persecutor a moment, with a smile upon his face, then rose, picked up his jacket, put it on, buttoned it at the bottom, then coolly picked up the trophies of victory, tucked them into his jacket and his pockets, crossed the lane, crept through a hedge, and disappeared.
CHAPTER II
FALLEN FORTUNES
A stern chase is a long chase; so, leaving Captain Thompson in pursuit of the fugitive, we will take the liberty of passing through his premises to the main street. At the left of the church, opposite his house, another road ran down a steep hill, crossed Rogues River, by a bridge, ran up another hill, and wound round into the Foxtown road. At the top of the second hill stood a small brown house, by no means attractive in appearance, being destitute of paint, climbing vine, flowers, or other ornamentation. It had not even the virtue of neatness to recommend it. The gate was off its hinges, and lay in the road. A crazy barn close by had a pitch towards the river, as though from sheer weakness it was inclined to lie down for rest, while the scanty patch of cabbages and beets, the potato hills, few and far between, and the rickety bean-poles, all had a starved and neglected appearance.
This was known as the Sleeper Place, being occupied by Mrs. Sleeper and the young people, Rebecca and Edward, better known as Becky and Teddy. Inside, the house was not much more attractive than the outside. On the lower floor were four rooms, separated by the entry, from which a flight of stairs, hidden by a door, led to the garret above. On one side was a kitchen, with a door leading into Mrs. Sleepers bed-room at the back. On the other side was a sitting-room, with a door leading to a bed-room back of that, known as Beckys room. Teddys quarters were above, under the roof. The house was scantily furnished with old-fashioned furniture and home-made carpets, all of which had seen their best many years before, and now showed veteran scars of long service.
In the kitchen were two females Mrs. Sleeper and Hulda Prime. Mrs. Sleeper was a small, slender woman, with a face from which much beauty had faded out, a face which bore but one expression at all times that of anxious expectation. All else had died out five years before. Then she was a bright, cheerful, active wife, merrily singing over her household cares. Now she was waiting, for time to determine whether she was a wife or a widow.
In 49, when the California gold fever attacked so many New England towns, Captain Cyrus Sleeper was returning from the West Indies with a cargo of sugar and molasses, in the new ship Bounding Billow, the joint property of himself and Captain Paul Thompson. Touching at Havana, he was made acquainted with the startling news of gold discoveries; and, always impetuous, at once turned the bow of his ship towards California.
A year passed, and Captain Thompson also received startling news. His runaway partner had reached California, disposed of his cargo at fabulous prices, and sent the ship home in charge of his mate, and had started for the mines. To his partner he remitted the whole amount received for his cargo, enough to build two ships like the Bounding Billow, one half of which, being his own, was to be held by his partner for the support of his family until his return.
The captain was astounded. The conduct of his partner was so strange, he believed he must have lost his reason, and never expected to hear any intelligence of him again. Mrs. Sleeper also received a message from her eccentric husband, full of glowing descriptions of quick fortunes made in El Dorado, hopes of speedy return, and bright pictures of the high life they would lead when his ship came in. Since that time nothing had been heard of Captain Cyrus Sleeper or his fortunes.
The ship was fitted for a second voyage to the West Indies, Mrs. Sleeper, by Thompsons advice, going shares with him in the venture. But it proved disastrous. The ship was wrecked on her return, and Mrs. Sleeper found herself obliged to live on a very small income. Of a very romantic nature, her sailor husband always a hero in her eyes, for a little while she had high hopes of his quick return with an ample fortune, and chatted gaily of the good time coming when her ship came in. But as time passed, and no message came from over the sea, the smile forsook her lips, the brightness her cheek, and the hope-light of her eyes changed to an eager, searching glance, that told of an unquiet mind and an aching, breaking heart.
She went about her household duties, cooked, scrubbed, and mended, quietly and silently, but took no pride in her home, no comfort in her children. The house soon showed evidences of neglect. The children, without a mothers sympathy and guidance, were rapidly running to waste.
Just when the money began to give out, Hulda Prime came to help. Hulda was a distant relative of Cyrus Sleeper, by her own showing, as she was a distant relative of almost everybody in Cleverly. She was somewhere between forty and sixty: it was hard telling her age. It could not be told by her hair, for she had none; nor yet by her teeth, for they were false, or her cheeks, for they were always bright, and had a natural color which some people were wicked enough to say was not natural. She was long-favored, long and lean in body, had a very long face, long nose, and a long chin. She wore a front, with two auburn ringlets dangling at either end, a very tall white cap, carried herself very erect, and had altogether a solemn and serious demeanor. She left a relative to come and help dear Delia in her troubles; though in what her help consisted was a puzzle which the good people of Cleverly had never been able to solve. She got her living by helping. She had no money, but she had a large stock of complaints, so many, that they might have been calendared thus: Monday, rheumatism; Tuesday, cancer; Wednesday, dyspepsia; Thursday, heart disease; Friday, lumbago; Saturday, spine; Sunday, neuralgia. Or to vary the monotony, she would start off Monday with cancer, or some other disease; but the week would contain the whole programme. She was very regular in her habits of complaining, and was always taken bad just when she might be of assistance.
This day she was crouched by the fire, her head tied up in a towel, her body slowly rocking to and fro. It was her neuralgia day.
Mrs. Sleeper stood at her wash-tub near the window, her hands busy in the suds, her eyes fixed on the distant waters of the bay, her thoughts away with the ship that never came in. So absorbed was she in her waiting dream, that she did not see Captain Thompson, who for the last ten minutes had been puffing up the hill in sight of the window; was not aware of his approach until he stood in the kitchen doorway, with both hands braced against the sides, breathing very hard.
So, so! Pur pur purty capers those young ones of yours are cutting up, Delia Sleeper!
Mrs. Sleeper turned with a start; Aunt Hulda straightened up with a groan.
Do you mean Rebecca and Edward, captain? Have they been making any trouble? said Mrs. Sleeper, with the faintest sign of interest in her voice.
Trouble, trouble! shouted the captain, so loud that Aunt Hulda gave a groan, and held her head very hard; did they ever make anything else? Aint they the pests of the town? Who or what is safe when they are about? I tell you what it is, Delia, Im a patient man, a very patient man. Ive endured this sort of thing just as long as I mean to. I tell you somethings got to be done. And the captain looked very red, very angry, and very determined.
Im sure I try to keep the children out of mischief, faltered Mrs. Sleeper.
No, you dont. Thats just whats the matter. Youve no control over them. You dont want to control them. You just let them loose in the town, like a couple of wildcats, seeking whom they may devour. Whats the consequence? Look at Browns melon patch! He couldnt find a sound melon there. Look at my orchard! Despoiled by those barbarians! Heres a sample. To-day I caught them at one of my trees, loaded with plunder; caught them in the act!
O, captain! you did not punish them!
Punish eels! No; they were too sharp for me. One ran off with my horse, and a purty chase Ive had for nothing. The other marched away with my fruit. But I will punish them; be sure of that. Now, Delia, this thing must be stopped; it shall be stopped. Im a man of my word, and when I say a things to be done, it is done.
Im sure Im willing to do anything I can to keep them orderly, began Mrs. Sleeper.
Now whats the use of your talking so? You know youre not willing to do anything of the kind. Youre all bound up in your sorrows. You wont think of the matter again when Im gone you know you wont. If you cared for their bringing up, youd have that boy at school, instead of letting him fatten on other folkss property, and bring that girl up to work, instead of lettin her go galloping all over creation on other folkss horses. I tell you, Delia Sleeper, you dont know how to bring up young ones!
The captain, in his warmth, braced himself against the door sills so energetically that they cracked, and a catastrophe, something like that which occurred when Samson played with the pillars of the temple, seemed imminent.
Praps shed better turn em over to you, Capn Thompson, growled Aunt Hulda; youre such a grand hand at bringin up!
Hulda Prime, you jest attend to your own affairs. This is none of your business; so shet up! shouted the more plain than polite captain.
Shut up! retorted Aunt Hulda. Wal, I never! Aint you gettin a leetle obstroperlous, capn? This heres a free country, and nobodys to hinder anybodys freein their mind to anybody, even if they are a little up in the world. Shut up, indeed! And Aunt Hulda, in her indignation, rose from her chair, walked round it, and plumped down again in her old position.
I dont want any of your interference, Hulda Prime.
I know you dont. But its enough to make a horse laugh to see you comin here tellin about bringin up young uns! Brought up your Harry well didnt yer?
Hush, Aunt Hulda; dont bring up that matter now, said Mrs. Sleeper.
Why not? said Aunt Hulda, whose neuralgia was working her temper up to a high pitch. When folks come to other folkss houses to tell em how to train up their children, its high time they looked to home.
I brought up my son to obey his father in everything, and there wasnt a better boy in the town.
I want to know! He was dreadful nice when you had him under your thumb, for you was so strict with him he darsnt say his soul was his own; but he made up for it when he got loose. Sech capers! He made a tom-boy of our Becky, and was jest as full of mischief as he could stick.
No matter about my son, Hulda Prime; hes out of the way now.
Yes; cos you wanted to put him to a trade after hed been through the academy. He didnt like that, and started off to get a college education, and you shut the door agin him, and you locked up your money, and vowed he should starve afore youd help him. But they do say hes been through Harvard College in spite of yer.
Hulda Prime, youre a meddlin old woman, roared the captain, thoroughly enraged, and its a pity somebody didnt start you off years ago hangin round where you aint wanted.
I never hung round your house much did I, capn? cried Aunt Hulda, with a triumphant grin, which evidently started the neuralgic pains, for she sank back with a groan.
While this passage of tongues was going on inside the house, Miss Becky appeared in the road, mounted on Uncle Ned, who looked rather jaded, as though he had been put to a hard gallop. Flinging herself from his back she entered the door, when the form of Captain Thompson, braced in the kitchen door-way, which position he had not forsaken even in the height of debate, met her eyes. Her first thought was to regain the safe companionship of Uncle Ned; but a desire to know what was going on overcame her sense of danger, and she gently lifted the latch of the door which opened to the garret stairs, and stepped inside. The warlike parties in the kitchen covered her retreat with the clamor of their tongues.
Now, Delia, I want you to listen to reason, continued the captain, turning from the vanquished spinster to the silent woman, who had kept busily at work during the combat. Youre too easy with them children. They want a strong hand to keep them in line. Now you know Im a good friend to you and yours; and though Cyrus Sleeper treated me rather shabbily
My gracious! hear that man talk! blurted out Aunt Hulda. Its no such thing, and you know it. You made more money out of his Californy speculation with that air ship than you ever made afore in your life.
Will you be quiet, woman? roared the captain. I aint talkin to you, and dont want any of your meddlin.
Aunt Hulda, dont interrupt, please, said Mrs. Sleeper; lets hear what the captain has to say.
Then let him talk sense. The idea of Cyrus Sleepers ever treating anybody shabby! Its ridikerlous! growled Aunt Hulda, as she returned to her neuralgic nursing.
The young ones want a strict hand over em, continued the captain, when quiet was restored again. Im willing to take part charge of them, if youll let me. They must be sent to school.
I cant afford it, captain. I couldnt send em last year. You know the moneys most gone, said Mrs. Sleeper.
I know its all gone, Delia. What youve been drawing the last year is from my own pocket. But no matter for that. Drinkwater opens the school Monday. Ill send the children there, and pay the bills. Its time something was done for their education; and Ill be a father to them, as theyre not likely to have another very soon.
Dont say that, dont say that! Cyrus will come back I know he will.
If hes alive. But dont be too hopeful. Theres been a heap of mortality among the miners; and if hes alive, we should have heard from him afore this. Chances are agin him. So youd better be resigned. Yes, youd better give him up, put on mourning for a year, and then look round, for the moneys gone.
Give up my husband! cried Mrs. Sleeper, with energy. No, no. He will come back; I feel, I know he will. He would never desert me; and if he died, O, Heaven, no, no! if he died, he would find some way to send his last words to me. No, no, dont say give him up. I cannot, I cannot! and the poor woman burst into tears.
Wal, I never! cried Aunt Hulda. Look round, indeed! Why, its bigamy, rank bigamy!
Well, well, said the captain, quickly, anxious to avoid another battle, do as you please about that; but lets give the children a good bringing up. Theyve got to earn their own living, and the sooner they get a little learning the better.
The children should go to school, captain, I know, said Mrs. Sleeper; but Im afraid they will not take kindly to the change.