On the Friday evening Catman walked out with us. His studious habits endeared him to us immensely, owing to his having his head in his book on all occasions, and a walk under his superintendence was first cousin to liberty. Some boys roamed ahead, some lagged behind, while Catman turned over his pages, sounding the return only when it grew dark. The rumour of the champagne had already intoxicated the boys. There was a companion and most auspicious rumour that Boddy was going to be absent on Saturday. If so, we said, we may drink our champagne under Catmans nose and he be none the wiser. Saddlebank undertook to manage our feast for us. Coming home over the downs, just upon twilight, Temple and I saw Saddlebank carrying a long withy upright. We asked him what it was for. He shouted back: Its for fortune. You keep the rear guard. Then we saw him following a man and a flock of geese, and imitating the action of the man with his green wand. As we were ready to laugh at anything Saddlebank did, we laughed at this. The man walked like one half asleep, and appeared to wake up now and then to find that he was right in the middle of his geese, and then he waited, and Saddlebank waited behind him. Presently the geese passed a lane leading off the downs. We saw Saddlebank duck his wand in a coaxing way, like an angler dropping his fly for fish; he made all sorts of curious easy flourishes against the sky and branched up the lane. We struck after him, little suspecting that he had a goose in front, but he had; he had cut one of the loiterers off from the flock; and to see him handle his wand on either side his goose, encouraging it to go forward, and remonstrating, and addressing it in bits of Latin, and the creature pattering stiff and astonished, sent us in a dance of laughter.
What have you done, old Saddle? said Temple, though it was perfectly clear what Saddlebank had done.
Ive carved off a slice of Michaelmas, said Saddlebank, and he hewed the air to flick delicately at his gooses head.
What do you meana slice? said we.
We wanted to be certain the goose was captured booty. Saddlebank would talk nothing but his fun. Temple fetched a roaring sigh:
Oh! how good this goose d be with our champagne.
The idea seized and enraptured me. Saddlebank, I ll buy him off you, I said.
Chink wont flavour him, said Saddlebank, still at his business: here, you two, cut back by the down and try all your might to get a dozen apples before Catman counts heads at the door, and you hold your tongues.
We shot past the man with the geeseI pitied himclipped a corner of the down, and by dint of hard running reached the main street, mad for apples, before Catman appeared there. Apples, champagne, and cakes were now provided; all that was left to think of was the goose. We glorified Saddlebanks cleverness to the boys.
By jingo! what a treat youll have, Temple said among them, bursting with our secret.
Saddlebank pleaded that he had missed his way on presenting himself ten minutes after time. To me and Temple he breathed of goose, but he shunned us; he had no fun in him till Saturday afternoon, when Catman called out to hear if we were for cricket or a walk.
A walk on the downs, said Saddlebank.
Temple and I echoed him, and Saddlebank motioned his hand as though he were wheedling his goose along. Saddlebank spoke a word to my commissioners. I was to leave the arrangements for the feast to him, he said. John Salter was at home unwell, so Saddlebank was chief. No sooner did we stand on the downs than he gathered us all in a circle, and taking off his cap threw in it some slips of paper. We had to draw lots who should keep by Catman out of twenty-seven; fifteen blanks were marked. Temple dashed his hand into the cap first Like my luck, he remarked, and pocketed both fists as he began strutting away to hide his desperation at drawing a blank. I bought a substitute for him at the price of half-a-crown,Drew, a fellow we were glad to get rid of; he wanted five shillings. The feast was worth fifty, but to haggle about prices showed the sneak. He begged us to put by a taste for him; he was groaned out of hearing. The fifteen looked so wretched when they saw themselves divided from us that I gave them a shilling a-piece to console them. They took their instructions from Saddlebank as to how they were to surround Catman, and make him fancy us to be all in his neighbourhood; and then we shook hands, they requesting us feebly to drink their healths, and we saying, ay, that we would.
Temple was in distress of spirits because of his having been ignominiously bought off. Saddlebank, however, put on such a pace that no one had leisure for melancholy. Ill get you fellows up to boiling point, said he. There was a tremendously hot sun overhead. On a sudden he halted, exclaiming: Cooks and gridirons! what about sage and onions? Only Temple and I jumped at the meaning of this. We drew lots for a messenger, and it was miserable to behold an unfortunate fellow touch Saddlebanks hand containing the notched bit of stick, and find himself condemned to go and buy sage and onions somewhere, without knowing what it was for how could he guess we were going to cook a raw goose! The lot fell to a boy named Barnshed, a big slow boy, half way up every class he was in, but utterly stupid out of school; which made Saddlebank say: Theyll take it hes the bird that wants stuffing. Barnshed was directed where to rejoin us. The others asked why he was trotted after sage and onions. Because hes an awful goose, said Saddlebank.
Temple and I thought the word was out and hurrahed, and back came Barnshed. We had a task in persuading him to resume his expedition, as well as Saddlebank to forgive us. Saddlebanks anger was excessive. We conciliated him by calling him captain, and pretending to swear an oath of allegiance. He now led us through a wood on to some fields down to a shady dell, where we were to hold the feast in privacy. He did not descend it himself. Vexatious as it was to see a tramps tent there, we nevertheless acknowledged the respectful greeting of the women and the man with a few questions about tentpegs, pots, and tin mugs. Saddlebank remained aloft, keeping a look-out for the day-school fellows, Chaunter, Davis, and Bystop, my commissioners. They did not keep us waiting long. They had driven to the spot in a cart, according to Saddlebanks directions. Our provisions were in three large hampers. We praised their forethought loudly at the sight of an extra bottle of champagne, with two bottles of ginger-wine, two of currant, two of raisin, four pint bottles of ale, six of ginger-beer, a Dutch cheese, a heap of tarts, three sally-lunns, and four shillingsworth of toffy. Temple and I joined our apples to the mass: a sight at which some of the boys exulted aloud. The tramp-women insisted on spreading things out for us: ten yards off their children squatted staring: the man smoked and chaffed us.
At last Saddlebank came running over the hill-side, making as if he meant to bowl down what looked a black body of a baby against the sky, and shouting, See, you fellows, heres a find! He ran through us, swinging his goose up to the hampers, saying that he had found the goose under a furze-bush. While the words were coming out of his mouth, he saw the tramps, and the male tramps eyes and his met.
The man had one eyebrow and his lips at one corner screwed in a queer lift: he winked slowly. Odd! aint it? he said.
Saddlebank shouldered round on us, and cried, Confound you fellows! heres a beastly place youve pitched upon. His face was the colour of scarlet in patches.
Now, I call it a beautiful place, said the man, and if you finds gooses hereabouts growing ready for the fire, all but plucking, why, its a bountiful place, I call it.
The man had one eyebrow and his lips at one corner screwed in a queer lift: he winked slowly. Odd! aint it? he said.
Saddlebank shouldered round on us, and cried, Confound you fellows! heres a beastly place youve pitched upon. His face was the colour of scarlet in patches.
Now, I call it a beautiful place, said the man, and if you finds gooses hereabouts growing ready for the fire, all but plucking, why, its a bountiful place, I call it.
The women tried to keep him silent. But for them we should have moved our encampment. Why, of course, young gentlemen, if you want to eat the goose, well pluck it for you and cook it for you, all nice, they said. How can young gentlemen do that for theirselves?
It was clear to us we must have a fire for the goose. Certain observations current among us about the necessity to remove the gooses inside, and not to lose the giblets, which even the boy who named them confessed his inability to recognize, inclined the majority to accept the womans proposal. Saddlebank said it was on our heads, then.
To revive his good humour, Temple uncorked a bottle of champagne. The tramp-woman lent us a tin mug, and round it went. One boy said, Thats a commencement; another said, Hang old Rippenger. Temple snapped his fingers, and Bystop, a farmers son, said, Well, now Ive drunk champagne; I meant to before I died! Most of the boys seemed puzzled by it. As for me, my heart sprang up in me like a colt turned out of stables to graze. I determined that the humblest of my retainers should feed from my table, and drink to my fathers and Heriots honour, and I poured out champagne for the women, who just sipped, and the man, who vowed he preferred beer. A spoonful of the mashed tarts I sent to each of the children. Only one, the eldest, a girl about a year older than me, or younger, with black eyebrows and rough black hair, refused to eat or drink.
Let her bide, young gentlemen, said a woman; shes a regular obstinate, once she sets in for it.
Ah! said the man, Ive seen pigs druv, and Ive seen iron bent double. Shes harder n both, once she takes t into her head.
By jingo, shes pig-iron! cried Temple, and sighed, Oh, dear old Heriot!
I flung myself beside him to talk of our lost friend.
A great commotion stirred the boys. They shrieked at beholding their goose vanish in a pot for stewing. They wanted roast-goose, they exclaimed, not boiled; who cared for boiled goose! But the woman asked them how it was possible to roast a goose on the top of wood-flames, where there was nothing to hang it by, and nothing would come of it except smoked bones!
The boys groaned in consternation, and Saddlebank sowed discontent by grumbling, Now you see what your jolly new acquaintances have done for you.
So we played at catch with the Dutch cheese, and afterwards bowled it for long-stopping, when, to the disgust of Saddlebank and others, down ran the black-haired girl and caught the ball clean at wicket-distance. As soon as she had done it she was ashamed, and slunk away.
The boys called out, Now, then, pig-iron!
One fellow enraged me by throwing an apple that hit her in the back. We exchanged half-a-dozen blows, whereupon he consented to apologize, and roared, Hulloa, pig-iron, sorry if I hurt you.
Temple urged me to insist on the rascals going on his knees for flinging at a girl.
Why, said Chaunter, you were the first to call her pig-iron.
Temple declared he was a blackguard if he said that. I made the girl take a piece of toffy.
Aha! Saddlebank grumbled, this comes of the precious company you would keep in spite of my caution.
The man told us to go it, for he liked to observe young gentlemen enjoying themselves. Temple tossed him a pint bottle of beer, with an injunction to him to shut his trap.
Now, you talk my mother tongue, said the man; youre what goes by the name of a learned gentleman. Thank ye, sir. Youll be a counsellor some day.
I wont get off thieves, I can tell you, said Temple. He was the son of a barrister.
Nor you wont help cook their gooses for them, may be, said the man. Well, kindness is kindness, all over the world.
The women stormed at him to command him not to anger the young gentlemen, for Saddlebank was swearing awfully in an undertone. He answered them that he was the mildest lamb afloat.
Despairing of the goose, we resolved to finish the cold repast awaiting us. The Dutch cheese had been bowled into bits. With a portion of the mashed tarts on it, and champagne, it tasted excellently; toffy to follow. Those boys who chose ginger-wine had it, and drank, despised. The ginger-beer and ale, apples and sallylunns, were reserved for supper. My mind became like a driving sky, with glimpses of my father and Heriot bursting through.
If Im not a prince, Im a nobleman, I said to Temple.
He replied, Army or Navy. I dont much care which. Were sure of a foreign war some time. Then youll see fellows rise: lieutenant, captain, colonel, Generalquick as barrels popping at a bird. I should like to be Governor of Gibraltar.
Ill come and see you, Temple, said I.
Done! old Richie, he said, grasping my hand warmly.
The truth is, Temple, I confided to him, Ive an uncle-I mean a grandfather-of enormous property; he owns half Hampshire, I believe, and hates my father like poison. I wont stand it. Youve seen my father, havent you? Gentlemen never forget their servants, Temple. Lets drink lots more champagne. I wish you and I were knights riding across that country there, as they used to, and you saying, I wonder whether your fathers at home in the castle expecting our arrival.
The Baron! said Temple. Hes like a Baron, too. His health. Your health, sir! Its just the wine to drink it in, Richie. Hes one of the men I look up to. It s odd he never comes to see you, because hes fond of you; the right sort of father! Big men cant be always looking after little boys. Not that were so young, though, now. Lots of fellows of our age have done things fellows write about. I feel Temple sat up swelling his chest to deliver an important sentiment; I feel uncommonly thirsty.
So did I. We attributed it to the air of the place, Temple going so far as to say that it came off the chalk, which somehow stuck in the throat.
Saddleback, dont look glum, said Temple. Lord, Richie, you should hear my father plead in Court with his wig on. They used to say at home I was a clever boy when I was a baby. Saddleback, youve looked glum all the afternoon.
Treat your superiors respectfully, Saddlebank retorted.
The tramp was irritating him. That tramp had never left off smoking and leaning on his arm since we first saw him. Two boys named Hackman and Montague, not bad fellows, grew desirous of a whiff from his pipe. They had it, and lay down silent, back to back. Bystop was led away in a wretched plight. Two others, Paynter and Ashworth, attacked the apples, rendered desperate by thirst. Saddlebank repelled them furiously. He harangued those who might care to listen.
You fellows, by George! you shall eat the goose, I tell you. Youve spoilt everything, and I tell you, whether you like it or not, you shall have apples with it, and sage and onions too. I dont ask for thanks. And I propose to post outposts in the wood to keep watch.
He wanted us to draw lots again. His fun had entirely departed from him; all he thought of was seeing the goose out of the pot. I had a feeling next to hatred for one who could talk of goose. Temple must have shared it.