Charley Laurel Part 17

In the afternoon, I drove out with Mr Dear to his country house, in the neighbourhood of London. It appeared to me a perfect palace. I had never before since I could recollect been in any house larger than Mr Newton's cottage.

Mrs Dear, a very kind lady, soon made me feel perfectly at home.

"We are much interested in you, Charley," she said, "and Mr Dear will do his best to discover your relations in the West Indies. In the mean time we think you will benefit by going to school."

I was very sorry to leave Captain Renton, but said I was ready to do whatever she and Mr Dear thought best.

The next evening, when Mr Dear returned, he said that he could not ascertain from d.i.c.k Driver the name of the island from which I had been taken away. At the same time he observed: "I conclude that I shall be able to learn at the Admiralty what place it was the _Laurel_ and her consorts attacked."

I spent a couple of weeks with my new friends before they found a school to which I could be sent. Captain Renton, accompanied by d.i.c.k, came out to see me. d.i.c.k had agreed to sail again in the _Phoebe_, and promised that, on his return, he would not fail to pay me a visit. He looked very downcast.

"We have been together for the best part of ten years, Charley," he said, as he wrung my hand, "and if I did not know it was for your good, I could not bear the thoughts of parting from you; but you are in kind hands, and I know it's better for you to remain on sh.o.r.e, and I am not one to stand in your way--I love you too well for that."

The next day Mr Dear drove me down to a large school at Hammersmith. I was introduced to the master, Mr Rushton, a tall gentleman with white hair, who looked very well able to keep a number of boys in order, and Mr Dear gave him a brief account of my history.

"The lad will do very well," he said, patting me on the head. "I have boys from all parts of the world, and he will soon find himself at home among them."

As soon as Mr Dear had gone, Mr Rushton, taking me by the hand, led me into the playground, where upwards of a hundred boys were rus.h.i.+ng about, engaged in all sorts of games. He shouted "Fenwick," and a boy of my own age came up. He told the boy that he wished him to look after me, and teach me the ways of the school. Having done this, he re-entered the house.

As soon as the master was gone, I found myself surrounded by a number of boys, who, having examined me from head to foot, began asking me questions.

Though I was ignorant of all their games, and had scarcely heard of cricket and football, yet I knew a number of things which they did not.

"Who is your father?" asked one fellow.

"I don't know," I replied.

"Who is your mother?" inquired another.

I gave the same answer, whereon there was a general laugh.

"Have you many brothers and sisters?"

"I don't know," I again said.

"Where were you born?"

"That's more than I can tell you," I answered, quite quietly, and so I went on.

"I don't think you have got much out of me," I said, at last. "And now I want to know who among you can box the compa.s.s? Can any of you put a s.h.i.+p about? Can some one describe the Marquesas? or tell me where Tahiti and the Sandwich Islands are to be found?"

To none of these or similar questions did I receive any replies.

"Now I find that I have not got much out of you, either," I observed, "so we are pretty equal. Now, you might have answered my questions, though no one, as far as I know, could have answered those you put to me."

"The young fellow has got his wits about him," observed one of the big boys; and the others at once seemed inclined to treat me with far more respect than at first.

"Now," said I, gaining courage, "I have spent most of my life at sea, where we don't play the games you have on sh.o.r.e, but if any of you will teach me, I shall be very glad to learn them; and perhaps I may show you how to do a number of things you know nothing about."

From that day forward I was never bothered by having questions put to me. I soon managed to get hold of a piece of rope, which had lashed up one of the boy's boxes, and began to initiate several who wished to learn into the mysteries of knotting and splicing. Before long a carpenter came to do some work, and I got him to make me a pair of stilts. Several of the bigger boys ordered others. I would not use mine till the rest came home. Many then tried to walk about on them.

"Who are going to try their stilts?" I asked.

"We want to see you, Laurel, walk on yours," was the answer.

"No, no; you mount on yours first," I said; and most of them tried to get up, each with the help of two or three fellows who stood round to support them. I then brought out mine.

"Shall we help you?" inquired three or four of the boys, who by this time were my chief friends and supporters.

"Thank you," I said, laughing; while the others who were looking on expected to see me bungle as the rest had been doing. My friends collected round me and prepared to help me up. I did not undeceive them, but suddenly jumping on one side I sprang into my stilts.

"Who's for a race?" I cried out. "Come along; let us start fair."

We were at one end of the playground, and I began to move backwards and forwards, and in and out among the other fellows. They seemed satisfied that I was not going to do much better than they were. Several who had by this time managed to balance themselves, now formed a line.

"Away you go," cried one of the big boys, who expected to see me and the rest tumble down on our noses.

Off we started. In an instant I felt as much at home as I had been when making my escape from Motakee's village, and, as might be supposed, away I went. First one of the boys tumbled down, then another, and another, while I kept ahead, and, reaching the end of the playground, turned back again, to find all my compet.i.tors rubbing their arms and knees, only two or three having the courage to make an attempt to stand up again on their stilts.

"I don't want to laugh at you," I said, as I came back and stalked in and out among them, looking down with a complacent air from my lofty elevation. "I ought to have told you, perhaps, that I have had some experience in walking on stilts, though, as I had not used them for many months, I did not wish to boast beforehand. You will do as well as I can in time."

"I should think you must have had experience," cried out two or three of the big fellows; "and probably you can do a good many more things. We shall be on the watch not to be taken in again."

Stilt-walking soon became the rage, though I continued to be far superior to all my companions. They looked up to me in consequence with even greater respect than before, and I found my position in the school as satisfactory as I could desire. I was able, consequently, to take the part of many of the weaker or less courageous boys who were bullied by the rest. Among others, there was a delicate boy called Henri de Villereine, and who, because he spoke with a foreign accent, was nicknamed Frenchy. Though a year or two my senior, he was not nearly so strong, and was ill able to defend himself against much smaller boys.

He seemed a gentle, well-disposed boy, and when others, on my first going to school, had attacked me, he had always stood aloof. Though I had not had much conversation with him, I could not bear to see him bullied.

One day, when two or three fellows had set upon him, I rushed up to his a.s.sistance, and, without saying a word, knocked over his a.s.sailants one after the other. He gratefully thanked me, and said he was afraid that, as soon as my back was turned, the fellows would set on him again.

After this no one ventured to attack Henri de Villereine, and I was the means of rendering his life at school far pleasanter, poor fellow! than it had been before. He showed his grat.i.tude by every means in his power, and as I liked him for his many amiable qualities, we became fast friends.

However, I have not s.p.a.ce to give an account of my schoolboy days. I applied myself diligently to my studies, and while I believe that I was liked by the boys, I gained credit with the masters, and rose rapidly towards the head of the school.

CHAPTER NINETEEN.

d.i.c.k'S LESSON NOT LOST.

I had been three years at school, and was now almost a man in appearance. Henri had gone to the island of Saint Lucia in the West Indies, where his family resided. I was sorry to lose him, as there was no boy in the school I liked so much. He had made me promise to come and see him should I ever be able to do so. This seemed not impossible, as I had not lost my affection for the sea, and Mr Dear had promised to send me in one of his s.h.i.+ps, should I wish to follow it as a profession.

I had, indeed, thought of no other.

He had made all the inquiries he could to discover my friends, but hitherto unsuccessfully.

I had spent my holidays at his house, when he and his wife treated me as kindly as if I had been their son.

The midsummer holidays were approaching. We had a large cricket-field just opposite the house, where one evening we were playing. I had become as good a cricketer as any of the big boys, though I never cared very much for that or any other game which seemed to lead to no result.

I liked it, as it gave exercise to the body, just as I like chess because it requires mental exertion. My side was in, and I had just given up my bat, having been caught out, when, as I was going to throw myself down on the gra.s.s, I saw a sailor-like looking man enter the field. He looked about for some time. I went towards him and inquired what he wanted.

"Can you tell me, sir, if young Charley Laurel is at this school, and whereabouts I can find him?" he said, addressing me as a stranger.