CHAPTER IX
In a Strange Place
Rumple opened his eyes and stared about him in amazement. He was lyingin a room which had big pink vases on the mantelpiece, a bluefirescreen, and a green paper on the walls. There was a centre table,too, which was piled with books and strewn with photographs. There wasone--the portrait of a man--which had a silver-gilt frame, and stood inthe place of honour, and Rumple gazed at it in amazement, wonderingwhere he had seen it before.
"Why, I do believe it is Mr. Melrose!" he cried in a shrill voice.
"Better, are you, dear?" asked a voice at his side, and he twisted hishead, to see a woman, not yet middle-aged, with a kindly face whichmatched her voice.
"Have I been bad?" he asked in a wondering tone, and then, suddenlyremembering, he called out anxiously: "Why, where are the others?"
"Who are the others, dear? You were lying alone on the road when wefound you; and when we first picked you up we thought that you weredead," said the woman.
"Just my luck!" cried Rumple, with a groan. "I sat at the back of thewagon--on the rack behind, you know--so that I might have some quiet,because I was turning out a little poem. Then I remember that I gotsleepy, and I suppose that I fell off; only I wonder that it did notwake me up."
"We think that you must have stunned yourself with the fall, and weshould have sent for a doctor, only he lives fifteen miles away, and wehad no horse that could do the journey just then, and we had to wait fora few hours to see if you would be better," said the woman; and then sheasked again: "But who were you with, dear, and how was it they went onand left you lying all alone in the road, you poor child?"
"Why, that was because they did not know that I had fallen off, ofcourse," said Rumple hastily, for there was so much reproach for therest of the family in her tone that he was instantly on the defensive ontheir behalf.
"Then I expect that your mother will be in a fine state of mind aboutyou," said his hostess, who was fussing round him much after the fashionin which a motherly hen would fuss round a brood of chickens.
Rumple hastily explained then that he had no mother, and detailed thejourneyings of his family, while the good woman stood with her handsuplifted in horrified amazement to think that a lot of irresponsiblechildren should be left to wander about the world in such an unprotectedfashion.
"We are used to looking after ourselves, and Nealie is nearly grown up.She does not have her hair hanging down her back now, because it makesher look so much more responsible, now that she wears it in a bunch onthe top of her head," explained Rumple.
"And you say that you have one of Peek & Wallis's wagons? Why, they aremost dreadful particular sort of people, and they always want money downand no end of security besides; no blame to them either, seeing how badsome people are about paying their just debts," said the woman, with somuch surprise in her tone that Rumple felt it necessary to explain alittle further.
"Oh, Mr. Melrose cabled from Cape Town to Mr. Wallis, saying that hewould be security for the paying of the wagon hire. Mr. Melrose is agentleman whom we met on board ship, a very nice person indeed; but itseemed so funny to see his photograph here," and Rumple waved a languidhand towards the portrait in the silver frame. His head was achingfuriously, and he felt very weak and shaken from the fall; but he hadto make some sort of explanation about himself, and it seemed almostlike a certificate of respectability to be able to claim acquaintancewith a person whose portrait had the place of honour in the house.
"So you know Cousin Tom, do you? I know he has been to Europe lately,although we have not heard from him since he got back. But now that Iknow where you have come from I must send off to the road and have anotice stuck up, so that your sister may know where to find you;" andthe good woman was bustling out of the room, when Rumple stretched outan imploring hand to stop her.
"If you please, can't I go with the somebody, and then Nealie will nothave to worry about me, and it will save such a lot of bother?" he said,with so much entreaty that the woman hesitated; but seeing how pale andshaken he looked she decided that his family would have to take a littletrouble on his behalf, and said so.
"You will have to lie still for a few hours, for you are more shakenthan you realize; but we will stick a notice up on the side of the road,to let your people know where to find you, and then they can camp herefor the night, so as to be ready to start on again first thing to-morrowmorning," she said, and then hurried away to post a messenger off to themain road, which was two or three miles away, while Rumple lay staringabout at his new surroundings, The ceiling and walls of the room were ofcanvas, and the furniture was good of its kind, but dreadfully crowded.There was a piano, too, but the dust lay so thickly on it that hedecided that the family were not very musical, or else that they weretoo busy with other things to have much time for relaxation. There was adeep veranda in front of the window and a lot of flowers planted in potsand tins. Beyond the veranda he had glimpses of a gorgeous garden, withsweetpeas, marguerites, queer-looking cactus plants, blazing-redgeraniums, and a coral tree in full bloom.
"I wonder if Father will have a garden like this at Hammerville?" hemuttered to himself, with a keen pleasure in all the riot of blossomthat was to be seen from his sofa, and then he lay quite still trying tomake some verses about the garden, and at the same time wondering lazilywhat the others were doing, until he fell asleep and did not wake untilmilking time. He felt so much better then, and he was so furiouslyhungry, that he decided to go on a voyage of discovery to see forhimself what the outside of his haven of refuge was like.
The yard outside was a scene of pretty lively activity. The cows werejust being fastened for milking, that is to say they were tied by thehead, each one to her stall, and then the hind leg was strapped so thatthere could be no danger of the animal kicking the pail over.
There were several people moving about, and just at first Rumple did notsee his hostess; but presently he heard a shrill voice cry out: "Mother,there is the little boy out and running about!"
Rumple felt considerably ruffled by this remark, which was not strictlytrue, for he was not really a little boy now, at least not compared withDon and Billykins, and he certainly could not be accused of runningabout when he was merely leaning against the garden fence and lookinginto the cowyard.
Then the elderly woman detached herself from a group of cows and camebustling up to the fence, exclaiming at sight of him: "Well, well, youlook a sight better than before you went to sleep. How are you feelingnow, dear?"
"I am dreadfully hungry," admitted Rumple, looking up into her kindlyface with a smile, and thinking how much better she would look if shedid her hair like Nealie, instead of dragging it into a knot at the backof her head; but really her face was so kind that her hair did notmatter very much either way.
"Hungry are you? That is right. Here, come into the kitchen with me andhave something to eat straight away, for we shan't have supper until themilking is done and the creatures seen to for the night. It will takeanother hour or more, and you have had no dinner."
Rumple followed his hostess into the kitchen, which was canvas-walledlike the best parlour, but many sizes larger and so much morecomfortable that Rumple decided it looked really beautiful, while thesmell of new-baked bread and cakes made a fragrance very delightful to ahungry boy.
There was a wood fire smouldering on a great open fireplace, and rakingthe embers open the good woman put a toasting fork into Rumple's handsand bade him toast scones for himself. He was invited to put the butteron for himself also, and there was milk to drink in a big mug closebeside him. So the next half-hour passed pleasantly enough.
But when his hunger was satisfied Rumple began to worry about the othersand started for the cowyard once more in order to see if any news of thewagon had arrived. Truth to tell, he was feeling very guilty because ofall the trouble he was giving, for he knew that Rupert and Nealie wouldbe very worried and anxious concerning him, and the journey would bedelayed also.
He had discovered that the
woman who had found him lying in the road andhad brought him home was a Mrs. Warner, that her husband was away fromhome that day on business, and that all the people moving about thecowyard were the sons and daughters of the house, with the exception ofan old black fellow who had only one eye.
The milking was over and the cows had all been turned into the homepaddock for the night, but now a strange humming noise made itself heardon the quiet air.
"Why, what is that?" asked Rumple as one of the young Warners passedhim, bowed under the weight of two heavy pails of sour milk for thepoultry.
"That is the separator. Do you want to see it at work?" asked the boy,with a friendly grin. He was a few years older than Rumple and scorchedto a berry-brown by the sun.
"What is a separator?" demanded Rumple, whose knowledge of farming wasof a rather antiquated description, Beechleigh being about twenty yearsbehind the times.
"It is the thing that parts the cream from the milk. Go into the dairyand have a look at it," said the youth, nodding his head in thedirection of a long, low shed that had been built into the side of thehill, and which was so covered with creepers that it looked almost likea part of the bank.
Away went Rumple, nothing loath. Something fresh always appealed to him,and in this new land fresh things were meeting him at every turn.
Fascinated, he stood watching the machine, the cream pouring from onespout and the milk from the other, while a rosy-faced Miss Warner turnedthe handle, and another Miss Warner, with pale cheeks and quite astylish air, bustled about the dairy putting things straight for thenight.
"If you please, have you seen or heard anything of our wagon?" askedRumple, when at length the separating was done for the night and bothgirls were busy clearing up.
"No, we haven't; but Bella and a friend are going to walk out to theroad after work to see if they can find out anything for you," said thestylish sister, and Bella, the red-cheeked one, gurgled and choked withamazing enjoyment, and said:
"My friend indeed! La, Amy, how neatly you always put things!"
They all went in to supper after that, but Rumple, who had eaten so manyscones and so much butter that he would not be hungry for a long time tocome, sat on the step of the veranda and stared out at the darkeningnight, feeling a little homesick for the others.
Then away in the distance he heard the slow rumble of wagon wheels, anda moment later a clear voice rang out on the still air:
"Steady, Rocky, steady, old fellow, or you will upset the whole showinto the ditch!"
"It is Nealie!" yelled Rumple in an ecstasy of joy. "Mrs. Warner, ourwagon is coming, for I can hear my sister Nealie calling to the horse."
"Now that is downright good news. Come, bustle about, girls, and getsome more supper ready, for the poor things will be nearly starved bythis time, I should think!" cried the hospitable mistress of the farm.