CHAPTER THIRTY ONE.
The General pressed so hard that my mother and my uncle remained at hisplace for a couple of days longer, driving over in the General'scarriage on the third day to say good-bye to me before returning home,and, to Mercer's great delight, a packet was placed in his hand after hehad been fetched, with strict orders not to look at it till the carriagehad gone. I already had one in my pocket, and in addition a smaller onethat I was charged to deliver elsewhere.
Then the farewell was said, and, as soon as the carriage was out ofsight, I looked at Mercer, he at me, and with a unity of purpose thatwas not surprising, we rushed off to the yard and up the rough steps tothe loft, where we laid our packets down, and hesitated to cut thestrings.
Again we looked at each other, and Mercer at last said huskily,--
"Hadn't we better open 'em? I _am_ hungry, but they're rather small andsquare for cakes."
"Get out!" I said. "Cakes indeed! Here, let's see."
"Whose shall we open first?" whispered Mercer.
"Yours."
"No, yours."
"Both together then."
"Right. Draw knives--Open knives--Cut!"
The strings were divided to the moment, and then the sealing-wax whichfastened the brown paper further was broken, and two white paper packetswere revealed, also carefully sealed up. This wax was broken in turn,and with trembling hands we removed the white paper, to find withinsomething hard and square wrapped in a quantity of tissue paper.
We paused again, feeling breathless with excitement, and looked at eachother.
"Ready?" I said, and we tore off the tissue till a couple of littlemorocco cases were revealed, and again we paused before unhooking thefastenings, and opening little lids lined with white satin, while below,in crimson velvet, tightly-fitting beds, lay a couple of bright silverwatches.
Oh, the delight of that first watch! It fixed itself so in my memorythat I shall never forget it. The bright, dazzling look of the engineturning, showing different lights and seeming to be in motion as theposition of the watch is changed; the round spot in the ring where thespring was pressed for the case to fly open and show the face with itsRoman numerals; and then the ticking--that peculiar metallic sound likenothing else. Words will not describe the satisfaction we boys felt aswe stood examining our presents.
"Why, they're both exactly alike," said Mercer at last. "I say, takecare, or we shall get 'em mixed."
There was no fear of that after the first few minutes, for furtherexamination showed that they were numbered, and those numbers wereburned into our memories at once.
"Oh, I say," cried Mercer at last, "talk about watches! these aresomething like. Why, one of 'em's worth a dozen of old Eely's."
"Don't talk about it!" I said, with a shiver; and after carefullyopening mine so as to gaze at the works, Mercer of course followingsuit, the watches were carefully returned to their cases and placed inour pockets.
"What shall we do now?" asked Mercer; "go and show them to the boys?"
"No; it will only make them disappointed. Let's go down at once to BobHopley's."
"What for?"
"To take this."
Mercer looked at the smaller packet I had for a few moments.
"What is it?" he said.
"A present from my mother for Polly."
"Oh! Why, it must be a watch."
"No," I said; "I think it's a brooch or a pair of earrings."
"Oh, won't she be pleased!"
We walked down to the lodge, where Polly met us at the door, eager topoint to a tin of jam pigs which she had just drawn from the oven.
"I was wishing some of you young gentlemen would come," she said."They're red currant and raspberry. You're just in time."
Polly's ideas of our visits to the cottage were always connected withtuck, and she looked at me wonderingly when I said we had not come forthat.
"There aren't nothing more the matter, is there?" she cried, as she setdown her tin.
I set her mind at rest by taking the packet from my breast.
"Is--is that for me?" she said, with her face flushing with excitement.
"Yes; open it."
I saw her little red, rough hands tremble as she untied the string, andafter removing one or two papers, all of which she carefully smoothedout flat, she came upon a thin morocco case.
"Oh, it's earrings!" she cried; "and you two have bought 'em for me,because I--because I--because I--How do you open it? Oh my! It's alittle watch."
"Yes," I said, "a watch."
"Yours, Master Burr junior?" she cried. "Oh, it was good of you to comeand show it to me!"
"No, Polly," I cried, looking at it eagerly. "I told you. It's foryou."
"But--but--it can't be."
"Yes," I said, pointing to a little three-cornered note. "Open that andsee what it says."
Polly's trembling fingers hurriedly opened the paper, which she read,and then handed to me, Mercer looking over me as I held it out and readthese simple words:--
"For Mary Hopley, with a mother's thanks."
I saw the tears start to the girl's eyes, and there was something verycharming in her next act, which was to carefully fold the note and kissit before placing it in her bosom.
"I shan't never part with that," she said softly; and then she stoodgazing down at the watch, till a shadow darkened the door, and big BobHopley came striding in.
"Hullo, young gents!" he said; "how are you? Why Polly! What's--"
"A present, father, from Mr Burr junior's mar. Ought I to take it?"
"Yes," I cried eagerly, "of course. You don't know how happy you mademe by what you said. She is to keep it, isn't she, Bob Hopley?"
"Well," said the big fellow, holding the little watch carefully andadmiringly in his great brown hand,--"well, seeing, my lass, how it'sgive, and why it's give, and who give it, and so on, I almost think youmight."