CHAPTER SEVEN.
THE CAPTAIN WILL "WHERRIT."
Captain Lawrence spent the day at the Point, thoroughly enjoying a longgossip, and, after an early dinner, proposed a walk around the groundsand a look at the river and the pool.
"What a lovely spot it is!" he said, as he wandered about the side ofthe combe. "I must have such a place as this when I give up the sea."
"There isn't such a place, Jack," said Captain Revel proudly. "But Iwant you to look round the pool.--I don't think I'll climb down, Nic.It's rather hot; and I'll sit down on the stone for a few minutes whileyou two plan where you could ambush the men."
"Right," said Captain Lawrence; and he actively followed Nic, pausinghere and there, till they had descended to where the fall just splashedgently down into the clear pool, whose bigger stones about the bottomwere now half-bare.
"Lovely place this, Nic, my boy. I could sit down here and doze awaythe rest of my days. But what a pity it is that your father worrieshimself so about these poaching scoundrels! Can't you wean him from it?Tell him, or I will, that it isn't worth the trouble. Plenty more fishwill come, and there must be a little grit in every one's wheel."
"Oh, I've tried everything, sir," replied Nic. "The fact is that he isnot so well as I should like to see him; and when he has an irritablefit, the idea of any one trespassing and taking the fish half-maddenshim."
"Well, we must see what we can do, my boy. It ought to be stopped. Aset of idlers like this requires a severe lesson. A good dose ofcapstan bar and some broken heads will sicken them, and then perhapsthey will let you alone."
"I hope so, sir."
"I think I can contrive that it shall," said the visitor dryly. "Ishall bring or send some trusty men. There, I have seen all I want tosee. Let's get back."
He turned to climb up the side of the gorge; and as Nic followed, theplace made him recall his encounter with Pete Burge, and how differentthe pool looked then; and, somehow, he could not help hoping that thebig, bluff fellow might not be present during the sharp encounter withCaptain Lawrence's trusty men.
"Hah! Began to think you long, Jack," said Captain Revel; and theyreturned to the house and entered, after a glance seaward, where theship lay at anchor.
Towards evening Solly was sent to hoist a signal upon the flagstaff, andsoon after a boat was seen pulling towards the shore. Then the visitortook his leave, renewing his promise to reply to a signal by sending astrong party of men.
Nic walked down to the boat with his father's friend, and answeredseveral questions about the type of men who came after the salmon.
"I see, I see," said Captain Lawrence; "but do you think they'll fightwell?"
"Oh yes; there are some daring rascals among them."
"So much the better, my dear boy. There, good-bye. Mind--two smallflags on your signal-halyards after the first heavy rain upon the moor,and you may expect us at dusk. If the rascals don't come we'll haveanother try; but you'll know whether they'll be there by the fish in thepool. They'll know too--trust 'em. Look, there's your father watchingus--" and he waved his hand. "Good-bye, Nic, my dear boy. Good-bye!"
He shook hands very warmly. Two of his men who were ashore joined handsto make what children call a "dandy-chair," the Captain placed his handsupon their shoulders, and they waded through the shallow water to theboat, pausing to give her a shove off before climbing in; and then, asthe oars made the water flash in the evening light, Nic climbed the longhill again, to stand with his father, watching the boat till she reachedthe side of the ship.
"Now then, my boy," said the old man, "we're going to give those fellowssuch a lesson as they have never had before."
He little knew how truly he was speaking.
"I hope so, father," said Nic; and he was delighted to find how pleasedthe old officer seemed.
The next morning, when Nic opened his bedroom window, the king's shipwas not in sight; and for a week Captain Revel was fidgeting andwatching the sky, for no rain came, and there was not water enough inthe river for fresh salmon to come as far as the pool.
"Did you ever see anything like it, Nic, my boy?" the Captain said againand again; "that's always the way: if I didn't want it to rain, there'dbe a big storm up in the hills, and the fall would be roaring like asou'-wester off the Land's End; but now I want just enough water to fillthe river, not a drop will come. How long did Jack Lawrence say that hewas going to stop about Plymouth?"
"He didn't say, father, that I remember," replied Nic. "Then he'll soonbe off; and just in the miserable, cantankerous way in which thingshappen, the very day he sets sail there'll be a storm on Dartmoor, andthe next morning the pool will be full of salmon, and those scoundrelswill come to set me at defiance, and clear off every fish."
"I say, father," said Nic merrily, "isn't that making troubles, andfancying storms before they come?"
"What, sir? How dare you speak to me like that?" cried theCaptain.--"And you, Solly, you mutinous scoundrel, how dare you laugh?"he roared, turning to his body-servant, who happened to be in the hail.
"Beg your honour's pardon; I didn't laugh."
"You did laugh, sir," roared the Captain--"that is, I saw you look atMaster Nic here and smile. It's outrageous. Every one is turningagainst me, and I'm beginning to think it's time I was out of thismiserable world."
He snatched up his stick from the stand, banged on the old straw hat hewore, and stamped out of the porch to turn away to the left, leaving Nichesitating as to what he should do, deeply grieved as he was at hisfather's annoyance and display of temper. One moment he was forfollowing and trying to say something which would tend to calm theirritation. The next he was thinking it would be best to leave the oldman to himself, trusting to the walk in the pleasant grounds having thedesired result.
But this idea was knocked over directly by Solly, who had followed hismaster to the porch, and stood watching him for a few moments.
"Oh dear, dear! Master Nic," he cried, turning back, "he's gone downthe combe path to see whether there's any more water running down; andthere aren't, and he'll be a-wherriting his werry inside out, and thatwherrits mine too. For I can't abear to see the poor old skipper likethis here."
"No, Solly, neither can I," said Nic gloomily.
"It's his old hurts does it, sir. It aren't nat'ral. Here he is laidup, as you may say, in clover, in as nice a place as an old sailor couldend his days in."
"Yes, Solly," said Nic sadly; "it is a beautiful old place."
"Ay, it is, sir; and when I cons it over I feel it. Why, Master Nic,when I think of all the real trouble as there is in life, and what somefolks has to go through, I asks myself what I've ever done to have suchgood luck as to be safely moored here in such a harbour. It's a lovelyhome, and the troubles is nothing--on'y a bit of a gale blowed by theskipper now and then along of the wrong boots as hurts his corns, or himbeing a-carrying on too much sail, and bustin' off a button in a hurry.And who minds that?"
"Ah! who minds a trifle like that, Solly?" sighed Nic. "Well, sir, yousee he does. Wind gets up directly, and he talks to me as if I'dmutinied. But I don't mind. I know all the time that he's the best andbravest skipper as ever lived, and I'd do anything for him to save himfrom trouble."
"I know you would, Solly," said Nic, laying a hand upon the rugged oldsailor's shoulder.
"Thank ye, Master Nic; that does a man good. But look here, sir; Ican't help saying it. The fact is, after his rough, stormy life,everything here's made too easy for the skipper. He's a bit worried byhis old wounds, and that's all; and consekens is 'cause he aren't got noreal troubles he wherrits himself and makes quakers."
"Makes quakers?" said Nic wonderingly.
"Sham troubles, Master Nic--wooden guns, as we call quakers out at seaor in a fort. Strikes me, sir, as a real, downright, good, gen-u-winetrouble, such as losing all his money, would be the making of theCaptain; and after that he'd be ready to laugh at losing a few salmon ashe don't want. I say, Master Nic, y
ou aren't offended at me for makingso bold?"
"No, Solly, no," said the young man sadly. "You mean well, I know.There, say no more about it. I hope all this will settle itself, as somany troubles do."
Nic strolled out into the grounds and unconsciously followed his father,who had gone to the edge of the combe; but he had not walked far beforea cheery hail saluted his ears, and, to his great delight, he found theCaptain looking radiant.
"Nic, my boy, it's all right," he cried; "my left arm aches terribly andmy corns are shooting like mad. Well, what are you staring at? Don'tyou see it means rain? Look yonder, too. Bah! It's of no use to tellyou, boy. You've never been to sea. You've never had to keep yourweather-eye open. See that bit of silvery cloud yonder over Rigdon Tor?And do you notice what a peculiar gleam there is in the air, and howthe flies bite?"
"Yes--yes, I see all that, father."
"Well, it's rain coming, my boy. There's going to be a thunderstorm upin the hills before many hours are past. I'm not a clever man, but Ican tell what the weather's going to be as well as most folk."
"I'm glad of it, father, if it will please you."
"Please me, boy? I shall be delighted. To-morrow morning the salmonwill be running up the river again, and we may hoist the signal forhelp. I say, you don't think Jack Lawrence has gone yet?"
"No, father," said Nic; "I do not."
"Why, Nic?--why?" cried the old sailor.
"Because he said to me he should certainly come up and see us againbefore he went."
"To be sure; so he did to me, Nic. I say, my boy, I--that is--er--wasn't I a little bit crusty this morning to you and poor old WilliamSolly?"
"Well, yes; just a little, father," said Nic, taking his arm.
"Sorry for it. Change of the weather, Nic, affects me. It was comingon. I must apologise to Solly. Grand old fellow, William Solly. Savedmy life over and over again. Man who would die for his master, Nic; anda man who would do that is more than a servant, Nic--he is a friend."