CHAPTER X
HIS PASTORS AND MASTERS
I
For many months after that long afternoon in the library, Challis wasaffected with a fever of restlessness, and his work on the book stoodstill. He was in Rome during May, and in June he was seized by a suddenwhim and went to China by the Trans-Siberian railway. Lewes did notaccompany him. Challis preferred, one imagines, to have no intercoursewith Lewes while the memory of certain pronouncements was still fresh.He might have been tempted to discuss that interview, and if, as waspractically certain, Lewes attempted to pour contempt on the wholeaffair, Challis might have been drawn into a defence which would haverevived many memories he wished to obliterate.
He came back to London in September--he made the return journey bysteamer--and found his secretary still working at the monograph on theprimitive peoples of Melanesia.
Lewes had spent the whole summer in Challis's town house in EatonSquare, whither all the material had been removed two days after thatmomentous afternoon in the library of Challis Court.
"I have been wanting your help badly for some time, sir," Lewes said onthe evening of Challis's return. "Are you proposing to take up the workagain? If not ..." Gregory Lewes thought he was wasting valuable time.
"Yes, yes, of course; I am ready to begin again now, if you care to goon with me," said Challis. He talked for a few minutes of the bookwithout any great show of interest. Presently they came to a pause, andLewes suggested that he should give some account of how his time hadbeen spent.
"To-morrow," replied Challis, "to-morrow will be time enough. I shallsettle down again in a few days." He hesitated a moment, and then said:"Any news from Chilborough?"
"N-no, I don't think so," returned Lewes. He was occupied with his owninterests; he doubted Challis's intention to continue his work on thebook--the announcement had been so half-hearted.
"What about that child?" asked Challis.
"That child?" Lewes appeared to have forgotten the existence of VictorStott.
"That abnormal child of Stott's?" prompted Challis.
"Oh! Of course, yes. I believe he still goes nearly every day to thelibrary. I have been down there two or three times, and found himreading. He has learned the use of the index-catalogue. He can get anybook he wants. He uses the steps."
"Do you know what he reads?"
"No; I can't say I do."
"What do you think will become of him?"
"Oh! these infant prodigies, you know," said Lewes with a large air ofauthority, "they all go the same way. Most of them die young, of course,the others develop into ordinary commonplace men rather under than overthe normal ability. After all, it is what one would expect. Naturealways maintains her average by some means or another. If a child likethis with his abnormal memory were to go on developing, there would beno place for him in the world's economy. The idea is inconceivable."
"Quite, quite," murmured Challis, and after a short silence he added:"You think he will deteriorate, that his faculties will decayprematurely?"
"I should say there could be no doubt of it," replied Lewes.
"Ah! well. I'll go down and have a look at him, one day next week," saidChallis; but he did not go till the middle of October.
The immediate cause of his going was a letter from Crashaw, who offeredto come up to town, as the matter was one of "really peculiar urgency."
"I wonder if young Stott has been blaspheming again," Challis remarkedto Lewes. "Wire the man that I'll go down and see him this afternoon. Ishall motor. Say I'll be at Stoke about half-past three."
II
Challis was ushered into Crashaw's study on his arrival, and found therector in company with another man--introduced as Mr. Forman--ajolly-looking, high-complexioned man of sixty or so, with a greatquantity of white hair on his head and face; he was wearing anold-fashioned morning-coat and grey trousers that were noticeably tooshort for him.
Crashaw lost no time in introducing the subject of "really peculiarurgency," but he rambled in his introduction.
"You have probably forgotten," he said, "that last spring I had to bringa most horrible charge against a child called Victor Stott, who hassince been living, practically, as I may say, under your aegis, that is,he has, at least, spent a greater part of his day, er--playing in yourlibrary at Challis Court."
"Quite, quite; I remember perfectly," said Challis. "I made myselfresponsible for him up to a certain point. I gave him an occupation. Itwas intended, was it not, to divert his mind from speaking againstreligion to the yokels?"
"Quite a character, if I may say so," put in Mr. Forman cheerfully.
Crashaw was seated at his study table; the affair had something theeffect of an examining magistrate taking the evidence of witnesses.
"Yes, yes," he said testily; "I did ask your help, Mr. Challis, and Idid, in a way, receive some assistance from you. That is, the child hasto some extent been isolated by spending so much of his time at yourhouse."
"Has he broken out again?" asked Challis.
"If I understand you to mean has the child been speaking openly on anysubject connected with religion, I must say 'No,'" said Crashaw. "But henever attends any Sunday school, or place of worship; he has received noinstruction in--er--any sacred subject, though I understand he is ableto read; and his time is spent among books which, pardon me, would not,I suppose, be likely to give a serious turn to his thoughts."
"Serious?" questioned Challis.
"Perhaps I should say 'religious,'" replied Crashaw. "To me the twowords are synonymous."
Mr. Forman bowed his head slightly with an air of reverence, and noddedtwo or three times to express his perfect approval of the rector'ssentiments.
"You think the child's mind is being perverted by his intercourse withthe books in the library where he--he--'plays' was your word, Ibelieve?"
"No, not altogether," replied Crashaw, drawing his eyebrows together."We can hardly suppose that he is able at so tender an age to read, muchless to understand, those works of philosophy and science which wouldproduce an evil effect on his mind. I am willing to admit, since I, too,have had some training in scientific reading, that writers on thosesubjects are not easily understood even by the mature intelligence."
"Then why, exactly, do you wish me to prohibit the child from coming toChallis Court?"
"Possibly you have not realised that the child is now five years old?"said Crashaw with an air of conferring illumination.
"Indeed! Yes. An age of some discretion, no doubt," returned Challis.
"An age at which the State requires that he should receive the elementsof education," continued Crashaw.
"Eh?" said Challis.
"Time he went to school," explained Mr. Forman. "I've been after him,you know. I'm the attendance officer for this district."
Challis for once committed a breach of good manners. The import of thething suddenly appealed to his sense of humour: he began to chuckle andthen he laughed out a great, hearty laugh, such as had not been stirredin him for twenty years.
"Oh! forgive me, forgive me," he said, when he had recovered hisself-control. "But you don't know; you can't conceive the utter,childish absurdity of setting that child to recite the multiplicationtable with village infants of his own age. Oh! believe me, if you couldonly guess, you would laugh with me. It's so funny, so inimitablyfunny."
"I fail to see, Mr. Challis," said Crashaw, "that there is anything inany way absurd or--or unusual in the proposition."
"Five is the age fixed by the State," said Mr. Forman. He had relaxedinto a broad smile in sympathy with Challis's laugh, but he had nowrelapsed into a fair imitation of Crashaw's intense seriousness.
"Oh! How can I explain?" said Challis. "Let me take an instance. Youpropose to teach him, among other things, the elements of arithmetic?"
"It is a part of the curriculum," replied Mr. Forman.
"I have only had one conversation with this child," went on Challis--andat the mention of that conversation his brows drew to
gether and hebecame very grave again; "but in the course of that conversation thischild had occasion to refer, by way of illustration, to some abstrusetheorem of the differential calculus. He did it, you will understand, byway of making his meaning clear--though the illustration was utterlybeyond me: that reference represented an act of intellectualcondescension."
"God bless me, you don't say so?" said Mr. Forman.
"I cannot see," said Crashaw, "that this instance of yours, Mr. Challis,has any real bearing on the situation. If the child is a mathematicalgenius--there have been instances in history, such as Blaise Pascal--hewould not, of course, receive elementary instruction in a subject withwhich he was already acquainted."
"You could not find any subject, believe me, Crashaw, in which he couldbe instructed by any teacher in a Council school."
"Forgive me, I don't agree with you," returned Crashaw. "He is sadly inneed of some religious training."
"He would not get that at a Council school," said Challis, and Mr.Forman shook his head sadly, as though he greatly deprecated the fact.
"He must learn to recognise authority," said Crashaw. "When he has beentaught the necessity of submitting himself to all his governors,teachers, spiritual pastors, and masters: ordering himself lowly andreverently to all his betters; when, I say, he has learnt that lesson,he may be in a fit and proper condition to receive the teachings of theHoly Church."
Mr. Forman appeared to think he was attending divine service. If therector had said "Let us pray," there can be no doubt that he wouldimmediately have fallen on his knees.
Challis shook his head. "You can't understand, Crashaw," he said.
"I _do_ understand," said Crashaw, rising to his feet, "and I intend tosee that the statute is not disobeyed in the case of this child, VictorStott."
Challis shrugged his shoulders; Mr. Forman assumed an expression ofstern determination.
"In any case, why drag me into it?" asked Challis.
Crashaw sat down again. The flush which had warmed his sallow skinsubsided as his passion died out. He had worked himself into a conditionof righteous indignation, but the calm politeness of Challis rebukedhim. If Crashaw prided himself on his devotion to the Church, he did notwish that attitude to overshadow the pride he also took in the beliefthat he was Challis's social equal. Crashaw's father had been a lawyer,with a fair practice in Derby, but he had worked his way up to apartnership from the position of office-boy, and Percy Crashaw seldomforgot to be conscious that he was a gentleman by education andprofession.
"I did not wish to _drag_ you into this business," he said quietly,putting his elbows on the writing-table in front of him, and reassumingthe judicial attitude he had adopted earlier; "but I regard this childas, in some sense, your protege." Crashaw put the tips of his fingerstogether, and Mr. Forman watched him warily, waiting for his cue. Ifthis was to be a case for prayer, Mr. Forman was ready, with a cleanwhite handkerchief to kneel upon.
"In some sense, perhaps," returned Challis. "I haven't seen him for somemonths."
"Cannot you see the necessity of his attending school?" asked Crashaw,this time with an insinuating suavity; he believed that Challis wascoming round.
"Oh!" Challis sighed with a note of expostulation. "Oh! the thing'sgrotesque, ridiculous."
"If that's so," put in Mr. Forman, who had been struck by a brilliantidea, "why not bring the child here, and let the Reverend Mr. Crashaw,or myself, put a few general questions to 'im?"
"Ye-es," hesitated Crashaw, "that might be done; but, of course, thedecision does not rest with us."
"It rests with the Local Authority," mused Challis. He was running overthree or four names of members of that body who were known to him.
"Certainly," said Crashaw, "the Local Education Authority alone has theright to prosecute, but----" He did not state his antithesis. They hadcome to the crux which Crashaw had wished to avoid. He had no influencewith the committee of the L.E.A., and Challis's recommendation wouldhave much weight. Crashaw intended that Victor Stott should attendschool, but he had bungled his preliminaries; he had rested on his ownauthority, and forgotten that Challis had little respect for thatinfluence. Conciliation was the only card to play now.
"If I brought him, he wouldn't answer your questions," sighed Challis."He's very difficult to deal with."
"Is he, indeed?" sympathised Mr. Forman. "I've 'ardly seen 'im myself;not to speak to, that is."
"He might come with his mother," suggested Crashaw.
Challis shook his head. "By the way, it is the mother whom you wouldproceed against?" he asked.
"The parent is responsible," said Mr. Forman. "She will be broughtbefore a magistrate and fined for the first offence."
"I shan't fine her if she comes before me," replied Challis.
Crashaw smiled. He meant to avoid that eventuality.
The little meeting lapsed into a brief silence. There seemed to benothing more to say.
"Well," said Crashaw, at last, with a rising inflexion that had aconciliatory, encouraging, now-my-little-man kind of air, "We-ll, ofcourse, no one wishes to proceed to extremes. I think, Mr. Challis, Ithink I may say that you are the person who has most influence in thismatter, and I cannot believe that you will go against the establishedauthority both of the Church and the State. If it were only for the sakeof example."
Challis rose deliberately. He shook his head, and unconsciously hishands went behind his back. There was hardly room for him to pace up anddown, but he took two steps towards Mr. Forman, who immediately rose tohis feet; and then turned and went over to the window. It was from therethat he pronounced his ultimatum.
"Regulations, laws, religious and lay authorities," he said, "come intoexistence in order to deal with the rule, the average. That must be so.But if we are a reasoning, intellectual people we must have some meansof dealing with the exception. That means rests with a consensus ofintelligent opinion strong enough to set the rule upon one side. In anoverwhelming majority of cases there _is_ no such consensus of opinion,and the exceptional individual suffers by coming within the rule of alaw which should not apply to him. Now, I put it to you, as reasoning,intelligent men" ('ear, 'ear, murmured Mr. Forman automatically), "arewe, now that we have the power to perform a common act of justice, toexempt an unfortunate individual exception who has come within the ruleof a law that holds no application for him, or are we to exhibit a crassstupidity by enforcing that law? Is it not better to take the case intoour own hands, and act according to the dictates of common sense?"
"Very forcibly put," murmured Mr. Forman.
"I'm not finding any fault with the law or the principle of the law,"continued Challis; "but it is, it must be, framed for the average. Wemust use our discretion in dealing with the exception--and this is anexception such as has never occurred since we have had an EducationAct."
"I don't agree with you," said Crashaw, stubbornly. "I do not considerthis an exception."
"But you _must_ agree with me, Crashaw. I have a certain amount ofinfluence and I shall use it."
"In that case," replied Crashaw, rising to his feet, "I shall fight youto the bitter end. I am _determined_"--he raised his voice and struckthe writing-table with his fist--"I am _determined_ that this infidelchild shall go to school. I am prepared, if necessary, to spend all myleisure in seeing that the law is carried out."
Mr. Forman had also risen. "Very right, very right, indeed," he said,and he knitted his mild brows and stroked his patriarchal white beardwith an appearance of stern determination.
"I think you would be better advised to let the matter rest," saidChallis.
Mr. Forman looked inquiringly at the representative of the Church.
"I shall fight," replied Crashaw, stubbornly, fiercely.
"Ha!" said Mr. Forman.
"Very well, as you think best," was Challis's last word.
As Challis walked down to the gate, where his motor was waiting for him,Mr. Forman trotted up from behind and ranged himself alongside.
"More rain wanted yet for the roots, sir," he said. "September was agrand month for 'arvest, but we want rain badly now."
"Quite, quite," murmured Challis, politely. He shook hands with Mr.Forman before he got into the car.
Mr. Forman, standing politely bareheaded, saw that Mr. Challis's carwent in the direction of Ailesworth.