word. A moment afterwards, however, he raised his cap as if toscratch his head and the moon glinted on his grey hair--which _I_ knewwas a wig.
The men were very upright and soldierly in their bearing, but dressed indark clothes tightly fitting.
One caught the back-board of the dog-cart, and walked some little way,helping himself along up the hill by the hold he had taken, which wasonly natural. But my heart began to jump and flicker, and my mouth grewsuddenly dry with dread. Luckily I did not lose the power of speaking,nor did I falter much.
"You're late out, my lad?"
"Y-es."
"Going far?"
"Y-es, very far. Going to see my poor aunt."
I had taken my handkerchief out, for what reason I do not know. But asudden inspiration made me raise it momentarily to my face.
The man noticed it.
"Ah! poor boy," he said; "I hope you'll find her better than youexpect."
"I hope so," I said, and in my heart of hearts I did.
"Death comes sooner or later to us all, lad," he added. "Good-night."
"Good-night, sir."
Not a word was spoken by any of us in the trap, till we were a good milepast the place. Then Adriano turned round.
"Who you think those men are?" he asked.
"I can guess."
"They belong to the preeson. I know them. Ha, ha, they not know me."
There were no further adventures that night, but just as day wasbreaking slowly in the east, we all alighted near a brook, and Adrianoput a nose-bag on the horse after letting him drink. Then our friendtook out a basket from the cart. It contained one of auntie's pies--auntie was famous for pies--and many other good things. I could nothelp thinking now how truly good at heart she was, and how ungrateful Ihad been. Hope returned to my heart, however, while eating, and Iprayed inwardly I might live to reward her for all her kindness.
We were now in a very lonely and also a very quiet place, so that whenAdriano suggested a few hours' sleep, nothing seemed more natural. Hegave us a rug and we lay down together, Jill and I under a bush, andvery soon indeed all our tiredness and all our troubles were alikeforgotten.
My watch had run down and so had Jill's, so I have no actual notion howlong we slept, only it must have been for many hours, because the sunwas over in a different part of the sky and we were hungry. This last,I have often proved in deserts and wilds, is an excellent way of knowingthe time when you do not happen to possess a watch.
We slept that night at a little country inn, and were up and away beforethe sun was well over the woods. We took our time on the road to-day,lazed and dawdled in fact, while Jill and I committed all kinds offrolics. We culled huge bunches of wild flowers, and even bedecked thehorse's head, so that when we arrived in the evening at a little villagethe people at once put us down as boys on a holiday.
Next night we drove into Bristol, and now Jill and I forgot all aboutthe wild flowers, as we thought of our interview with auntie.
I pictured to myself all sorts of dreadful and impossible situations.How would she receive us? How would we advance? How apologise for allthe trouble and inconvenience we had been to her? How this, that; andfifty other things, that were all scattered to the winds when we droveinto the inn yard and found auntie all smiles and ribbons, actuallywaiting to help us down out of the trap?
"Poor dear lads, you must be so tired and hungry. But dinner is waitingwhen you've had a wash. I declare to you, boys, I'm not a bit sorry tocome to Bristol. It is quite a holiday to me. And old associations doso crowd round my heart. Your grandpa, my dear father, used to sailregularly from Bristol. Oh, Reginald, you do look unkempt. Sleeping inyour clothes, I dare say. Come along. We will say good-night, SenorAdriano. Be here at ten to-morrow."
And it was not till just before we went down to one of the nicestdinners ever a boy sat down to, that auntie said, "Now, boys, say not aword again about the _Thunderbolt_. All is past and forgiven. It wasnot to be, boys. You were not destined for the navy."
We clung to her hands, and thanked her.
"And after all," mind you, "I believe with my dear father, that we havefar better sailors in the merchant service than in the navy."
On the whole, then, our reunion was more like coming home after beingaway on a holiday than anything else. So different from anything wecould have expected.
We were too tired to talk much that night, and next morning Adriano badeus good-bye after doing some business with auntie.
I felt some sorrow at parting; so did Jill.
"Shall we ever, ever see each other again, Adriano?" I said.
"Quien sabe? de world is not wide to de sailor. We meet--perhaps.--I gohome now, I hope. I will see my government--I will return here or toCardeef--a free man. _A dios. A dios_."
This was a busy day with auntie, and a busy day for us too. We saw theinside of many a shipping office before evening, and I was proud tolearn that my Aunt Serapheema was so well known and so highly respectedby every one, but I was not aware then that she was owner of a greatmany shipping shares.
I remember what one white-haired old gentleman said to her.
"The boys are big enough for their years, and look strong and well, butare they not just a little too young?"
"Their grandfather," said auntie, proudly, "went to sea when barelyten."
"I know your father was an exceptional youngster, and no man could havedied more highly respected. No man."
"Let me see now," said auntie, speaking more to herself than to MrClaremont, "the _Salamander_ belongs to only a few shareholders."
"Belongs mostly to you, Miss Domville."
"And the captain is a gentleman."
"Captain Coates is an excellent fellow."
"Takes his wife with him most trips?"
"He does so in September."
"I love a man who does that. He is a true sailor."
"Perhaps too soft-hearted, though," said Mr Claremont. "Don't youthink so, Miss Domville?"
"No, I don't."
"So brusque and cheerful. Just like your father, Miss. Just like dearold Captain Domville."
"And I couldn't be like a better man, could I, Mr Claremont?"
"True, true, true."
"Well, my boys shall go out in September with Captain and Mrs Coates."
"_So_ like her father. _So_ like her father. Why, Miss Domville, doyou know that your words sound very like a command?"
"And so they are meant to sound, Mr Claremont," said auntie, laughing."But mind you, it is _I_, not you, who are giving it. It is with me allresponsibility rests, remember. I, not you, have to account to MajorJones, their dear father, and to my sister."
"Yes, Miss, yes, yes, yes. I am just your adviser."
"That's all. So that settles it."
"_So_ like her father. So _very_ like her father," said the oldgentleman, as he bowed us to the door.
I looked at Jill after we got into the street, and Jill looked at me,and the wish uppermost in our minds at that moment was to take off ourcaps and shout, as we used to do when playing pirates; and the greatestsorrow in our hearts at the same moment was that we could not doanything of the sort, because it would have looked so silly.
When at luncheon that afternoon, auntie told us she would remain with usuntil our ship sailed in September, we of course felt very glad.
"But," I said, "will they not miss you at home?"
"I was thinking of Mattie."
"Oh, no," said auntie, "who is to miss me? Poor dear Mattie has herMummy Gray, the canaries have Sarah, and Trots has Robert to wash hisfeet and exercise him. You see, Reginald, I am free. I love to befree. That is the sole reason why I do not get married."
Poor auntie, it struck me even then she did not look much like amarrying lady; but I did not say anything.
Captain Coates called in the evening. He was not your beau ideal of asailor quite, being rather tall, thin, and dressed like a landsman. Thepeculiar feature of his face was his no
se. It was a big nose, but sharpand thin. If his nose had been a circus horse, a clown would hardlyhave cared to ride bare-back on it. I may as well state here, at once,that Captain Coates never drank anything stronger than tea; still hisnose was somewhat flushed at all times, and more so during an east wind.Mrs Coates was with him, a round-faced, cosy, bonnie wee woman thatJill and I took to at once.
She was very proud of her husband, and he was fond of her.
"Jack," she told us that evening, "is every inch a sailor. Oh, it isfine to hear him carrying on when we're shortening sail in front of apuff. And all the men obey him, too."
Captain Coates laughed aloud--rather a pleasant, hearty laugh it was.
"Obey me, do they!