Digby Heathcote Part 12

Two large skates were hauled out, and Digby came aft to look at them.

They were perfectly flat, and had long thin tails, with spines on them, their pectoral or side fins being very wide. "It would puzzle any one to cut their heads off," he observed.

"Why, Digby?" asked his uncle.

"Because they have not the slightest approach to a neck," he answered.

"If I had to describe one, I should say that it was more like a toy-shop kite than any other thing in shape. But I see there's something else below all the seaweed and crabs, and other things. Stay, I'll get it out."

Mr Nugent was examining some of the living things he had picked out.

Digby stooped down to get hold of what he saw, but very quickly drew back his hand. "Some one has. .h.i.t me on the arm," he exclaimed, "or I have been stung, or something or other has happened. I cannot make out what, but it's very disagreeable, that I know."

"Let me see," said Mr Nugent, taking the boat-hook and clearing away the weeds and mud. "Ah, we are indeed fortunate. We have caught a fine specimen of a somewhat rare fish. It is the torpedo, or electric ray.

See, the body forms an almost circular disc; the tail, too, is much shorter than that possessed by the other skate we have got. You may well say that it has no neck. It gave you, Digby, the shock you complained of. We will examine its galvanic apparatus. We shall find it on either side, consisting of a number of tubes, having much the appearance of a honeycomb. Its peculiar property is given to it that it may benumb its prey, and, perhaps, digest it more easily. Animals killed by lightning more quickly decompose than those destroyed in other ways, and they do not grow stiff. This electric skate can emit the very same substance as lightning, and though a very small quant.i.ty entered into your body, it caused you some pain. When in the water, possessed of all its vigour, it may be supposed that it can very easily destroy the smaller fry on which it feeds."

"I am very glad that the brute hadn't its full vigour, for it has hurt me considerably as it is," answered Digby.

Besides the skates, the net had brought up half a dozen good soles and a large supply of crabs of various sizes and descriptions, star-fish, jelly-fish, shrimps, and other crustacea, all of which were examined by Mr Nugent, and the best specimens transferred to his jars, and pots, and bottles. There were some hermit crabs among them, who had taken possession of various sh.e.l.ls, but one or two unfortunate fellows had been caught while in the act of changing their homes, and had no covering for their nakedness. The head and shoulders were like those of a lobster, but the lower extremities were perfectly soft.

Mr Nugent explained how they have to look out for an unoccupied sh.e.l.l, or perhaps eat up the occupant, and then wriggle in their own tails.

The hermit crab grows bigger, but the sh.e.l.l does not, so, when he feels his tail pinched, he has to look out for a larger home. It is amusing to watch him crawling along, examining sh.e.l.l after sh.e.l.l, till he has discovered one to his satisfaction. Then, when he has ascertained that it is unoccupied, he whisks his tail out of one and as rapidly pops it into the new one.

Mr Nugent pointed out that one claw was much larger than the other, and he showed how, when the hermit wishes to withdraw itself into its sh.e.l.l, he can perfectly coil himself away by doubling up the little claw and closing the larger one over it.

Digby was really much interested in the number of star-fish, and sh.e.l.ls, and sea-weeds, and many other things, about which his uncle did not think it wise to enter on long explanations to him.

With the next haul of the trawl they were not nearly so successful, giving them an idea of the precarious nature of the fisherman's calling; while in the third there was scarcely a fish, but Mr Nugent p.r.o.nounced it more prolific than any of the former ones to him.

It was now time to return home. The net was thoroughly washed, and then triced up in the rigging, while the beam was lashed alongside.

Julian had begun to recover, but he was very unlike himself, and not at all inclined to talk and boast; indeed, Power remarked that he had never seen him so agreeable since he had come to Osberton.

Digby had been examining the crustacea with grave attention, the lobsters, crabs, and shrimps, when, lifting up one, he exclaimed, "It's very odd; I always thought they were red. How is it, uncle, that these are black?"

A loud laugh from his companions was their reply to the question.

"You are thinking of the lobsters you have seen brought to the table cooked, and ready to be eaten," observed Mr Nugent. "But go on, Digby, never be ashamed of asking questions, although, now and then, they may bring down a laugh upon you. It would fare but ill with the poor crabs and lobsters if they were not black, or rather of the colour of the rocks and weeds among which they live. Their colour thus enables them to escape detection from the sharp-sighted fish, which are constantly swimming rapidly about in search of them, and, in spite of their coats-of-mail, easily gobble them up. But I was going to show you this little pea-crab, Pinnotheres. He is said to have established a friendship with the inhabitant of a bivalve sh.e.l.l, the Pinna, or Sea-wing. When he wants to go out in search of food, the Pinna opens her sh.e.l.l, and lets him out. He, argus-eyed, watches the approach of their mutual enemy, the Polypus, and instantly rushes back, and by his return giving notice of danger, the sh.e.l.l closes, and both are safe.

Otherwise the Polypus might get one of his rays inside the Pinna, and destroy its vitality in a moment, or he might touch the crab, and kill it in the same way. When the pea-crab discovers a supply of food he brings it to his friend, the Pinna, to be divided equally. I will not vouch for the truth of this account; and I am afraid that Master Pinnotheres has some more interested motive in his attachment, and may, in the end, eat up his friend, the Pinna, out of house and home."

This and many other interesting accounts Mr Nugent gave to his pupils on the return trip. Sometimes he even won the attention of Julian, who condescended to smile at his anecdotes. That young gentleman got a good deal better by the time he reached the sh.o.r.e, but he was not himself all the evening, and went fast asleep while Mr Nugent and his fellow-pupils were examining some of the marine insects they had brought home in their jars, through the microscope.

Several days pa.s.sed away, and, to all appearance, Julian had gained a lesson from which he had profited, not to think so much of himself. He had found out that others could be brisk and sprightly under circ.u.mstances which made him dull and wretched, and that they also knew a great deal more about all sorts of things than he did. To his surprise he found that his tutor, and Marshall, and Power, knew even far more about horses, and dogs, and game of all sorts, than he did. His knowledge was confined to the limited range of his father's park, and to such information as the grooms and gamekeepers had given him. They knew where the various races came from, their habits in their wild state when they were introduced into England, and they had read about sporting in all parts of the world. He thus found himself instantly put down, as he called it, when he began to talk in an authoritative way on what he had been taught to consider the most important subjects for the attention of a gentleman.

Bad habits and erroneous notions are not without much difficulty eradicated; and so Julian Langley very soon forgot the lesson he had received, and began to think and act very much in his old way. "I say, Digby, the way we have to go on here is horribly slow work," he observed one day, when he and his old companion were alone. "Don't you think, now, we could put each other up to some fun or other. I want to do something to astonish the natives down here."

Digby said he could not think of anything just then, but that he would try. They were strolling along the beach; it was a fine autumn day, but fresh. "I vote we have a run," said Digby. "It's cold."

They ran on till they reached the old castle, of which I have before spoken. Julian never liked running, so he proposed going in and sitting down in a sunny sheltered spot under the walls. There were six or eight cannon of large size mounted on very rotten honeycombed carriages in the fort. They had not been fired within the memory of man, but they every few years received a coat of paint, which prevented them turning into rust; and a superannuated gunner from the Royal Artillery, with much ceremony, cleaned them out of the stones and rubbish which the children in the neighbourhood had thrown into them. Once upon a time they might have proved very serviceable weapons for defending the entrance to the harbour.

"I say, Digby, what do you say to letting off one of those big fellows one of these days? It would make a great row, and astonish people not a little," exclaimed Julian, after eyeing the guns for some time.

"We should get into a great row if we did, I suspect," answered Digby.

"I don't think that it would be worth while to try."

"Oh, nonsense," said Julian. "I mean that no one should find out who did it; that would be the great fun. We should hear people talking of the explosion, and what it was, and how it could have happened, and all that sort of thing, and we should be laughing in our sleeves all the time. Oh, it would be rare fun. Besides, it is not going to do anybody any harm, you know."

It did not occur to either of the boys that it might do them a very great deal of harm, and perhaps kill them.

Digby was very soon won over to agree to Julian's proposal. It suited his taste, and he also thought that it would be rare fun. How to carry out their scheme was the question. Their great difficulty was to procure gunpowder in sufficient quant.i.ties to load the gun without leading suspicions on themselves.

When mischief was to be done Julian was very acute, so indeed was Digby.

They agreed to buy half a pound at a time at different places; Julian was to go to one place, Digby to another. They were both amply supplied with money; and as Digby did not care very much for cakes, he generally had some to spare. Julian was always ready, by the by, to borrow it of him. Their plans were soon arranged. The event which was to astonish the natives was to be brought about on as early a day as possible.

Instead of going home together they separated. Julian went to one shop, Digby to another, to make their first purchase of gunpowder.

Fortunately for Digby, the master of the shop was absent, and a shop-boy served him out the powder without asking any questions, merely remarking, "I suppose you young gentlemen want to let off fireworks on the fifth of November? This won't make many, though." Had the master asked him, he would have answered probably, "Give me the powder, and I'll pay you for it;" or he would have held his tongue, and perhaps by his looks betrayed himself.

Julian, meantime, went to the great shop of the place, where groceries, hardware, ironmongery, and even chemical drugs, soaps, and perfumery, were sold; indeed, it would have been difficult to point out what Mr Simson did not sell.

"What do you want all this gunpowder for, young gentleman?" asked Mr Simson.

"To make fireworks, to be sure," answered Julian, in an angry tone. "I wonder you ask."

"No offence, sir, but I like to know when young gentlemen get things of a dangerous character that they will do no harm with them. I should never forgive myself if I hadn't warned you, and you blew yourself up.

Remember, a spark falling into that paper of powder would kill any one near, and, perhaps, set the house on fire. You are at Mr Nugent's, I presume?"

"Yes, I am," answered Julian, in an angry tone. "Is there anything else you want to know?"

"Oh, I beg pardon, young gentleman; I did not want to offend you," said the kind-hearted Mr Simson. "You know that I cannot be too cautious about these matters."

"You can be too officious," growled Julian, as he left the shop.

Digby and Julian met at Mr Nugent's door. They had now got a pound of powder between them; but Julian said that was not nearly enough.

The next day they would go again, and each to ask in the other's name for another half pound.

Julian walked boldly into Mr Simson's shop as if nothing had happened, and said that one of his fellow-pupils wanted to manufacture some fireworks, and begged to have another small quant.i.ty--half a pound would not be too much. He got it; not, however, without creating some suspicion in Mr Simson's mind that Mr Nugent would not approve of what his pupils were about. This feeling was increased when, a day or two afterwards, Digby appeared, and asked for another half pound. Three half pounds were likewise procured from Mr Jones's small shop. Mr Jones made some remarks, however, to Julian which, at first, rather frightened him.

"I suppose, sir, you wouldn't mind Mr Nugent knowing that you have all that powder now, would you?" said the shopkeeper, eyeing him keenly; "well, I didn't say that I was going to talk about it to him, and I hope that I may have the pleasure of your custom."

Julian a.s.sured Mr Jones that he would patronise him, and, with his usual dignified air, strutted out of the shop.

"I'll tell you what, Digby," said he, when the two fellow-pupils next met, "we must not be in too great a hurry to fire the gun. If we do, we shall be found out. Old Simson and that fellow Jones already smell a rat, so we must be cautious; I'll tell you another thing, too, I've been thinking, that it won't do to fire it by daytime, we should be seen by somebody near the place and suspected. It will have much greater effect if we let it off in the middle of the night. We can easily get out of window and be back again in a few minutes. What say you? there will be great fun in it."

The spice of danger in the adventure had especial charms for Digby, and without taking anything else into consideration, he willingly consented to all Julian proposed.

It is extraordinary how quiet and out of mischief this notable scheme of the two young gentlemen kept them. They could think of nothing else.

Whenever they thought no one was observing them, they went together to the old castle, and ascertained the best means of entering it and escaping again over the ramparts. There was no great difficulty or danger in doing that, even on a dark night.

Three or four weeks pa.s.sed away--The Holidays were approaching--They could no longer resist their desire to make the attempt.