Frank Fairlegh Part 5

"What you please, sir," replied Smithson, bowing.

"On the old terms, I suppose?" observed c.u.mberland.

"All right," answered Smithson; "stay, I can leave it with you now,"

added he, drawing out a leather case; "oblige me by writing your name here--thank you."

So saying, he handed some bank-notes to c.u.mberland, carefully replaced the paper he had received from him in his pocket-book, and withdrew.

-32--"Smithey was in great force to-night," observed Lawless, as the door closed behind him--"nicely they are bleeding that young a.s.s Robarts among them--he has got into good hands to help him to get rid of his money, at all events. I don't believe Snaffles gave forty pounds for that bay horse; he has got a decided curb on the off hock, if I ever saw one, and I fancy he's a little touched in the wind, too and there's another thing I should say----"

What other failing might be attributed to Mr. Robarts' bay steed we were, however, not destined to learn, as tea was at this moment announced. In due time followed evening prayers, after which we retired for the night. Being very sleepy I threw off my clothes, and jumped hastily into bed, by which act I became painfully aware of the presence of what a surgeon would term "certain foreign bodies"--i.e., not, as might be imagined, sundry French, German, and Italian corpses, but various hard substances, totally opposed to one's preconceived ideas of the component parts of a feather-bed. Sleep being out of the question on a couch so const.i.tuted, I immediately commenced an active search, in the course of which I succeeded in bringing to light two clothes-brushes, a boot-jack, a pair of spurs, Lempriere's _Cla.s.sical Dictionary_ and a brick-bat. Having freed myself from these undesirable bed-fellows I soon fell asleep, and pa.s.sed (as it seemed to me) the whole night in dreaming that I was a pigeon, or thereabouts, and that Smithson, mounted on the top-booted Sphinx, was inciting Lawless to shoot at me with a red-hot poker.

As Coleman and I were standing at the window of the pupils' room, about ten o'clock on the following morning, watching the vehicle destined to convey Dr. Mildman to the coach-office, Lawless made his appearance, prepared for his expedition, with his hunting-costume effectually concealed under the new Macintosh.

"Isn't Mildman gone yet? Deuce take it, what a time he is! I ought to be off--I'm too late already!"

"They have not even put his carpet-bag in yet," said I.

"Well, I shall make a bolt, and chance it about his seeing me,"

exclaimed Lawless; "he'll only think I'm going out for a walk rather earlier than usual, if he does catch a glimpse of me, so here's off."

Thus saying, he placed his hat upon his head, with the air of a man determined to do or die, and vanished.

Fortune is currently reported to favour the brave, and so, to do her justice, she generally does; still, at the best of times, she is but a fickle jade, at all events she appeared determined to prove herself so in the present instance; for -33--scarcely had Lawless got a dozen paces from the house, before Dr. Mildman appeared at the front door with his great coat and hat on, followed by Thomas bearing a carpet-bag and umbrella, and, his attention being attracted by footsteps, he turned his head, and beheld Lawless. As soon as he perceived him he gave a start of surprise, and, pulling out his eye-gla.s.s (he was rather short-sighted), gazed long and fixedly after the retreating figure. At length, having apparently satisfied himself as to the ident.i.ty of the person he was examining, he replaced his gla.s.s, stood for a moment as if confounded by what he had seen, and then turning, abruptly re-entered the house, and shut his study-door behind him with a bang, leaving Thomas and the fly-driver mute with astonishment. In about five minutes he re-appeared, and saying to Thomas, in a stern tone, "Let that note be given to Mr.

Lawless the moment he returns," got into the fly and drove off.

"There's a precious go," observed Coleman; "I wonder what's in the wind now. I have not seen old Sam get up the steam like that since I have been here. He was not half so angry when I put Thomas's hat on the peg where he hangs his own, and he, never noticing the difference, put it on, and walked to church in it, gold band and all."

"I wouldn't be Lawless for something," observed I; "I wonder what the note's about?"

"That's just what puzzles me," said Coleman. "I should have thought he had seen the sporting togs, but that's impossible; he must have a penetrating glance indeed if he could see through that Macintosh."

"Lawless was too impatient," said c.u.mberland; "he should have waited a few minutes longer, and then Mildman would have gone off without knowing anything about him. Depend upon it, the grand rule of life is to take things coolly, and wait for an opportunity: you have the game in your own hands then, and can take advantage of the follies and pa.s.sions of others, instead of allowing them to avail themselves of yours."

"In plain English, cheat instead of being cheated," put in Coleman.

"You're not far wrong there, Freddy; the world is made up of knaves and fools--those who cheat, and those who are cheated--and I, for one, have no taste for being a fool," said c.u.mberland.

"Nor I," said Mullins; "I should not like to be a fool at all; I had rather be----"

"A b.u.t.terfly," interrupted Coleman, thereby astonishing Mullins to such a degree that he remained silent for -34--some moments, with his mouth wide open as if in the act of speaking.

"You cannot mean what you say; you surely would not wish to cheat people," said I to c.u.mberland; "if it were really true that one must be either a knave or a fool, I'd rather be a fool by far--I'm sure you could never be happy if you cheated any one," continued I. "What does the Bible say about doing to others as you would have others do to you?"

"There, don't preach to me, you canting young prig," said c.u.mberland angrily, and immediately left the room.

"You hit him pretty hard then," whispered Coleman; "a very bad piece of business happened just before I came, about his winning a lot of tin from a young fellow here, at billiards, and they do say that c.u.mberland did not play fairly. It was rather unlucky your saying it; he will be your enemy from henceforth, depend upon it. He never forgets nor forgives a thing of that sort."

"I meant no harm by the remark," replied I; "I knew nothing of his having cheated any one; however, I do not care; I don't like him, and I'm just as well pleased he should not like me. But now, as my foreign relations seem to be rapidly a.s.suming a warlike character (as the newspapers have it), what do you say to giving me a lesson in sparring, as you proposed, by way of preparation?"

"With all my heart," replied Coleman.

And accordingly the gloves were produced, and my initiatory lesson in the pugilistic art commenced by Coleman's first placing me in an exceedingly uncomfortable att.i.tude, and then very considerately knocking me out of it again, thereby depositing me with much skill and science flat upon the hearth-rug. This manouvre he repeated with great success during some half hour or so, at the end of which time I began to discover the knack with which it was done, and proceeded to demonstrate the proficiency I was making, by a well-directed blow, which, being delivered with much greater force than I had intended, sent Coleman flying across the room. Chancing to encounter Mullins in the course, of his transit he overturned that worthy against the table in the centre of the apartment, which, yielding to their combined weight, fell over with a grand crash, dragging them down with it, in the midst of an avalanche of books, papers, and inkstands.

This _grand coup_ brought, as might be expected, our lesson to a close for the day, Coleman declaring that such another hit would inevitably knock him into the middle of next week, if not farther, and that he really should not feel -35--justified in allowing such a serious interruption to his studies to take place.

"And now, what are we going to do with ourselves?" asked I; "as this is a holiday, we ought to do something."

"Are you fond of riding?" inquired Coleman.

"Nothing I like better," replied I; "I have been used to it all my life; I have had a pony ever since I was four years old."

"I wish I was used to it," said Coleman. "My governor living in London, I never crossed a horse till I came here, and I'm a regular m.u.f.f at it; but I want to learn. What do you say to a ride this afternoon?"

"Just the thing," said I, "if it is not too expensive for my pocket."

"Oh no," replied Coleman; "Snaffles lets horses at as cheap a rate as any one, and good 'uns to go, too; does not he, c.u.mberland?"

"Eh, what are you talking about?" said c.u.mberland, who had just entered the room; "Snaffles? Oh yes, he's the man for horse flesh. Are you going to amuse yourself by tumbling off that fat little cob of his again, Fred?"

"I was thinking of having another try," replied Coleman; "what do you say, Fairlegh? Never mind the tin; I daresay you have got plenty, and can get more when that's gone."

"I have got a ten-pound note," answered I; "but that must last me all this quarter: however, we'll have our ride to-day."

"I'll walk down with you," said c.u.mberland; "I'm going that way; besides, it's worth a walk any day to see Coleman mount; it took him ten minutes the last time I saw him, and then he threw the wrong leg over, so that he turned his face to the tail."

"_Scandalum magnatum!_ not a true bill," replied Coleman.

"Now, come along, Fairlegh, let's get ready, and be off." During our walk down to Snaffles' stables c.u.mberland (who seemed entirely to have forgotten my _mal a propos_ remark) talked to me in a much more amiable manner than he had yet done; and the conversation naturally turning upon horses and riding, a theme always interesting to me, I was induced to enter into sundry details of my own exploits in that line. We reached the livery stables just as I had concluded a somewhat egotistical relation concerning a horse which a gentleman in our neighbourhood had bought for his invalid son, but which, proving at first too spirited, I had undertaken to ride every day for a -36--month in order to get him quiet; a feat I was rather proud of having satisfactorily accomplished.

"Good-morning, Mr. Snaffles; is Punch at home?" asked Coleman of a stout red-faced man, attired in a bright green Newmarket coat and top-boots.

"Yes, sir. Mr. Lawless told me your governor was gone to town, so I kept him in, thinking perhaps you would want him."

"That's all right," said Coleman; "and here's my friend, Mr. Fairlegh, will want a nag too."

"Proud to serve any gent as is a friend of yours, Mr. Coleman," replied Snaffles, with a bob of his head towards me, intended as a bow. "What stamp of horse do you like, sir? Most of my cattle are out with the harriers to-day."

"Snaffles--a word with you," interrupted c.u.mberland.

"One moment, sir," said Snaffles to me, as he crossed over to where c.u.mberland was standing.

"Come and look at Punch; and let's hear what you think of him," said Coleman, drawing me towards the stable.

"What does c.u.mberland want with that man?" asked I.

"What, Snaffles? I fancy he owes a bill here, and I daresay it is something about that."