The Crofton Boys Part 2

He stopped short, and the girls saw that it was a sign from their mother that made him do so. He immediately proceeded to make so much noise with Harry, that Hugh discovered nothing more than that he might put away his books, and not mind Miss Harold this time. If she asked him to-morrow why he had not got down to "Constantinople," he could tell her exactly what his father had said. So merry was Hugh's play this evening. He stood so perfectly upright on his father's shoulders, that he could reach the top of his grandmamma's picture, and show by his finger-ends how thick the dust lay upon the frame: and neither he nor his father minded being told that he was far too old for such play.

In the midst of the fun, Hugh had a misgiving, more than once, of his mother having something severe to say to him when she should come up to his room, to hear him say his prayer, and to look back a little with him upon the events of the day. Besides his consciousness that he had done nothing well this day, there were grave looks from his mother which made him think that she was not pleased with him. When he was undressing, therefore, he listened with some anxiety for her footsteps, and, when she appeared, he was ready with his confession of idleness. She stopped him in the beginning, saying that she had rather not hear any more such confessions. She had listened to too many, and had allowed him to spend in confessions some of the strength which should have been applied to mending his faults. For the present, while she was preparing a way to help him to conquer his inattention, she advised him to say nothing to her, or to any one else, on the subject; but this need not prevent him from praying to G.o.d to give him strength to overcome his great fault.

"Oh, mother! Mother!" cried Hugh, in an agony, "you give me up! What shall I do if you will not help me any more?"

His mother smiled, and told him he need not fear any such thing. It would be very cruel to leave off providing him with food and clothes, because it gave trouble to do so; and it would be far more cruel to abandon him to his faults, for such a reason. She would never cease to help him till they were cured: but, as all means yet tried had failed, she must plan some others; and meantime she did not wish him to become hardened to his faults, by talking about them every night, when there was no amendment during the day.

Though she spoke very kindly, and kissed him before she went away, Hugh felt that he was punished. He felt more unhappy than if his mother had told him all she thought of his idleness. Though his mother had told him to go to sleep, and blessed him, he could not help crying a little, and wishing that he was a Crofton boy. He supposed the Crofton boys all got their lessons done somehow, as a matter of course; and then they could go to sleep without any uncomfortable feelings or any tears.

In the morning all these thoughts were gone. He had something else to think about; for he had to play with Harry, and take care of him, while Susan swept and dusted the parlour: and Harry was bent upon going into the shop--a place where, according to the rule of the house, no child of the family was ever to set foot till it was old enough to be trusted; nor to taste anything there, asked or unasked. There were some poisonous things in the shop, and some few nice syrups and gums; and no child could be safe and well there who could not let alone whatever might be left on the counter, or refuse any nice taste that a good-natured shopman might offer. Harry was, as yet, far too young; but, as often as the cook washed the floor-cloth in the pa.s.sage, so that the inner shop-door had to be opened, Master Harry was seized with an unconquerable desire to go and see the blue and red gla.s.s bowls which he was permitted to admire from the street, as he went out and came in from his walks. Mr Proctor came down this morning as Hugh was catching Harry in the pa.s.sage. He s.n.a.t.c.hed up his boys, packed one under each arm, and ran with them into the yard, where he rolled Harry up in a new mat, which the cook was going to lay at the house-door.

"There!" said he. "Keep him fast, Hugh, till the pa.s.sage-door is shut.

What shall we do with the rogue when you are at Crofton, I wonder?"

"Why, papa! He will be big enough to take care of himself by that time."

"Bless me! I forgot again," exclaimed Mr Proctor, as he made haste away into the shop.

Before long, Harry was safe under the attraction of his basin of bread and milk; and Hugh fell into a reverie at the breakfast-table, keeping his spoon suspended in his hand as he looked up at the windows, without seeing anything. Jane asked him twice to hand the b.u.t.ter before he heard.

"He is thinking how much four times seven is," observed Mr Proctor: and Hugh started at the words.

"I tell you what, Hugh," continued his father; "if the Crofton people do not teach you how much four times seven is when you come within four weeks of next Christmas-day, I shall give you up, and them too, for dunces all."

All the eyes round the table were fixed on Mr Proctor in an instant.

"There now!" said he, "I have let the cat out of the bag. Look at Agnes!" and he pinched her crimson cheek.

Everybody then looked at Agnes, except Harry, who was busy looking for the cat which papa said had come out of mamma's work-bag. Agnes could not bear the gaze, and burst into tears.

"Agnes has taken more pains to keep the secret than her papa," said Mrs Proctor. "The secret is, that Hugh is going to Crofton next month."

"Am I ten, then?" asked Hugh, in his hurry and surprise.

"Scarcely; since you were only eight and a quarter yesterday afternoon,"

replied his father.

"I will tell you all about it by-and-by, my dear," said his mother. Her glance towards Agnes made all the rest understand that they had better speak of something else now. So Mr Proctor beckoned Harry to come and see whether the cat had not got into the bag again, as she was not to be seen anywhere else. It is true, the bag was not much bigger than a cat's head; but that did not matter to Harry, who never cared for that sort of consideration, and had been busy for half an hour, the day before, in trying to put the key of the house-door into the key-hole of the tea-caddy.

By the time Agnes had recovered herself, and the table was cleared, Miss Harold had arrived. Hugh brought his books with the rest, but, instead of opening them, rested his elbow on the uppermost, and stared full at Miss Harold.

"Well, Hugh!" said she, smiling.

"I have not learned quite down to 'Constantinople,'" said he. "Papa told me I need not, and not to mind you."

"Why, Hugh! Hush!" cried Jane.

"He did,--he said exactly that. But he meant, Miss Harold, that I am to be a Crofton boy,--directly, next month."

"Then have we done with one another, Hugh?" asked Miss Harold, gently.

"Will you not learn any more from me?"

"That is for your choice, Miss Harold," observed Mrs Proctor. "Hugh has not deserved the pains you have taken with him: and if you decline more trouble with him now he is going into other hands, no one can wonder."

Miss Harold feared that he was but poorly prepared for school, and was quite ready to help him, if he would give his mind to the effort. She thought that play, or reading books that he liked, was less waste of time than his common way of doing his lessons; but if he was disposed really to work, with the expectation of Crofton before him, she was ready to do her best to prepare him for the real hard work he would have to do there. His mother proposed that he should have time to consider whether he would have a month's holiday or a month's work, before leaving home. She had to go out this morning. He might go with her, if he liked; and as they returned, they would sit down in the Temple Garden, and she would tell him all about the plan.

Hugh liked this beginning of his new prospects. He ran to be made neat for his walk with his mother. He knew he must have the wet curl on his forehead twice over to day, but he comforted himself with hoping that there would be no time at Crofton for him to be kept standing, to have his hair done so particularly, and to be scolded all the while, and then kissed, like a baby, at the end.

CHAPTER THREE.

MICHAELMAS-DAY COME.

Hugh was about to ask his mother, again and again during their walk, why Mr Tooke let him go to Crofton before he was ten; but Mrs Proctor was grave and silent; and though she spoke kindly to him now and then, she did not seem disposed to talk. At last they were in the Temple Garden; and they sat down where there was no one to overhear them; and then Hugh looked up at his mother. She saw, and told him, what it was that he wanted to ask.

"It is on account of the little boys themselves," said she, "that Mr Tooke does not wish to have them very young, now that there is no kind lady in the house who could be like a mother to them."

"But there is Mrs Watson. Phil has told me a hundred things about Mrs Watson."

"Mrs Watson is the housekeeper. She is careful, I know, about the boys' health and comfort; but she has no time to attend to the younger ones, as Mrs Tooke did,--hearing their little troubles, and being a friend to them like their mothers at home."

"There is Phil--"

"Yes. You will have Phil to look to. But neither Phil, nor any one else, can save you from some troubles you are likely to have from being the youngest."

"Such as Mr Tooke told me his boy had;--being put on the top of a high wall, and plagued when he was tired: and all that. I don't think I should much mind those things."

"So we hope, and so we believe. Your fault is not cowardice--"

Mrs Proctor so seldom praised anybody that her words of esteem went a great way. Hugh first looked up at her, and then down on the gra.s.s,-- his cheeks glowed so. She went on--

"You have faults,--faults which give your father and me great pain; and though you are not cowardly about being hurt in your body, you sadly want courage of a better kind,--courage to mend the weakness of your mind. You are so young that we are sorry for you, and mean to send you where the example of other boys may give you the resolution you want so much."

"All the boys learn their lessons at Crofton," observed Hugh.

"Yes; but not by magic. They have to give their minds to their work.

You will find it painful and difficult to learn this, after your idle habits at home. I give you warning that you will find it much more difficult than you suppose; and I should not wonder if you wish yourself at home with Miss Harold many times before Christmas."

Mrs Proctor was not unkind in saying this. She saw that Hugh was so delighted about going that nothing would depress his spirits, and that the chief fear was his being disappointed and unhappy when she should be far away. It might then be some consolation to him to remember that she was aware of what he would have to go through. He now smiled, and said he did not think he should ever wish to say his lessons to Miss Harold as long as he lived. Then it quickly pa.s.sed through his mind that, instead of the leads and the little yard, there would be the playground; and instead of the church bells, the rooks; and instead of Susan, with her washing and combing, and scolding and kissing, there would be plenty of boys to play with. As he thought of these things, he started up, and toppled head over heels on the gra.s.s, and then was up by his mother's side again, saying that he did not care about anything that was to happen at Crofton;--he was not afraid,--not even of the usher, though Phil could not bear him.

"If you can bring yourself to learn your lessons well," said his mother, "you need not fear the usher. But remember it depends upon that. You will do well enough in the playground, I have no doubt."

After this, there was only to settle the time that was to pa.s.s--the weeks, days, and hours before Michaelmas-day; and whether these weeks and days should be employed in preparing for Crofton under Miss Harold, or whether he should take his chance there unprepared as he was. Mrs Proctor saw that his habits of inattention were so fixed, and his disgust at lessons in the parlour so strong, that she encouraged his doing no lessons in the interval. Hugh would have said beforehand that three weeks' liberty to read voyages and travels, and play with Harry, would have made him perfectly happy; but he felt that there was some disgrace mixed up with his holiday, and that everybody would look upon him with a sort of pity, instead of wishing him joy; and this spoiled his pleasure a good deal. When he came home from his walk, Agnes thought he looked less happy than when he went out; and she feared his spirits were down about Crofton.

His spirits were up and down many times during the next three weeks. He thought these weeks would never be over. Every day dragged on more slowly than the last; at every meal he was less inclined to eat; and his happiest time was when going to bed, because he was a day nearer Crofton. His mother, foreseeing just what happened, wished to have kept the news from him till within a week of his departure, and had agreed with Mr Proctor that it should be so. But Mr Proctor hated secrets, and, as we see, let it out immediately.

At last, the day came;--a warm, sunny, autumn day, on which any one might have enjoyed the prospect of a drive into the country. The coach was to set off from an inn in Fleet Street, at noon, and would set Hugh down at his uncle's door in time for dinner, the distance being twenty-eight miles. His uncle's house was just two miles from the school. Phil would probably be there to meet his brother, and take him to Crofton in the afternoon.