The Thorogood Family by Robert Michael Ballantyne (the two towers ebook txt) 📖

a prompt withdrawal of his head he let my hand pass. Instantly I fetched him another slap with the left hand, but he caught my wrist, and stopped it.

"`Come, Jacob,' said he, in a rather stern voice, `I will fight you, but it must be done in the regular way, on the green.'

"Satisfied with this, I left him, to prepare for the encounter.

"The green was a level piece of turf close to school, beside a stream, which, at that place, was formed into a deep pool by means of a mill-dam. We had named the pool the black hole. It was the scene of all our school fights. In class that day I was unusually quiet, for I could not help thinking of the impending fight. I felt that it would be a hard one, though I never for a moment doubted the result. To keep my mind off the subject I applied myself to my lessons, and acquitted myself in a way that gratified the master and amazed the boys.

"The fight was to come off after school hours. The boys assembled with high expectations, something unusually `stiff' being anticipated, and they were not disappointed.

"I was on the ground with my friends and backers before my adversary appeared.

"`Don't make too much of a burst at first,' said one boy; `play with him till you see what he's made of.'

"`I'd advise you to go in for sloggin',' said another.

"`Yes, knock the wind out of him at once,' said Tadpole; `he's an English fellow, you know, and may bother you with science.'

"As he spoke Tom appeared. He walked smartly towards me, with his usual pleasant smile on his face, and held out his hand.

"`Come, Jacob,' he said, `shake hands, and let us give up this affair. Why should we fight? I am quite willing to admit that you are cock of the school, and have no desire to give or receive black eyes. Besides, you injured me more than I injured you, so that you've no occasion to bear malice.'

"`You called me a careless fellow,' said I, hardening myself, and looking fierce.

"`Well; but I did not know at the time that you were the owner of the books.'

"`No matter, you came here to fight, and so did I. Don't let us waste more words.'

"`Truly he suffereth long,' cried one of the boys, with a sneer and a laugh, quoting from the Bible, which, it was well known, Tom Turner read daily.

"`I am taught,' said Tom, turning gravely to the last speaker, `as far as lies in me, to live peaceably with all men. I have tried to do this, and find it impossible to live peaceably with Jacob Free--therefore--'

"He stopped, pulled off his jacket, rolled up his sleeves, and threw himself into the pugilistic attitude.

"We did not trouble ourselves about ceremony in that school. We had neither seconds, bottles, nor sponges. I went at him at once, and, remembering the advice of Tadpole, made a tremendous blow at his face. Tom scarcely moved a muscle; he merely put his head a little to one side and let the blow pass. Like lightning I delivered my left. Tom let it pass in the same way. Surprised and maddened I sent in another blow, lunging to my full extent. He merely drew back from the waist and the blow fell short. At the same moment I received a tap on the bridge of my nose which raised a host of stars in my imagination. In short, I found myself at the mercy of a well-trained boxer. Perceiving this I grew desperate, and sprang at my adversary with the intention of grappling him, but he stepped lightly to one side and I shot past him. This would have been a trifling matter had we not edged rather near to the river. In my blind rage I went head-foremost into the deep pool, already mentioned as the black hole. I could not swim. I rose with a gurgling cry and sank again. Turner knew that I was drowning. He was a splendid swimmer, and instantly sprang in and caught me, but I seized him round the neck and dragged him under, while the boys shouted in consternation on the bank.

"Their cries soon brought assistance, but, ere it arrived, we had been sucked within the influence of the dam where the stream went under the sluice with great violence. As we struck against the sluice I caught it. Turner held on to me, but was dragged partially under. Another moment and two powerful countrymen had hold of me, and pulled me out. They had more difficulty with Turner. His right leg had got entangled, and, in dragging him forcibly out, they broke it.

"This event was the great turning-point in my schoolboy life. Remorse began to tell upon me while they carried him home, but words cannot describe the agony of my mind when, a fortnight afterwards, I was admitted to his room and saw him lying, a mere wreck of his former self, but with the old kindly smile on his face, as he stretched out his thin hand.

"`We'll be friends _now_, Jacob, won't we?' he said, with a twinkle in his eye.

"I could not speak. The thought that I had brought him to this in spite of his desire to be friendly, overwhelmed me. I could only seize his hand, bury my face in the bed-clothes, and sob.

"`Never mind, Jacob,' he said cheerily; `I shall be all right soon, and then we shall have the fight out--a little further from the black hole!'

"But Tom Turner did not get all right soon. He became worse and worse. The wetting and the accident combined to throw him into a fever, which left him to all appearance a confirmed invalid and a cripple, so that he was obliged to give up all idea of returning to school.

"`I would not mind it so much,' he said to me, some months afterwards, with a feeble effort to be cheery, `if it had not stopped my going to school. You see, I had set my heart on being a learned man, and one has not much chance of being that without a teacher. But God's will be done. I don't grumble, Jacob, though I can't help wishing very hard that it had been otherwise.'

"I formed a great resolve while he was speaking, but said no word about it. I determined to apply myself, heart and soul, to study, until I should not only reach but pass the point where Tom had left off, and then I would become his teacher, carrying him on, step by step, as I advanced!

"To make a long story short--I carried out my resolution. It was harder work than I had expected, but I persevered. My love for Turner had become intense. I felt like a high-pressure engine with extra steam on and the safety-valve screwed down. The amazement of the boys at the change in me may be imagined. The satisfaction of the master cannot be imagined. I took no notice of either condition, but held on my way. Soon I came up to Tom in learning; then shot past him; then revealed my designs and took him in tow.

"Tom was charmed with the plan and inexpressibly grateful. When little Spinks came to hear of it, he begged to be allowed to study along with us in the sick-room. We agreed to this. Then Dr Tiddler was admitted, and afterwards the Tadpole; so that our evening class flourished.

"But the best of it was, that Tom did _not_ become a confirmed invalid. A new doctor, who came to live in our village, seemed to understand his case better than the old one. At all events he effected an almost perfect cure, so that Tom's limp became scarcely perceptible, and his general strength was so much restored, that he and I afterwards had many long geological and botanical rambles over the surrounding country, in company with little Spinks and the rest of the evening class.

"And this was no mere flash in the pan. We persevered to the end. From the date of that fight all the boys became Turnerites, our village school commenced a prosperous career, and our kind old master had the satisfaction of living to see it grow into one of the most noted in the district for turning out well-educated boys.

"Finally: Tom Turner became a real `Professor'--a Professor of Theology. And Tiddler became a real doctor of medicine. The Tadpole also came off with flying colours. His body grew up to his head, insomuch that he became a fine strapping fellow, and a Professor of Natural History in one of our colonial colleges. I am the only one of the lot who did not get on well in life, and that, lads, was owing to drink. In a drunken spree I enlisted, and here I am now, only a corporal; but, thank God, I'm also a total abstainer, and hope to remain so to the end of my life."

------------------------------------------------------------------------


Most of the men in the trenches had become rather sleepy while listening to Jacob Free's story, but they began to freshen up a little when the first faint streaks of dawn appeared, for they knew full well that the enemy would be stirring ere long. And they were right.

When day broke the Russians commenced firing, and every now and then a shell would pass roaring over the men's heads. Sometimes one would drop in amongst them. When this happened the men fled right and left, or threw themselves flat on their faces until the shell had exploded.

On one of these occasions a shell dropped close to a wounded man, to whom Bob was giving a drink at the time. The men near it sprang away or lay down as usual, but the wounded man lay in such a position, with his shoulders raised by a little knoll of earth, that he could not escape, and had not strength even to move. With a look of horror he gazed at the hissing shell. Bob Thorogood saw this all at a glance. In a moment he had the live shell in his arms, rushed to the top of the earthworks, and hurled it over, only just in time, for it burst as it reached the ground, and blew the spot on which Bob stood, with Bob himself, back into the trenches, where the big Irishman received him in his arms.

"Not hurt, darlin', are ye?" he asked anxiously.

"No, thank God, only shaken a bit," answered the Corporal.

Next day, however, our hero was not so fortunate, although he gained a reward for which many of his comrades panted.

He was on duty at the time in the trenches. The Russians had been pretty quiet that night, but just before daybreak they made a sortie in considerable force. Our Corporal's company had to bear the brunt of the fighting, and suffered much. It was broad daylight before the Russians were driven back. Some of the more fiery men of the company pursued them too far, and were cut off. At last all the survivors returned to the trenches, and then