“Hah!” cried the skipper. “Well done, youngster! I see what you mean, and if you can do that there will be no trouble with the others. Well done! Good idea!”
The anger against the King seemed to die out at once, and giving his orders sharply, in a very brief space of time the shallow barge had been allowed to drift astern, there was a fairly clear space on deck, there was the open gangway on the side of the vessel nearest the shore, and the time had come for the young esquire to act.
The next minute Denis cast loose the halter which tethered his charger to the vessel’s side, turned it round, patted the arched neck once more, and then, bridle in hand, sprang up, threw over one leg, and the next moment was seated upon his barebacked steed.
The sailors gave a cheer, which startled the horse, but a few words from Denis quieted it again, and in obedience to the pressure of the rider’s heels it paced forward along the deck as far as the hamper of the vessel would allow, turned in obedience to the pressure on the rein, and paced back again in the other direction, to be turned once more.
Everyone else on board was turned into a spectator now, the men in the flat watching as eagerly as the rest. “He will never do it, Saint Simon,” said the King.
“Think not, sir?” was the reply. “I believe he will. Look!”
For after walking his beautiful steed to and fro again, Denis waited till they reached the open gangway, and then turned the noble animal’s head and let it stop to stretch out its muzzle towards the shore to gaze with starting eyes at the solid land and moving people there.
It snuffed the air loudly, and then a loud neigh rang out like a challenge, which was answered by one of the horses attached to a trolley high-up on a wharf.
This had the effect of setting the other two chargers challenging in turn, and as they ceased, Denis spoke to and patted his steed, bending well forward the while. Then he turned its head again and rode a few yards up and down the deck once more.
“Well done, my lad,” cried the skipper, coming to his side. “You will do it. Go on.”