But the Sanguine Scot had been thinking rapidly, and with characteristic hopefulness, felt he had the bull by the horns. “We’ll just have to block her, chaps; that’s all,” he said. “A wire or two should do it”; and, inviting the Dandy “to come and lend a hand,” led the way to the telegraph office; and presently there quivered into Darwin the first hint that a missus was not wanted at the Elsey.
“Would advise leaving wife behind till homestead can be repaired,” it said; and, still confident of success, Mac felt that “ought to do the trick.” “If it doesn’t,” he added, “we’ll give her something stronger.”
We in Darwin, having exhausted the sight-seeing resources of the little town, were wishing “something interesting would happen,” when the message was handed to the Măluka.
“This may do as a stopgap,” he said, opening it, adding as he read it, “It looks brimful of possibilities for interested onlookers, seeing it advises leaving the wife behind.” The Măluka spoke from experience, having been himself an interested onlooker “down south,” when it had been suggested there that the wife should be left behind while he spied out the land; for although the Măluka knew most of the Territory, he had not yet been to the Elsey Cattle Station.
Preferring to be “the interested onlooker” myself this time, when we went to the telegraph office it was the Măluka who wired: “Wife coming, secure buggy”, and in an incredibly short space of time the answer was back: “No buggy obtainable.”
Darwin looked interested. “Mac hasn’t wasted much time in making inquiries,” it said.
“Or in apologies or explanations,” the Măluka added shortly, and sent in reply: “Wife can ride, secure suitable mount.”
But the Sanguine Scot’s fighting blood was up, and almost immediately the wire rapped out: “No side-saddle obtainable. Stock horses all flash”; and the onlookers stared in astonishment.
“Mac’s in deadly earnest this time,” they said, and the Măluka, with a quiet “So am I,” went back to the telegraph.
Now, in the Territory everybody knows everybody else, but particularly the telegraph people; and it often happens that when telegrams of general interest are passing through, they are accompanied by confidential asides—little scraps of harmless gossip not intended for the departmental books; therefore it was whispered in the tail of the last message that the Katherine was watching the fight with interest, was inclined to “reckon the missus a goer,” and that public sympathy was with the stockman—the Katherine had its women-folk and was thankful; but the Katherine knew that although a woman in a settlement only rules her husband’s home, the wife of a station-manager holds the peace and comfort of the stockmen in the hollow of her hand.