‘All right!’ he thought, ‘we’ll see who’ll laugh last.’
IV
Difficult to say whether morality exists in a man like Bowden, whose blood is racy of the soil, and whose farmyard is so adjacent. That his son should run riot with the girl Pansy would have struck him more, perhaps, if Steer had not shot his dog—the affair so providentially put that fellow’s nose out of joint. It went far, in fact, to assuage his outraged sense of property, and to dull the feeling that he had betrayed his dog by not actively opposing village justice. As for the ‘Law,’ the Bowdens had lived for too many generations in a parish where no constable was resident to have any real belief in its powers. He often broke the law himself in a quiet way—shooting stray pheasants and calling them pigeons; not inspecting his rabbit traps morning and evening; not keeping quite to date in dipping his sheep, and so forth. The ‘Law’ could always be evaded. Besides, what law was Ned breaking? That was Steer’s gup!
He was contemptuously surprised therefore when, three weeks later, Ned received a document headed ‘High Courts of Justice. Winch versus Bowden.’ It claimed five hundred pounds from him for breach of his promise of marriage. An outlandish trick, indeed—with the war on too! Couldn’t Ned please himself as to what girl he’d take? Bowden was for putting it in the fire. But the more the two examined the document the more hypnotised they became. Lawyers were no use except to charge money—but, perhaps, a lawyer ought to have a look at it.
On market day, therefore, they took it to Applewhite of Applewhite and Carter, who subjected them to a prolonged catechism. Had Ned engaged himself to the girl? Well, yes, he supposed he had. How had he broken off the engagement—had he written to the girl? No. Well, had he received letters from her asking him what was the matter? Yes; two. Had he answered them? No. Had he seen the girl and done it by word of mouth? No. He had not seen the girl for ten weeks. Was he prepared to see the girl or write to her? He was not. Was he ready to marry her? No. Why was that?
Ned looked at his father; and Bowden looked at Ned. The girl Pansy had never been mentioned between them.
Mr. Applewhite repeated his question. Ned did not know.
According to the lawyer, if Ned did not know, nobody knew. What had caused the change in his feelings?
It was Bowden who answered:
“He shot my dog.”