To this, of course, I would not consent; and somewhat disappointed, perhaps, I accompanied my old friend through the hall, having the honour of being salaamed to most profoundly by the dark-skinned domestics. We walked slowly, and had not got very far, when I heard footsteps coming behind us. Turning round, I saw Master Richard running with all his might.
“Here, Jack?” he said, “the Brigadier gave me this, and told me to hand it over to you. My mother was out of the room at the time, so do not say anything about it to her. She will show you her gratitude in some other way. I do not mean to say it is as much as I should like to have offered you; but here, be quick I put it into your pocket, or we may be seen from the house.”
“Don’t be a fool, Jack!” said old Dick, seeing I hesitated. “It’s justly yours, boy, and let them settle the matter as they think best.”
“Good-bye, Jack!” said young master, shaking me by the hand. “Good-bye!” he added, taking old Dick’s rough paw. “We are a curious set; but I say, do not refuse anything you can get. If you want any interest exerted, then boldly ask my mother. She will do that in a way which overcomes all difficulties. If she wanted to make me Archbishop of Canterbury, she would work away till she had done it, if she happened to live long enough.”
Old Dick dropped me at my home. There was a tremendous noise going on, created by my stepmother’s children. She was crying out and imploring them to be quiet, and they were squabbling and crying and abusing each other. The big ones had appropriated the little ones’ toys, or other property, and all the poor woman could do they would not restore the articles, while the young ones were crying to get them back, every now and then making a rush at their bigger brothers and sisters, and getting a box on the ear in return. My appearance rather increased than quelled the commotion. Tommy, the biggest, asked me in a threatening way where I had been, and of course I was not going to answer him; so he doubled his fist, and, had I not stood on my guard, he would certainly have hit me, but he thought better of it. Just at that moment my father returned off duty, full of my performances, of which old Dick had told him all particulars. He was very indignant with Tom.
“Is this the way, you young ruffian, you treat a brave lad who has been saving the life of a fellow-creature, and that fellow-creature the son of a brigadier? Do you know what a brigadier is, you young jackanapes, eh?” he exclaimed, giving way for once to anger, of which he was very seldom guilty. His remarks silenced all the party, who, of course, were then eager enough to learn what I had done and what had happened. My poor stepmother embraced me warmly, and tears fell from her eyes as she glanced round on her own disorderly offspring. For the rest of the evening they behaved better.
My father was well pleased on hearing of the brigadier’s gift, for the purse contained ten sovereigns.
“It’s very liberal,” he said; “for though I suppose he thinks his son’s life worth more than that, yet, from what you tell me, no doubt it is as much as he dared to give; yet I can tell you, from what I have heard, that that shrivelled-up yellow-faced old fellow was as plucky an officer as ever saw service.”
My father would not let me go back to the Bungalow.
“You have done your duty, Jack, and you have received a present, which you must lay by for a rainy day; and if the brigadier’s lady wants to show her maternal gratitude, it’s her business to find you out.”