"No,--stupid," said Toppin.
_"Uhei!"_ This sorrowfully. Then, drawing nearer, "But no mind! I love you--oh, yes, I love you a great well, Top-peen! Shall we--shall we keess?"
Toppin shook his head decidedly, and jumped off the gate in a hurry.
"That"s the second time since Sunday you"ve wanted to kiss, and I"ve told you over and over again I hate it, I don"t like it! I never want to kiss! Now, do you understand?"
The March Hare was sadly afraid he did.
[Ill.u.s.tration]
"If you were an English boy you"d never think of asking such a thing,"
Toppin went on, tramping up and down as he talked. He really did not want to be unkind to the Hare, but requests like this vexed him sorely.
"Don"t you see, Harey, there are some people who will kiss me, and I can"t stop them--like Miss Turner, f"r instance." Miss Turner was the matron. "And then there are some I"ve got to kiss, like aunts and people. But one doesn"t put in any extra, if one can help it. When I"m grown-up I sha"n"t have to kiss anybody, and that"ll be jolly. I shall never, never kiss at all, only shake hands or bow, like Es...o...b.. does."
"Top-peen, you did keess me once time, last week!" The Hare was timidly reproachful now.
Toppin stood still and coloured.
"Yes, I did. Because you bovvered me to, and--and you"d jumped in after me!"
"And shallent you--not ever--keess me once time more?"
"Oh--well--look here! Perhaps when it"s your birthday, if we get somewhere quite secret, where n.o.body can possibly see us, I--I"ll let you have one--a quick one!"
"T-thanks you!" said the grateful Hare.
"It"s "thanks", or else "thank you"," corrected Toppin.
The Hare took no notice. He only tucked his arm affectionately into Toppin"s, knowing that he was keeping within his rights in doing so.
Toppin could say nothing. Arm-in-arm is quite correct and English!
"I have som-ting to say. Zat Armitage--he did not ought to be gone chasing paper. He is bad! I hate him, don" like him!"
"Why?" enquired Toppin, with wide-open eyes.
"Be-cause he try to drown you. I am--what is it?--to re-venge it!"
"What awful rot you talk!" said Toppin. "He only did what I told him, same as you would have done."
"Oh no, he had ver" wickedness. Ever"body say he had. I am telling many--one after one, by secret! And he is a debboy. Zey are more angry for zat. So much better!"
"Rubbish!" cried Toppin impatiently. "You"ve no business to tell anyone anything. And you"re looking fierce and ugly, Hare. Do put Armitage out of your head, and come and have a see-saw!"
The chase, meanwhile, had opened well. The track was unmistakable to begin with, and it led right away from the town into the free country.
The pack of hounds spun gaily along at full tilt, and many a machine was travelling at a pace it had not known for years. Every now and then there was a small collision, ending generally in a tumble; but if anyone was hurt, he kept it to himself, for all remounted and rode on, and n.o.body waited behind to make enquiries.
Of course there were any amount of false alarms, shouts and shrieks, wavings and ringings, and Simmons"s toot-toot sometimes went unheard in the hubbub. Mr. Anderson grew quite boyishly excited, and kept bawling, "Come on, you fellows, come on! Buck up! We"ll run them down yet!" And it is probable that Mr. West might have had a word to say had he seen the pace at which the willing hounds obeyed.
After one of the collisions above-mentioned, Grey, who was not a good rider, and happened to be the last of the pack, came upon Cadbury, dismounted, by the roadside.
"What"s up?" he cried, as he swayed laboriously past.
"Oh, that you, Grey? Get down, there"s a good fellow, and hold my bike a jiffey. I"ll tow you up the next hill, if you will. Thanks so much! I had a spill just now, and my handlebar"s got slewed round, and I can"t keep it straight and right it at the same time."
The spanner had to be hunted out, the screw loosened, and the bar straightened; and thus a little time was occupied.
"Bother it! They"re out of sight!" cried Cadbury when both were once more ready to mount. "I suppose we shall see Andy tooling back soon, to whip in the lazy pups! Never mind, I"ll keep you company. Don"t you burst your wind! We"ll take it quietly."
"How they do yell! They"ve lost the trail," remarked Grey. "Hi! I say, there"s paper down this lane; look--and it has a bit of Green"s writing on it. You bet this is the true trail, and that the hares only scooted along the main road a bit farther, on purpose to mislead."
"You may be right. Anyhow, let"s try our luck. It"s downhill, so we can put on steam. What sport if they all have to turn round, and find we"re in front instead of behind! Mind, old chappie, I"m pa.s.sing on your right ... wait for you ... below!"
The last words came faintly back; Cadbury had pa.s.sed Grey like a streak of lightning, his feet up, and his hands in his pockets.
There was a turn in the lane farther down, so that Grey for a minute lost sight of his comrade. He looked carefully ahead as he rounded it, to see if the end of the descent were near. The hill only grew steeper, but the end was a good deal nearer than he thought.
A half-grown chicken, startled by his silent approach, sprang out of the hedge and fluttered in front of his wheel, clucking madly. Grey pealed his bell, but it had no effect on the distracted chicken, which seemed bent on destruction. He clutched his brake; it would not work. There came a stifled squawk, and a slight b.u.mp!
In affright and agitation, Grey turned his machine into the hedge, and tumbled off, somehow, anyhow, into the road.
Five minutes later, Cadbury was toiling back up the hill in quest of his school-fellow, when he came upon a very unexpected sight. A prostrate bicycle beside a live, but bruised and dusty boy, who was sadly gazing upon the body of a chicken.
"My good Grey! Good gracious! What has happened? How did you manage it?"
"Oh, Cadbury, I"m so glad to see you! Isn"t it awful? I wouldn"t have run over it for worlds if I could have helped it, but it simply insisted on it!"
"Suicide while temporarily insane," put in Cadbury, covering his mouth with his hand.
"Well, it did look just as if it wanted to die! But what shall I have to fork out, do you suppose? Five bob? I"ve got no more on me. Say, they aren"t likely to prosecute, are they?"
Grey was really frightened. Cadbury looked at the picture again, tried to take it seriously, failed, and burst into a fit of laughter.
"Awfully sorry, Grey, but--ha, ha, ha!--what am I to do? You--ha, ha, ha!--you do look a treat! I--ha, ha, ha!--I"ll stop in a minute. Oh, ho, ho, ho, ho, ho!"
Poor Grey felt anything but amused. He gathered himself to his feet, and remarked stiffly, "Well, Cadbury, when you"ve done--"
Cadbury steadied himself with an effort.
"It"s all over now, Grey. I"m as grave as a judge. And to show you how penitent I am, I"ll see this job through for you. But you must obey me to the letter. No, don"t brush yourself! Just lie down again as you were, and, however much you"re tempted to, don"t apologize! Be dignified and injured."
Grey objected, but was persuaded to submit.
"Now to find the owner of this giddy young fowl! We"ll see if they lay claim to it here."
Cadbury pushed open a little gate, and knocked at the door of the nearest cottage. It proved to be the residence of the chicken"s mistress, an untidy, heavy-looking woman, who apparently lived alone.
Cadbury greeted her with the air of a constable, lawyer, and magistrate rolled into one, and the woman listened with deep respect.