"If they"s money at t"other eend of the race I can run like sixty _fer a spell_. "Tain"t my common gait, howsumever."
"If you"ll take this paper," said Gray, "and get it to the county clerk"s office before anybody else gets there from this boat, I"ll give you five dollars."
"Honor bright?" asked the chap, taking the paper, drawing a long breath, and looking as though he had discovered a gold mine.
"Honor bright," answered Gray. "You must jump off first of all, for there"s a boy aboard that will beat you if he can. No pay if you don"t win."
"Which is the one that"ll run ag"in" me?" asked the long-legged fellow.
Gray described Jack, and told the young man to go out forward and he would see him. Gray was not willing to be seen with the "wharf-rat,"
lest suspicions should be awakened in Jack Dudley"s mind. But after the shabby young man had gone forward and looked at Jack, he came back with a doubtful air.
"That"s Hoosier Jack, as we used to call him," said the shabby young man. "He an" two more used to row a boat acrost the river every day to go to ole Niles"s school. He"s a hard one to beat,--they say he used to lay the whole school out on prisoners" base, and that he could leave "em all behind on fox."
"You think you can"t do it, then?" asked Gray.
"Gimme a little start and I reckon I"ll fetch it. It"s up-hill part of the way and he may lose his wind, for it"s a good half-mile. You must make a row with him at the gang-plank, er do somethin" to kinder hold him back. The wind"s down stream to-day and the boat"s sh.o.r.e to swing in a little aft. I"ll jump for it and you keep him back."
To this Gray a.s.sented.
As the shabby young fellow had predicted, the boat did swing around in the wind, and have some trouble in bringing her bow to the wharf-boat.
The captain stood on the hurricane-deck calling to the pilot to "back her," "stop her," "go ahead on her," "go ahead on yer labberd," and "back on yer stabberd." Now, just as the captain was backing the starboard wheel and going ahead on his larboard, so as to bring the boat around right, Mr. Gray turned on Jack.
"What are you treading on my toes for, you impudent young rascal?" he broke out.
Jack colored and was about to reply sharply, when he caught sight of the shabby young fellow, who just then leaped from the gunwale of the boat amidships and barely reached the wharf. Jack guessed why Gray had tried to irritate him,--he saw that the well-known "wharf-rat" was to be his compet.i.tor. But what could he do? The wind held the bow of the boat out, the gang-plank which had been pushed out ready to reach the wharf-boat was still firmly grasped by the deck-hands, and the farther end of it was six feet from the wharf, and much above it. It would be some minutes before any one could leave the boat in the regular way. There was only one chance to defeat the rascally Gray. Jack concluded to take it.
He ran out upon the plank amidst the harsh cries of the deck-hands, who tried to stop him, and the oaths of the mate, who thundered at him, with the stern order of the captain from the upper deck, who called out to him to go back.
But, luckily, the steady pulling ahead of the larboard engine, and the backing of the starboard, began just then to bring the boat around, the plank sank down a little under Jack"s weight, and Jack made the leap to the wharf, hearing the confused cries, orders, oaths, and shouts from behind him, as he pushed through the crowd.
"Stop that thief!" cried Francis Gray to the people on the wharf-boat, but in vain. Jack glided swiftly through the people, and got on sh.o.r.e before anybody could check him. He charged up the hill after the shabby young fellow, who had a decided lead, while some of the men on the wharf-boat pursued them both, uncertain which was the thief. Such another pell-mell race Port William had never seen. Windows flew up and heads went out. Small boys joined the pursuing crowd, and dogs barked indiscriminately and uncertainly at the heels of everybody. There were cries of "Hurrah for long Ben!" and "Hurrah for Hoosier Jack!" Some of Jack"s old school-mates essayed to stop him to find out what it was all about, but he would not relax a muscle, and he had no time to answer any questions. He saw the faces of the people dimly; he heard the crowd crying after him, "Stop, thief!" he caught a glimpse of his old teacher, Mr. Niles, regarding him with curiosity as he darted by; he saw an anxious look in Judge Kane"s face as he pa.s.sed him on a street corner.
But Jack held his eyes on Long Ben, whom he pursued as a dog does a fox.
He had steadily gained on the fellow, but Ben had too much the start, and, unless he should give out, there would be little chance for Jack to overtake him. One thinks quickly in such moments. Jack remembered that there were two ways of reaching the county clerk"s office. To keep the street around the block was the natural way,--to take an alley through the square was neither longer nor shorter. But by running down the alley he would deprive Long Ben of the spur of seeing his pursuer, and he might even make him think that Jack had given out. Jack had played this trick when playing hound and fox, and at any rate he would by this turn shake off the crowd. So into the alley he darted, and the bewildered pursuers kept on crying "Stop, thief!" after Long Ben, whose reputation was none of the best. Somebody ahead tried to catch the shabby young fellow, and this forced Ben to make a slight curve, which gave Jack the advantage, so that just as Ben neared the office, Jack rounded a corner out of an alley, and entered ahead of him, dashed up to the clerk"s desk and deposited the judgment.
"For record," he gasped.
The next instant the shabby young fellow pushed forward the mortgage.
"Mine first!" cried Long Ben.
"I"ll take yours when I get this entered," said the clerk quietly, as became a public officer.
"I got here first," said Long Ben.
But the clerk looked at the clock and entered the date on the back of Jack"s paper, putting "one o"clock and eighteen minutes" after the date. Then he wrote "one o"clock and nineteen minutes" on the paper which Long Ben handed him. The office was soon crowded with people discussing the result of the race, and a part of them were even now in favor of seizing one or the other of the runners for a theft, which some said had been committed on the packet, and others declared was committed on the wharf-boat. Francis Gray came in, and could not conceal his chagrin.
"I meant to do the fair thing by you," he said to Jack, severely, "but now you"ll never get a cent out of me."
"I"d rather have the law on men like you, than have a thousand of your sort of fair promises," said Jack.
"I"ve a mind to strike you," said Gray.
"The Kentucky law is hard on a man who strikes a minor," said Judge Kane, who had entered at that moment.
Mr. Niles came in to learn what was the matter, and Judge Kane, after listening quietly to the talk of the people, until the excitement subsided, took Jack over to his house, whence the boy trudged home in the late afternoon full of hopefulness.
Gray"s land realized as much as Mr. Beal expected, and Jack studied hard all summer, so as to get as far ahead as possible by the time school should begin in the autumn.
CHAPTER XXI
THE NEW TEACHER
The new teacher who was employed to take the Greenbank school in the autumn was a young man from college. Standing behind the desk hitherto occupied by the grim-faced Mr. Ball, young Williams looked very mild by contrast. He was evidently a gentle-spirited man as compared with the old master, and King Pewee and his crowd were gratified in noting this fact. They could have their own way with such a master as that! When he called the school to order, there remained a bustle of curiosity and mutual recognition among the children. Riley and Pewee kept up a little noise by way of defiance. They had heard that the new master did not intend to whip. Now he stood quietly behind his desk, and waited a few moments in silence for the whispering group to be still. Then he slowly raised and levelled his finger at Riley and Pewee, but still said nothing. There was something so firm and quiet about his motion--something that said, "I will wait all day, but you must be still"--that the boys could not resist it.
By the time they were quiet, two of the girls had got into a t.i.tter over something, and the forefinger was aimed at them. The silent man made the pupils understand that he was not to be trifled with.
When at length there was quiet, he made every one lay down book or slate and face around toward him. Then with his pointing finger, or with a little slap of his hands together, or with a word or two at most, he got the school still again.
"I hope we shall be friends," he said, in a voice full of kindliness.
"All I want is to----"
But at this point Riley picked up his slate and book, and turned away.
The master snapped his fingers, but Riley affected not to hear him.
"That young man will put down his slate." The master spoke in a low tone, as one who expected to be obeyed, and the slate was reluctantly put upon the desk.
"When I am talking to you, I want you to hear," he went on, very quietly. "I am paid to teach you. One of the things I have to teach you is good manners. You," pointing to Riley, "are old enough to know better than to take your slate when your teacher is speaking, but perhaps you have never been taught what are good manners. I"ll excuse you this time.
Now, you all see those switches hanging here behind me. I did not put them there. I do not say that I shall not use them. Some boys have to be whipped, I suppose,--like mules,--and when I have tried, I may find that I cannot get on without the switches, but I hope not to have to use them."
Here Riley, encouraged by the master"s mildness and irritated by the rebuke he had received, began to make figures on his slate.
"Bring me that slate," said the teacher.
Riley was happy that he had succeeded in starting a row. He took his slate and his arithmetic, and shuffled up to the master in a half-indolent, half-insolent way.
"Why do you take up your work when I tell you not to?" asked the new teacher.
"Because I didn"t want to waste all my morning. I wanted to do my sums."
"You are a remarkably industrious youth, I take it." The young master looked Riley over, as he said this, from head to foot. The whole school smiled, for there was no lazier boy than this same Riley. "I suppose,"
the teacher continued, "that you are the best scholar in school--the bright and shining light of Greenbank."
Here there was a general t.i.tter at Riley.