The Pamphlet Collection of Sir Robert Stout: Volume 40
Chapter XXXII. — A Close Shave
Chapter XXXII.
A Close Shave.
The next morning the vessel reached Edgecombe, and the sheep and cattle were safely landed. There was some little bother in taking the young bull up the wharf, for directly he felt himself on terra firma, if a wooden wharf can be called hard ground, he became restive and played up a bit, but Philip held him firmly, and he soon gave in. Charley had arranged to put the two animals in a stockyard for the night, and the sheep in a paddock adjoining. Charley took charge of the old bull, and marched him off to the stockyard, and Philip followed, A man had come down to take the bull, but as he appeared rather frightened of the animal Charley took him himself.
"Don't let the dogs go, Charley," said Philip. "Wait till we get the sheep ashore. They will stay better with the sheep."
"All right," acquiesced Charley, busily engaged fastening the bull. "What an obstinate beast this is."
However, Charley got his nose ring in, and the stick fast to that, and Mr. Bully had to walk up the wharf. He just turned once or twice as if he was going to toss Charley into minute atoms, much to the alarm of the lookers on, but a prod or two in the nose with the stick soon brought him to his senses.
The animals were got into the yards safe enough, and tied up to the fence, and their nose rings taken out.
"We had better give them a little water," said Philip, and the man brought a couple of buckets of water to the gate.
Philip took his bucket, and as he happened to be close to the gate of the yard in which the old bull was he went in, leaving Charley to give the water to the young bull. (I call the bull old, but only in comparison with the young one. He was only five years of age or a little over.) The bull drank the water, and our friend Philip seeing him still holding down his head in the bucket, fancied he wanted more. He therefore went to take the bucket away, but no sooner was his hand fairly on the handle than the bull rushed him.
"Look out, Manning!" cried Charley from his yard, but there was no necessity for warning. Philip sprang across the yard at racing speed, and the bull after him. The yard was not more than thirty feet across, but the bull from his long confinement couldn't get up speed sufficient to catch Philip, in that short distance, who reached the fence just as the bull's horns were within six inches of him. Philip turned and saw the bull's head beneath him, and sprang up the fence all fours with the agility of a lamplighter, and sat on the top rail, and gazed at the animal still standing below, looking up at him, while Charley laughed so much at seeing Philip's frightened look and the way he went up the fence that he had to lean against a stockyard post.
"It's all very well, my boy," said Philip, walking along the top of the fence to where Charley stood, while the bull kept him company down below, wondering how Philip managed to get up there, and anxious to give him just one taste of his horns; "but if he had pinned me against the fence, he would have cracked me like a nutshell."
"What did you do to the beast?"
"Nothing," answered Philip. "I was just taking the bucket away. By Jove, where did I get that blood?" and then Philip perceived that his hands were smeared with blood.
"You must have got that taking the ring out of the young bull's nose." said Charley. "Why didn't you wash your hands?"
"Well, if I had known the beast was such a Tartar, I'd have been more careful. But let us go and get the sheep. You will have to keep an eye on that animal, Charley, or he will be up to mischief."
"I don't care much when we get him out on the run," answered Charley.
"You can't use a horse in your country, or I should like to have the cutting out of that gentleman," grimly thinking of a good stockwhip, said Philip, and they then went down and fetched up the sheep, much to the delight of Darkie and Lassie, who were as wild as two hares, and quite frightened the sheep up into the smallest of bunches. But a stone or two soon brought them to their senses, and they behaved properly, and took the sheep safely through the town.
As soon as the sheep were in their paddock our two friends went to Charley's hotel, brushed themselves up a little, and then strolled through the town. Charley had many things to see after, and Philip accompanied him into all the stores and shops he had to visit, where Charley arranged about saddlery and other matters.
"Everywhere Charley was received with the utmost courtesy and good nature. It was quite evident he was earning a good name with the people of Edgecombe. Besides, he had much money to spend, and so good a customer was not to be offended. Not that the people of Edgecombe, storekeepers or others, were needlessly attentive. They were a sterling race of colonists, and had too often borne arms in defence of their lives and their homes from the raids of the Maoris to be in any way sycophantic. The greater number of them had perhaps farms of their own, and they consequently felt themselves to be quite as independent as the greatest runholder in the land. It was Charley's bonhommie that carried the day with them, and made them ready to serve him with so much willingness and pleasure. Besides, were they not acquainted with large owners of property in the neighborhood who haggled over the price of a cask of biscuits, or tried various stores to see where a chest of tea could be purchased most cheaply. Charley was sufficiently careful in his purchases but never mean, and the consequence was that he lost nothing by it in the end, for people took care to supply him with the best they had, even if it cost a little more. Be warned therefore, oh ye runholders, taking up new country. Never haggle in the neighboring townships over the price of a teapot. It doesn't pay. A little liberality goes a long way, besides it is expected from a great landowner. In Charley's case there was not a resident who had had business transactions with him who would not cheerfully have looked after his two bulls, or given him a paddock for his sheep, had he requested such a favor for the next month to come, or any other such accommodation free gratis and for nothing. But we have not described Edgecombe to our readers, and we had better do so.
(To be continued)