The King's Own
Page 12
CHAPTER TWELVE.
Love me, love my dog. PROVERB.
It is the misfortune of those who have been in constant habits of deceitthat they always imagine others are attempting the same dishonestpractices. For some time McElvina felt convinced that our little herohad swerved from truth in the account which he gave of himself; and itwas not until after repeated catechisings, in which he found that,strange and improbable as the narrative appeared, Willy never alteredfrom or contradicted his original statement, that he believed the boy tobe as honest and ingenuous as might have been inferred from hisprepossessing countenance.
To this conviction, how ever, did he arrive at last; and our hero--whoseemed no sooner to have lost one protector than to have the goodfortune to find another--became the favourite and companion of his newcaptain, instead of his domestic, as had been originally contemplated.A lad of Willy's age, who is treated with kindness and consideration, issoon attached, and becomes reconciled to any change of circumstances.It was a matter of indifference to our hero whether he was on thequarter-deck of a man-of-war or in the cabin of a smuggling sloop.Contented with his present lot,--with the happy thoughtlessness ofyouth, he never permitted the future to disturb his repose or affect hisdigestion.
Willy had been nearly a month at Cherbourg when McElvina's sloop took inanother cargo. "Willy," said McElvina, one evening as they sat togetherin the apartment at the cabaret, "to-morrow I shall, in all probability,sail for the English coast. I have been thinking what I shall do withyou. I do not much like parting with you; but, on reflection, I thinkit will be better that I should leave you behind. You can be of no use,and may be in the way if we should be obliged to take to our boat."
Willy pleaded hard against this arrangement. "I never have a friend butI lose him directly," said the boy, and the tears started into his eyes.
"I trust you will not lose me, my dear fellow," replied McElvina, movedat this proof of affection; "but I must explain to you why I leave you.In the first place," added he, laughing, "with that mark on yourshoulder, it would be felony without benefit of clergy for you to befound in my possession; but of that I would run the risk. My seriousreasons are as follow:--If this trip proves fortunate, I shall notreturn to Cherbourg. I have business of importance in London, which mayrequire my presence for some weeks in that metropolis and its vicinity.I told you before, that I am about to take the command of a verydifferent vessel from this paltry sloop, and upon a more dangerousservice. In four or five months she will be ready to sail, and duringthat time I shall be constantly on the move, and shall hardly know whatto do with you. Now, Willy, you are not aware of the advantages ofeducation--I am: and as mine was given to me by strangers, so will I inreturn bestow as much upon you as I can afford. You must, therefore, goto school until my return. You will at least acquire the Frenchlanguage, and you will find that of no little use to you hereafter."
Willy, accustomed to discipline and to breathe the air of passiveobedience, submitted without raising any more objections. Debriseaujoined, and they all three sallied forth to make arrangements forplacing our hero "_en pension_," where they had been recommended.Having effected this, they agreed to lounge on the _Place d'Armes_ tillsunset, when they took possession of one of the benches. McElvina andDebriseau lighted their cigars, and puffed away in silence, while Willyamused himself with watching the promenaders as they passed in reviewbefore him.
They had not remained there many minutes when a poodle-dog, _bientondu_, and white as a sheep from the river before the day of shearing,walked up to them with an air of sagacious curiosity, and lookedMcElvina steadfastly in the face. McElvina, taking his cigar from hismouth, held it to the dog, who ran up to it, as if to smell it; thelighted end coming in contact with his cold nose, induced the animal toset up a loud yell, and retreat to his master much faster than he came,passing first one fore-paw and then the other over his nose, to wipeaway the pain, in such a ridiculous manner as to excite loud merriment,not only from our party on the bench, but also from others who hadwitnessed the scene.
"So much for curiosity," said McElvina, continuing his mirth. Theproprietor of the dog, a young Frenchman, dressed very much "_encalicot_," did not, however, seem quite so much amused with thispractical joke; he cocked his hat fiercely on one side, raised hisfigure to the utmost of its height, and walking up, _en grand militaire_addressed McElvina, with "_Comment, monsieur, vous avez fait une grandebetise-la--vous m'insultez_--"
"I think I had better not understand French," said McElvina, aside toDebriseau; then turning to the Frenchman, with a grave face, and air ofincomprehension,--"What did you say, sir?"
"Ah! you are Inglishman. You not speak French?"--McElvina shook hishead, and began to puff away his cigar.
"Den, sare, if you not speak de French language, I speak de Englis likevon natif; and I tell you, sare, _que vous m'avez insulte_. Got fordam!--you burnt my dog nose; vat you mean, sare?"
"The dog burnt his own nose," answered McElvina, mildly.
"Vat you mean? de dog burnt his own nose! How is a dog capable to burnhis own nose? Sare, you put de cigar to my dog nose. I must have de_satisfaction_ or de apology _tout de suite_."
"But, sir, I have not insulted you."
"Sare, you insult my dog--he is von and de same ting--_mon chien est unchien de sentiment_. He feel de affront all de same vid me--I feel deaffront all de same vid him. _Vous n'avez qu'a choisir, monsieur_."
"Between you and your dog," answered McElvina--"Well, then, I'd ratherfight the dog."
"Bah! fight de dog--de dog cannot fight, sare: _mais je suis son maitreet son ami_ and I vill fight for him."
"Well, then, monsieur, I did insult your dog, I must acknowledge, and Iwill give him the satisfaction which you require."
"And how vill you give de satisfaction to de dog?"
"Why, sir, you said just now that he was _un chien de beaucoup desentiment_:--if he is so, he will accept and properly appreciate myapology."
"Ah, sare," replied the Frenchman, relaxing the stern wrinkles of hisbrow, "_c'est bien dit_; you will make de apology to de dog. _Sansdoute_, he is de principal, I am only de second. _C'est une affairearrangee. Moustache, viens ici Moustache_" (the dog came up to hismaster). _Monsieur est tres fache de t'avoir brule le nez_.
"Monsieur Moustache," said McElvina, taking off his hat with mockgravity to the dog, who seemed determined to keep at a respectfuldistance, "_je vous demande mille excuses_."
"_Ah! que c'est charmant_!" cried some of the fair sex, who, as well asthe men, had been attracted by, and were listening to the dispute."_Que Monsieur l'Anglais est drole: et voyez Moustache, comme il a l'aircontent--vraiment c'est un chien d'esprit_."
"_Allez, Moustache_," said his master, who was now all smiles, "_donnezla patte a monsieur--donnez donc_. Ah, sare, he forgive you, I am verysure--_il n'a pas de malice_, but he is afraid of de cigar. De burntshild dred de _vater_, as your great Shakespeare say."
"_C'est un chien de talent: il a beaucoup de sentiment. Je suis bienfache de t'avoir blesse, monsieur_."
"_Et monsieur parle Francais_?"
"I should esteem myself fortunate, if I spoke your language as well asyou do mine," replied McElvina, in French.
This compliment, before so many bystanders, completely won the heart ofthe vain and choleric Frenchman.
"Ah, sare, you are too complaisant. I hope I shall have de pleasure tomake your acquaintance. _Je m'appelle Monsieur Auguste de Poivre. J'ail'honneur de vous presenter une carte d'adresse_. I live on de topof my mother's,--_sur l'entresol_. My mother live on deground--_rez-de-chaussee_. Madame _ma mere_ will be delighted toreceive a monsieur of so much vit and adresse." So saying, away wentMonsieur Auguste de Poivre, followed by Moustache, who was "_all von andde same ting_."
"Well, we live and learn," said McElvina, laughing, as soon as theFrenchman was at a little distance; "I never thought that I should havemade an apology to a dog."
"Oh, but," replied Debriseau, "you
forget that he was _Un chien desentiment_."
"You may imagine, from my behaviour, that I consider him a wiser puppythan his master, for he ran away from fire, whereas his master tried allhe could to get into it. Some of our countrymen would have humouredhim, and turned a comedy into a tragedy--I set a proper value on mylife, and do not choose to risk it about trifles."
"There has been more than one valuable life thrown away about a dog, inmy remembrance," said Debriseau. "I think you behaved in a sensiblemanner to get rid of the affair as you did; but you would have donebetter not to have burnt the dog's nose."
"Granted," replied McElvina; "the more so, as I have often remarked,that there is no object in the world, except your children or your ownself; in which the _meum_ is so powerful, and the _tuum_ so weak. Youcaress your own dog, and kick a strange one; you are pleased with theclamorous barking of your own cur, and you curse the same noise fromanother. The feeling is as powerful, almost, as that of a mother, whothinks her own ugly cub a cherub compared to others, and its squallingsthe music of the spheres. It is because there is no being thatadministers so much to the self-love of his master. He submits, withhumility, to the blows inflicted in the moment of irritation, and licksthe hand that corrects. He bears no revengeful feelings, and is readyto fondle and caress you the moment that your good humour returns. Heis, what man looks in vain for among his kind, a faithful friend,without contradiction--the _very perfection of a slave_. The abjectsubmission on his part, which would induce you to despise him, becomes amerit, when you consider his courage, his fidelity, and his gratitude.I cannot think what Mahomet was about when he pronounced his fiatagainst them, as _unclean_."
"Well," said Debriseau, "I agree with Mahomet that they are _not clean_,especially puppies. There's that little beast at Monsieur Picardon's, Ideclare--"
"Pooh," interrupted McElvina, laughing, "I don't mean it in that sense--I mean that, in a despotic country, the conduct of a dog towards hismaster should be held up as an example for imitation; and I think thatthe banner of the Moslem should have borne the dog, instead of thecrescent, as an emblem of blind fidelity and tacit submission."
"That's very true," said Debriseau; "but, nevertheless, I wishmademoiselle's puppy were either taught manners or thrown over thequay."
"_Ce n'est pas un chien de sentiment_," replied McElvina, laughing."But it is nearly dark. _Allons au cabaret_."
They returned to the inn; and the wind, on the ensuing morning, blowingstrong from a favourable quarter, Willy and Debriseau accompaniedMcElvina down to the mole, from whence he embarked on board of thesloop, which was already under way, and in the course of an hour was outof sight.
On the following day, Captain Debriseau accompanied Willy to the_pension_, where our hero remained nearly five months, occasionallyvisited by the Guernsey captain, when he returned from his smugglingtrips, and more rarely receiving a letter from McElvina, who had safelylanded his cargo, and was latterly at Havre, superintending the fittingout of his new vessel. Our hero made good progress during the fewmonths that he remained at the _pension_, and when McElvina returned totake him away, not only could speak the French language with fluency,but had also made considerable progress in what Sir W. C--- used todesignate in his toast as "the three R's,"--viz., "Reading, 'Riting, and'Rithmetic."
The lugger which had been built for McElvina by his employer was nowready, and, bidding farewell to Debriseau, who continued in theCherbourg trade, our hero and his protector journeyed _en diligence_ toHavre.