Chatterbox, 1905 Part 106

Ten minutes later Ping w.a.n.g and the Pages arrived at the open gate, near which were some half-dozen dirty rascals playing some Chinese game. They were soldiers, but so interested were they in their game that they did not even glance at the people pa.s.sing in and out. Ping w.a.n.g told Fred and Charlie, later, that these imitations of soldiers usually pa.s.sed their time in that fas.h.i.+on.

Once in the town Charlie and Fred felt that they were comparatively safe, for it seemed that among the large population they would escape notice. No one appeared to suspect that they were not Chinamen, and Ping w.a.n.g, who had recently been regretting he had induced the Pages to take part in such a dangerous enterprise, became convinced that they would reach the house for which they were bound without any difficulty. The reason for entering the town was to discover from a cousin of his, who resided there, if Chin Choo were still alive. He knew that it was a risky thing for him to do to bring the Pages into the town, but he was convinced that to have left them by themselves outside would have been far more dangerous.

'In a few minutes,' he said, quietly, 'we shall arrive at my cousin's house. He is a Christian, and will not let any one know that you are Englishmen. He will give us a meal, and then we can start off refreshed to Kw.a.n.g-ngan.'

But before they had gone another fifty yards, and just as they were pa.s.sing a big building, which Ping w.a.n.g whispered was the residence of some high official, some twenty Yamen runners, or policemen, suddenly rushed out of the courtyard and seized the three of them. The men were armed with swords, and to have resisted would have been madness. Ping w.a.n.g indignantly asked to be told why they were treated thus, but got no reply. Charlie and Fred had the good sense not to utter a word, for, although they believed that it had been discovered that they were Europeans, they were determined not to convict themselves. With unnecessary roughness they were hurried into the courtyard from which their captors had sallied, and before long a mandarin came out of the house to inspect them. He was not attired in his official clothes, and did not come within twenty yards of the prisoners, but after a glance at them made some remark to the leader of the men who had captured them, and then returned indoors.

Ping w.a.n.g was still ignorant of the cause of their arrest, but, as no cries of 'Foreigners!' had been raised, he knew that it had not yet been discovered that Charlie and Fred were Europeans. Once again he demanded to be told why they had been arrested, but, instead of replying, the leader raised his bamboo cane menacingly. As Ping w.a.n.g had no desire to be beaten, he made no further efforts to solve the mystery of their arrest. His sole anxiety now was as to what would be done to them. That they were supposed to have committed some crime he guessed, and that they would be punished, although they had not been tried, he was also sure.

Without any delay, Charlie, Fred, and Ping w.a.n.g were marched out of the courtyard, and through the streets, until they came to a large building, which Ping w.a.n.g recognised with dismay as a prison. But, with a thrill of hope, he found that they were not taken into the prison, but marched round the wall until they came to a spot where there were half-a-dozen wooden collars lying on the ground. These wooden collars are very much like the old English pillory, with the exception that the person who has to wear the instrument is not placed on a platform, but stands or sits on the ground.

Charlie and Fred did not recognise the instruments of punishment, and, when they were suddenly flung to the ground, they imagined that they were about to be executed. As they felt the collars tighten round their necks, and had their hands pushed through two holes lower down on the wooden board, they came to the conclusion that they were to be tortured to death. But when they found that nothing more was done to them they turned their heads--as far as their wooden collars would permit--to see how their companion was faring. Then, seeing each other, they understood the nature of their punishment.

The Chinamen, having chained the wooden collars to the prison wall, departed, leaving the three prisoners to the tender mercies of any pa.s.sers-by.

'Now they are all gone I must speak,' Charlie exclaimed. 'How long will they keep us in these things?'

'I haven't the faintest idea,' Ping w.a.n.g answered.

For fully half an hour they did not speak a word. Scores of people pa.s.sed them during that time, but very few took any notice of them, for it was by no means an unusual sight to see prisoners there. Two or three chaffed them, but no one molested them. Their first tormentors were two boys, who walked up and down in front of them, pulling their noses as they pa.s.sed; but, fortunately, an official, whose duty it was to pay periodical visits to men in their position, came in sight, and the young rascals fled in alarm.

This official, who was aged, smiled with delight at having caused the boys to go without much exertion on his part. He wore a hat which reminded Charlie and Fred of a candle-extinguisher. In other respects his costume did not differ from that of any ordinary Chinaman.

'Venerable uncle,' Ping w.a.n.g exclaimed as soon as the old man reached them, 'why are your dogs of servants placed in the wooden collars?'

The old man smiled, for in his time he had heard hundreds of prisoners ask that question. Nevertheless he replied, for he always treated prisoners courteously, having seen many respectable men in the position of his questioner.

'Did not my honourable brothers steal a horse that belonged to the foreigners?' he asked.

'Your dogs of servants have not stolen anything.'

The old man laughed incredulously. 'The foreigners say that you did,' he declared.

'They have not seen us.'

'But they have declared to the mandarin that three men stole their horse at daybreak. Therefore you were arrested.'

Having given this very unsatisfactory piece of information, the old man calmly walked away.

When he was out of hearing, Ping w.a.n.g said to his friends in misfortune: 'We are arrested for horse-stealing. Some foreigners--missionaries, I imagine, as there are not likely to be any other Europeans in this place--have complained that they have had their horse stolen by three men. Evidently the mandarin, or one of his subordinates, promised to inquire into the matter, and, in order to give the missionaries the impression that they had caught the thieves, ordered the arrest of any three men. Apparently we happened to be pa.s.sing just as the Yamen runners started out, and therefore they took us. Now the mandarin will inform the missionaries that he has had the thieves caught and punished.'

Nothing more was said by either of the unfortunate prisoners for nearly an hour, so continuously were people pa.s.sing to and fro. Their necks were aching terribly, and, in spite of their determination not to lose heart, they became very dispirited.

(_Continued on page 324._)

A COAT OF PAINT.

'I want the boat smartened up a bit, Jack. You will lend a hand this afternoon, and help me to give her a fresh coat of paint.'

'What is the use of wasting paint over an old thing like that, Grandfather? You only use her for taking out the lobster-pots. I wish we had a good boat we could hire out to visitors.'

'"If wishes were horses, beggars would ride,"' the old man said, 'or perhaps, in the present case, they would sail. But I have not quite enough money put by for a new boat yet.'

'And there is little chance of making any,' Jack grumbled.

'Well, we must just make the best of what we have got. And, you know, Jack, I must have things s.h.i.+p-shape about me, and so, even if the _Mary Jane_ has seen her best days, she can still be kept spick and span as well as seaworthy.'

'There would be some sense in keeping a smart little craft which looked nice,' Jack argued, 'but this old tub is only fit for firewood.'

'Now, look here, sonny, suppose I were to say, "It is no use for an old fellow like me to try to look respectable. I will just have done with brush and comb, soap and water, and go in rags, and will leave it for the young folks to be smart and tidy?"'

'Oh, that wouldn't do at all!' Jack said, looking at the old man, with his jolly ruddy face and white hair. 'Granny would never allow that.'

'And I am not going to allow my old _Mary Jane_ to be slovenly either.

But I will manage the job myself if old folks and old boats are not worth your troubling about.'

Now this made Jack rather ashamed of his reluctance to help, so in the afternoon he came and worked with a will, until the old boat in her new dress looked as if she had grown young again.

Indeed, the fresh paint had such a smart appearance that a little girl pa.s.sing down to the beach stopped and gazed at it with admiration.

'Look, Daddy,' she called to her father. 'Isn't it a dear little boat? Could we have it to go for a row?'

'It certainly looks broad and safe enough for a small girl who finds it difficult to keep still,' was the answer, and the result was an arrangement to hire the boat at intervals for the rest of the summer season.

And when the _Mary Jane_ was laid up for the winter, Jack and his grandfather counted their earnings, and found that enough had been gained to make up the sum wanted for a new boat.

'That coat of paint was worth something after all,' the old man said.

'And remember, sonny, that "taut and trim" is a good motto to hold by whether your work lies among boats or not.'

M. H.

[Ill.u.s.tration: "Jack worked with a will."]

[Ill.u.s.tration: GOOD NEWS OF THE BOY.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: October 21st, 1805.]

A HUNDRED YEARS AGO.

True Tales of the Year 1805.