Will of the Mill Part 20

"Oh, I say, Mr Manners, play fair!" cried Josh. "Why, I'm sure that we've behaved beautifully lately."

"Very," cried the artist. "Why, you young dogs, I've watched you!

You've both been sitting on mischief eggs for weeks. It isn't your fault that they didn't hatch."

"Doing what?" cried Josh.

"Well, trying to scheme some new prank. Only you've used up all your stuff, and couldn't think one out."

The boys exchanged glances, and there was a peculiar twinkle in their eyes, a look that the artist interpreted, and knew that he had judged aright.

"But you'll be down again in the spring, Mr Manners?" cried Will.

"I hope so, my lad. I've grown to look upon Beldale as my second home.

I say, you'll come and help me pack my canvases?"

"Of course! Are you going to stick up your toadstool to-day?"

"No; it's going to rain again. It has been raining in the night up in the hills."

"Yes," said Josh; "the big fall is coming down with a regular roar."

"But what about the dam?" said the artist.

"Full, as it ought to be; they're going to open the upper sluice."

"When?" said Manners.

"This afternoon," cried Will.

"Ah, I'll come and see it done. And about my canvases: I must have some pieces of wood to nail round and hold them together."

"As you did last time?" said Will. "Well, old Boil O did that. Won't you let him do it again?"

"I've been after him twice, and whenever I spoke he turned away.

Suppose I come down to the mill workshop. We can cut some strong laths there."

"Of course," said Will; "this afternoon, when we've seen them open the sluice."

"Good," said the artist. "I will be there; but look here, let's carry the canvases down; there are only twelve. Nothing like the present.

I'll bring them now."

"You mean, we'll take them now," said Will, correctively.

The matter was arranged by their taking four each.

"Going to take them below to the mill to pack, Mrs Drinkwater," said Manners, as they went down the path.

"Dear, dear, sir," said the woman, sadly; "it seems so early, and it'll be very dull when you're gone."

"Next spring will soon come, Mrs Drinkwater," said Manners, cheerily; and the trio strolled on together, to come, at the angle of the second zig-zag, plump upon Drinkwater, with one arm round a birch trunk, his right hand to his s.h.a.ggy brow, leaning away from the path as far as he could, as if gazing down at the dam.

"Morning, Drinkwater," cried Manners, cheerily.

The man started violently, stared at the canvases, then at their bearer, and hurried away in amongst the trees.

"Nice cheerful party that to live with, lads," said the artist, laughingly. "Only fancy being his wife!"

"Yes," said Josh; "and now you see if he don't turn worse than ever. I know."

"Know what?" said Will.

"He'll be as disagreeable as possible, because he's not going to nail up the canvases, and lay it all on his poor wife."

"He'd better not let me hear him," said Manners. "Surly brute!

Wouldn't do it himself, and now turns nasty. I saw his savage looks! I should just like to shake some of his temper out of him. Takes a lot of your father's physic, Josh, to set him right."

"Time?" cried the boy. "Ah, he'll have to have a stronger dose."

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN.

MYSTERIOUS SOUNDS.

There was not much to see. The great pool was very full--a great, V-shaped sheet of water, or elongated triangle, whose shortest side was formed by the ma.s.sive stone dam built across the narrow valley, standing some forty feet high from its base, to keep back the waters, and being naturally, when full, forty feet deep at its lower end.

Mr Willows and two men were at one end of the wall when Manners and the boys climbed on to it that afternoon, to stand in the middle looking up the valley over the long sheet of water to where it dwindled from some fifty yards wide to less than as many feet.

One of the upper sluices was opened, and though the great mill-wheel in its shed far below was going round at its most rapid rate, urged by the stream of water which pa.s.sed along the chute, a good-sized fall was spurting out by the upper sluice.

These two exits were, however, not enough to keep the water down, so rapid was the flow from the hills to swell the stream, and the water in the great pool still rose. Hence it was that the second sluice was to be opened, and in a few minutes a third rush added its roar to that of the other two. Mr Willows stood watching for a few minutes, till he had satisfied himself by observing the painted marks upon a post that the water had ceased to rise, and then he walked away, leaving the others to chat with the men, who hung back for a few minutes after securing the sluice door, before going down to resume their regular work in the mill.

"Not much of a time for trout fis.h.i.+ng, Mr Manners, sir," said one of the men.

"No," was the reply; "it is all over for the season for me."

"Suppose so, sir. Have you young gents been below there to have a look at the eel-box?"

"Eels?" said Manners. "Ah, I like eels."

"There'll be plenty to-night, sir; they'll be well on the move after sundown. I shouldn't be surprised if there was a good take."

"We ought to be there to see," said Will. "The rains will have brought them down. It's rare fun catching the slippery beggars. You'll help, won't you, Mr Manners?"

"Rather a slimy job," was the reply; "but I'll put on an old coat and pair of trousers, and come. What time?"

"About eight o'clock. That'll do," said Will. "Then you can come in to supper afterwards with us."