Chapter 7

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_ CHAPTER SEVEN.

"Master George!--Master George!"

The call was repeated, for I did not answer the first, my mouth being expanded to its fullest stretch in a tremendous yawn.

"Come down, and have some breakfast. You must want it sore."

The very fact of Sarah mentioning it made me feel a horrible sinking sensation, and as soon as my father gave leave for one of us to leave the post at the window, I came down to find that, though we up in the narrow loft had heard nothing, Sarah had been for some time preparing a good meal, which, whatever might be the perils awaiting us later on, we all ate with the greatest of enjoyment.

We had hardly finished when Morgan gave the alarm, and my father hurried to his post of observation, but only to conceal his piece directly, as he uttered the word "Friend!"

For our nearest neighbour, Colonel Preston, a tall, stern, rather overbearing man, came up, followed by a couple of men.

"I've come to give you warning, Bruton," he said.

"I tried to send you warning last night," replied my father.

"What! You know?"

"Do you not see how we are barricaded?"

"Oh, I thought it was because you were just getting up. The Indians came by here then?"

"Yes," said my father; and he briefly told of our adventure, and the watch we had kept.

"Well," said the colonel, sharply, and as I thought in rather a dictatorial way; "it all goes to prove that it was a mistake for you to isolate yourself here. You must move close up to us, so that in a case of emergency we can all act together."

"It would be better," said my father, quietly.

"Then you will come?"

"No; I selected this place for its beauty, as you chose yours. I should not like to give it up."

"You'll repent it, Bruton. You must have had a narrow escape last night."

"I do not know," said my father, thoughtfully. "Of course we were very suspicious of the reason for the Indians' visit, but they did us no harm."

"Nor to us. Our numbers overawed them, I suppose."

"Our numbers did not overawe them here," said my father, smiling; but he added rather bitterly, "If they had meant mischief, we could not have counted on your help."

"Nor we on yours," said the colonel, in a rather irritable manner. "Well, of course I have no right to dictate to you; but I may as well tell you that as soon as the Indians left us, we met together, and determined to erect a block-house or fort ready to flee to in case of emergency. It is for you to chose whether you will join us in the work."

"I shall join you, of course," said my father, quietly; and, refusing any refreshment, evidently to the great disgust of his men, who exchanged glances which evidently meant breakfast, the colonel walked off.

"See those two fellows, Master George?" whispered Morgan, as my father stood gazing thoughtfully after the colonel.

"Yes; why?"

"Never see two look more hungry in my life. They'd have cleared us out, see if they wouldn't. Good job there arn't many in the settlement like 'em."

"Why?" I said.

"Because we should soon be having a famine in the land. What are you laughing at, lad?"

"You," I said, as I recalled a number of Morgan's performances with the knife and fork.

He looked at me fiercely, and as if he were terribly offended; for Morgan's Welsh blood had a way of bubbling up and frothing over like mead; but directly after there was a bit of a twitch at one corner of his mouth, then a few wrinkles started out at each side of his face about the eyes, and began to spread all over till he was showing his teeth.

"Ah, well, Master George," he said, "I can see through you. Perhaps I aren't such a very bad trencherman. Sarah says I do eat. But what's the harm? Man can't work well without; nor more can't a fire burn without you keeps on putting plenty o' wood. But I say, my lad, when those Injin fellows came down upon us, I began to think I should never be hungry again. Did I look very much frightened?"

"No; I thought you looked very brave."

"Did I? Did you think so, Master George?"

"Yes; certainly."

"Now, you're not making fun of me, are you?"

"Certainly not."

"Well, come, I'm glad of that," said Morgan, brightening up; "because do you know, Master George, 'twix' you and me, I don't think I'm quite so good that way as I ought to be. I tried hard not to seem in a fright, but I was in one all the same, and seemed to feel arrows sticking into me, and them chopping at me with tomahawks. Wasn't pleasant, look you, was it?"

"No, and it was no wonder."

"No, sir, it warn't. But I say, Master George, you didn't feel so bad as that, did you?"

I glanced round to see if my father was within hearing, and then said with a laugh--

"I'm afraid I felt ever so much worse."

"Then we'll shake hands over it," said Morgan; "but I say, Master George, I'd give everything to know whether the master felt scared too."

"I don't think he did. Oh, I'm sure he did not. See how erect and firm he was."

"Ah, that's being a soldier, sir. They drill 'em up into being as stiff as can be, and to look as if they like it when they're being shot at. That's what makes English soldiers such fine fellows in a battle."

Further discussion was put an end to by the coming up to us of my father.

"You heard what Colonel Preston said, George?"

"Yes, father."

"About being safe, and the risk of fresh attacks by the Indians?"

"Yes, father; we heard every word--didn't we, Morgan?"

"Oh yes; everything, sir."

"Well," said my father, "it is quite possible that this party came to spy out the land so as to prepare for a descent. If this is so, there is a good deal of risk in staying here. I have made up my mind what to do under the circumstances."

"Oh, master! Oh, Captain Bruton!" broke out Morgan; "don't say that after the pains we took in getting our garden in order, and in helping to build the house, and never happy unless I was going to do something to make it look pretty, you're thinking of moving and letting some one else come in?"

"I think the risk is very great in staying; and that for your wife's sake, my son's, and yours, I perhaps ought to give up this, and go and take up fresh land close to my brother settlers."

"But, begging your pardon, sir, don't you think nothing of the sort again. What do you say, Master George?"

"Oh, I shouldn't like to go away from here," I said.

"There, sir! Hear that?" cried Morgan. "Why, if you come to reckon it up, how do you know that you're going to be safer there than here? If the Injins come, that's where they'll go for first, and we're just as likely to be killed there as here."

"Possibly, Morgan."

"And then look at the place, sir, all along by the big river. It arn't half so healthy as this. I never feel well there, and I know the land arn't half so rich."

"But we must study safety, my man," said my father.

"Of course we must, sir, so what's the good of being scared about some Injins, who may never come again, and running right into where there's likely to be fevers--and if some day there don't come a big flood and half drown 'em all, I'm a Dutchman, and wasn't born in Carnarvon after all."

"But there is another consideration, Morgan; we have some one else to look after--your wife."

"Oh, don't you trouble about me, sir," cried Sarah; and we looked up in astonishment. "I came out here to look after you and Master George, not for you to look after me."

"Why, what are you doing up there?" said my father, as Sarah's nose showed between the bars of the window of the loft.

"Keeping a sharp look-out for Indians, sir."

"That's right Sarah," cried Morgan. "And, I say, you don't think we had better go, do you?"

"Certainly not," said Sarah, sharply. "Just as we're getting the place and my kitchen so snug and comfortable. I should think not indeed."

"There, sir," cried Morgan, triumphantly.

"Well," said my father, "I had made up my mind to stop, at any rate as far as I was concerned, but I wished to give you all the opportunity of going up to the settlement."

"'Tchah, sir! I don't call that a settlement. But, begging your pardon, captain, speaking _as_ an old soldier _to_ an old soldier," continued Morgan, "what you say is ridickerlus."

"Morgan!" cried my father, sternly.

"Can't help it, sir, even if you order me pack-drill, or even black-hole and a flogging. Why, its ridickerlus for you as an officer to tell your men to forsake you and leave you in the lurch."

"But, my good fellow--"

"Ah, I haven't done yet, captain. You've worried me and gone on till it's mutiny in the ranks, and I refuse to obey."

"Well, George," said my father, "you hear this; what do you say?"

"I say it would be a horrid pity to go away and leave the place, father. Oh, don't! I like it ever so! And we're so happy here, and I don't believe the Indians will come again."

"Then you would not be afraid to stay here and take our chance? No," he said, reverently, "place ourselves in His hands, my boy, and be content."

"Amen to all that, sir, says I," cried Morgan, taking off his hat; and then I saw him close his eyes, and his lips were moving as he turned away.

"Thank you, Morgan," said my father, quietly; "and thank you too, my boy. We will not give up our restful, beautiful home for a scare. Perhaps if the Indians find that we wish to be at peace with them, they may never attempt to molest us. We will stay."

Morgan gave his leg a slap, and turned round to me.

"There, Master George!" he cried. "Why, with all these fruit and vegetables coming on, I should have 'most broke my heart, and I know our Sarah would have broken hers."

That day was after all a nervous one, and we felt as if at any moment an Indian might appear at the edge of the wood, followed by a body perhaps a hundred strong. So our vigilance was not relaxed, neither that day nor during the next week; but nothing occurred to disturb our peace, and the regular routine went on.

From what we heard at the settlement the idea of building a block-house had been for the present given up; but Morgan came back one morning, after a visit to the colonel's man, with some news which rather disturbed my father.

"Small schooner in the river?"

"Yes, sir."

"And you say that several of the gentlemen have been buying?"

"Yes, sir; that's right," said Morgan, "and the blacks are put to work in their plantations."

My father frowned and walked away, while I eagerly turned to Morgan for an explanation.

"Oh, it's all right enough, sir, what I tell you," said Morgan; "and seems to me they're right, so long as they treat 'em well. Here's lots of land wants clearing and planting, and one pair of hands can't do it, of course, and there's no men to be hired out here, so the gentlemen have been buying slaves."

"What a shame!" I cried. "How would you like to be bought for a slave?"

Morgan looked at me, then at the sky, then down at the ground; then away straight before him, as he took off his hat and scratched one ear.

"Humph!" he ejaculated, suddenly; "that's a puzzler, Master George. Do you know I never thought of that."

"It seems to me horribly cruel."

"But then, you see, Master George, they're blacks, and that makes all the difference."

I could not see it, but I did not say so, and by degrees other things took my attention. There was so much to see, and hear, and do, that I forgot all about Indians and blacks; or if they did come to mind at all as time went on, I merely gave them a passing thought, and went off to talk to Morgan, to set a trap, to fish, or to watch the beautiful birds that came into the sunny clearing about my home. _

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