Captain Mugford: Our Salt and Fresh Water Tutors, Page 5

  CHAPTER FIVE.

  BATH BAY LESSON--THE MIDNIGHT COUNCIL.

  June came before we had made acquaintance with all the corners of ourlittle new world. Every day it grew in interest to us, and, with theincreasing fine weather, was the most beautiful spot on earth in oureyes. Once a week one of us was allowed to go over to the town withClump, in his rowboat, and get letters from the post-office. Thatopportunity was always improved to purchase stores of groceries andother requisites. Each one's turn to be commissary only came once infive weeks.

  Clump enjoyed those trips as much as we did. He would have meat orother things to get for the table, but would always reach the boat firstin returning, and when he saw his "young master?"--as he called each ofus boys--coming down the wharf loaded with a week's supply of variousthings, the old darky would commence to grin and slap his sharp knees,the slaps growing quicker and the grin breaking into "yha! yha! yhi!" aswe drew near enough to show him our different purchases.

  There was always a new pipe or a paper of tobacco for Clump, which hewould lay on the seat beside him, and then put out the oars and pullwith long, slow sweeps for our neck, each swing accompanied by a grunt,which, however, did not break the conversation he carried on, chieflytelling us stories of my father when he came as a boy, which oftenlasted till we reached our destination. Many a frolic and adventurewould he thus relate with great gusto, and he had generally, too, someremembrance of my grandfather to repeat.

  About the twentieth of June, the water was warm enough to allow us tobathe, and then began that exercise, the most useful and most wholesome,and perhaps among the most manly that a boy can practise.

  Walter and both the Higginsons could swim. Drake and I were beginners.Captain Mugford was our teacher. He chose a little bay within, as itwere, the large bay on the neck end of our cape. Bath Bay, as we namedit, was about two hundred and fifty yards long, and sixty to seventyyards wide. Its shores were rocks, except at its bow end, where a softbeach sloped gradually for forty feet from the shore. About fifteenfeet beyond our depth the Captain had anchored a stationary staging,which was merely an old flatboat caulked and floored over. It had stepsand ropes from its sides, and was intended as the first object to reachand rest on when we had learned to swim a dozen or more strokes.Farther on, halfway the length of Bath Bay, was a large flat rock, whichstood at high-tide two feet above water. Its sides were almostperpendicular, and were made accessible in the same way as "Youngster'sWharf." By that name those who could already swim called our stagingnear the beach. Leander's Rock, for we had a name for everything, had adepth of nearly thirty feet, and a finer place for diving cannot beimagined. Bath Bay was shut in by its wall-like sides and a bluffbehind the sand-beach from all the severe winds, but after a storm outat sea we would get an even swell that was very pleasant to float on.

  Our time for bathing was between the close of school at half-after oneand our dinner-hour, three. All through the season, until early inOctober, we never lost a bath unless rain was falling heavily, sogreatly did we enjoy it under the Captain's care. He would not havebathing-houses for us, as he said that the sun-bath after a swim wasalmost as good as the salt water itself. The Captain was always nearthe swimmers, in his punt, that in case of accident his assistance mightbe immediate.

  Boys, if you have ever read Benjamin Franklin's directions to thoselearning to swim, you will understand the methods our Captain pursued toteach us. In his boat he was always dressed in bathing-clothes, andwould often jump out to show us by example how to swim under water, howto float, how to dive, etcetera. I can assure you we enjoyed that sportas much as any we had, and before many weeks had passed we could allswim a few strokes. By the close of the season, I, the youngest pupil,could swim out to Leander's Rock, dive from it twenty feet deep, andswim ashore again easily. But more about Bath Bay, and our adventuresthere, hereafter.

  After our baths and Juno's nice dinners we usually went to sail, and ina few weeks the Captain let some of us take the helm, he sitting by toinstruct us, and to remedy, if need be, any mistake of the young sailorwho happened to be our skipper at the time. Sometimes, instead ofsailing, we would row in an excellent boat which we had for thatpurpose, and, four of us being at the oars, try how quick time we couldmake from point to point of the shore. With such practice, we maderapid improvements and by the middle of July could row a mile in twelveminutes; a month before we could only do that in twenty minutes.Sometimes Mr Clare and the captain took oars in our boat; at othertimes they rowed against us in the Captain's punt. That was gloriousfun, and how we fellows did strive to beat our tutors, and often camevery near it too--so near that we determined, if there was any merit inTRY, to do it yet.

  One night--it was about the 2nd of June, if my memory serves me--when wehad gone up to our rooms for bed, and got undressed, Walter, who hadbeen very quiet ever since our row in the afternoon when our tutorscontended with and beat us as usual, called us to order, that we mightorganise, he said, as a regular boat club. We answered, "Good!""Good!" and each boy, putting a pillow on his footboard, took asenatorial seat--each boy arrayed in the flowing cotton nightgown. Whensilence ensued, Walter addressed us in his energetic, determined way,but lowered his voice that not a whisper of our deliberations mightreach the ears of Mr Clare, who was only separated from us by apartition.

  "Fellows, we _must_ beat our tutes--we _must_ beat them, that is what Isay. Let's get our boat in good order immediately--let's call her the_Pupil_--let's row every day, but not alongside of our adversary--no,no!--but where we can't be seen, and for two hard hours each day. And Imove we have a coxswain, and that Bob be the boy--he is small, quick,and cool. Let's challenge our tutes to-morrow for a race."

  "Agreed--agreed! hurrah!" we all shouted.

  "For a race, I say, on, let me see, the anniversary of the gloriousbattle of Waterloo."

  "Grand! splendid! hurrah!" were our interruptions again, and Drakeexpressed his delight by taking the pillow from beneath him, andslinging it with tremendous speed at Alf Higginson's head, who inconsequence fell off his perch like a dead squirrel from a pine-tree.Alf fell heavily on his side, and we roared with laughter; but he was upin a moment, and rushed at Drake with a bolster. Walter, our dignifiedchairman, swooped down from his perch in a second, and catching theincensed Alfred by the extremity of his flying robe, slung him under abed.

  "Order! Order, boys!" he cried. "Pretty fellows you are to hold ameeting. You, Drake! pitch any more pillows, and we'll slide you out ofthe window. There, stop your racket! Mr Clare is up. Before he comeshurry up and say, all together, `We will beat.'"

  "We will beat," was responded as fiercely as if life was at stake, and,as Mr Clare opened the door to ascertain what was the disturbance, fiveinnocent boys were under blankets and apparently sleeping the deepestslumber. Drake had even reached a regular bass snore. The moonlightstreaming in the room, and which showed us a smile breaking irresistiblyon Mr Clare's face, was not more placid than we. The door had hardlyclosed behind Mr Clare before Harry Higginson had sprung from his bed,and, almost on the space our tutor had stood a half second before, wasenacting a ridiculous and vigorous pantomime of kicking our "fresh tute"from the room. As quickly the door opened again, and before Harry couldget a single limb in order, Mr Clare had him by the arm. But the wholeaffair was too humorous for even Mr Clare's dignity. He could only say"So you are the noisy one, Henry Higginson. You can get in bed now asquickly as you got out of it, and to-morrow, when the afternoon's studyis done, recite to me fifty lines of Virgil--from the twentieth to theseventieth line of the first book."

  With that, Mr Clare went from the room, and Harry, with a low, long,whistled "phew," sought his bed disconsolately.

  The next day after lessons I, as coxswain, by Walter's order, handedcopies of the following note to Captain Mugford and Mr Clare:--

  "Cape ---, June 3, 1816.

  "Messrs. Mugford and Clare,

  "The oarsmen of the galley _Pupil_ would here
by challenge the gentlemen of the boat _Tutor_ to a race on the eighteenth of June, in Bath Bay waters. The course to be from Youngster's Wharf around Leander's Rock, and return. Stakes to be--the championship of Bath Bay. The oarsmen of the _Pupil_ would respectfully propose three p.m. as the hour for the race, and the firing of a gun the signal for the start. The oldest inhabitant, Clump, offers his services as umpire, referee, judge, and signalman.

  "All which is submitted for the acceptance and concurrence of the gentlemen of the _Tutor_.

  "(Signed) Walter Tregellin, Henry C. Higginson, Drake Quincy Tregellin, Alfred Higginson, _Oarsmen_,

  "Robert Tregellin, _Coxswain_."

  Mr Clare, when he read it, smiled and said he would see about it, andthen turned to Henry and asked him if he had learned those fifty linesyet.

  Captain Mugford was presented with his copy as he entered the house fordinner. "Hu-um!" he said, as he took the note in the hand with his hat,and wiped his red, wet forehead with an immense silk handkerchiefprinted with the maritime flags of all nations. "A note! Who writes menotes? Some of your nonsense, boys, eh?" So he hitched up his trousersand sat down on the doorstep, placing the red handkerchief in his hatbeside him. "Let's see!"

  "Good! good! that's very good. The middies have got their courage up.The idea of such a stiff old seadog racing with you youngsters!"

  "But you will though, won't you, Captain, and make Mr Clare, too?" saidHarry.

  "Perhaps, boys, if Mr Clare will join, and then we will make you smart.And I tell you what, young gentlemen, if you beat I'll give you asplendid Malay race-boat that I have had stored in my ship-loft thesethree years."

  "Hurrah! Captain, we shall win the boat!" we all cried.

  "Ha! ha! what boys for warm weather! You talk as brave as a west wind.But I smell Juno's cooking; let's go in and talk it over with Mr Clareand a warm dish of stew."

  It was all settled to our satisfaction before dinner was over. MrClare enjoyed the thing as much as the Captain, and declared they wouldhave to practise together once a week. As for us, we never missed ourtwo hours' pull every afternoon, rain or shine, blow high or blow low,until the all-important day proposed for the race.