Read Online All Things Bright and Beautiful by James Herriot - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: James Herriot
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it. He kept up a steady flow of light conversation and Mr. Kendall, showing great character, managed to get his smile back on and answer back. But his preoccupied manner, the tortured eyes and the repeated incredulous glances back along the byre floor in the direction of the cow betrayed the fact that he was under immense strain.
Siegfried didn’t hurry over the calf and when he had finished he lingered a while in the yard, chatting about the weather, the way the grass was springing, the price of fat bullocks.
Mr. Kendall hung on grimly but by the time Siegfried finally waved farewell the farmer’s eyes were popping and his face was an anguished mask. He bolted back into the byre and as the car backed round I could see him bent double with his glasses on again, peering into the corners.
“Poor fellow,” I said. “He’s still looking for that thing. And for God’s sake where is it, anyway?”
“I told you, didn’t I?” Siegfried removed one arm from the wheel and shook it. A round fleshy ball rolled down into his hand.
I stared at it in amazement. “But…I never saw you take it off…what happened?”
“I’ll tell you.” My partner smiled indulgently. “I was fingering it over to see how deeply it was attached when I felt it begin to move. The back of it was merely encapsulated by the skin and when I gave another squeeze it just popped out and shot up my sleeve. And after it had gone the lips of the skin sprang back together again so that you couldn’t see where it had been. Extraordinary thing.”
Tristan reached over from the back seat. “Give it to me,” he said. “I’ll take it back to college with me and get it sectioned. We’ll find out what kind of tumour it is.”
His brother smiled. “Yes, I expect they’ll give it some fancy name, but I’ll always remember it as the only thing that shook Mr. Kendall.”
“That was an interesting session in there,” I said. “And I must say I admired the way you dealt with that eye, Siegfried. Very smooth indeed.”
“You’re very kind, James,” my partner murmured. “That was just one of my little tricks—and of course the forceps helped a lot.”
I nodded. “Yes, wonderful little things. I’ve never seen anything like them. Where did you get them?”
“Picked them up on an instrument stall at the last Veterinary Congress. They cost me a packet but they’ve been worth it. Here, let me show them to you.” He put his hand in his breast pocket then his side pockets, and as he continued to rummage all over his person a look of sick dismay spread slowly across his face.
Finally he abandoned the search, cleared his throat and fixed his eyes on the road ahead.
“I’ll er…I’ll show you them some other time, James,” he said huskily.
I didn’t say anything but I knew and Siegfried knew and Tristan knew.
He’d left them on the farm.
7
O NE OF THE NICEST things about my married life was that my new wife got on so well with the Farnon brothers. And this was fitting because both of them had done their utmost to further my suit, Siegfried by means of some well-timed kicks in the pants, Tristan by more subtle motivation. The young man had been reassuring when I consulted him in the dispensary about my wooing that early summer morning.
“Well, it’s a good sign.” Tristan reluctantly expelled a lungful of Woodbine smoke and looked at me with wide, encouraging eyes.
“You think so?” I said doubtfully.
Tristan nodded “Sure of it. Helen just rang you up, did she?”
“Yes, out of the blue. I haven’t seen her since I took her to the pictures that night and it’s been hectic ever since with the lambing—and suddenly there she was asking me to tea on Sunday.”
“I like the sound of it,” Tristan said. “But of course you don’t want to get the idea you’re home and dry or anything like that. You know there are others in the field?”
“Hell, yes, I suppose I’m one of a crowd.”
“Not exactly, but Helen Alderson
Siegfried didn’t hurry over the calf and when he had finished he lingered a while in the yard, chatting about the weather, the way the grass was springing, the price of fat bullocks.
Mr. Kendall hung on grimly but by the time Siegfried finally waved farewell the farmer’s eyes were popping and his face was an anguished mask. He bolted back into the byre and as the car backed round I could see him bent double with his glasses on again, peering into the corners.
“Poor fellow,” I said. “He’s still looking for that thing. And for God’s sake where is it, anyway?”
“I told you, didn’t I?” Siegfried removed one arm from the wheel and shook it. A round fleshy ball rolled down into his hand.
I stared at it in amazement. “But…I never saw you take it off…what happened?”
“I’ll tell you.” My partner smiled indulgently. “I was fingering it over to see how deeply it was attached when I felt it begin to move. The back of it was merely encapsulated by the skin and when I gave another squeeze it just popped out and shot up my sleeve. And after it had gone the lips of the skin sprang back together again so that you couldn’t see where it had been. Extraordinary thing.”
Tristan reached over from the back seat. “Give it to me,” he said. “I’ll take it back to college with me and get it sectioned. We’ll find out what kind of tumour it is.”
His brother smiled. “Yes, I expect they’ll give it some fancy name, but I’ll always remember it as the only thing that shook Mr. Kendall.”
“That was an interesting session in there,” I said. “And I must say I admired the way you dealt with that eye, Siegfried. Very smooth indeed.”
“You’re very kind, James,” my partner murmured. “That was just one of my little tricks—and of course the forceps helped a lot.”
I nodded. “Yes, wonderful little things. I’ve never seen anything like them. Where did you get them?”
“Picked them up on an instrument stall at the last Veterinary Congress. They cost me a packet but they’ve been worth it. Here, let me show them to you.” He put his hand in his breast pocket then his side pockets, and as he continued to rummage all over his person a look of sick dismay spread slowly across his face.
Finally he abandoned the search, cleared his throat and fixed his eyes on the road ahead.
“I’ll er…I’ll show you them some other time, James,” he said huskily.
I didn’t say anything but I knew and Siegfried knew and Tristan knew.
He’d left them on the farm.
7
O NE OF THE NICEST things about my married life was that my new wife got on so well with the Farnon brothers. And this was fitting because both of them had done their utmost to further my suit, Siegfried by means of some well-timed kicks in the pants, Tristan by more subtle motivation. The young man had been reassuring when I consulted him in the dispensary about my wooing that early summer morning.
“Well, it’s a good sign.” Tristan reluctantly expelled a lungful of Woodbine smoke and looked at me with wide, encouraging eyes.
“You think so?” I said doubtfully.
Tristan nodded “Sure of it. Helen just rang you up, did she?”
“Yes, out of the blue. I haven’t seen her since I took her to the pictures that night and it’s been hectic ever since with the lambing—and suddenly there she was asking me to tea on Sunday.”
“I like the sound of it,” Tristan said. “But of course you don’t want to get the idea you’re home and dry or anything like that. You know there are others in the field?”
“Hell, yes, I suppose I’m one of a crowd.”
“Not exactly, but Helen Alderson
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