Read Online The Collected Fiction of William Hope Hodgson: The Dream Of X & Other Fantastic Visions by William Hope Hodgson - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: William Hope Hodgson
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Hannibal” reached Melbourne there were long and secret conferences in the ’prentices’ berth, or glory hole, during which the plan was fully matured. As James remarked:
“It should go off all right, you know. The skipper’s an awful old fool over any girl he can get to talk to him, an’ Tommy should be able to fetch him.”
“The old man’ll sure to want to kiss you, Tommy,” said one of the ’prentices in the other watch. “What’ll you do then?”
“I’ll smack his face for him, good an’ hard!” said Tommy, with gusto at the thought. “Guess I’ll get square with him. And I’ll fix the third mate, too. You’ll see!”
When Melbourne was reached the ’prentices clubbed their spare cash, and thereafter took to frequenting milliners’ and other shops dedicated to the daintying of woman.
At the conclusion of their purchases the whole six of the young rascals carted the bundles into the ’prentices’ berth, and, having locked the door and covered the ports, Master Tommy Dodd went through an elaborate “trying-on.”
At the end of his efforts, however, a queer silence possessed the glory hole; for Tommy, when finally dressed, from pretty shoes—which his slender feet and years allowed to be surprisingly small—to his mop of naturally curly, golden hair, made so dainty a girl that his fellow ’prentices felt all at once different towards him. He looked so like a girl. It was James who voiced the general feeling, when he said abruptly, “By George, youngster, you make a pretty girl!”
As James made the remark, there came a sharp rap on the berth door, and the voice of the third mate, demanding admittance. The lads looked from one to the other, in complete dismay; but Tommy perceived suddenly that the advent of the third mate might prove helpful, rather than otherwise; moreover, it was a good chance to test the efficiency of his disguise. And he whispered to the others to let the officer in quickly, before he began to suspect that something was up. This the lads now did, and the third mate burst in roughly, with a coarse remark, and looked suspiciously round. Then he saw the girl, standing demurely quiet by the table, and at sight of her quite extraordinary prettiness, he became suddenly so polite, that Tommy nearly burst out laughing. Instead, however, he took up his part in earnest, and looked at him with a primly disgusted look, that made the whole coarse bulk of the third mate abruptly realise itself, which cannot have been pleasant for him. Then Tommy turned to James, and said aloud, but in a nicely modulated voice:
“Well then, Mr. James, when you see my cousin, Mr. Dayrin, will you tell him, please, that his cousin, Jenny Dayrin, has been down to see him, and that I should like him to come up and spend a couple of days with us, if the captain will let him.”
The third mate, staring foolishly at this dainty girl of apparently near seventeen years, realised suddenly that she must be cousin to Tommy Dodd, though he had forgotten, until that moment, that the youth was properly named Dayrin. He made a resolve that as soon as Tommy came aboard, he would be nice with him. He hoped that Tommy would not blacken him to this pretty girl, who called the youngest ’prentice “cousin,” and had come down to invite him up, probably to some fine house. That was the worst of these beastly ’prentices, you never knew how to treat them, or where you had them, when you got into port—they had such swagger “people.”
For his part, Tommy—as he explained to the others afterwards—had killed many birds with one stone. By the simple act of letting the third mate see him, as his supposed girl-cousin, he had slain at birth any suspicions which might afterwards have arisen at the likeness of the girl, Jenny, both in face and voice, to Tommy Dodd, the ’prentice. Further, he had insured a cessation of the third mate’s bullying all the time that they were in port. He had also provided means whereby
“It should go off all right, you know. The skipper’s an awful old fool over any girl he can get to talk to him, an’ Tommy should be able to fetch him.”
“The old man’ll sure to want to kiss you, Tommy,” said one of the ’prentices in the other watch. “What’ll you do then?”
“I’ll smack his face for him, good an’ hard!” said Tommy, with gusto at the thought. “Guess I’ll get square with him. And I’ll fix the third mate, too. You’ll see!”
When Melbourne was reached the ’prentices clubbed their spare cash, and thereafter took to frequenting milliners’ and other shops dedicated to the daintying of woman.
At the conclusion of their purchases the whole six of the young rascals carted the bundles into the ’prentices’ berth, and, having locked the door and covered the ports, Master Tommy Dodd went through an elaborate “trying-on.”
At the end of his efforts, however, a queer silence possessed the glory hole; for Tommy, when finally dressed, from pretty shoes—which his slender feet and years allowed to be surprisingly small—to his mop of naturally curly, golden hair, made so dainty a girl that his fellow ’prentices felt all at once different towards him. He looked so like a girl. It was James who voiced the general feeling, when he said abruptly, “By George, youngster, you make a pretty girl!”
As James made the remark, there came a sharp rap on the berth door, and the voice of the third mate, demanding admittance. The lads looked from one to the other, in complete dismay; but Tommy perceived suddenly that the advent of the third mate might prove helpful, rather than otherwise; moreover, it was a good chance to test the efficiency of his disguise. And he whispered to the others to let the officer in quickly, before he began to suspect that something was up. This the lads now did, and the third mate burst in roughly, with a coarse remark, and looked suspiciously round. Then he saw the girl, standing demurely quiet by the table, and at sight of her quite extraordinary prettiness, he became suddenly so polite, that Tommy nearly burst out laughing. Instead, however, he took up his part in earnest, and looked at him with a primly disgusted look, that made the whole coarse bulk of the third mate abruptly realise itself, which cannot have been pleasant for him. Then Tommy turned to James, and said aloud, but in a nicely modulated voice:
“Well then, Mr. James, when you see my cousin, Mr. Dayrin, will you tell him, please, that his cousin, Jenny Dayrin, has been down to see him, and that I should like him to come up and spend a couple of days with us, if the captain will let him.”
The third mate, staring foolishly at this dainty girl of apparently near seventeen years, realised suddenly that she must be cousin to Tommy Dodd, though he had forgotten, until that moment, that the youth was properly named Dayrin. He made a resolve that as soon as Tommy came aboard, he would be nice with him. He hoped that Tommy would not blacken him to this pretty girl, who called the youngest ’prentice “cousin,” and had come down to invite him up, probably to some fine house. That was the worst of these beastly ’prentices, you never knew how to treat them, or where you had them, when you got into port—they had such swagger “people.”
For his part, Tommy—as he explained to the others afterwards—had killed many birds with one stone. By the simple act of letting the third mate see him, as his supposed girl-cousin, he had slain at birth any suspicions which might afterwards have arisen at the likeness of the girl, Jenny, both in face and voice, to Tommy Dodd, the ’prentice. Further, he had insured a cessation of the third mate’s bullying all the time that they were in port. He had also provided means whereby
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