Chatterbox, 1905.

V >> Various >> Chatterbox, 1905.

Pages:
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | 37 | 38 | 39 | 40 | 41 | 42 | 43 | 44 | 45 | 46 | 47 | 48 | 49 | 50 | 51 | 52 | 53 | 54

I soon got back, and a relief party was at once sent in the ice-yacht to
fetch Tom away in triumph.

[Illustration: "As we cleared the water we could hear the wolves close
behind."]

[Illustration: The treasure at last.]

AFLOAT ON THE DOGGER BANK.

A Story of Adventure on the North Sea and in China.

(_Concluded from page 403._)

CHAPTER XXV.

'Now's our time to get the treasure,' Charlie said. 'The fighting is
nearly at an end, and the sailors won't want our help now.'

'Come along, then,' Fred answered; 'and I hope that we shall do better
this time than last.'

Much to their surprise they found that the gate was open.

'Chin Choo has fled,' Ping Wang declared, on seeing that the gate was
unprotected, and they heard later in the day that the rascally mandarin,
after making a very warlike speech to his countrymen, had sneaked out of
the town, and was on his way to Peking.

As Charlie, Fred, and Ping Wang entered Chin Choo's enclosure they were
more excited than ever they had been during the siege of Su-ching, or
the storming of Kwang-ngan; for they knew that in a few minutes they
would discover whether or not their journey to China had been a
fruitless one. Several of Chin Choo's servants, their pockets and arms
loaded with loot, hurried out at the back of the house as Charlie, Fred,
and Ping Wang approached it. They did not interfere with the thieves,
but the thought that they had, perhaps, already taken away the idol
occurred to each of them. They quickened their speed, and ran up the
verandah steps together.

'There is the idol!' Ping Wang exclaimed, excitedly; and Charlie and
Fred saw a brass image standing in the corner of a room which opened
from the verandah.

Ping Wang went down on his knees, and grasping the right forearm of the
image, tugged at it. To the amazement of Charlie and Fred, he pulled the
idol's arm forward from its body until it was in an almost horizontal
position. Then, placing his fingers on the spot where the idol's hand
had lain, he pushed to the right its crossed legs, and showed to Charlie
and Fred that the brass pedestal on which the figure sat was practically
a jewel-box.

'Marvellous!' Charlie muttered; but his and Fred's delight was greater
still when Ping Wang took out of it a little piece of cloth, and,
unrolling it, exhibited an immense ruby.

'There are at least thirty as good as this one,' Ping Wang declared,
joyfully; but, as he spoke, a noise was heard in Chin Choo's enclosure.

'Shut it up quickly,' Charlie said; and just as Ping Wang had done so a
middy rushed into the room, accompanied by four sailors.

'Hallo!' he exclaimed, on recognising them as friends of Williams. 'What
are you doing here?'

'Oh, we captured the place some ten minutes ago,' Charlie declared,
cheerfully.

'Then why don't you guard what you have captured?' the youngster asked,
sharply. 'There is no one posted at the gate, and the place could have
been recaptured easily.'

Having said this the lad departed with his men in search of some more
exciting experience.

'He was quite right,' Fred declared. 'The Boxers might have come upon us
suddenly, as he did. I will go to the gate; you two stay here and guard
the image.'

Fred's period of sentry-go was a short one, for he had not been at the
gate more than ten minutes when he saw Williams advancing, with a
portion of his force, towards him.

'Well, have you found it?' Williams asked, after he had acknowledged
Fred's salute.

'Yes,' replied Fred.

'That's very good news. I was half afraid that you had come out here on
a wild-goose chase.'

Williams said nothing more on that subject just then, for he had much
more important business needing his attention.

Such Boxers as had not been put out of action, and had been unable to
seek safety in flight, had cast away their yellow badges, and passed
themselves off as peaceful citizens. Williams knew very well that the
people were not so well disposed towards the Anglo-Japanese force as
they pretended, and ordered a sharp look-out to be kept. It was an
anxious time, and it was not until ten o'clock at night that, satisfied
he had taken every possible precaution, Williams returned to Chin Choo's
house, which he had made his headquarters, for an hour or two's rest.

'I congratulate you heartily,' Williams said, when Ping Wang showed him
the treasure. 'And now the best thing you three can do is to get out of
the country as quickly as possible. As long as you are in China you will
run great risks of being robbed. I advise you to return to Su-ching
early to-morrow morning, and make your way back to England. My
instructions are to hold this town until I am reinforced, but it is
quite possible that the Boxers will try to recover it before the
reinforcements arrive. Therefore, the sooner you quit this place the
more likely you will be to get away unhurt.'

'I don't much like leaving you at a time like this,' Charlie replied;
'but I suppose we ought to. The question is, how are we to carry our
treasure?'

'The best way,' Ping Wang declared, 'will be for us to divide it into
three packages, and each take charge of one.'

The packing being finished, the four friends sat down to have a chat. Of
course they spoke chiefly of the Boxer rising, but they discussed also
the latest news from the outside world, and finally talked of home.

'Now,' Williams said, when they had chatted for about an hour, 'you had
better turn in, for you must start as soon after daybreak as possible. I
should advise you to draw some of those rugs together, and sleep here.
That's what I'm going to do.'

The friends soon made up, on the floor, four comfortable beds. Williams
was sound asleep a few minutes after lying down; but Charlie, Fred, and
Ping Wang lay awake for fully an hour, so excited were they at having
obtained the treasure for which they had come so far. However, they fell
asleep eventually, but only, as it seemed to them, to be aroused almost
immediately by Williams.

'Your breakfast is ready,' he declared, cheerfully, 'and your carriages
are awaiting you. I have hired a palanquin and coolies for each of you,
and some extra coolies to carry the idol, as Ping Wang wants that too.'

'I say, that will be travelling in style. How long have you been up?'
Charlie said.

'I went out four hours ago, and have just returned.'

Then the palanquins were brought to the foot of the verandah stairs.

'Good-bye, and God bless you, all three!' Williams said, and shook hands
heartily with his friends.

'God bless you, old fellow!' Charlie said; 'and don't forget to look us
up when you return to England.'

The procession of palanquins passed out through the streets and along
the road to Su-ching. The bearers were hard-working fellows, and
shuffled along, half-running and half-walking, at a pace which made the
distance from Kwang-ngan appear very short to the travellers. On
entering Su-ching, Ping Wang directed the bearers to carry them to the
mission, but, on arriving there, a Japanese officer told them that
Barton and his friends had started for Tien-tsin the afternoon before.

After remaining at Kwang-ngan for about an hour Ping Wang hired fresh
palanquins, and they resumed their journey. It was a very uneventful
one, for the Boxers had been cleared out of that part of the country;
the only exciting moment being when some Russian or Japanese sentry
barred their progress. The arrival of an interpreter on the scene always
resulted in the travellers being allowed to continue their journey.

On arriving at the river, they soon found a boatman to take them down to
Tien-tsin, and thence they went straight to Hong-kong, where they
remained four days as the guest of their former host. In Hong-kong they
procured new clothes, and when they went aboard the homeward-bound
steamer they felt, for the first time for many weeks, that they need not
be ashamed of their appearance.

Fine weather and very agreeable fellow-passengers made the voyage to
England an enjoyable one, but, nevertheless, the Pages and Ping Wang
were delighted when, at last, the ship reached London. Mr. Page was
waiting for his sons on the landing-stage, and was so pleased at seeing
them back safe and sound that he almost forgot at first to ask them
about their adventures. He was, naturally, delighted with their news.

As soon as possible the jewels were valued by a London diamond merchant,
who looked at them very carefully, and, after some thought, offered a
price which startled the Pages and Ping Wang. They gladly accepted the
offer, and returned home in high spirits to Lincoln, where they enjoyed
themselves thoroughly, in spite of being called upon several times a day
to relate to various friends their adventures among the Boxers. After a
week's holiday Fred went back to London to continue his medical studies,
and Mr. Page then began to think what to do with Charlie.

'I have had enough trawling to last me for a life-time,' Charlie
declared: so the idea of putting him into a steam-trawler company was
dismissed for good.

'Let us two start business together as merchants,' Ping Wang suggested.
'We could soon work up a good connection with China, I'm certain.'

Charlie liked the suggestion, and Mr. Page, having gone into the matter
carefully, the firm of Page and Wang was started, and before long
promises to be a prosperous one. Ping Wang decided to become a
naturalised Englishman.

Their friend, Williams, so they learnt later, was publicly thanked by
the Commander-in-chief of the Allied forces in China for conspicuous
bravery and valuable services rendered on three different occasions.

H. C. MOORE.

NICOLO IN VIENNA.

Viennese children have a very happy time at Christmas. Not only do they
get the ordinary beautiful presents, but there is another festival for
them, held at the beginning of December--the 'Nicolo.' This is, properly
speaking, only a festival for good children.

Nicolo, who brings the presents, is very strict in inquiring into the
behaviour of children, and, should he hear that they have not been good,
he does not leave any of his gifts. Every child in Vienna is careful to
hang up his stocking on the eve of the 'Nicolo,' and, on the morning of
the great day, he wakes up very early to see what is in it. Good
children find apples and nuts, but the naughty ones get charcoal instead
of something good to eat.

In the afternoon of 'Nicolo' Day, the children get ready to receive the
visit of Nicolo himself. A tap is heard at the door, and an old man,
with a long white beard and a white gown, appears. He has a large sack
on his back, bulging with good things--in fact, the bag is often so full
that dolls and whips and whistles can be seen poking out at the top.
Behind the kind Nicolo stands another gentleman, dressed in scarlet and
black. He does not look either good or kind, and carries a number of
birch-rods under his arm. On his back a large basket is strapped; it is
made of wood instead of wicker, and is deep and large. This gentleman is
the most terrible person in Austria--the much-dreaded 'Krampus.' Fearful
stories are told of his dark deeds, and naughty children try to hide
themselves when they see the Krampus. But the Krampus keeps behind the
good Nicolo, and each child is called forward to give an account of
itself.

Nicolo asks the most awkward questions, such as: 'Who stole his sister's
sweets last week?' 'Who broke her brother's boat?' When all the
questions are answered, the good children receive presents, but naughty
boys and girls do not get anything from Nicolo; instead of a puzzle-box,
a ball, a new knife, or a doll, they get a gift from the Krampus, and
the Krampus only gives one kind of present--a birch-rod. The Vienna
confectioners make sugar dolls like the Krampus, and fill his basket
with sweets. The Krampus is sometimes made of French plums or almonds
and raisins, and his photograph is seen on picture cards.

E. R.

[Illustration: Nicolo and the Krampus.]

* * * * *

Transcriber's notes:

The following errors in the original have been corrected for this
version.

Page 14: overhead corrected to overheard

Page 55: 'I shall drive the youngster back to Castlemore.' Final quote
misprinted in original.

Page 91: "Inez hung the changed to '"Inez hung the

Page 102: that Patch changed to than Patch

Page 103: at abont half-past five changed to at about half-past five

Page 131: solitude and silence. Period was missing in original

Page 146: Hats! hats! for those who want them,; extra comma removed

Page 178: blistered them very much, One changed to blistered them very
much. One

Page 179: rubbed over the suface changed to rubbed over the surface

Page 183: anything but Mr Turton.' missing period after Mr added

Page 211: refining, the raw changed to refining the raw

Page 214: send in to the authorities changed to send it to the
authorities

Page 219: 'You looked about you, then? changed to 'You looked about you,
then?'

Page 222: somewhat like a flower. Missing period added

clever way in which the trap is made. Missing period added

keeps it always open. Missing period added

Page 231: wants me to to have my leg cut off, changed to wants me to
have my leg cut off,

slopes of the mounttains changed to slopes of the mountains

Page 238: miles away an the changed to miles away on the

Page 246: fond of pacing np changed to fond of pacing up

Page 247: maze and rice fields changed to maize and rice fields

Page 250: beleagured city changed to beleaguered city

Page 275: 'Don't shoot. changed to 'Don't shoot.'

Page 277: Charlie exclaimed to Ping Wing changed to Charlie exclaimed to
Ping Wang

Page 278: being seen by them changed to being seen by him

Page 286: "first class," Fred changed to "first class,"' Fred

Page 306: pigs every day, changed to pigs every day.

nest full of fledgings changed to nest full of fledglings

Page 310: do your changed to do you

Page 314: no loiterers here! changed to no loiterers here!'

Page 319: 'isn't it a changed to 'Isn't it a

Page 342: by a moss-grown wall. changed to by a moss-grown wall.'

Page 343: run in the direction changed to ran in the direction

Page 347: hostile to foreigners. changed to hostile to foreigners.'

Page 364: 'violin-beetle changed to 'violin-beetle'

Page 395: aid of a balloon changed to aid of a balloon.