The mysterious tramp

The night nursery was in darkness, save for the red glow of the fire, and the occasional flickering light of a little yellow flame that seemed to wake up every now and then and light up the room, casting strange black shadows on the ceiling. In three little white beds lay three boys. At least they should have been lying, but, as a matter of fact, two were sitting up, with expressions of sullen rage upon their tear-stained faces, and one was lying in a huddled heap beneath the bedclothes, sobbing.

“For goodness’ sake stop that beastly sniveling, you little cry-baby,” said David.

The sobbing ceased for a minute, then, from beneath the bedclothes, came the muffled voice of Nipper. “I--I’m not a cry-cry-cry baby.” The sobbing went on.

“Nipper,” said David sternly, “you have no reason to bleat like that. You only got four, an me and Bill got a dozen each.”

This brought Nipper from beneath the bedclothes.

“That’s ’cos I have more sense in my little finger than you two fat-heads have in the whole of your bodies. I trod hard on grandfather’s worst corn, and that made him drop the birch. I jolly soon picked it up, and threw it out of the window. And he couldn’t find nothing else to beat me with, so he let me go. It’s not for the beating I’m crying, it’s for something else. I was going to tell you about it, but as you’re both such beasts I shan’t now.”

Having delivered himself of this speech, Nipper retired under the bedclothes, and began a series of mournful sounds. Now, though David was ready of speech and full of ideas, Bill, his twin, was a man of action. It was always David who thought of splendid schemes, but Bill who carried them out. Leaning far out of his bed he reached for one of his boots, and, taking a careful aim, landed it with a thud upon Nipper’s huddled figure. This brought forth Nipper’s own special performance and chief means of defence, a siren-like shriek. As was to be expected, it brought Nurse to the door.

“Now then, you naughty boys,” she said, “if I hear another sound I shall go and tell your gran’pa.”

“You can jolly well go,” said David, “he’s lost the birch.”

“If you aren’t quiet at once,” continued Nurse, “I shall not allow you to go to the horseshow to-morrow.”

“That’s all right,” said David. “Grandfather has already forbidden us to go----”

“But we’re jolly well going all the same,” added Bill in an aside.

“You shan’t have any jam for breakfast,” said poor old Nurse in despair. This was a serious matter.

“Then here goes,” said Bill, in a spasm of rage, and he let fly his remaining boot.

It struck the old Nurse very hard on the hand. She had rheumatism, and the blow hurt her. With a little exclamation of pain she retired, and shut the door.

A regular bally-rag then began. Pillows flew across the room, and before the fight was finished Bill’s nightshirt was torn from top to bottom, and David’s nose was bleeding.

And in the playroom Nurse was talking sadly to Eliza as she darned the boys’ stockings. The piece of news she was giving Eliza was the very piece of news that Nipper had heard, and which had caused his tears.

“The master has given me notice,” she said, wiping her eyes. “He says it’s all my fault the way the boys behave, and it’s got so terrible he won’t stand it a moment longer. He’s given me notice, and he’s going to get a strict governess, who won’t stand any nonsense, and will get them into good discipline. From the day those twins were born I’ve looked after them--ten years, now. And Nipper’s just on eight--and I’ve got to leave them!” Poor old Nurse laid her head down on the basket of stockings and broke down. Since the boys’ parents had been drowned in a shipwreck the old woman had had them under her care, but they had repaid her with selfishness and disobedience.

The way the “young gentlemen up at the Hall” behaved was the talk of the village. They would steal fruit, not only from their grandfather’s glasshouses, but from the poor people’s little gardens. They would let out Farmer Johnson’s pigs, and chase them all over the village. There was nothing too bad for them to do.

“I pity the person as will have the looking after of them,” said Eliza. “I only hope the master will get someone really strict.”