Devon Boys | Page 5

gliding down swiftly,
sometimes coming to a standstill; but if it was the foremost, those
behind generally started him again.
In this case Bob went first, I followed, and Bigley came last, and
though we two stuck more than once, he never did, his weight
overcoming the friction of the stones to such an extent that, towards the
last, he charged down upon us and we all rolled over together into a
heap.
We tried again, but the fall had made Bob disagreeable. I don't think he
was much hurt, but he pretended to be, and said that Bigley had done it
on purpose.
It was of no use for Bigley to protest. Once Bob had made up his mind
to a thing he would not give in, so after about half a slide down we
stopped short without being driven on again by our companion, and the
game was voted a bore.
"'Tisn't as if there were a couple of sailors at the top with a capstan, to
haul you up again when you've slid down," said Bob.
"Ah, I wish there were!" cried Bigley, "I get so tired."
"No rope would pull you up; you're too heavy," sneered Bob. "Never
mind, Sep, let's do something else. The clatter streams ain't half so
slippery as they used to be. I s'pose we may do something else here
though it is your father's place?"
"Don't be so disagreeable," I cried.
"Who's disagreeable?" he retorted. "I didn't make the stones stick and
old Bigley come down squelch on us, did I?"
"Oh, if you want to quarrel, Bob, we may as well go home," I said.

"There, just hark at him, Big! Quarrel! Just as if I wanted to quarrel.
There, I shall go."
"No, no, don't go, Bob," I cried.
"No, no, don't go, Bob," chimed in Big. "It's holidays now, and we can
get up a row when we're at school."
The force of this, and its being waste of time now the long-expected
holidays had come, made an impression on Bob, who sat down and
began sending rounded pieces of slate skimming through the air
towards the little stream.
"Didn't I tell you I didn't want to quarrel," he grumbled out. "I ain't so
fond of--there, you chaps couldn't do that."
"Ha! Ha! Couldn't we?" I cried, as a stone he threw went plash into the
stream, and I jerked a piece of slate so far that it went right over.
This made Bob jump up, and, as there was plenty of ammunition, the
old contention was forgotten in the new, Bigley Uggleston joining in
and helping us throw stones till we grew tired, when we looked round
for something fresh to do.
"Let's climb right to the top of Bogle's Beacon," I said, as my eyes lit
upon the highest crags at our side of the ravine.
"Oh, what's the good?" said Bigley. "It'll make us so hot."
"Get out, you great lazy fellow," cried Bob, whose lips had been apart
to oppose my plan; but as soon as Bigley took the other side he was all
eagerness to go.
"Oh, all right then," said Bigley. "I don't mind. If you're going I shall
come too; but wait a minute."
As he spoke he set off at a trot down the slope, and as we two threw
ourselves down to watch him, we saw him run on and on till he reached
the smuggler's cottage, and go round to the long low slate-roofed shed

where his father kept his odds and ends of boat gear, and then he dived
in out of sight.
"What's he gone for?" said Bob.
"Dunno," I said lazily as I turned over on my chest and kicked the loose
slates with my toes. "Yes, I do."
"No, you don't," said Bob sourly.
"Yes, I do; he's gone to get a bit of rope. Don't you remember when we
climbed up last year we didn't get quite to the top, and you said that if
we'd had a bit of rope to throw over the big stone, one of us might have
held the end while the other climbed up?"
"No, I don't remember, and don't believe I ever said so."
"Why, that you did, Bob. What's the good of contradicting?"
"What's that to you, Sep Duncan?" he retorted. "You arn't everybody. I
shall contradict if I like."
"But you did say so."
"I didn't."
"You did. Now, just you wait till old Big comes and see if he don't say
so too."
"Yah! He'd say anything. What does he know about it?"
"Well, here he comes," I said.
"Let him come; I don't care."
"And he has got a coil of rope over his shoulder."
"Well, what do I care? Any fool might get