News from Nowhere | Page 8

easily shake him off if it turned out that he really was
mad; so I said:
"It is a very kind offer, but it is difficult for me to accept it, unless--" I
was going to say, Unless you will let me pay you properly; but fearing
to stir up Colney Hatch again, I changed the sentence into, "I fear I
shall be taking you away from your work--or your amusement."
"O," he said, "don't trouble about that, because it will give me an
opportunity of doing a good turn to a friend of mine, who wants to take
my work here. He is a weaver from Yorkshire, who has rather overdone
himself between his weaving and his mathematics, both indoor work,
you see; and being a great friend of mine, he naturally came to me to
get him some outdoor work. If you think you can put up with me, pray
take me as your guide."
He added presently: "It is true that I have promised to go up-stream to
some special friends of mine, for the hay-harvest; but they won't be
ready for us for more than a week: and besides, you might go with me,
you know, and see some very nice people, besides making notes of our

ways in Oxfordshire. You could hardly do better if you want to see the
country."
I felt myself obliged to thank him, whatever might come of it; and he
added eagerly:
"Well, then, that's settled. I will give my friend call; he is living in the
Guest House like you, and if he isn't up yet, he ought to be this fine
summer morning."
Therewith he took a little silver bugle-horn from his girdle and blew
two or three sharp but agreeable notes on it; and presently from the
house which stood on the site of my old dwelling (of which more
hereafter) another young man came sauntering towards us. He was not
so well-looking or so strongly made as my sculler friend, being
sandy-haired, rather pale, and not stout-built; but his face was not
wanting in that happy and friendly expression which I had noticed in
his friend. As he came up smiling towards us, I saw with pleasure that I
must give up the Colney Hatch theory as to the waterman, for no two
madmen ever behaved as they did before a sane man. His dress also
was of the same cut as the first man's, though somewhat gayer, the
surcoat being light green with a golden spray embroidered on the breast,
and his belt being of filagree silver-work.
He gave me good-day very civilly, and greeting his friend joyously,
said:
"Well, Dick, what is it this morning? Am I to have my work, or rather
your work? I dreamed last night that we were off up the river fishing."
"All right, Bob," said my sculler; "you will drop into my place, and if
you find it too much, there is George Brightling on the look out for a
stroke of work, and he lives close handy to you. But see, here is a
stranger who is willing to amuse me to-day by taking me as his guide
about our country-side, and you may imagine I don't want to lose the
opportunity; so you had better take to the boat at once. But in any case I
shouldn't have kept you out of it for long, since I am due in the
hay-fields in a few days."
The newcomer rubbed his hands with glee, but turning to me, said in a
friendly voice:
"Neighbour, both you and friend Dick are lucky, and will have a good
time to-day, as indeed I shall too. But you had better both come in with
me at once and get something to eat, lest you should forget your dinner

in your amusement. I suppose you came into the Guest House after I
had gone to bed last night?"
I nodded, not caring to enter into a long explanation which would have
led to nothing, and which in truth by this time I should have begun to
doubt myself. And we all three turned toward the door of the Guest
House.

CHAPTER III
: THE GUEST HOUSE AND BREAKFAST THEREIN

I lingered a little behind the others to have a stare at this house, which,
as I have told you, stood on the site of my old dwelling.
It was a longish building with its gable ends turned away from the road,
and long traceried windows coming rather low down set in the wall that
faced us. It was very handsomely built of red brick with a lead roof;
and high up above the windows there ran a frieze of figure subjects in
baked clay, very well executed, and designed with a