Sailors Knots | Page 4

'e was afraid he was trying to get
them for nothing. At five o'clock he said George was a fool, and at
ha'-past he said 'e was something I won't repeat.
It was just eleven o'clock, and they 'ad shut up for the night, when the
front door opened, and George stood there smiling at 'em and shaking
his 'ead.

"Sush a lark," he ses, catching 'old of Mr. Alfredi's arm to steady
'imself. "I gave 'im shlip."
"Wot d'ye mean?" ses the manager, shaking him off. "Gave who the
slip? Where's them clothes?"
"Boy's got 'em," ses George, smiling agin and catching hold of
Kumbo's arm. "Sush a lark; he's been car-carrying 'em all day--all day.
Now I've given 'im the--the shlip, 'stead o'--'stead o' giving 'im
fourpence. Take care o' the pensh, an' pouns--"
He let go o' Kumbo's arm, turned round twice, and then sat down 'eavy
and fell fast asleep. The manager rushed to the door and looked out, but
there was no signs of the boy, and he came back shaking his 'ead, and
said that George 'ad been drinking agin.
"Well, wot about my clothes?" ses Rupert, hardly able to speak.
"P'r'aps he didn't buy 'em arter all," ses the manager. "Let's try 'is
pockets."
He tried fust, and found some strawberries that George 'ad spoilt by
sitting on. Then he told Rupert to have a try, and Rupert found some
bits of string, a few buttons, two penny stamps, and twopence ha'penny
in coppers.
"Never mind," ses Mr. Alfredi; "I'll go round to the police-station in the
morning; p'r'aps the boy 'as taken them there. I'm disapp'inted in
George. I shall tell 'im so, too."
He bid Rupert good-night and went off with Mrs. Alfredi; and Rupert,
wishful to make the best o' things, decided that he would undress
George and go off in 'is clothes. He waited till Kumbo 'ad gone off to
bed, and then he started to take George's coat off. He got the two top
buttons undone all right, and then George turned over in 'is sleep. It
surprised Rupert, but wot surprised 'im more when he rolled George
over was to find them two buttons done up agin. Arter it had 'appened
three times he see 'ow it was, and he come to the belief that George was

no more drunk than wot he was, and that it was all a put-up thing
between 'im and Mr. Alfredi.
He went to bed then to think it over, and by the morning he 'ad made up
his mind to keep quiet and bide his time, as the saying is. He spoke
quite cheerful to Mr. Alfredi, and pretended to believe 'im when he said
that he 'ad been to the police-station about the clothes.
Two days arterwards he thought of something; he remembered me. He
'ad found a dirty old envelope on the floor, and with a bit o' lead pencil
he wrote me a letter on the back of one o' the bills, telling me all his
troubles, and asking me to bring some clothes and rescue 'im. He stuck
on one of the stamps he 'ad found in George's pocket, and opening the
door just afore going to bed threw it out on the pavement.
The world is full of officious, interfering busy-bodies. I should no more
think of posting a letter that didn't belong to me, with an unused stamp
on it, than I should think o' flying; but some meddle-some son of a ----a
gun posted that letter and I got it.
I was never more surprised in my life. He asked me to be outside the
shop next night at ha'-past eleven with any old clothes I could pick up.
If I didn't, he said he should 'ang 'imself as the clock struck twelve, and
that his ghost would sit on the wharf and keep watch with me every
night for the rest o' my life. He said he expected it 'ud have a black face,
same as in life.
A wharf is a lonely place of a night; especially our wharf, which is full
of dark corners, and, being a silly, good-natured fool, I went. I got a pal
off of one of the boats to keep watch for me, and, arter getting some old
rags off of another sailorman as owed me arf a dollar, I 'ad a drink and
started off for the Mile End Road.
I found the place easy enough. The door was just on the jar, and as I
tapped on it with my finger-nails a wild-looking black man, arf naked,
opened it and said "H'sh!" and pulled me inside. There was a bit o'
candle on the floor, shaded by a box, and a man fast asleep and snoring