Duffgruntedathim,andpassedonintothestore。
"Iamverygladtohavemetyou,"saidBayne,shakinghandswarmlywithhim。"Youhavedoneusbothagreatservice。Heismyfriend,youknow。"
"IamafraidIhaveoffendedhim,allthesame。ButyouseeI
couldn’thelpit,couldI?"
Baynelookedathisyoung,earnestfaceforamomentortwoasifstudyinghim,thensaidwithacurioussmile,"No,Idon’tbelieveyoucouldhavehelpedit。"Andwiththathepassedintothestore。
"Whatsortofachapisthatpreacherofyours?"heaskedofthestorekeeper。
"Idon’tknow;heain’tmychurch。AskInnesthere。He’sapillar。"
Bayneturnedtoalong,lean,hard—facedmanleaningagainstthecounter。
"MynameisBayne,fromRedPine,Mr。Innes。Iaminterestedinknowingwhatsortofachapyourpreacheris。Hecomesouttooursection,butInevermethimtillto—day。"
"Oh,he’snothatbad,"saidInnescautiously。
"Notworthacent,"saidalittle,redheadedmanstandingnear。
"Hecan’tpreachforsourapples。"
"Iwadnajustsaythat,Mr。Hayes,"saidInnes。
"Howdoyouknow,Innes?"retortedHayes。"Youknowyoufallasleepbeforehegetsrightlystarted。"
"Iayelistenbetterwithmaeyesshut。"
"Yes,andsnorebetter,too,Mac,"saidHayes。"ButIdon’tblameyou。Mostofthemgotosleepanyway。That’sthekindofpreacherheis。"
"Whatsortofachapishe?Imeanwhatsortofman?"
"Well,foronething,he’salwaysbuttin’in,"volunteeredasquare—builtmilitarylookingmanstandingnear。"Ifhe’dsticktohisgospelitwouldn’tbesobad,buthe’salwayspokin’hisnoseintoeverything。"
"Buthe’snothatbad,"saidInnesagain,"andasforbuttin’in,McFettridge,andpreachin’thegospel,Idoubtthecountryisagooddealthebetterforthebuttin’inthathimandhislikeshavedonethispastyear。Andbesides,thebairnsalllikehim。"
"Well,that’snotabadsign,Mr。Innes,"saidSandyBayne,"andI’mnotsurethatIdon’tlikehimmyself。ButIguesshebuttsin,allright。"
"Oh,ay!hebuttsin,"agreedInnes,"butI’mnososurethatthat’snoapartofhisjob,too。"
CHAPTERIII
AQUESTIONOFCONSCIENCE
TheDunbarslivedinacottageonabackstreet,whichhadthedistinctionofbeingtheonlyhomeonthestreetwhichpossessedtheadornmentofagarden。Auniquegardenitwas,too。Indeed,withthesingleexceptionofJudgeHepburn’sgarden,whichwasquiteanelaborateaffair,andwhichwassaidtohavecosttheJudgea"pileofmoney,"therewasnonetocomparewithitinthevillageofWapiti。
Anygardenonthatbare,wind—sweptprairiemeanttoilandinfinitepains,butagardenlikethatoftheDunbarsrepresentedinadditionsomethingofgenius。Inconception,indesign,andinexecutiontheDunbars’gardenwassomethingapart。Visitorsweretaken’roundtothebackstreettogetaglimpseoftheDunbars’
cottageandgarden。
Thegardenwasintwosections。Thatatthebackofthecottage,shelteredbyahigh,closeboardfencecoveredwithVirginiacreeper,wasgivenovertovegetables,anditwasquitemarvelloushow,underRichardDunbar’scare,aquarterofanacreofgroundcouldgrowsuchenormousquantitiesofvegetablesofallkinds。
Nexttothevegetablegardencametheplotforsmallfruits——
strawberries,raspberries,currants,ofrarevarieties。
Thefrontgardenwasdevotedtoflowers。Hereweretobefoundtheoldfashionedflowersdeartoourgrandmothers,andmoreparticularlytheoldfashionedflowersnativetoEnglishandScottishsoil。
Betweenthetwogardensathickrowoftall,splendidsunflowersmadeastatelyhedge。Thencamelarkspur,peonies,stocks,andsweet—williams,verbenasandmignonette,withbordersoflobeliaandheliotrope。Alongthefenceweresweetpeas,forwhichAlbertaisfamous。
ButitwasthepartofthegardencloseaboutthefrontporchandverandahwheretheparticulargeniusofRichardDunbarshoweditself。Heretheflowersnativetotheprairie,thecoulee,thecanyon,weregathered;theearlywindflower,thecrowfootandthebuffalobean,wildsnowdropsandviolets。Overtrellisesranthetinymorning—glory,withvetchandtrailingarbutus。Abedofwildrosesgrewtowonderfulperfection。Laterintheyearwouldbeseentheyellowandcrimsonlilies,daisieswhiteandgolden,andwhenotherflowershadfaded,goldenrodandastersingorgeouscontrast。Theapproachtothedoorofthehousewasbyagravelwalkborderedbytheseprairieflowers。
Thehouseinsidefulfilledthepromiseofthegarden。Thelivingroom,simpleinitsplan,plaininitsfurnishing,revealedeverywherethattouchindecorativeadornmentthatspokeofthecultivatedmindandrefinedtaste。Agroupofrareetchingshadtheirplaceoverthemantelabovealarge,openfireplace。Onthewallsweretobeseenreallyfinecopiesoftheworld’smostfamouspictures,andonthepanelswhichran’roundthewallswerebitsofpotteryandchina,relicsofotherdaysandofotherhomes。
Butwhatwasmostlikelytostriketheeyeofastrangeronenteringthelivingroomwasthearrayofdifferentkindsofmusicalinstruments。Atoneendoftheroomstoodasmalluprightpiano,a’celloheldonecorner,aguitaranother;uponatableacornetwasdeposited,andonthepianoaviolincasecouldbeseen,whileabanjohungfromanailonthewall。
Nearthefireplaceacuriouslycarvedpipe—rackhung,withsomehalfdozenpipesofweirddesign,evidentlythecollectionofyears,whilejustunderitasmalltableheldtheutensilssacredtothesmoker。
WhenBarryenteredhefoundthetablesetandeverythinginreadinessfortea。
"AwfullysorryI’mtoolatetohelpyouwithtea,dad。Ihavehadalongwalk,andquiteadeuceofatimegettinghome。"
"Allright,boy。Gladyouarehere。Thetoastisready,teawaitingtobeinfused。Butwhathappened?No,don’tbegintellingmetillyougetyourselfready。Buthurry,yourmeetinghourwillbeoninnotime。"
"Right—o,dad!Shametomakeaslaveyofyouinthisway。I’llbeoutinajiffy。"
Hethrewoffhiscoatandvest,shirtandcollar,tookapailofwatertoabigblockinthelittleshedattheback,sousedhisheadandshouldersinitwithloudsnortingandpuffing,andemergedinafewminuteslookingrefreshed,cleanandwholesome,hishandsomefaceshiningwithvigoroushealth。
Togethertheystoodatthetablewhilethesonsaidafewwordsofreverentgrace。
"I’mravenous,dad。What!Friedpotatoes!Oh,youareabrick。"
"Tired,boy?"
"No。Thatremindsmeofmythrillingtale,whichIshallbeginaftermythirdsliceoftoast,andnotbefore。Youcanoccupythepreciousminutes,dad,intellingmeofyourexcitementsintheofficethisafternoon。"
"Don’tsniffatme。Ihadafew,thoughapparentlyyouthinkitimpossibleinmyhumdrumgreylife。"
"Good!"saidBarry,hismouthfulloftoast。"Goon。"
"YoungNeilFraserisbuying,orhasjustbought,theS。Q。R。
ranch。Filedthetransferto—day。"
"NeilFraser?He’sinmytale,too。BoughttheS。Q。R。?Wheredidhegetthestuff?"
"Stuff?"
"Dough,thedirt,thewherewithal,inshortthecurrency,dad。"
"Barry,youareruiningyourEnglish,"saidhisfather。
"Yum—yum。Bully!Didyounoticethat,dad?I’mcomingon,eh?
OnethingIalmostprayabout,thatImightbecomeexpertinslingingthemodernjawhash。I’mappallinglycorrectinmyformsofspeech。Butgoon,dad。I’mthrowingtoomuchvocalisationmyself。YouweretellingmeaboutNeilFraser。Giveusthechorusnow。"
"Idon’tlikeit,boy,"saidhisfather,shakinghishead,"andespeciallyinaclergyman。"
"Butthat’swhereyouareoff,dad。Thetroubleis,whenIcomewithinrangeofanyofmyflockallmyflipvocabularyabsolutelyvanishes,andIfindmyselftalkinglikeaprofessorofEnglishoramaidenladyschoolma’amofverycertainage。"
"Idon’tlikeit,boy。CorrectEnglishistheonlyEnglishforagentleman。"
"Iwonder,"saidthelad。"ButIdon’twanttoworryyou,dad。"
"Oh,asforme,thatmattersnothingatall,butIamthinkingofyouandofyourprofession,yourstanding。"
"Iknowthat,dad。Isometimeswishyouwouldthinkalittlemoreaboutyourself。ButwhatofNeilFraser?"
"Hehascomeintosomemoney。Hehasboughttheranch。"
Barry’stoneexpresseddoubtfulapproval。"Neilisagoodsort,dad,awfullyreckless,butIlikehim,"saidBarry。"Heisupandupwithitall。"
"Now,whataboutyourafternoon?"saidhisfather。
"Well,tobeginwith,Ihadadoseofmyoldfriend,theenemy。"
"Barry,youdon’ttellme!Yourasthma!"Hisfathersatbackfromthetablegazingathimindismay。"AndIthoughtthatwasalldonewith。"
"SodidI,dad。Butitreallydidn’tamounttomuch。Probablysomestomachderangement,morelikelysomeofthatpollenwhichisfloatingaroundnow。Ipassedthroughabeavermeadowwheretheywerecuttinghay,andawayIwentinagaleofsneezing,fortymilesanhour。ButI’mallrightnow,dad。I’mtellingyouthetruth。YouknowIdo。"
"Yes,yes,Iknow,"saidhisfather,concernandreliefminglinginhisvoice,"butyoudon’tknowhowtotakecareofyourself,Barry。
Butgoonwithyourtale。"
"Well,asIwaspantingalonglikea’heaveyhorse,’asHarryHobbswouldsay,——notreallytoobad,dad,——alongcomesthatbigrancher,StewartDuff,drivinghisteamofpintobronchos,andwithhimachapnamedBayne,fromRedPineCreek。Heturnedouttobeanawfullydecentsort。AndDuff’sdog,Slipper,rangingonahead,abeautifulsetter。"
"Yes,Ihaveseenhim。"
TheydiscussedforafewmomentsthebeautiesandpointsofDuff’sSlipper,forbothwerekeensportsmen,andbothweredevotedtodogs。ThenBarrywentbacktohistaleandgaveanaccountofwhathadhappenedduringtheridehome。
"YouseeSlipperrangingaboutgot’onpoint’andbeautifulworkitwas,too。OutjumpedDuffwithhisgun,readytoshoot,though,ofcourse,heknewitwasoutofseasonandthathewasbreakingthelaw。Well,justasSlipperflushedthebirds,IshoutedtoDuffthathewasshootingoutofseason。Hemissed。"
"Oh,hewasproperlywrathfulatmyspoilinghisshot,"criedtheyoungman。
"Idon’tknowthatIblamehim,Barry,"saidhisfatherthoughtfully。
"Itisanannoyingthingtobeshoutedatwithyourgunonabird,youknow,extremelyannoying。"
"Buthewasbreakingthelaw,dad!"criedBarryindignantly。
"Iknow,Iknow。Butafterall——"
"But,dad,youcan’tsitthereandtellmethatyoudon’tcondemnhimforshootingoutofseason。Youknownothingmakesyoumorefuriousthanhearingaboutchapswhopotchickenoutofseason。"
"Iknow,Iknow,myboy。"Thefatherwasapparentlyquitedistressed。"Youarequiteright,but——"
"Now,dad,Iwon’thaveit!YouarenottotellmethatIhadnobusinesstostophimifIcould。Besides,thelawisthelaw,andsportissport。"
"Iquiteagree,Barry。Believeme,Iquiteagree。Yetallthesame,achapdoeshatetohavehisshotspoiled,andtoshoutatafellowwithhisgunonabird,——well,you’llexcuseme,Barry,butitishardlythesportingthing。"
"Sporting!Sporting!"saidBarry。"IknowthatIhatedtodoit,butitwasright。Besidestalkabout’sporting’——whataboutshootingoutofseason?"
"Yes,yes。Well,wewon’tdiscussit。Goon,Barry。"
"ButIdon’tlikeit,dad。Idon’tliketothinkthatyoudon’tapproveofwhatIdo。Itwasabeastlyhardthingtodo,anyway。
Ihadtomakemyselfdoit。Itwasmyduty。"Theyoungmansatlookinganxiouslyathisfather。
"Well,myboy,"saidhisfather,"Imaybewrong,butdoyouthinkyouarealwayscalledupontoremonstratewitheverylawbreaker?
No,listentome,"hecontinuedhurriedly。"WhatImeanis,mustyouoranyofusassumeresponsibilityforeverycriminalintheland?"
Barrysatsilentamoment,consideringthisproposition。
"IwishIknew,dad。Youknow,IhaveoftensaidthattoexcusemyselfafterIhavefunkedathing,andletsomethinggobywithoutspeakingupagainstit。"
"Funkedit!"
"Yes。Funkedstandingupfortherightthing,youknow。"
"Funkedit!"saidhisfatheragain。"Youwouldn’tdothat,Barry?"
"Oh,wouldn’tI,though?Iamafraidyoudon’tknowmeverywell,dad。However,IratherthinkIhadstartedhimupbeforethat,youknow。Youwon’tlikethiseither。ButImayaswellgothroughwithit。Youknow,hewasswearingandcursingmostawfully,justinhisordinarytalkyouknow,andthatisathingIcan’tstand,soIupandtoldhimhewasusingtoomany’damns。’"
"Youdid,eh?"Inspiteofhimselfthefathercouldnotkeepthesurpriseoutofhisvoice。"Well,thattooksomenerve,atanyrate。"
"Thereyouareagain,dad!YouthinkIhadnorighttospeak。ButsomehowIcan’thelpfeelingIwasright。Fordon’tyousee,itwouldhaveseemedabitlikeloweringtheflagtohavekeptsilent。"
"ThenforGod’ssakespeakout,lad!Idonotfeelquitethesamewayasyou,butitiswhatyouthinkyourselfthatmustguideyou。
Butgoon,goon。"
"Well,Iassureyouhewasinaproperrage,andifithadn’tbeenforBayneIbelievehewouldhavetrimmedmetoapeak,administeredafittingcastigation,Imean。"
"Hewould,eh?"saidthefatherwithagrimsmile。"Ishouldliketoseehimtry。"
"SoshouldI,dad,ifyouwerearound。IthinkIseeyou——feintwiththeright,thenleft,right,left!bing!bang!bung!Alloverbuttheshiver,eh,dad?Itwouldbesweet!But,"headdedregretfully,"that’stheverythingafellowcannotdo。"
"Cannotdo?Andwhynot,pray?Itiswhateveryfellowisindutyboundtodotoabullyofthatsort。"
"Yes,buttobequitefair,dad,youcouldhardlycallDuffabully。Atleast,hewasn’tbullyingme。Asamatteroffact,I
wasbullyinghim。Oh,Ithinkhehadreasontobeangry。Whenachapundertakestopullanotherchapupforlawbreaking,perhapsheshouldbepreparedtotaketheconsequences。Buttogoon。
Baynesteppedin——awfullydecentofhim,too,——whenjustatthatmoment,asnovelistssay,withstartlingsuddennessoccurredaneventthatavertedtheimpendingcalamity。AlongcameNeilFraser,noless,inthatnewcarofhis,inawhirlwindofnoiseanddust,honkinglikeaflockofwildgeese。Well,youshouldhaveseenthosebronchos。Onelurch,andwewereontheground,abeautifulupset,andthebronchosinanincipientrunaway,fortunatelycheckedbyyourhumbleservant。Duff,inanewandrealragethistime,upwithhisgunandbangedoffbothbarrelsafterthemotorcar,bythistimehonkingdownthetrail。"
"ByJove!hedeservedit,"saidthefather。"Thosemotorfellowsmakemelongtodomurderattimes。"
"That’sbecauseyouhavenocar,Dad,ofcourse。"
"Didhehithim,doyouthink?"
"No。Myarmhappenedtoflyup,thegunbangedtowardthezenith。
Nothingdoing!"
"Well,Barry,youdoseemtohaverunfoulofMr。Duff。"
"Threetimes,dad。Buteachtimepreventedhimfrombreakingthelawanddoinghimselfandothersinjury。Wouldyouhavelethimoffthislasttime,dad?"
"No,no,boy。Humanlifehasthefirstclaimuponourcare。Youdidquiteright,quiteright。Ungovernablefoolhemustbe!
Shouldn’tbeallowedtocarryagun。"
"SoBaynedeclared,"saidBarry。
"Well,youhavehadquiteanexcitingafternoon。Butfinishyourteaandgetreadyforthemeeting。Iwillwashup。"
"NotifIknowit,dad。Youtakeyoursaw—horseanddomealittleHandelorSchubert。Do,please,"entreatedhisson。"Iwantthatbeforemeetingmorethananythingelse。Iwantachangeofmood。
IconfessIamslightlyrattled。Myaddressisallprepared,butI
musthaveatmospherebeforeIgointothemeeting。"
Hisfathertookthe’cello,andafterafewmomentsspentincarefullytuningup,beganwithHandel’simmortalLargo,thenhewanderedintotheAdagioMovementinHaydn’sthirdSonata,fromthencetoSchubert’sImpromptuinCMinor,afterwhichhebegantheSerenade,whenhewascheckedbyhisson。
"No,notthat,dad,that’ssickening。IconsiderthatthemostmorallyrelaxingbitofmusicthatIknow。Itfraysthewholemoralfibre。GiveusoneofChopin’sBallades,orbetterstillabitofthatposthumousFantasieImpromptu,thelargomovement。Ah!
fine!fine!"
Heflunghisdish—clothaside,rantothepianoandbegananaccompanimenttohisfather’splaying。
"Now,dad,theLargooncemorebeforeweclose。"TheydidtheLargoonceandagain,thenspringingfromthepianoBarrycried:
"ThatLargoisameansofgracetome。Therecouldbenobetterpreparationforareligiousmeetingthanthat。Ifyouwouldonlycomeinandplayforthem,itwoulddothemmuchmoregoodthanallmypreaching。"
"Ifyouwouldonlytakeyourmusicseriously,Barry,"repliedhisfather,somewhatsadly,"youwouldbecomeagoodplayer,perhapsevenagreatplayer。"
"Andthenwhat,dad?"
Hisfatherwavedhimaside,puttinguphis’cello。
"Nousegoingintothatagain,boy。"
"Well,Icouldn’thavebeenagreatplayer,atanyrate,dad。"
"Perhapsnot,boy,perhapsnot,"saidhisfather。"Greatplayersareveryrare。Butitistimeforyourmeeting。"
"Soitis,dad。AwfullysorryIdidn’tfinishupthosedishes。
LetthemgotillIreturn。Iwishyouwould,dad,andcomealongwithme。"Hisvoicehadawistfulnoteinit。
"Notto—night,boy,Ithink。Wewillhavesometalkafter。Youwillonlybeanhour,youknow。"
"Allright,dad,"saidBarry。"Sometimeyoumaycome。"Hecouldnothidethewistfulregretofhistone。
"PerhapsIshall,boy,"repliedhisfather。
Itwastheonepointuponwhichtherewasalackofperfectharmonybetweenfatherandson。Whentheboywenttocollegeitwaswiththeintentionofenteringtheprofessionoflaw,forwhichhisfatherhadbeenreadinginhisyoungmanhoodwhenthelureofCanadaandherbroad,freeacrescaughthim,andhehadabandonedthelawandwithhiswifeandbabyboyhademigratedtobecomealandownerinthegreatCanadianwest。
Alas!death,thatrudespoilerofsomanyplans,brokeinuponthesanctityandperfectpeaceofthathappyranchhomeandravisheditofitstreasure,leavingabrokenheartedmanandalittleboy,orphanedandsickly,tobecaredfor。Theranchwassold,theranchermovedtothecityofEdmonton,thenceinafewyearstoalittlevillagesometwenty—fivemilesnearertotheFoothills,wherehebecametheRegistrarandHomesteadInspectorforthedistrict。
Herehehadlivedeversince,trainingthetorntendrilsofhisheartaboutthelad,tillpeacecamebackagain,thoughnevertheperfectjoyoftheearlierdays。EveryMayDaythetwowerewonttogouponanexpeditionmanymilesintotheFoothills,toalittle,sunnyspot,whereastrong,palisadedenclosureheldalittlegrave。Solittleitlooked,andsolonelyamidthegreathills。There,notinanabandonmentofgrief,butinlovingandgratefulremembranceofherwhosedustthelittlegravenowheld,ofwhatshehadbeentothem,andhaddoneforthem,theyspenttheday,returningtotakeupagainwithheartssolemn,tenderandchastened,thedailyroutineoflife。
Thathissonshouldgrowtotakeuptheprofessionoflawhadbeenthefather’sdream,butduringhisuniversitycoursetheboyhadcomeunderthecompellinginfluenceofaspiritualawakeningthatswepthimintoaworldfilledwithnewimpressionsandotherdesires。Obeyingwhathefelttobeanimperativecall,theboychosethechurchashisprofession,andaftercompletinghistheologicalcourseinthecityofWinnipeg,andspendingayearinstudyinGermany,whilestillamereyouthhehadbeenappointedasmissionarytothedistrictofwhichhisownvillagewasthecentre。
Butthoughwidelyseparatefromeachotherinthematterofreligion,thereweremanypointsofcontactbetweenthem。Theywerebothmenofthegreatout—of—doors,andunderhisfather’sinspirationanddirectiontheboyhadcometoloveathleticexercisesofallkinds。
Theywerebothmusic—mad,thefatherhavinghadinearlyyouthathoroughmusicaleducation,theboypossessingmusicaltalentofahighorder。Suchtrainingaswashishehadreceivedfromhisfather,butitwasconfinedtoonesingleinstrument,theviolin。
Tothisinstrument,uponwhichhisfatherhadreceivedthetuitionofareallyexcellentmaster,thesondevotedlonghoursofstudyandpracticeduringhisboyhoodyears,andhisattainmentsweresuchastogivepromiseofsomethingmorethananamateur’smasteryofhisinstrument。Hiscollegework,however,interferedwithhismusic,andtohisfather’sgreatdisappointmentandregrethewasforcedtolayasidehisstudyoftheviolin。Onthepiano,however,theboydevelopedanextraordinarypowerofimprovisationandofsightreading,andwhilehistechniquewasfaultyhisinsight,hispowerofinterpretationwerefarinexcessofmanyartistswhowerehissuperiorsinmusicalknowledgeandpowerofexecution。Manywerethehoursthefatherandsonspenttogetherthroughthelongeveningsofthewesternwinter,andamongthemanybondsthatheldtheminclosecomradeship,nonewasstrongerthantheircommondevotiontomusic。
Longafterhissonhaddepartedtohismeetingthefathersatdreamingoverhis’cello,wanderingamongthefamiliarbitsfromtheoldmastersasfancyledhim,norwasheawareofthelapseoftimetillhissonreturned。
"Hello!Nine—thirty?"heexclaimed,lookingathiswatch。"Youhavegiventhemanextradoseto—night。"
"Businessmeetingafterwards,whichdidn’tcomeoffafterall,"
saidhisson。"PostponedtillnextSunday。"Withthiscurtannouncement,andwithoutfurthercommenthesatdownathisdesk。
Butafterafewmomentsherosequickly,saying,"Letusdosomerealwork,dad。"
Hetookuphisviolin。Hisfather,whowasusedtohismoods,withoutquestionorremarkproceededtotuneup。Anhour’shardpracticefollowed,withoutwordfromeitherexceptasregardedtheworkinhand。
"Ifeelbetternow,dad,"saidtheyoungmanwhentheyhadfinished。
"Andnowforaroundwithyou。"
"Butwhataboutyourwind,boy?Idon’tlikethatasthmaofyoursthisafternoon。"
"Iamquiteallright。It’squitegone。Ifeelsureitwasthepollenfromthebeavermeadow。"
Theyclearedbackthetableandchairsfromthecentreoftheroom,strippedtotheirshirts,putontheglovesandwentateachotherwithvim。Theirstylewassimilar,forthefatherhadtaughtthesonallheknew,exceptthatthefather’swasthefightingandtheson’sthesparringstyle。To—nighttherolesappearedtobereversed,thesonpressinghardatthein—fighting,thefathertrustingtohisfootworkandcounteringwiththelighttouchofamanmakingpoints。
"YouAREboringin,aren’tyou?"saidthefather,stoppingafiercerally。
"Youarenotplayingup,dad,"saidhisson。"Idon’tfeellikesoftworkto—night。Cometome!"
"Asyousay,"repliedthefather,andforthenextfiveminutesBarryhadnoreasontocomplainofsoftwork,forhisfatherwentafterhimwithallthefightthatwasinhim,sothatinspiteofavigorousdefencethesonwasforcedtotakerefugeinarunawaygame。
"Nowyou’regoing!"shoutedtheson,makingafiercecounterwithhisrighttoaharddrivenleft,whichheside—stepped。Itwasafatalexposure。Likethedartofasnaketherighthandhookgothimbelowthejaw,andhewashurledbreathlessonthecouchatthesideoftheroom。
"Gotyounow!"saidhisfather。
"Notquiteyet,"criedBarry。Likeacathewasonhisfeet,breathingdeepbreaths,dodgingabout,fightingfortime。
"Enough!"criedhisfather,puttingdownhishands。
"Playup!"shoutedBarry,whowasrapidlyrecoveringhiswind。"Nosoftwork。Watchout!"