CHAPTER XIV.

Hawke's Bay Weekly Times, Volume 1, Issue 38, 16 September 1867, Page 227

CHAPTER XIV.

ih»pajlagb4pb EXTiAmtiKi: accorii^Jtined^ : tioi ’the house/ in' gireat t'repidatioh at' the doubt->latter-,had!assiimied.-Thougili fentertaihedddeas bf-retarningto before]; B£r*-Neill made ibis j possibility of; rejection Reflect;. op feig it land, sis the idea|df losing ’rahything heneraUy enhances itayalue,he became > vS 1 eager’to 6|)taih the had before bbetfihdiffereiit*cbncermng'dti J ■7dr i . i Neill ! did J KBt todch'upbfaithe aubjecE/wliile leading'the way td the fadusefmerely .(enquiring' Philip’s miune, which thedatter ;ir, wi .iii« -iui/n. *<ii ; j of-jjMjf. Neill’s Jtqnse,, who, flotiexpwjteajgi.jfind scjjjnuchj The room he entered would Save horhe comparison with any hrdwihg-room suburbs 'o'f Ijobdon,' Heft ‘ so ' crowded jffith useless lum&r ‘iit tlie shape cabinets, China monsters, and the numberless Bpecimbns'io‘f-trash:designate3)by Tartington, jbf('bigotry J aud'.virtuei’f l > Lnst \\iMßfW-tiWM I‘cJWe ,^ri]l f .postpone hairedv girl oCsiyenteen, and brf his younger son, OTip ifiVdS jthiyd oj gmqpil.jhJyqni oiit oMn »;5u '^.uf --ift'J^erb‘d^d^4 >^i'ijtfqtiired(Mrr ’Neill.- t:i!J I “?Hi^.uc« 1 - > beli'eve ! helitefbeien-pitdhi mgtiid»/-Harry,-i just; now£ , ;haisaid,&7 endilhas jJhr7he^Beeiqi3 > en , or-r:wHich; T ■amjsbriys;t6nayisgeherSdlyrthe'] case,” he added/with a mischievous glamoe at his son. j

' . ’. U'SHiV. .-• I f \-\t ;.. I(i ■■ J'. T w':"" i T . ..Al^r.. dinner was oyer, and tlie young lady had left’the rooip,' Mr Neill sent the boy! ‘oh an 1 ieraahj, and' pushing, Philip,'sai(i, v ‘Nbw we leisure';to discuss' th'e ’matteri*Mr Phillips; Tfearyoir wilTiiot 'lre able i to'-manage the;lads,‘thdugh, ; to- Speak : candidly; I'dhould like you to give them.- a triaL> : • The person; who. [ was here ‘beforer you was qualified in 'every; respect but one, unfortunately? he ped been long, enough in. the colonies. .to forget ; ,.how to conduct himself as a, gentleman. - -By the bye, how did you hear of the’ matter?”'' ■ - *

. "Philip thought it best to relatethe Whole affair, as it' hadi occurred;; l he therefore iriforhied‘ MrNeill of his ; accidental encounter with Sutherland,* andi subsequent -arrangement with' liiim ; It was fortunateforhimi that.he did so, for Mr Neill had seep them,; in company that morning, i and, any equivocation would have at once .destroyed the! gdod opinion he.had! formed of the young man.. ' Affcetf a long conversation,! Philip determined fio acceptthe^sqfiaiter’s’offer, aud ! sthted.his intention. MrrNeill with him," saying, “Then from this time-we shall consider you as one of the family, it Pou may consider.:ine d .carious-fellow not .tor require, .references, and all that sort of things, but . I judge •. a-man by his conduct; and I am certain ,my decision in your case will prove a favorable oner.”

JPhilip found that he miade greater progress with hiis hriproinising pupils than, he’ had' anticipated. - The'bpySj With {he shrewd perception of their- age, speedily discovered that their new tuior was;a gentleman, andthe tone of ; friendship'purposely, assumed-towards Philip by their; father, tyas. not without its effect... i. •

| ..Mr;•Neill’s object appeared, to; be,.rather to secure a .suitable companion for his ( spns, than.to enforce strict attention' to' their studieshence [ Philip found himselfmaking more'progress in the i rbugh' sports 'of the bash' than his pupils' did in the classics; ■; Cassar' and- Thucydides' invariably having to give place to a “driving in” on branding ‘ day, or a scurry after a kangaroo; iudeed, had it ; notr'been for the lessons in drawing which' he' occa- ■ sionally 'gav.e; Miss s Neill,- his 'duties; would .have • been, merely , nominal.; Months passed away r in ' this,.manner, and after, .writing, several, times to , England, He, came to, ; the'conclusion that his.wife’s fifiends persuaded‘her to discard him.. This was a darigcrous[udea , , for‘one of Philip’s .dispo- . sitioh to entertain ;'yet he brooded'o'vdr the 'pro-bability'-until lie firmly believed it : to be r the' case, and the hopes he had entertained of retarding -’to Ellen gradually gave 'place to'the resentment with which her supposed neglect had inspired him. ;*< ! : His acquaintance with Miss Neill certainly, did jnpt.tend' tp keep Ellen’s image constantly before |his mind'; indeed he mentally compared the coniteinptupM silenbe of trie "one with,the'. evident [partiality of the ‘other, until a J to his : peace* • took ! possession, of him,' and as time rolled'on, and no answer‘to liis letters arrived, 1 a vague hope, hardly confessed to himself, gradually arose. thathe ; might, perhaps ,be free J-4free from a - wife and; country .that had. discarded him. With Philip, perhaps,,the., .wish was,.father, to the thought; ” -and w]ienVhe*reflectod.on[ Grabbe’s parting worife imneerning Ellen’s illness, he could fiStf helpthinkirig times the reproached *himself: ‘ for entertaining the idea/- He ; would not ! have been- so l surprised'at Grabbelsisilence had: he known* that -his letter-to the :attqrhey ; ihadi been-intercepted ;by the latter’s clerk, ;salters,for a, purpose of. his own, and ,it was.prdy, by [accident that, Grabbe, received, the cominanicattphs from- liis .correspondent Moses, thfeir safe delivery arising, from the .arrival of the mail'during Walters’ ’absence on business'. '■ / One;’'gobd' resulted* from Philip’s residence at Burreep-stationhe lost'his unfortunate craving if Indeed, if the presence, of a lady, whose'good: opinion he was desirous' of acquiring, Had t not effected this,; a piore unanswerable argument , would. ( have, caused tliis reformation, —the impossibility, of procuring the. liquor. [ Thptigh Mr ' Neill kept .spirits .-at the' station, they were in' his owh k j charge,' arid rifter; an occasional attack of what sapient individuals hayeheen pleased to term “ Dipsomania”—tliirst-madness, Philip began* to recover from- the propensity' which had disgraced him. .The' habit, of thinking and acting for himself, which he "acquired, too, tola upon him ,; he u Jost r the ; efFeininapy. which had characterised him ‘.and 'soon became ,as good a.husliraaa aud as hard'.a'rider as his pupils,[which was attaining a high standard. 1 ' ' 1 -V ; [ ! ' ;i! ; Mr ! Neill ; 1 took a great. fancy. to; Pliilip, : who listened to[ his stories : with'wellibred -rittentioh,' and' played chess,-’ the! squatter’s' favorite ; game, sufficiently well*; to- renderthe old:gentleman’s usual; victory an r interesting one., The, latter; though,.resident for, many years in Australia, was terimy, dndj prided,himself upon rendering his, abode iii the. bush, as much like his long-left , Erijgfi'sh. [horiie ; ''"as i ipossible’; Philip,' [therefore^ ’ found few I 'of the- inconveniences : or discomforts which'he'might havri‘experienced elsewhere. ; f ‘ [ Hehad been'nearly ' year at >Burreep station whfen'Mr Neill:was isuddenly .called away to Mel-; bourneoabusineSs.ofi importance.; -The. squatter hadj by .trite time acquired . so. much . .confidence in the,ypung maji;that h'eJetthim^iiLcharge of the stetipif' during, his absence'; a coimtlerice .fuiy deserved[ fpr J Pliilip :, generMly managed the 'business ortfi'e run/" J Mr'Neill/took his'daughter withhim, at Burreep.'''' 1! »-• - During-tbe''squatter*s absence; one of the stockmen: reporteithe disappearance >of several' .'cattle* to Philip; land the latter, anxious to recover .them. before, yMrij .jNpiILV xetjirn,, gode; off,, in, company, lads.-and.a,; couple in search of the animals,' arid succeeded in finding them at a water-hole, several miles from the run.; it general opinion- that the, blarikfellows had .dxiyein them tqus far. On their return they oyertpbk. a' ( 'diHpidkted4ooking individual;. wmaii edit or' boots,' who traniping through the ■ hush' -with; his 1 swag; In ; answer to' Philip’s questions theipeddslrian stated that he was-a fresh arrival, who having fried thfi. digging 3, arid: failed, .hud been pbhgeditpisell; hiscoat at f the,.last tbwn r shLp,\(hp i]sigbt have saidto liquidate, hissepre for. “mopbjers” ),[anH- the.lopkf out. fort bmplpyment.'[' the [ kiaiiqa~w3B, fullPhilip remembered his J owit '(position riot mm.y!raorittiß previously, rind took/the xriaribackto Burrees where; rifte! 1 a hearty“ feed;”- he gave him a'jstfit tof'hisicasfcioff' clothes; 'arid- alittleinoney,' sending:'the' lately ktehrymose individual ‘on Iris way-rejoicing.; y ;The ideaptsearchingthe pockets hi away,'never.,entered arid he .was,quite uhconksious of. the ffict’that ifcjoriteina. tjie rougH [(fraftotoa.letter he v 'hadmany ,f months;befc»re/'erielbsed-to i Grabbe for.;dedivery.-tp!Ellcuv £ ;''- 1 J j j; J Thefifecipierit-‘bf* PKilip’sbourity madehisway to*iMelbbrirne,;^here^hei ; speedily:;‘dissipated the' nioneyihes.lmd!.;received;-.andtitheri!,um:faccord-aace.with tf/ltook-theibush^-ifor pue, when he had succeeded miimiaig one;, , ;Ini this ‘he. was: probably- disappointed;; for he was heveragain seen atthe“ Brunawick Hotel,”