A MITRE BOX. By R. P. WHITWORTH.

Waikato Times, Volume XXIII, Issue 1914, 11 October 1884, Page 1 (Supplement)

A MITRE BOX. By R. P. WHITWORTH.

Eveb\osi3 in Australia has heard the story related of the late Lord Bishop of Sydney, how, on one occasion, somewhere in the Blue Mountains, meeting a bullock-driver toiling up a steep ascent with his flagging team, and using the forcible language affected by that class to urge the weary animals on, he dismounted, and reproving the man for his profane expressions, undertook to teach him how to drive his team without the objurgations bullock-drivers appear to deem necessary. How, however, the attempt was a lamentable and ignominious failure. Strawberry, Spot, Bailey, Redman, and the rest of them treating his mild appeals to their better nature with significant contempt, and quietly lying down in the dusty road. How, upon this, the worthy bishop was fain to confess that the teamster knew his business better than he could teaoh him, and remounting his horse rode off without further protest, to escape the storm of fiery invective showered at the laggard cattle. Thi3 stoiy, with divers embellishments, as suited the caprice or inventive faculties of the relator, has long been a standing joke told at the expense of the gigantic muscular Christian, and splendid horseman, the Rev. Dr. Barker, Bishop of Sydney. Whether it be strictly true or not, I am not prepared to say, but I never heard of his ! Lordship denying it, and he must have been pressed with it more than once, so that I dare say it is so. At all events, under the circumstances and at the period of which it is related, it is not at all improbable. But there is a story told of another colonial prelate, and a story not nearly so well known, though, as I think, far and away more amusing, not to say instructive. It is this : — At the time I refer to, not very many years ago, no clergyman in New Zealand was held in greater or more well- deserved respeot by all creeds and classes, than the talented, liberalmincUd, large-hearted and urbane Bishop of Christchurch and primate of the colony. The funotions of a colonial bishop in those days, and indeed until quite recently, were very different to those of the present. There were no railways, and but few and indifferent roads. There were, indeed, perils by land and perils by water to be incurred in travel. Lofty mountains to be scaled, treacherous and rapidly-rushing rivers to be forded, dangerous passes and steep gorges to be traversed, Bnow storms to be encountered, and wet, cold, and discomfort to be borne in those lonely journeyings in the back country of the Middle Island. And yet, storm or shine, the lion hearted bishop never shirked his work, never flinched from the arduous, and, for an old man, difficult duties of the pastoral visitations which his position demanded of him. He was as well known as he was beloved all over his diocese, had a oheery good morrow for everybody, and a pleasant word of chat for even the poorest wayfarer he might meet or pass on those wild roads, and I fancy it would have gone hard with any ill-conditioned vagabond who had insulted, or even spoken disrespectfully of him, if Terrible Billy the teamster, Black Prank the " Cobbs" driver, or any of that rowdy crew of diggers on the Greenstone and the Taipo had got to hear of it. But affable, courteous, and gentle in word and deed as the good old man was, there was another side to his character, of which few, if any, in the wide province of Canterbury dreamed, and it is with this that we have more particularly to do. In his periodical tours of visitation he of course called at the various few and far between stations whioh lay near his line of route, where he was always a welcome guest, and honored indeed was the squatter under whose roof he was induced to pass the night. On the wide lofty stretch of wild moor table-land that lies between the lake dotted valley of the Cass and the Bealey, and about five miles back from that wonderful piece of engineering, the Christchurch and Hokitika road, stood the home station of the TorlesseView inn, a property that took in I know not how many scores of square miles of mountain land and rolling down, and that belonged to the two brothers Charles and Arthur Treherne, cadets of an old Cornish family, who had inherited it from their Uncle Major Treherne, an Indian officer, and one of the pioneers who had settled in the province under the auspices of the Canterbury Association. The two young men were bachelors, and held the valuable estate in equal shares. They had come out to the colony ten years before on the invitation of their relative, and had, since his death, about five years previous to the time of thiß story, carried on the profitable business of 'stockownera themselves, occasionally taking a run down to Ghristohurch or Dunedin, or even as far as Melbourne, but mostly content to dwell in the large rambling weatherboard edifice known par excellence as " the House," in the centre of their run. They, had no immediate neighbors, the nearest station, " Johnstone's," being about eight miles away south, and the Cass change house, an equal distance north-east, while the Bealey, a kind of reserve station for Cobbs coach horses was near the junction of the Bealey and Waimakiriri rivers, a similar distance noi-fch-west.' They hud therefore bat

few visitors, except their neighbors of the male sex, with whom they were espeoial favorites, the more that they were adepts in all kinds of athletic exercises, in which they took great delight. One day in March, then about noon, having come in from their out-door work, they sat in their diningroom, the walls of which were decorated with foils, single stioke, wire visors, and helmets, leg and arm guards, plastrons, boxing gloves, a couple or so of guns, and like paraphernalia, while in a corner stood cricket bats and fishing rods (for the tarns afforded fair sport), and on the tiger skin hearth-rug lay a couple of colley dogs. On the sofa and on the floor, and in fact, anywhere else, thrown down at random, were saddles, bridles, stock-whips, spare girths, and other impedimenta of a pair of stalwart, careless, hard riding station -owners. Charles was seated in an easy chair, conning the last number of the " Field," and Arthur lay back smoking lazily. The window was wide open, and the cool wind blew softly and crisply in over the wide upland, barely lifting the heavy, and, sooth to say, somewhat dingy moreen curtains. It was a true picture of the dolce far nievte of a squatter's life. Presently enter to them, as the old playbooks say, Jack Frost, tall of stature and large of limb, groom, stockman, boundary rider, bowler at cricket, game-keeper — that is to say he would have been had there been any game to keep — and general factotum. He entered without knocking, and commenced without prelude : " Somebody comin' up to the house." "Who is it?" inquired Arthur, without moving, and emitting a stream of tobacco smoke. "Don't know. It ain't lame Peter, and it ain't old Garr. It ain't nobody as I know I don't think. He's too fur away to make out rightly, but I seen him topping the rise, and he's leading a horse." " Who can it be, I wonder, Charlie ? " asked Arthur, indifferently. " Better see if you can make out. Here, hand me the glass, and I'll take a look," replied Charles, putting down his paper, and going to the open window. He looked long and. intently through the binocular. " Well ?" said Arthur. 11 A stranger, leading a lame" horse. Hold on," he added, more excitedly ; " why its — no — yes it is — I'm hanged if it isn't the bishop ! " " Eh ? " exclaimed Arthur, waking up. " The bishop, leading a lame horse, it is, by George," Charles went on. "What the deuce is up, I wonder ? Here, Jack, send Mike in to clear out those saddles and things, and make the place look tidy. Tell the cook to hurry up the luncheon — some ham and eggs or anything handy. Kick those confounded dogs out of the room, Arty. Good Lord I here's a precious rum start. Come along, Arty ; let's go and biush up a bit, and go to meet the old gentleman." Driving out the dogs before them, the two brothers made for their bedrooms, whence they presently emerged " brushed up a bit," as they called it, and sallied forth to meet their eminent visitor. He was quite still a mile distant, and as they hurried forward to take down the slip panel that opened into the home paddock they could perceive that the horse he led halted badly on one of his fore legs. The bishop had loosed the girth, and carried his saddle bags over his arm, and the young men wonderingly speculated as to what the cause of this most unexpected apparition might be. Presently they met him at the slip panel, and bowing respectfully, welcomed him to Torlesse View. " My Lord," said Charles, " welcome to this house, but I fear that some accident — I trust that no harm has befallen yourself." " Oh, no, thank you," was the reply. " I left the pass this morning, intending to reach the Bealey to-day, where my son, whom I left at the Cass is to join me to-morrow morning, but unfortunately my horse stumbled on a loose stone, and I am afraid the poor beast has wrenched his fetlock. I therefore took the liberty of calling on you to ask the favor of your lending me another horse on which to pursue my journey, if it is not asking too great a kindness." "Nay, rather," said Arthur, "let us be thankful for the accident, fortunate to us at least, which has procured us the privilege of serving your lorship, and the honor of having your presence under our roof." Charles laughed outright. "I need not say," he added, "how cordially I endorse every word in my brother's— l am bound to say — somewhat complicated welcome, but I am sure your lordship will credit us when we say that it is at least sincere. By the way," he went on, " permit us the honor of introducing ourselves. I am Charles Treherne ; this is my younger brother Arthur. I had the happiness of meeting your lordship at dinner at the Governer's some twelve months since, but doubtless " " Oh, I know you well by repute, young gentleman, and fully intended doing myself the pleasure of paying you a visit. The event has happened sooner than I anticipated, but at present my stay must be a very short one, although on some future occasion, when I restore the borrowed property fpr example " "Pardon me, sir," interrupted Charles; " allow me relieve you of your valise. lam afraid that you will have perforce to prolong your visit, for to-night at least. The Bealey i 3 up, and has nearly covered the flats, and what is worse, the bottom has shifted again. Frank was nearly drowned crossing this morning, and I fear there will be no down coach to-morrow. We could not think of permitting you so to endanger yourself, we couldn't really. So you see, we take you prisoiier, vl et armis. But here we are at the door. Luncheon will be ready as soon as your lordship is ready, so pray allow me the honor of showing you to your room, and we will talk the matter of go or stay by-and-bye." The Bishop smiled good humoredly, and allowed himself to be conducted by the y©ung man to the guest chamber, which in that house was always kept in readiness for a chance occupant, of whom one came occasionally — generally, as in this case, without notice. ' By the time he had refreshed himself with an ablution, luncheon was announced, and the gentlemen made their way into the general room. Considering the time he had had at his disposal, Jerry the cook had performed wonders in the way of supplying an ivvpromptu meal. T^he apartment had been cleared, even swept and garnished, for in the very centre of the snow-white table cloth shone resplendently a hurriedly gathered bouquet of fresh bush flowers and greenery. The entire resources of the house Tiad been ransacked for glass and v crockery, and the table utensils, not perhaps all matching as to pattern, were bright and clean. Clearly the whole staff of the establishment had been put into icommisison, and the result was, for a bachelor's hall, and at so short a notice, a marvellous and pronounced success. Or so at least thought Charles Treherne, as, with a gratified side-glance at his brother, he welcomed the bishop to what he called " bachelors' pot-luck." "Pot-luck, do you call it," said the old gentleman, laughing, and rubbing his hands, " to a hungry man, as I must confess I am, it appears a feast worthy of Heliogabalus, or any other of those ancients who, a3 we used to be taught, lived bat to eat." And taking into consideration the long

1 journey he had had, and the bracing aud I hunger inspiring influence of the keen upland air, Ido not think he was far wrong. Fancy, oh travellers, if you can, coming unexpectedly, and when you thought that, at best, you might perhaps get a cut from a cold boiled leg of mutton, or a greasy chop fried in its fat, with a tin of sardines to follow, and a chunk of three days 1 old damper, with post and rail tea boiled in the billy to wash all down with. Fancy, I say, being unexpectedly introduced to a meal, of which the piece de resistance was a noble sirloin of roast beef ; cold, it is true, but flanked with potatoes smoking in their jackets, a dish of delicate cutlets, another of fizzling hot ham and eggs, and yet another containing an ethereal looking omelette, the whole supported, buttressed as it were, with a goodly array of bottles, whose legends tell of one Guinness and one Bass, and others whose green and yellow Beals and general mouldy and cobwebby appearance tell of many years burial in the cool depths of the wine cellar. The worthy bishop was no ascetic, not he. Sooth to say, like an honest gentleman, as he was, he liked a good dinner, and was not ashamed 'to say so, and as he sniffed the pleasant fumes rising in grateful fragrance irom the smoking board, he rubbed his hands again and smiled, as a hungry man with a good meal before him ought to smile, be he bishop or be he bagman. That he made a hearty dinner and enjoyed it too, goes without saying, and it might not perhaps be a very great infraction of confidence to say that after the solids had been fairly disposed of, the gentlemen indulged in a post-prandial pipe over their wine, for, like another dignitary nearer home, the worthy prelate neither ignored nor disdained the tranquilising effects of the Indian weed. | And then, having satisfied the requirements of the inner man, and sitting back with a sigh of content and peace with all the j world, the bishop, as the thin blue smoke j rose lazily in rings toward the ceiling, suffered his gaze to wander dreamily round the walls, on which, in strange juxtaposition to the two or three good pictures that had come down as heirlooms, hung in admired disorder the numerous implements of peaceful warfare already referred to. " I perceive, gentlemen," at last said he, between the puffs from his cutty, " that you go in for athletics." "les sir, we do amuse ourselves in that way during the dull season occasionally. Time hangs heavily on our hands sometimes, and ." "Quite right, quits right, young gentlemen, and a very proper and profitable way of spending a little leisure. You remember the old saying — the greatest of blessings is a mens sana in corpora sano, and without exercise the latter and therefore the former, is next to impossible. Ah I when I was younger — at college I mean — I was esteemed fairly smart with the foils, and I recollect that even Nipper Clarke, as we called him, who used to teach us boxing once, complimented me on the way I used what he was pleased to term my ' mauleys.' Ha I ha ! fancy an old man of my years, and a bishop te boot, talking about Nipper Clarke and his mauleys.' The old Adam you see, young gentlemen, is not dead, but sleepeth. Well, well, one might do worse than think, talk, practise, and enjoy such things, the old in retrospect, the young in present and prospect, so long as in the one it does not lead to vain repining, and in the other to the ' pride of life,' and to the neglect of higher and more important duties. You see, young gentlemen, the parson must preach you a little sermon, even on so uncongenial a text as single sticks and boxing gloves." The young men expressed their obligations to the Bishop for his remarks, which were, as they said, both well timed and acceptable. " And short," rejoined the old man, laughing gaily, " I do verily believe you're rejoicing inwardly at being let down so easily. But come, touching these foils; what says the preacher, ' There is a time to every purpose under the heaven.' Good, this is the ' breathing time of the day,' as Shakspeare hath it, and I confess I would fain see a taste of your quality with that now-a-days much neglected weapon, the small sword." The brothers were only too glad to please the old gentleman, and at once rose and donned their plastrons and vizois, at the same time leading the way to a small enclosed court yard laid down with tan and fitted up at one end as a gymnasium. " Arthur is too strong for me with the foils," said Charles, as they faced each other. "He was Uncle Edward's favorite pupil, and Major Edward Treherne was, I have heard, at one one time looked upon as the finest swordsman in the Indian army. And yet Arthur used to press him hard, and he used to say that he was born to be a fencer, and that he had one of those strong supple wristsOjthat seemed made for the sword." " Charlie flatters me, my lord ; he is quite as skilful as I am, except, perhaps, in one or two passages, which are, as a matter of fact, mere tricks of fence " " But which enable you to touch me, or even to disarm me, pretty nearly as often as you like," laughed the elder, " but come, en garde." It was a pretty sight. There is not in the whole range of athletics a prettier sight than that of two skilful swordsmen pitted against each other with foils. The rapid attacks and lightning-lite passes and thrusts, the feints, the combinations, the swift rushes, the quick bounds of the attack, and the equally rapid retreats, parades, parries, and ripostes of the defence, invest it with a grace and an interest unsurpassed by any other form of exercise, while the wary eye, the strong, yet supple wrist, the agile body, and the ever present caution and judgment necessary, render it as fascinating a recreation to the spectator as it is to those engaged. It was a pretty sight, and the good bishop enjoyed it with the air of a critic, and the satisfaction of a connoisseur. He stood in the shade and made remarks as the play went on. " Good, that thrust in tierce after the feint and disengage— not quite so close as you might have been— a pretty touch over the guard — good, good, good, ah, a parry in prime— so, seconde— beat and disengage— the coupe sur peint — well parried — missed your riposte — ha 1 The worthy bishop's ha I was forced from him by a brilliant coup on the part of the younger brother. The combat had lasted fully ten minutes cessation, and neither had gained much advantage. True, Arthur had touched Charles twice slightly over his guard, but this only served to render the latter more cautious, although not the IeBS quick. For some minutes there had been no advantage on either side, Arthur's calm steady play baffling every effort of his longer-reached antagonist. At last, with a quick turn of the wrist, he sent his brother's weapon flying across the court. " You always have me so, Arty. Do my best, eooner or later comes that wrench, and away goes my foil." "My dear boy, you must learn how to stop it. See, your sword is so ; as you lunge I guard, and run my blade along yours, so as to get power with my fort, near my hilt — thus. Now if I press, your sword must go ; but you must not let me press ; you must disengage quickly. Thus, you see?" and again with a subtle twist the foil was forced from Charles' hand. " Better,ibut not] quick enough. Try again." The bishop laughed heartily^ andjjubbed his hands in great glee. "Monsieur Arthur," he said, "vous-etes ineroyabU % vout-etet Merveilleux,un miracle,

as Gamier would have said. That last combination was perfection." " It is a coup invented by my uncle Edward, sir, and taught by him to me," replied Arthur modestly. " The last wrench is rather difficult to parry." " Difficult ! I ahould think so. There was a time when I could hold my own with the best of them, and I say it is marvellous." " Ah, sir," responded Arthur wistfully, " it would indeed be an honor if " "If you could persuade me to cross swords with you, eh ? " laughed the bishop, " and with that coup too. No, no, I thank you, my wrist and my eyes warn me not to venture on dangerous ground. You are too strong for me, better, if I can gauge you, than ever I was. But your brother is of premiere force too." Never have I seen, even at Maitre Garnier's, the best ocole d'escrime in Paris of my day, a better contested bout." "Ah, sir," replied Arthur, with a quick generous impulse, " fencing is all very well, but you should see Charlie with the gloves. With the foils I may get a point or two on him, but with the gloves, why, sir, he knocks spots out of me — that is, I mean, my lord " Oh, I know what you mean well enough," said the old gentleman, joyously, " a pardonable figure oi speech. One I've used often enough myself I dare say, only instead of " spots " we used to say " saucepans," and he laughed merrily at the remembrance. "Don't you believe him, sir," said Charlie, " he's quite as good with the glove 3 as I am, only I have the longer reach. But you shall see ; " and he went intp the house and presently returned, bearing' a set of well worn boxing gloves. " How the old time comes over me," said the good bishop, his eye 3 sparkling with pent up fun, " I declare I feel quite a boy again, and if it were not— but there, that's nonsense." The two Trehernes sparred neatly and well. They were evenly matched in science, and head, body, and face blowo were made, stopped, and countered with the utmost skill and rapidity. But although at first neither appeared to have the advantage, still the greater height and length oi reach of the elder brother stood him in good stead against the superior activity of the younger. He stood calm, cool, cautious, ever ready to ward off the shower of blows that the lithe and quick eyed Arthur ineffectively rained at him. He stood like a rock, acting almost exclusively on the defensive, and, as the saying is, waiting for an opening. And the opening came. After a quick rally in which the give and take were so rapid as to be almost indistinguishable, Charles feinted suddenly with his right, and at the same moment hit out from the shoulder with hi 3 left a body blow which | sent Master Arthur half a dozen paces backward, and induced him to sit down on the tan, looking very red in the face, and blinking like an owl. " Eairly and cleanly hit," shouted the excited bishop. " Never saw Nipper Clarke nor Gipsey Hearne give a better blow, although both of you keep your nippers — that is to say, I mean," he went on, remembering himselt in some confusion, " if I might be permitted to suggest — " * Certainly, sir, pray go on," from both combatants. " Merely that as I learnt, we used to shape • — I mean guard, a little higher than you do. More like this," anrl the worthy gentleman threw himself into the attitude affected in the P.B. in tho days of — say — deaf Burke and Beadigo. "But," he added, emphatically, although somewhat wistfully, " it was beaulitul for all that." Charlie winked slyly at Arthur, and advancing to the bishop said vrith aua,ve seriousness, "Could we not induce your lordship to favor us with a practical illustiatioa of yous meaning. I am sure we should both be deeply grateful tor a lesson fioni so eminent " An authority on boxing," interrupted the bishop, laughing. " No, no, Master Charles Treherne; you can't catch old birds with chaff, you know." '• I hope, sir, you'll befteve that I should never presume to use chaff to j/ou. Indeed, sir, I am in earnest in saying that your instructions would be accepted not the less as a privilege and a benefit than as> an honor." "Put that last sentence into Greek iambics and I am yours to command," returned the bi&hop. "I'll do that for you, sir," said Arthur, briskly* The old gentleman looked surprised and not a little alarmed, " What?" he gasped. "Ah, air," rejoined Arthur, triumphantly, " you see we do something be&ide ience and box and play cricket out here, and while we amuse ourselves with the loila, the gloves, and the bat, we do not neglect our old triends Hediod, Euripedes, Aristotle, Ovid and the rest of them. Give me five imaufcey, sir, and you shall contess you &m iauly caught." ""Vtyben an elderly gentleman, be he bishop, or be he bookmaker, slowly and pouderingly scratches his head, a iittle above the right temxjle, with the point of hid iorelinger, hf ts his eyebrows, purses his hp 3, and looks otherwise as amiably and ad tooh&hly wise aa possible, you may safely propound to the one or give long odds to the other, that he is, aa they say, " gravelled." (To be continued.')