had no business to have a boy from the institution
behaving badly in my house.
All that I could get by way of proposed remedy was a suggestion that one of the ladies’ committee should call at my house, talk to Wilkins, and give him good advice to keep him from future evil. I hadn’t the liveliest faith in this moral prophylactic, but, in an evil hour, I consented to its administra- tion. How much the remedy transcended the dis- ease, it is beyond my feeble power to tell.
The committee lady came and talked to our page, and talked and came, and talked again. She was never out of the house; she was there sometimes as early as nine, A.M., and on one occasion she left the door at a quarter before eleven, p.m. Whatever Bernard was doing, she came and demanded him to be talked to. She routed Emma Maria, who hinted to her that her presence was occa- sionally inconvenient, and when I ventured to second the hint, she wouldn’t take it. She possessed us, and I used to go about my daily affairs thinking of how she was even then closeted with Wilkins in our dining-room, and composing imaginary forms of address to her, of which the beginning used to hover between, “Madam, I must really request that you will be good enough,” and, ‘ ‘ Fiend, in the shape of lady, avaunt!“ I don’t think I should ever have had the nerve to turn her out, had that course not been forced upon me.
One evening, goaded to frenzy by Skeggs’ behaviour, I confess I was so far transported with rage as to give him a box on the ears. This he reported to his lady-friend, and next day I had a visit from her and the superintendent, who took me to task roundly for what he was pleased to call my brutal conduct to an orphan lad, and informed me that if I again laid hands upon him, they would appeal to the law for his protection. Likewise that he could now understand how Wilkins was a boy so different to his former self, supposing my complaints of him to be well grounded. To all this the committee-lady acted as chorus, throwing in remarks and suggestions at intervals in aggra- vation of my offence. I restrained myself so far as to ask whether they wouldn’t take him back again, or even exchange him for another boy; but no, it seemed that as I had made my bed so I must lie. With an exhortation to that treatment of the lad, which would draw out his good qualities (the delivery of which nearly caused me to kick him into the street), the superintendent departed accompanied by the lady. I gave strict orders that on no pretext should either of them be ever again suffered to enter the house.
It may be well supposed how this occurrence acted upon Skeggs. He, of course, learnt the result of the interview between the superintendent and myself — (I’ll swear I saw the committee-lady lurking in the street one morning) — and shaped his course accordingly. But deliverance was at hand. One evening I was returning home and some fortunate wind having blown a brick down our bed-room chimney the night before, I bethought me that I would go up the back street, and look whether any outward damage was discernible. It was just dusk, and I hastened up the street, doubting whether the fading light would serve my purpose, when I suddenly became aware of an old and very ill-favoured woman at our yard-door, in earnest conversation with some one within. Before I could reach the spot, a bundle was transferred to her, and she straightway departed. I went round to the front, was admitted by Emma Maria who was at the window looking out for me, and called Mary, the maid-servant. Mary was out. “At last, Skeggs,” thought I, “I have thee,” and I regret to say that I felt something very like triumph at the idea.
I summoned him up-stairs, and imperiously demanded what woman he had just been talking to? Of course the first impulse of the ingenuous boy was bold, barefaced falsehood.
“He hadn’t been talking to any woman.”
I convinced him gently that this line was useless; and then, “Oh, yes; there was a woman!“ as though it had quite escaped his memory.
“Well, it was — yes, it was his aunt.”
“Oh! and what had he given her?“
“Nothing.”
It required the threat of a policeman before Skeggs admitted, as he ultimately did, that a few articles of household linen had been considerately bestowed by him upon this relative.
I may as well state here what we afterwards xound out; that “a few” very inadequately described the number and variety of articles which had disappeared; evidently during some time.
Next day, I had the pleasure of visiting the school, and informing my friend the superintendent that if he didn’t at once ease me of Skeggs, I should be under the necessity of bringing the matter before a magistrate, who would not only deal with the said Skeggs, but would cancel the indenture which had bound him to me. I was sorry, after all, for the superintendent, — he seemed so cast down and really grieved at the affair: but I was firm; and, to prevent the scandal, and consequent detriment to the institution, he consented to quash the indenture. He much wished me to try another boy, but to this proposal I hastily replied,
“Heaven forbid!“ and left the place, which I have never since entered.
Our next venture was not a bad boy like Skeggs, but he had his faults. He too was gluttonous; this, however, I find to be a peculiarity of the genus page; but it was unpleasant that this youth by gross feeding used to bring out boils upon his face to such an extent that he was often unable to wait at table. Not that this was an unmixed subject of vexation, especially when we had friends at our social board; for Edward used occasionally to take an obtrusive interest in the conversation, and alarm people by breaking out into hoarse chuckles, much behind time, at passing jokes; and cover Emma Maria and myself with confusion, either by losing himself in the contemplation of current events, or by dropping the plates and dishes. The fact is, he was only one remove from an idiot. Skeggs’ suit of clothes was altered for him, and it appeared that he must have had some undeveloped views on the bullion question as connected with the shiny buttons thereof; for, l having removed three of them from the most!
prominent part of his chest, with a view, I sup-