Chapter 2. Mr. Isaac Dempster

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_ CHAPTER TWO. MR. ISAAC DEMPSTER

I was in the act of opening the swing-door stealthily, and was half through when I saw that Mr Dempster was acting precisely in the same way, stealing through the inner doorway, and making me a sign to stop.

I obeyed, shivering a little at what was to come, and wishing that I had the courage to utter a word of warning. For there was Esau with his head hanging down over the catalogue he was copying out, fast asleep, the sun playing amongst his fair curls, and a curious guttural noise coming from his nose.

It was that sound, I felt, which had brought Mr Dempster out with his lips drawn back in an ugly grin, and a malicious look in his eyes as he stepped forward on tiptoe, placed both his hands together on my fellow-clerk's curly head, and pressed it down with a sudden heavy bang on the desk.

Something sounded very hollow. Perhaps it was the desk. Then there was a sudden bound, and Esau was standing on the floor, gazing wildly at our employer.

"You lazy idiotic lump of opium," roared the latter. "That's the way my work's done, is it?"

As our employer uttered these words he made at Esau, following up and cuffing him first on one side of the head and then on the other, while the lad, who seemed utterly confused with sleep, and the stunning contact of his brow against the desk, backed away round the office, beginning then to put up his arms to defend himself.

"Here," he cried, "don't you hit me--don't you hit me."

"Hit you!--you stupid, thick-headed, drowsy oaf! I'll knock some sense into you. Nice pair, upon my word! And you--you scoundrel," he cried, turning on me, "where have you been?"

"Only--only just outside, sir," I stammered, as I felt my cheeks flush.

"I'll only just outside you," he roared, catching me by the collar and shaking me. "This is the way my work is done, is it? You're always late of a morning--"

"No, sir," I cried, indignantly.

"Silence!--And always the first to rush off before your work's done; and as soon as my back's turned, you're off to play with the boys in the street. Where have you been?"

I was silent, I felt that I could not tell him.

"Sulky, eh? Here, you," he roared, turning upon Esau, "where has he been? How long has he been gone?"

"Don't you hit me! Don't you hit me!" cried the boy, sulkily; "I shan't stand this."

"I say, how long has he been gone?"

"I was only gone a few minutes, sir," I said.

"Gone a few minutes, you scoundrel! How dare you be gone a few minutes, leaving my office open? You're no more use than a boy out of the streets, and if I did my duty by you, I should thrash you till you could not stand. Back to your desk, you dog, and the next time I catch you at any of these tricks off you go, and no character."

As I climbed back to my place at the desk, hot, flushed, and indignant, feeling more and more unable to explain the reason for my absence, and guilty at the same time--knowing as I did that I had no business to steal off--Mr Dempster turned once more upon Esau, who backed away from him round the office, sparring away with his arms to ward off the blows aimed at him, though I don't think they were intended to strike, but only as a malicious kind of torture.

"Here, don't you hit me! don't you hit me!" Esau kept on saying, as if this was the only form of words he could call up in his excitement.

"I'll half break your neck for you, you scoundrel! Is that catalogue done?"

"How can I get it done when you keep on chivvying me about the place?" cried Esau.

"How can you get it done if you go to sleep, you scoundrel, you mean. Now then, up on to that stool, and if it isn't done you stop after hours till it is done. Here, what are you staring at? Get on with those letters."

Mr Dempster had turned upon me furiously as I sat looking, and with a sigh I went on with my writing, while red-faced and wet-eyed, for he could not keep the tears back, Esau climbed slowly on to his stool, and gave a tremendous sniff.

"I shall tell mother as soon as I get home," he cried.

"Tell your mother, you great calf! You had better not," roared Mr Dempster. "She has troubles enough. It was only out of charity to her that I took you on. For you are useless--perfectly useless. I lose pounds through your blunders. There, that will do. Get on with your work."

He went back into the inner office, and banged the door so heavily that all the auction bills which papered the walls of our office began to flap and swing about. Then for a few minutes there was only the scratching of our pens to be heard.

Then Esau gave a tremendous sniff, began wiping his eyes on the cuffs of his jacket, and held the blotting-paper against each in turn as he looked across at me.

"'Tain't crying," he said. "Only water. Ketch him making me cry!"

"You were crying," I said, quietly.

"No, I wasn't. Don't you get turning again' me too. Take a better man than him to make me cry."

I laughed.

"Ah, you may grin," grumbled my companion; "but just you have your head knocked again' the desk, and just you see if it wouldn't make your eyes water."

At that moment the door was opened with a snatch.

"Silence there! You, Gordon, will you go on with your work?"

The door was banged before I could have answered. Not that I should have said anything. But as soon as the door clicked Esau went on again without subduing his voice--

"I ain't afraid of him--cheating old knocktioneer! Thinks he's a right to knock everybody down 'cause he's got a licence."

"Go on with your work," I whispered, "or he'll come back."

"Let him; I don't care. I ain't afraid. It was all your fault for going out."

"And yours for being asleep."

"I can't help my head being heavy. Mother says it's because I've got so much brains. But I'll serve him out. I'll make all the mistakes I can, and he'll have to pay for them being corrected."

"What good will that do?"

"I dunno; but I'll serve him out. He shan't hit me. I say, what did you go out to buy?"

"Nothing. I went out to speak to that gentleman who came."

"What gentleman who came?"

"While you were asleep."

"There you go! You're as bad as old Knock-'em-down. Fellow's only got to shut his eyes, and you say he's asleep. But I don't care. Everybody's again' me, but I'll serve 'em out."

"You'd better go on with your writing."

"Shan't. Go on with yours. I know. I'll 'list--that's what I'll do. Like to see old Going-going touch me then!"

There was a busy interval of writing, during which something seemed to ask me why I let Mr Dempster behave so brutally to me, and I began wondering whether I was a coward. I felt that I could not be as brave as Esau, or I should have resisted.

"Not half a chap, you ain't!" said my companion, suddenly.

"Why?"

"You'd say you'd come with me. Deal better to be soldiers than always scrawling down Lot 104 on paper."

"I don't want to be a soldier," I said.

"No; you're not half a chap. Only wait a bit. I'd ha' gone long ago if it hadn't been for mother."

"Yes; she wouldn't like you to go."

"How do you know?"

"Mrs Dean told me so. She said you were mad about red-coats."

"That's just like mother," said Esau, with a grin, "allus wrong. I don't want to wear a red coat. Blue's my colour."

"What--a sailor?" I said quickly.

"Get out! Sailor! all tar and taller. I'm not going to pull ropes. I mean blue uniform--'Tillery--Horse Artillery. They do look fine. I've seen 'em lots o' times."

"Here, you two, I'm going out. I shall be back in five minutes," said Mr Dempster, so suddenly that he made us both start. "Look sharp and get that work done."

He stood drawing a yellow silk handkerchief round and round his hat, which was already as bright as it could be made, and then setting it on very much on one side, he gave his silk umbrella a flourish, touched his diamond pin with the tip of his well-gloved finger, and strutted out.

"Back in five minutes! Yah!" cried Esau. "It's all gammon about being honest and getting on."

"No, it isn't," I said, as I carefully dotted a few i's.

"Yes, it is. Look at him--makes lots o' money, and he cheats people and tells more lies in a day than I've told in all my life."

"Nonsense!"

"Tain't. He's a regular bad 'un. Back in five minutes! Why he won't come till it's time to go, and then he'll keep us waiting so as to get all the work he can out of us."

But that time Esau was wrong, for in about five minutes the outer door was opened, and our employer thrust in his head.

"There's a letter on my table to post, Gordon," he said. "Be sure it goes."

"Yes, sir," I said, and as the door closed again I looked at Esau and laughed.

"Oh, I don't mind," he said. "That wasn't coming back. He only looked in to see if we were at work. I shan't stop here; I shall 'list."

"No, you will not," I said, as I went on writing quietly.

"Oh, yes, I shall. You can go on lodging with the old woman, for you won't be the chap to come with me."

"You won't go," I said.

"Ah, you'll see. You don't mean to stop here, do you, and be bullied and knocked about?"

I went on writing and thinking of how dearly I should have liked to go somewhere else, for my life was very miserable with Mr Dempster; but I always felt as if it would be cowardly to give up, and I had stayed on, though that day's experience was very like those which had gone before.

We had both finished our tasks an hour before Mr Dempster returned, nearly an hour after closing time, and even then he spent a long time in criticising the writing and finding fault, concluding by ordering Esau to go round with the catalogue he had made out to the printer's.

"There's a master for you!" cried my fellow-clerk, as we went up into the main street. "I shan't stand it. I'm going for a soldier."

I laughed.

"Ah, you may grin at what I say, but wait a bit. Going home?"

"No," I said, "I shall walk round with you to the printer's."

He gave me a quick bright look, and his manner changed as if, once free of the office, he felt boy-like and happy. He whistled, hummed over bits of songs, and chatted about the various things we passed, till we had been at the printer's, and then had to retrace our steps so as to cross Blackfriars Bridge, and reach Camberwell, where in a narrow street off the Albany Road Esau's mother rented a little house, working hard with her needle to produce not many shillings a week, which were supplemented by her boy's earnings, and the amount I paid for my bed, breakfast, and tea.

It was my fellow-clerk's proposal that I should join them, and I had good cause to be grateful, the place being delightfully clean, and little, quaint, homely Mrs Dean looking upon me as a lodger who was to be treated with the greatest of respect.

"Shan't go for a soldier to-night!" said Esau, throwing himself back in his chair, after we had finished our tea.

"I should think not indeed," cried his mother. "Esau, I'm ashamed of you for talking like that. Has he been saying anything about it to you, Master Gordon?"

"Oh, yes, but he don't mean it," I replied. "It's only when he's cross."

"Has master been scolding him then again?"

"Scolding?" cried Esau scornfully, "why he never does nothing else."

"Then you must have given him cause, Esau dear. Master Gordon, what had he done?"

"Mr Dempster caught him asleep."

"Well, I couldn't help it. My head was so heavy."

"Yes," sighed Mrs Dean, "his head always was very heavy, poor boy. He goes to sleep at such strange times too, sir."

"Well, don't tell him that, mother," cried Esau. "You tell everybody."

"Well, dear, there's no harm in it. I never said it was your fault. Lots of times, Master Gordon, I've known him go to sleep when at play, and once I found him quite fast with his mouth full of bread and butter."

"Such stuff!" grumbled Esau, angrily.

"It is quite true, Master Gordon. He always was a drowsy boy."

"Make anybody drowsy to keep on writing lots and figures," grumbled Esau. "Heigho--ha--hum!" he yawned. "I shan't be very long before I go to bed."

He kept his word, and I took a book and sat down by the little fire to read; but though I kept on turning over the pages, I did not follow the text; for I was either thinking about Mrs Dean's needle as it darted in and out of the stuff she was sewing, or else about Mr John Dempster and our meeting that day--of how I had promised to go up and see him on Sunday, and how different he was to his cousin.

The time must have gone fast, for when the clock began to strike, it went on up to ten; and I was thinking it was impossible that it could be so late, when I happened to glance across at little Mrs Dean, whose work had dropped into her lap, and she was as fast asleep then as her son had been at the office hours before. _

Read next: Chapter 3. My New Friends

Read previous: Chapter 1. Mr. John Dempster

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