Part 22 (1/2)
Oddly enough the subdued prince did not seem to regard Pollyooly with the bitterness which might have been expected. He did not even shun the sight of her. Indeed, as he made his royal progress along the beach, he would pause and regard her with puzzled but manifestly quite respectful interest, as she played actively not far from her little brother, the Lump, with her young friends.
The baron regarded the Honourable John Ruffin in a very different manner; he could not set eyes on him without scowling horribly. It was the desire of his heart to have the blood of Pollyooly's protector; and though the conduct of Pollyooly had oddly but considerably weakened his confident expectation of the immediate subjugation of the English people by his imperial master he longed with a greater fervour than had ever before burned in him for THE DAY.
The conversations, strictly confined to the British tongue, between the baron and his pupil, were always of the briefest and often truculent.
The prince was a silent child, by reason of the fact that he had nothing to say. But one morning as they came down to the beach he startled the baron by saying:
”I want to blay.”
”Yes, 'ighness, whad shall we blay ad?” said the Baron von Habelschwert uncomfortably, after a little hesitation.
”I don't want to blay wiz you,” said the prince in a tone which showed, beyond any possibility of misconception, that on that matter his mind was made up.
”Bud zere's no one else for you do blay wiz,” said the baron in English.
”I want to blay wiz childrens,” said the pupil.
The baron drew his heels together and became, though still pear-like, splendidly rigid. His eyes flashed with haughty, but a trifle vicarious pride, as he said:
”Zere are no children for your 'ighness do blay wiz 'ere. Zese are nod 'igh and well-born ones.”
”I do nod care,” said the prince in the tone of one who knew his own mind quite well.
”Id is imbossible,” said the baron in a tone of finality.
The rhinocerine eyes of his little charge flashed in sudden wrath; and he uttered a curious, pig-like snort as he sprang at the baron, and got in one severe kick on his left s.h.i.+n before that thoughtless Prussian, who should have known so well what to expect, could abate his rigidity and bend forward and hold him off at the length of his arms. He well knew that, in that constrained att.i.tude to his bellowing pupil, he was presenting no dignified spectacle. None the less he was aware that he was affording considerable entertainment to the visitors taking the air on the sea-wall above him; and his joy in his young charge was not increased by the fact that among those visitors the Honourable John Ruffin smiled on the scene with amiable interest.
Having ascertained beyond all doubting that his well-shod toes could not reach the s.h.i.+ns of his preceptor, the young prince ceased his futile effort, and with a most ungracious air moved along the beach.
The limping baron followed him gloomily, with itching fingers. He felt that, in spite of the fact that his imperial master would shortly sweep her land with fire and sword from sea to sea, the lot of the happy English child Pollyooly was to be envied, since she could, and did, smack princes, with a mind untroubled by the sense of their sacrosanct.i.ty. Moreover he felt a sad prescience that his young charge, careless of the magnificent blood that flowed in his veins, _would_ play with these children, who were neither high nor well-born.
But he was quite unprepared for the actual group of children his young charge chose for playmates. He pa.s.sed no less than four animated and excited groups before he arrived at that adorned and ruled by Pollyooly.
It chanced that it had decided to play rounders, and was gathered into an excited knot in which everybody was discussing, all at the same time, the process of picking sides.
The prince, shouldering aside, with proud Hohenzollern manliness, two or three little girls, thrust into the centre of the group and said:
”I want do blay.”
The debating voices hushed; the other children stared at him with startled eyes, then drew aside leaving him face to face with Pollyooly.
”We don't want him to play with _us_!” cried Kathleen, who occupied the position of chief friend to Pollyooly.
”No, we don't!” cried the two other little girls.
The prince paid no heed to them; he looked at Pollyooly and said:
”I want do blay.”
Pollyooly considered him thoughtfully, weighing the question of his admission to their circle with the care it demanded. He was not very pleasant to look at since he was so podgy, snub-nosed, pasty-faced, and small-eyed; but Pollyooly, mindful of their late encounter, and inspired by the magnanimity of the victor, did not at once reject the appeal.
”Will you promise to behave properly, if we let you play with us?” she said coldly.