Page:Dumas - Tales of Strange adventure (Methuen, 1907).djvu/90

78 but it was too late. Something was dragging me towards a place where I could hear the water lapping ; the ice had been broken whilst I was in the mill. In front of me was a channel of open water ; I pressed hard on my heels, but all to no purpose. I came to the hole, and 'good-night,' I was in the lake. "Luckily I can dive like a seal. I held my breath and looked for an opening. It is no easy job to find one's bearings underneath the ice, I can tell you. At last I saw what looked like a strip of thinner ice ; I was swimming towards it, when suddenly I felt something catch me by the leg and draw me down to the bottom. I was just opening my mouth to take a breath of air, but instead of that I swallowed a great gulp of water.

"Everything went black, and I heard a buzzing in my ears; I felt that if I did not rid myself, and that mighty quick, of what was dragging me down, I was a lost man. I kicked out with all my might, and to some purpose, for the thing that was pulling me let go. I took advantage of my release to rise to the surface. For two or three seconds more I banged with my head against the ice ; finally stifling, half-dead, almost fainting, I succeeded in produci~ng a solution of continuity, as the mathematicians put it.

I got my head above the water, I took a deep, deep breath, I clung on to the ice, but the more I tried to get on t6 it, the more it kept breaking away. Eventually by a tremendous effort I dragged myself full length on to the slippery surface ; and my weight being distributed, the ice held good. I got to my feet and struck out with my skates. Never a ship running free before the wind went the pace I went. I made a good thirty knots an hour, but on reaching the bank I was at the end of my strength.

"I lost consciousness, and when I recovered my senses I found myself in a warm .bed and saw I was in the room at the inn from which I had set out the night before. Some peasants going to market had found me stretched on the ground, half-dead and thrfee parts frozen ; they had lifted me into their cart and brought me back to Stavoren, where the landlady, who knew me, had taken every care of me.

"Two hours later, thanks to a bowl of punch, which I swallowed steaming hot, I was as well as ever. Our travellers had finished what they had to do by ten o'clock; they were in a hurry to get back; and so was I, for I was not a little anxious about the reception that awaited me at home. We hoisted sail at eleven with a fair wind. It is twelve leagues pretty near from Stavoren to Monnikendam, and we covered the distance in six hours, which is good going.

"This time it was not on the threshold of the door that the Buchold was waiting for me, it was at the water's edge. Her green eyes glittered in the gloom like two emeralds. She signed to me to go in front of her into the house. I said nothing, but my mind was made up, if she aggravated me too far, to give her one of those little marital corrections which they say women require every three months or so, if they are to become perfect wives. So I went quietly into the house and shut the door myself. Then taking a seat—

"'Well, what now?' said I.

"'What now, indeed!' she screamed.

"'Yes, what do you want?'

"'What do I want! I want to tell you you are a blackguard to go trapesing about the way you do, running the risk of getting drowned and leaving your poor wife a widow with a child upon her hands.'

"'Eh, what, a child?'

"'Yes, you villain, I am with child, you know that well enough!'

"'Not I! Upon my word.'

"'Well, if you didn't know it, I'll tell you so now.'

"'I am glad to hear it.'

"'So you are glad to hear it.'

"'Would you have me say I am sorry to hear it?'

"'There you go, bandying words with me instead of asking my pardon.'

"'Your pardon for what?'

"'For running about o' nights like a were-wolf, for going courting miller girls. Is it a proper time for skating, I ask you that, eh, six o'clock in the morning?'

"Come now,' said I, 'I am getting sick of your spying ways, and if you don't let me be'

"'What will you do?'

"I had a fine Bengal-bamboo, as whippy as a rush, which I used for beating my clothes with on Sundays. I took it from its corner and made it whistle about the Buchold's ears.

"'See that, my pet! I need say no more.'