Page:Hornung - Fathers of Men.djvu/202

 very stormy Phœbus now, but still every inch that grand young god.

"Well, Sprawson?"

"I'm sure Cave can tell you better than I can, sir," says Sprawson of the wicked humour.

"But Sprawson will make the most of it," says the cricketer with icy sneer.

"It's not a tale that wants much varnish, sir, if that's what he means," said Sprawson, happily. "I'll tell you the facts, sir, and Cave can check them if he'll be so kind. You said we should find the Major's carriage waiting for us outside the quad, and so we did. It was the landau, sir, a very good one nicely hung, and capital cattle tooling us along like lords. The country was looking beautiful. Roads rather dusty, but a smell of hay that turned it into a sort of delicate snuff, sir. It really was a most delightful drive."

"Speak for yourself, Sprawson, if you don't mind."

"I shouldn't dream of speaking for you, Cave. You didn't seem to me to take any interest in the scenery. I may be wrong, but I couldn't help thinking your heart was at the wicket, flogging our poor bowling all over the parish, and I was so thankful to be where I was! But that was only on the way, sir; it was nothing to what we were in for at the other end. The footman said we should find the Major on the lawn. So we did, sir—playing tennis like a three-year-old—and half the county looking on!"

"Not a garden-party?" inquired Heriot incredulously.

"That sort of thing, sir."

"My poor fellows! Pray go on."

"Of course we couldn't interrupt him in the middle of his set, sir, and when he'd finished it he crossed straight