Page:Ragged Trousered Philanthropists.djvu/249

The Slaughter with the load to the yard. At the corner of the road they paused to take a last look at the 'job.'

'There it stands!' said Harlow, tragically extending his arm towards the house. 'There it stands! A job that if they'd only have let us do it properly couldn't 'ave been done with the number of 'ands we've 'ad in less than four months! And there it is, finished, messed up, slobbered over and scamped, in nine weeks!'

'Yes, and now we can all go to 'ell.' said Philpot, gloomily.

At the yard they found Bundy and his mate, Ned Dawson, who helped them to hang up the ladders in their usual places. Philpot was glad to get out of assisting to do this for he had contracted a rather severe attack of rheumatism when working outside at the 'Cave.' Whilst the others were putting the ladders away he assisted Bert to carry the paint pots and buckets into the paint shop, where he filled a small medicine bottle he had brought with him for the purpose with turpentine from the tank. He wanted this stuff to rub into his shoulders and legs, and as he secreted the bottle in the inner pocket of his coat, he muttered: 'This is where we gets some of our own back.'

They took the key of the yard to the office, and as they separated to go home Bundy suggested that the best thing they could do would be to sew their bloody mouths up for a few months because there was not much probability of their getting another job until about March.

The next morning while Crass and Slyme were finishing inside Owen wrote the two gates, on the front entrance, 'The Cave,' and on the back, 'Tradesmen's Entrance,' in gilded letters. In the meantime Sawkins and Bert made several journeys to the yard with the hand-cart.

Crass, working in the kitchen with Slyme, was very silent and thoughtful. Ever since the job was started, every time Mr Sweater had visited the house to see what progress was being made Crass had been grovelling to him in the hope of receiving a tip when the work was finished. He had been very careful to act upon any suggestions that Sweater had made, and had taken a lot of trouble to get just the right tints of certain colours, making up a number of different shades and combinations, and doing parts of the skirtings or mouldings of rooms in order that Mr Sweater might see exactly what it would look like when finished. He made a great 237