II. THE OPEN ROAD
'Ratty,' said the Mole suddenly, one bright summer morning, 'if youplease, I want to ask you a favour.'
The Rat was sitting on the river bank, singing a little song. He hadjust composed it himself, so he was very taken up with it, and would notpay proper attention to Mole or anything else. Since early morning hehad been swimming in the river, in company with his friends the ducks.And when the ducks stood on their heads suddenly, as ducks will, hewould dive down and tickle their necks, just under where their chinswould be if ducks had chins, till they were forced to come to thesurface again in a hurry, spluttering and angry and shaking theirfeathers at him, for it is impossible to say quite ALL you feel whenyour head is under water. At last they implored him to go away andattend to his own affairs and leave them to mind theirs. So the Rat wentaway, and sat on the river bank in the sun, and made up a song aboutthem, which he called
'DUCKS' DITTY.'
All along the backwater, Through the rushes tall, Ducks are a-dabbling, Up tails all! Ducks' tails, drakes' tails, Yellow feet a-quiver, Yellow bills all out of sight Busy in the river!
Slushy green undergrowth Where the roach swim-- Here we keep our larder, Cool and full and dim.
Everyone for what he likes! _We_ like to be Heads down, tails up, Dabbling free!
High in the blue above Swifts whirl and call-- _We_ are down a-dabbling Uptails all!
'I don't know that I think so VERY much of that little song, Rat,'observed the Mole cautiously. He was no poet himself and didn't care whoknew it; and he had a candid nature.
'Nor don't the ducks neither,' replied the Rat cheerfully. 'They say,WHY can't fellows be allowed to do what they like WHEN they like and ASthey like, instead of other fellows sitting on banks and watching themall the time and making remarks and poetry and things about them? WhatNONSENSE it all is! That's what the ducks say.'
'So it is, so it is,' said the Mole, with great heartiness.
'No, it isn't!' cried the Rat indignantly.
'Well then, it isn't, it isn't,' replied the Mole soothingly. 'But whatI wanted to ask you was, won't you take me to call on Mr. Toad? I'veheard so much about him, and I do so want to make his acquaintance.'
'Why, certainly,' said the good-natured Rat, jumping to his feet anddismissing poetry from his mind for the day. 'Get the boat out, andwe'll paddle up there at once. It's never the wrong time to call onToad. Early or late he's always the same fellow. Always good-tempered,always glad to see you, always sorry when you go!'
'He must be a very nice animal,' observed the Mole, as he got into theboat and took the sculls, while the Rat settled himself comfortably inthe stern.
'He is indeed the best of animals,' replied Rat. 'So simple, sogood-natured, and so affectionate. Perhaps he's not very clever--wecan't all be geniuses; and it may be that he is both boastful andconceited. But he has got some great qualities, has Toady.'
Rounding a bend in the river, they came in sight of a handsome,dignified old house of mellowed red brick, with well-kept lawns reachingdown to the water's edge.
'There's Toad Hall,' said the Rat; 'and that creek on the left, wherethe notice-board says, Private. No landing allowed, leads to hisboat-house, where we'll leave the boat. The stables are over there tothe right. That's the banqueting-hall you're looking at now--very old,that is. Toad is rather rich, you know, and this is really one of thenicest houses in these parts, though we never admit as much to Toad.'
They glided up the creek, and the Mole shipped his sculls as they passedinto the shadow of a large boat-house. Here they saw many handsomeboats, slung from the cross beams or hauled up on a slip, but none inthe water; and the place had an unused and a deserted air.
The Rat looked around him. 'I understand,' said he. 'Boating is playedout. He's tired of it, and done with it. I wonder what new fad he hastaken up now? Come along and let's look him up. We shall hear all aboutit quite soon enough.'
They disembarked, and strolled across the gay flower-decked lawns insearch of Toad, whom they presently happened upon resting in a wickergarden-chair, with a pre-occupied expression of face, and a large mapspread out on his knees.
'Hooray!' he cried, jumping up on seeing them, 'this is splendid!' Heshook the paws of both of them warmly, never waiting for an introductionto the Mole. 'How KIND of you!' he went on, dancing round them. 'I wasjust going to send a boat down the river for you, Ratty, with strictorders that you were to be fetched up here at once, whatever you weredoing. I want you badly--both of you. Now what will you take? Comeinside and have something! You don't know how lucky it is, your turningup just now!'
'Let's sit quiet a bit, Toady!' said the Rat, throwing himself into aneasy chair, while the Mole took another by the side of him and made somecivil remark about Toad's 'delightful residence.'
'Finest house on the whole river,' cried Toad boisterously. 'Or anywhereelse, for that matter,' he could not help adding.
Here the Rat nudged the Mole. Unfortunately the Toad saw him do it, andturned very red. There was a moment's painful silence. Then Toad burstout laughing. 'All right, Ratty,' he said. 'It's only my way, you know.And it's not such a very bad house, is it? You know you rather like ityourself. Now, look here. Let's be sensible. You are the very animals Iwanted. You've got to help me. It's most important!'
'It's about your rowing, I suppose,' said the Rat, with an innocent air.'You're getting on fairly well, though you splash a good bit still. Witha great deal of patience, and any quantity of coaching, you may----'
'O, pooh! boating!' interrupted the Toad, in great disgust. Silly boyishamusement. I've given that up LONG ago. Sheer waste of time, that's whatit is. It makes me downright sorry to see you fellows, who ought toknow better, spending all your energies in that aimless manner. No, I'vediscovered the real thing, the only genuine occupation for a life time.I propose to devote the remainder of mine to it, and can only regret thewasted years that lie behind me, squandered in trivialities. Come withme, dear Ratty, and your amiable friend also, if he will be so verygood, just as far as the stable-yard, and you shall see what you shallsee!'
He led the way to the stable-yard accordingly, the Rat following witha most mistrustful expression; and there, drawn out of the coach houseinto the open, they saw a gipsy caravan, shining with newness, painted acanary-yellow picked out with green, and red wheels.
'There you are!' cried the Toad, straddling and expanding himself.'There's real life for you, embodied in that little cart. The open road,the dusty highway, the heath, the common, the hedgerows, the rollingdowns! Camps, villages, towns, cities! Here to-day, up and off tosomewhere else to-morrow! Travel, change, interest, excitement! Thewhole world before you, and a horizon that's always changing! And mind!this is the very finest cart of its sort that was ever built, withoutany exception. Come inside and look at the arrangements. Planned 'em allmyself, I did!'
The Mole was tremendously interested and excited, and followed himeagerly up the steps and into the interior of the caravan. The Rat onlysnorted and thrust his hands deep into his pockets, remaining where hewas.
It was indeed very compact and comfortable. Little sleeping bunks--alittle table that folded up against the wall--a cooking-stove, lockers,bookshelves, a bird-cage with a bird in it; and pots, pans, jugs andkettles of every size and variety.
'All complete!' said the Toad triumphantly, pulling open a locker. 'Yousee--biscuits, potted lobster, sardines--everything you can possiblywant. Soda-water here--baccy there--letter-paper, bacon, jam, cards anddominoes--you'll find,' he continued, as they descended the steps again,'you'll find that nothing what ever has been forgotten, when we make ourstart this afternoon.'
'I beg your pardon,' said the Rat slowly, as he chewed a straw, 'butdid I overhear you say something about WE, and START, and THISAFTERNOON?'
'Now, you dear good old Ratty,' said Toad, imploringly, 'don't begintalking in that stiff and sniffy sort of way, because you know you'veGOT to come. I can't possibly manage without you, so please consider itsettled, and don't argue--it's the one thing I can't stand. You surelydon't mean to stick to your dull fusty old river all your life, and justlive in a hole in a bank, and BOAT? I want to show you the world! I'mgoing to make an ANIMAL of you, my boy!'
'I don't care,' said the Rat, doggedly. 'I'm not coming, and that'sflat. And I AM going to stick to my old river, AND live in a hole, ANDboat, as I've always done. And what's more, Mole's going to stick to meand do as I do, aren't you, Mole?'
'Of course I am,' said the Mole, loyally. 'I'll always stick to you,Rat, and what you say is to be--has got to be. All the same, it soundsas if it might have been--well, rather fun, you know!' he added,wistfully. Poor Mole! The Life Adventurous was so new a thing to him,and so thrilling; and this fresh aspect of it was so tempting; and hehad fallen in love at first sight with the canary-coloured cart and allits little fitments.
The Rat saw what was passing in his mind, and wavered. He hateddisappointing people, and he was fond of the Mole, and would do almostanything to oblige him. Toad was watching both of them closely.
'Come along in, and have some lunch,' he said, diplomatically, 'andwe'll talk it over. We needn't decide anything in a hurry. Of course,_I_ don't really care. I only want to give pleasure to you fellows.Live for others! That's my motto in life.'
During luncheon--which was excellent, of course, as everything at ToadHall always was--the Toad simply let himself go. Disregarding the Rat,he proceeded to play upon the inexperienced Mole as on a harp. Naturallya voluble animal, and always mastered by his imagination, he painted theprospects of the trip and the joys of the open life and the roadsidein such glowing colours that the Mole could hardly sit in his chair forexcitement. Somehow, it soon seemed taken for granted by all threeof them that the trip was a settled thing; and the Rat, though stillunconvinced in his mind, allowed his good-nature to over-ride hispersonal objections. He could not bear to disappoint his two friends,who were already deep in schemes and anticipations, planning out eachday's separate occupation for several weeks ahead.
When they were quite ready, the now triumphant Toad led his companionsto the paddock and set them to capture the old grey horse, who, withouthaving been consulted, and to his own extreme annoyance, had been toldoff by Toad for the dustiest job in this dusty expedition. He franklypreferred the paddock, and took a deal of catching. Meantime Toad packedthe lockers still tighter with necessaries, and hung nosebags, nets ofonions, bundles of hay, and baskets from the bottom of the cart. At lastthe horse was caught and harnessed, and they set off, all talking atonce, each animal either trudging by the side of the cart or sitting onthe shaft, as the humour took him. It was a golden afternoon. Thesmell of the dust they kicked up was rich and satisfying; out of thickorchards on either side the road, birds called and whistled to themcheerily; good-natured wayfarers, passing them, gave them 'Good-day,'or stopped to say nice things about their beautiful cart; and rabbits,sitting at their front doors in the hedgerows, held up their fore-paws,and said, 'O my! O my! O my!'
Late in the evening, tired and happy and miles from home, they drewup on a remote common far from habitations, turned the horse loose tograze, and ate their simple supper sitting on the grass by the side ofthe cart. Toad talked big about all he was going to do in the days tocome, while stars grew fuller and larger all around them, and a yellowmoon, appearing suddenly and silently from nowhere in particular, cameto keep them company and listen to their talk. At last they turned in totheir little bunks in the cart; and Toad, kicking out his legs, sleepilysaid, 'Well, good night, you fellows! This is the real life for agentleman! Talk about your old river!'
'I DON'T talk about my river,' replied the patient Rat. 'You KNOW Idon't, Toad. But I THINK about it,' he added pathetically, in a lowertone: 'I think about it--all the time!'
The Mole reached out from under his blanket, felt for the Rat's paw inthe darkness, and gave it a squeeze. 'I'll do whatever you like, Ratty,'he whispered. 'Shall we run away to-morrow morning, quite early--VERYearly--and go back to our dear old hole on the river?'
'No, no, we'll see it out,' whispered back the Rat. 'Thanks awfully, butI ought to stick by Toad till this trip is ended. It wouldn't be safefor him to be left to himself. It won't take very long. His fads neverdo. Good night!'
The end was indeed nearer than even the Rat suspected.
After so much open air and excitement the Toad slept very soundly, andno amount of shaking could rouse him out of bed next morning. So theMole and Rat turned to, quietly and manfully, and while the Rat saw tothe horse, and lit a fire, and cleaned last night's cups and platters,and got things ready for breakfast, the Mole trudged off to the nearestvillage, a long way off, for milk and eggs and various necessaries theToad had, of course, forgotten to provide. The hard work had all beendone, and the two animals were resting, thoroughly exhausted, bythe time Toad appeared on the scene, fresh and gay, remarking what apleasant easy life it was they were all leading now, after the cares andworries and fatigues of housekeeping at home.
They had a pleasant ramble that day over grassy downs and along narrowby-lanes, and camped as before, on a common, only this time thetwo guests took care that Toad should do his fair share of work. Inconsequence, when the time came for starting next morning, Toad was byno means so rapturous about the simplicity of the primitive life, andindeed attempted to resume his place in his bunk, whence he was hauledby force. Their way lay, as before, across country by narrow lanes, andit was not till the afternoon that they came out on the high-road, theirfirst high-road; and there disaster, fleet and unforeseen, sprang outon them--disaster momentous indeed to their expedition, but simplyoverwhelming in its effect on the after-career of Toad.
They were strolling along the high-road easily, the Mole by the horse'shead, talking to him, since the horse had complained that he was beingfrightfully left out of it, and nobody considered him in the least;the Toad and the Water Rat walking behind the cart talking together--atleast Toad was talking, and Rat was saying at intervals, 'Yes,precisely; and what did YOU say to HIM?'--and thinking all the timeof something very different, when far behind them they heard a faintwarning hum; like the drone of a distant bee. Glancing back, they saw asmall cloud of dust, with a dark centre of energy, advancing on them atincredible speed, while from out the dust a faint 'Poop-poop!' wailedlike an uneasy animal in pain. Hardly regarding it, they turned toresume their conversation, when in an instant (as it seemed) thepeaceful scene was changed, and with a blast of wind and a whirl ofsound that made them jump for the nearest ditch, It was on them! The'Poop-poop' rang with a brazen shout in their ears, they had a moment'sglimpse of an interior of glittering plate-glass and rich morocco, andthe magnificent motor-car, immense, breath-snatching, passionate, withits pilot tense and hugging his wheel, possessed all earth and air forthe fraction of a second, flung an enveloping cloud of dust that blindedand enwrapped them utterly, and then dwindled to a speck in the fardistance, changed back into a droning bee once more.
The old grey horse, dreaming, as he plodded along, of his quiet paddock,in a new raw situation such as this simply abandoned himself to hisnatural emotions. Rearing, plunging, backing steadily, in spite ofall the Mole's efforts at his head, and all the Mole's lively languagedirected at his better feelings, he drove the cart backwards towards thedeep ditch at the side of the road. It wavered an instant--then therewas a heartrending crash--and the canary-coloured cart, their pride andtheir joy, lay on its side in the ditch, an irredeemable wreck.
The Rat danced up and down in the road, simply transported with passion.'You villains!' he shouted, shaking both fists, 'You scoundrels, youhighwaymen, you--you--roadhogs!--I'll have the law of you! I'll reportyou! I'll take you through all the Courts!' His home-sickness had quiteslipped away from him, and for the moment he was the skipper of thecanary-coloured vessel driven on a shoal by the reckless jockeying ofrival mariners, and he was trying to recollect all the fine and bitingthings he used to say to masters of steam-launches when their wash, asthey drove too near the bank, used to flood his parlour-carpet at home.
Toad sat straight down in the middle of the dusty road, his legsstretched out before him, and stared fixedly in the direction of thedisappearing motor-car. He breathed short, his face wore a placidsatisfied expression, and at intervals he faintly murmured 'Poop-poop!'
The Mole was busy trying to quiet the horse, which he succeeded indoing after a time. Then he went to look at the cart, on its side in theditch. It was indeed a sorry sight. Panels and windows smashed, axleshopelessly bent, one wheel off, sardine-tins scattered over the wideworld, and the bird in the bird-cage sobbing pitifully and calling to belet out.
The Rat came to help him, but their united efforts were not sufficientto right the cart. 'Hi! Toad!' they cried. 'Come and bear a hand, can'tyou!'
The Toad never answered a word, or budged from his seat in the road; sothey went to see what was the matter with him. They found him in a sortof a trance, a happy smile on his face, his eyes still fixed on thedusty wake of their destroyer. At intervals he was still heard to murmur'Poop-poop!'
The Rat shook him by the shoulder. 'Are you coming to help us, Toad?' hedemanded sternly.
'Glorious, stirring sight!' murmured Toad, never offering to move. 'Thepoetry of motion! The REAL way to travel! The ONLY way to travel! Hereto-day--in next week to-morrow! Villages skipped, towns and citiesjumped--always somebody else's horizon! O bliss! O poop-poop! O my! Omy!'
'O STOP being an ass, Toad!' cried the Mole despairingly.
'And to think I never KNEW!' went on the Toad in a dreamy monotone. 'Allthose wasted years that lie behind me, I never knew, never even DREAMT!But NOW--but now that I know, now that I fully realise! O what a flowerytrack lies spread before me, henceforth! What dust-clouds shall springup behind me as I speed on my reckless way! What carts I shall flingcarelessly into the ditch in the wake of my magnificent onset! Horridlittle carts--common carts--canary-coloured carts!'
'What are we to do with him?' asked the Mole of the Water Rat.
'Nothing at all,' replied the Rat firmly. 'Because there is reallynothing to be done. You see, I know him from of old. He is nowpossessed. He has got a new craze, and it always takes him that way, inits first stage. He'll continue like that for days now, like an animalwalking in a happy dream, quite useless for all practical purposes.Never mind him. Let's go and see what there is to be done about thecart.'
A careful inspection showed them that, even if they succeeded inrighting it by themselves, the cart would travel no longer. The axleswere in a hopeless state, and the missing wheel was shattered intopieces.
The Rat knotted the horse's reins over his back and took him by thehead, carrying the bird cage and its hysterical occupant in the otherhand. 'Come on!' he said grimly to the Mole. 'It's five or six miles tothe nearest town, and we shall just have to walk it. The sooner we makea start the better.'
'But what about Toad?' asked the Mole anxiously, as they set offtogether. 'We can't leave him here, sitting in the middle of the roadby himself, in the distracted state he's in! It's not safe. Supposinganother Thing were to come along?'
'O, BOTHER Toad,' said the Rat savagely; 'I've done with him!'
They had not proceeded very far on their way, however, when there was apattering of feet behind them, and Toad caught them up and thrust a pawinside the elbow of each of them; still breathing short and staring intovacancy.
'Now, look here, Toad!' said the Rat sharply: 'as soon as we get to thetown, you'll have to go straight to the police-station, and see if theyknow anything about that motor-car and who it belongs to, and lodge acomplaint against it. And then you'll have to go to a blacksmith's or awheelwright's and arrange for the cart to be fetched and mended andput to rights. It'll take time, but it's not quite a hopeless smash.Meanwhile, the Mole and I will go to an inn and find comfortable roomswhere we can stay till the cart's ready, and till your nerves haverecovered their shock.'
'Police-station! Complaint!'murmured Toad dreamily. 'Me COMPLAIN of thatbeautiful, that heavenly vision that has been vouchsafed me! MEND THECART! I've done with carts for ever. I never want to see the cart, or tohear of it, again. O, Ratty! You can't think how obliged I am to you forconsenting to come on this trip! I wouldn't have gone without you,and then I might never have seen that--that swan, that sunbeam, thatthunderbolt! I might never have heard that entrancing sound, or smeltthat bewitching smell! I owe it all to you, my best of friends!'
The Rat turned from him in despair. 'You see what it is?' he said to theMole, addressing him across Toad's head: 'He's quite hopeless. I giveit up--when we get to the town we'll go to the railway station, andwith luck we may pick up a train there that'll get us back to riverbankto-night. And if ever you catch me going a-pleasuring with thisprovoking animal again!'--He snorted, and during the rest of that weary trudge addressed hisremarks exclusively to Mole.
On reaching the town they went straight to the station and depositedToad in the second-class waiting-room, giving a porter twopence to keepa strict eye on him. They then left the horse at an inn stable, and gavewhat directions they could about the cart and its contents. Eventually,a slow train having landed them at a station not very far from ToadHall, they escorted the spell-bound, sleep-walking Toad to his door, puthim inside it, and instructed his housekeeper to feed him, undress him,and put him to bed. Then they got out their boat from the boat-house,sculled down the river home, and at a very late hour sat down tosupper in their own cosy riverside parlour, to the Rat's great joy andcontentment.
The following evening the Mole, who had risen late and taken things veryeasy all day, was sitting on the bank fishing, when the Rat, who hadbeen looking up his friends and gossiping, came strolling along tofind him. 'Heard the news?' he said. 'There's nothing else being talkedabout, all along the river bank. Toad went up to Town by an early trainthis morning. And he has ordered a large and very expensive motor-car.'