chapter 10 an angry policeman and a fine lunch

there was a police-station at reebles, a small one with a house for the policeman attached. as theone policeman had four villages under his control he felt himself to be rather an important 39fellow.

he was in his house having his dinner when the children walked up to the police-station. they foundnobody there, and walked out again. the policeman had seen them from his window and he cameout, wiping his mouth. he wasn't very pleased at having to come out in the middle of a nice meal ofsausage and onions.

'what do you want?' he said, suspiciously. he didn't like children of any sort. nasty little things, hethought them - always full of mischief and cheek. he didn't know which were worse, the small onesor the big ones!

julian spoke to him politely. 'we've come to report something rather strange, which we thoughtperhaps the police ought to know. it might help them to catch the prisoner who escaped last night.'

'ha!' said the policeman scornfully. 'you've seen him too, i suppose? you wouldn't believe howmany people have seen him. 'cording to them he's been in every part of the moor at one and the sametime. clever fellow he must be to split himself up like that.'

'well, one of us saw him last night,' said julian politely. 'at least, we think it must have been him. hegave a message to my brother here.'

'ho, he did, did he?' said the policeman, eyeing dick in a most disbelieving manner. 'so he runs aboutgiving messages to school-boys, does he? and what message did he give you, may i ask?'

the message sounded extremely silly when dick repeated it to the police. 'two-trees. gloomywater. saucy jane. and maggie knows.'

'really?' said the policeman, in a sarcastic voice. 'maggie knows as well, does she? well, you tellmaggie to come along here and tell me too. i'd like to meet maggie - specially if she's a friend ofyours.'

'she's not,' said dick feeling annoyed. 'that was in the message. i don't know who maggie is!

how should i? we thought perhaps the police could unravel the meaning. we couldn't. the fellowgave me this bit of paper too.'

he handed the piece of dirty paper to the policeman, who looked at it with a crooked smile. 'so hegave you this too, did he?' he said. 'now wasn't that kind of him? and what do you suppose all this is,scribbled on the paper?'

'we don't know,' said dick. 'but we thought our report might help the police to catch the prisoner,that's all.'

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'the prisoner's caught,' said the policeman, with a smirk on his face. 'you know so much - but youdidn't know that! yes, he's caught - four hours ago - and he's safe back in prison now. and let me tellyou youngsters this - i'm not taken in by any silly schoolboy spoofing, see?'

'it's not spoofing,' said julian, in a very grown-up manner. 'you should learn to see the differencebetween the truth and a joke.'

that didn't please the policeman at all. he turned on julian at once, his face reddening.

'now you run away!' he said. 'i'm not having any cheek from you! do you want me to take yournames and addresses and report you?'

'if you like,' said julian, in disgust. 'have you got a notebook there? i'll give you all our names, and imyself will make a report to the police in our district when i get back.'

the policeman stared at him. he couldn't help being impressed by julian's manner, and he calmeddown a little.

'you go away, all of you,' he said, his voice not nearly so fierce. 'i shan't report you this time. butdon't you go spreading silly stories like that or you'll get into trouble. serious trouble too.'

'i don't think so,' said julian. 'anyway, seeing that you are not going to do anything about our story,may we have back our bit of paper, please?'

the policeman frowned. he made as if he would tear the paper up, but dick snatched at it. he wastoo late. the aggravating policeman had torn it into four pieces and thrown it into the road!

'don't you have laws against scattering litter in your village?' asked dick, severely, and carefullypicked up the four pieces of paper. the policeman glared at dick as he put the bits into his pocket.

then he made a peculiar snorting noise, turned on his heel and marched back to his sausages andonions.

'and i hope his dinner's gone cold!' said george. 'horrid fellow! why should he think we're telling alot of untruths?'

'it is rather a queer story of ours,' said julian, 'after all - we found it a bit difficult to believe whendick first told it. i don't blame the policeman for disbelieving it - i blame him for his manner. it's agood thing most of our police aren't the same. nobody would ever report anything.'

'he told us one bit of good news, anyway,' said anne. 'that escaped prisoner is back in prison again!

i'm so relieved to know that.'

'i am too,' said dick. 'i didn't like the look of him at all. well, ju - what do we do now? forget thewhole business? do you think there's anything in that message to follow up? and if so - can 41we do anything?'

'i don't know,' said julian. 'we must think a bit. let's go and see if we can scrounge a meal in somefarm-house somewhere. there seem to be plenty around.'

they asked a little girl if there was a farm-house anywhere near that would give them dinner.

she nodded and pointed.

'see that farm-house up on the hill there? that's my gran's place. she'll give you dinner, i expect.

she used to give dinner in the summer to trippers, and i expect she would give you some too, if youask her, though it's late in the season.'

'thanks,' said julian, and they all went up the lane that curved round the hill-side. dogs barked loudlyas they came near and timmy's hackles went up at once. he growled.

'friends, timmy, friends,' said george. 'dinner here, timmy. dinner, perhaps a nice bone for you.

bone!'

timmy understood. the fur down his neck lay flat again and he stopped growling. he wagged his tailat the two dogs near the farm-gate who sniffed his doggy-smell suspiciously even when he was somedistance away.

a man hailed them. 'what do you kids want? mind those dogs!'

'we wondered if we could get a meal here!' called back julian. 'a little girl down in the village saidwe might.'

'i'll ask my mother,' said the man, and he yelled in an enormous voice to the farm-house nearby.

'ma! ma! four kids out here want to know if you can give them a meal.'

a very fat old lady appeared, with twinkling eyes and red cheeks like an apple. she took one glanceat the four by the gate, and nodded her head. 'yes. they look decent children. tell them to comealong in. better hold their dog's collar though.'

the four walked to the farm-house, george holding timmy firmly. the other two dogs came up, butas timmy was hoping for a bone, he was determined to be friendly, and not a single growl came fromhim, even when the two dogs growled suspiciously. he wagged his tail, and let his tongue hang out.

the other dogs soon wagged theirs, and then it was safe to let timmy go. he bounded over to themand there was a mad game of 'chase-me-roll-me-over' as george called it.

'come your ways in,' said the plump old lady. 'now you'll have to take what we've got. i'm busytoday and haven't had time for cooking. you can have a bit of home-made meat-pie, or a slice or 42two of ham and tongue, or hard-boiled eggs and salad. bless you, you look as pleased as punch!

i'll put the lot on the table for you and you can help yourselves! will that do? there's no vegetablesthough. you'll have to make do with pickled cabbage and my own pickled onions and beetroot invinegar.'

'it sounds too marvellous for words,' said julian. 'we shan't want any sweet after that!'

'there's no pudding today,' said the old lady. 'but i'll open a bottle or two of our own raspberries andyou can have them with cream if you like. and there's the cream cheese i made yesterday too.'

'don't tell us any more!' begged dick. 'it makes me feel too hungry. why is it that people on farmsalways have the most delicious food? i mean, surely people in towns can bottle raspberries and pickleonions and make cream cheese?'

'well either they can't or they don't,' said george. 'my mother does all those things - and even whenshe lived in a town she did. anyway, i'm going to when i'm grown-up. it must be so wonderful tooffer home-made things by the score when people come to a meal!'

it was extraordinary to think that any children could possibly eat the meal the four did, after havinghad such a huge breakfast. timmy ate an enormous dinner too, and then lay down with a sigh. howhe wished he could live at that farm-house! how lucky those other two dogs were!

a small girl came in shyly as they ate. 'i'm meg,' she said. 'i live with my gran. what are yournames?'

they told her. then julian had an idea. 'we're walking over your moor,' he said. 'we've been to lotsof nice places. but there's one we haven't been to yet. do you know it? it's called two-trees.'

the little girl shook her head. 'gran would know,' she said. 'gran! where's two-trees?'

the old lady looked in at the door. 'what's that? two-trees? oh, that was a lovely place once, but it'sall in ruins now. it was built beside a queer dark lake, in the middle of the moors. let's see now -what was it called?'

'gloomy water?' said dick.

'yes! that's right. gloomy water,' said the old lady. 'are you thinking of going by there? you becareful then, there's marshland around there, just when you least expect it! now - would you likeanything more?'

'no thank you,' said julian, regretfully, and paid the very modest bill. 'it's the nicest lunch we've 43ever had. now we must be off.'

'off to two-trees and gloomy water, i hope!' george whispered to dick. 'that would be reallyexciting.'