Settling Day

CHAPTER XXIX

A GLORIOUS VICTORY

Grey Bird being a thorough stayer, Willie determined to make the most of his light weight, but the horse was not a quick beginner, and when fairly in his stride half the field was ahead of him.

Tatters, a six-stone chance with a smart light-weight named Jones in the saddle, made the running at a great pace, and so had a lead of many lengths. In a cluster came half-a-dozen more, then Defiance and Target, with Grey Bird on the rails behind them.

At the end of the first mile Tatters still held the lead, and was going so well that some people thought he might retain it to the end.

At this distance Defiance crept up closer with Target, and Willie kept Grey Bird near them.

As they passed the stand Tatters led, the bright orange jacket showing out distinctly.

The favourite was going well, pulling Ashton out of the saddle.

'Willie's on the rails,' said Mr Dauntsey. 'I hope he will not be shut in next time round.'

'It is good going there,' replied Jim, 'and he'll manage to get through, never fear.'

Dr Tom was excited; he had never stood a chance of handling such a lump sum before. Six hundred pounds! It seemed untold wealth to him.

He fixed his eyes on the grey horse and did not see any of the others.

Round the turn and past the road they swept, the orange jacket still in the lead, but the others were gradually drawing nearer. It was a fine race so far, all the runners being well together.

Willie was anxious for an opening, and it came sooner than he anticipated. As they entered the back stretch, round the bend, Target ran wide and bored Defiance out, and this gave Willie a chance.

With marvellous quickness he shot Grey Bird through the opening and went along at a great rate after Tatters. It was a good bit of horsemanship, and recognised as such on the stands.

'That up-country fellow knows how to ride,' said someone at the back of Jim Dennis's party.

'He does indeed. It was a fine move on his part to squeeze through; there was some risk in it. Won't Ashton be mad! He fancies he is the only man can do such things,' replied the gentleman with him.

Jim Dennis was in high spirits and so were his friends.

'He must be as cool as iced water,' said Dr Tom, 'to slip through like that. What a run I am having for my money.'

'And you look like winning it,' said Mr Dauntsey.

The yellow jacket was fast drawing nearer the orange, and a couple of lengths behind Grey Bird came the favourite, and Target, followed by Hova, Baby, Warfare and Walwa, the remainder going well.

Past the top bend they went, and there was a great race for the home turn.

Willie 'hugged' the rails with Grey Bird, and he felt his mount was going better than he had ever done. The horse seemed to feel the excitement of his surroundings and the exultation of being at the head, or nearly so, of a Sydney Cup field.

Grey Bird was not a 'shirker' at any time, but he was surpassing himself on this occasion.

Jack Ashton was very wrath when he saw the grey shoot past him on the rails, and he was now making up for the ground he had lost.

Defiance, despite his big weight, held his own, and as the turn into the straight was reached Ashton sent him along at top speed, and drew alongside Grey Bird as they rounded the bend.

Willie saw the white jacket, and recollected what Hurley, the rider of Target, had said to him.

Jack Ashton closed in upon him until Defiance seemed to bore Grey Bird right on to the rails.

The riders' legs actually touched, but Willie kept his head and sang out, —

'Ride fair. Give me room!'

Jack Ashton made no reply, but tried his best to head Grey Bird.

This was more than he could accomplish, and he set his teeth and vowed vengeance on Willie Dennis.

Neck and neck they raced together, with Tatters a couple of lengths ahead, and Target, Warfare and Walwa close behind, Bung Bung coming fast on the outside.

The crowd on the stand and the lawn was seething with excitement.

The favourite was drawing ahead, the white jacket looked dangerous, and visions of spoiling the bookmakers arose in the minds of his backers.

'What a pace!' exclaimed Dr Tom.

'It's a terribly fast race,' answered Jim; 'but Grey Bird is as fleet as the wind.'

'If Willie can hold his own with Jack Ashton he's a young wonder. Ashton has frightened many a lad out of a race. Look there! He'll have Grey Bird over the rails,' said Mr Dauntsey, the latter part of whose remark was caused by Ashton boring on to Jim Dennis's horse.

'That's not fair riding,' said Dr Tom.

'It's foul riding,' said Jim, 'and Ashton ought to be reported for it. I hear he is fond of cutting things fine.'

'The rider of the favourite, I suppose, thinks he may take liberties,' said Dr Tom.

'He'll not take them with my horse,' said Jim.

The excitement was rising every moment; it was evident a desperate struggle was at hand, for Bung Bung and Warfare, not to mention Target and Walwa, were all dangerous. It was an open race three furlongs from home, and the pent-up feelings of the people at last found vent.

At first there was a rumbling sound, which grew and swelled into a sort of roar, and culminated in loud shouts.

'The favourite!' 'The favourite!' 'Defiance wins!' 'Go it, Ashton!' 'Bravo, Jack!'

Then a momentary pause in the din, and again!

'Grey Bird!' 'Grey Bird!' 'Bung Bung has it!' 'Walwa!' 'Walwa!' according to the wishes of the backers of these horses.

Tatters had run himself out, and although Jones managed to hold the lead he knew his mount was beaten.

As Tatters fell back it became necessary for Willie to pull out and pass him, but Jack Ashton did not mean him to do so.

The crack jockey took in the situation at a glance.

Tatters was falling back beaten, and he raced Defiance level with him, completely blocking Grey Bird, unless Willie Dennis risked going round the leaders.

At this critical moment Willie almost slipped out of his saddle, his left stirrup's leather having given way. He swayed to one side, and for a second thought it was all up with him, but by a vigorous effort he righted himself.

They were all in view of the crowd on the stand, and a terrific cheer went up as he made his clever recovery. It was a marvellous bit of work, and lovers of racing are not slow at recognising skill and pluck.

'Wonderful!' said Dr Tom; 'but it will lose him the race.'

'If Grey Bird wins now it will be the most sensational finish I have ever seen,' said Mr Dauntsey.

Jim Dennis made no reply. He saw what had happened and he felt his hopes of securing Cudgegong were extinguished for some time to come.

His disappointment was, however, mitigated by his son's superb riding, and he felt proud of 'the little chap' and hoped for the best. Tatters fell back beaten and Grey Bird passed him on the outside.

Defiance on the rails was a length or more to the good, and Willie was handicapped by the broken leather. He stuck to his work, and Grey Bird quickly made up the lost ground. Jack Ashton was certain of success now and took matters easily.

He little thought Grey Bird and the 'up-country imp' were coming on the outside at a great rate.

Bung Bung had put in a brilliant run and was close up with Jim Dennis's horse. Target was not beaten, and Hurley was riding him out for a place.

Willie heard the deafening shouts, and so did Grey Bird, and horse and rider were encouraged by the applause which many affect to despise but secretly rejoice at in their hearts.

Jack Ashton received a shock when he was sure of a win.

He suddenly saw a yellow jacket on his left hand, and then he caught sight of the pink-and-white of Bung Bung's jockey.

Had these horses dropped from the clouds? That country chap too, was he a good rider, a worthy rival after all? He could hardly believe it, but the indisputable evidence of his eyes convinced him. That yellow jacket was not only visible, it was level with him for a moment, and then he had not to look sideways to see it, for it was slightly ahead, and the pink-and-white was level with him.

Seldom had Jack Ashton received such a startler. He rode Defiance for all he was worth, and got every ounce out of the horse. The gallant top weight ran a game as his name indicated he would. Defiance defied defeat until his strength was exhausted. The great horse was giving away 'lumps of weight' to Bung Bung and Grey Bird, and he did his level best to enhance his reputation.

Amidst a tornado of maddening cheers and cries the trio raced neck and neck. The white, the yellow, and the pink, seemed hopelessly mixed together, and they could not be separated.

Jim Dennis held his breath and caught hold of Dr Tom's arm.

Dr Tom emitted a sound somewhat resembling a groan, so intense was his anxiety, and to relieve the tension grasped Mr Dauntsey's arm, until the worthy magistrate winced in spite of the excitement he was under.

So great was the struggle, such a powerful effect had it on the dense mass of people that they had barely enough breath left to shout.

Willie saw the judge's box, he saw the head of Defiance on one side, his red nostrils glowing like coals, his eyes starting out, his neck outstretched, and heard the gallant horse's breath coming in sobs and gasps.

On the other side was the head of Bung Bung, who was equally done up, and whose eyes had a dull, beaten look in them.

He saw the head of Grey Bird was slightly in front of the other two heads, and, by a great effort, he lifted the grey forward and shot him past the post – a winner by a neck; and Bung Bung just beat Defiance by a head for second place.

The scene which followed baffles description.

As Jim Dennis led in the beautiful grey tumultuous cheering rent the air.

'Bravo, young un!' 'Well ridden!' 'He's lost a stirrup!' 'Great riding, by Jove!' 'Hurrah for the little chap!' this last from the excited Dr Tom.

Smiling in triumph, Willie dismounted, unbuckled the saddle-girths and went to weigh in.

The scale would not go down.

'Fetch the bridle,' said Willie.

In an agony of suspense Jim Dennis waited for the bridle. He seemed to live weeks in the short space of a minute. As for Willie, he went very pale, but retained his nerve with wonderful coolness.

The bridle was handed to him and the scale turned.

'All right.'

What a welcome sound! The cheers broke out again, and Willie Dennis, Grey Bird and the little party from 'up country' were fairly mobbed.

'I never want such another couple of minutes as I had when the bridle was sent for,' said Jim. 'It seemed like a lifetime.'

'I don't know how I felt,' said Willie. 'I seemed dazed, but when the scale went down I could have yelled for joy.'

Jack Ashton was cut up at his defeat, and it did not improve his temper when Willie remarked as he passed him in the paddock, —

'What about the "up-country imp" now?'

Ashton scowled at him and made no reply.

CHAPTER XXX

IN THE DAYS OF PROSPERITY

'It is five years since Grey Bird won the Sydney Cup, and I feel all the excitement over again as I look at him,' said Dr Tom, as he admired the handsome grey who was now doing stud duty at Cudgegong.

'You will never ride a better race than that, Willie – never. Don't you wish you had accepted Mr M.'s offer and remained to ride for his stable? Think of the big races he has won, and you would have ridden all those winners. What a triumph that would have been!'

'I am far happier here,' said Willie Dennis. 'My father has been so kind to me ever since I was a little chap that it would have been selfish on my part to leave him in his loneliness. It was no sacrifice, I assure you, Dr Tom, because I love station life.'

'You are a good lad, and your father may well be proud of you. I expect you will be married one of these days,' said Dr Tom.

'No prospects of it yet,' said Willie, laughing; 'and I am quite contented.'

'I must look round for a suitable mate,' said Dr Tom. 'It is not good for man to live alone.'

'You are a standing refutation of that saying,' replied Willie. 'It is different with me. I was cut out for an old bachelor.'

Cudgegong and Wanabeen were now the property of Jim Dennis, and he was a prosperous man. He paid down twelve thousand pounds, after settling day, over Grey Bird's Cup, to Chris Shaw, and the whole of the purchase money was handed over in three years.

Chris Shaw was as glad to handle the money and be rid of the station as Jim Dennis was to buy it, so they were mutually satisfied. Only one bad season had troubled them, and during that time Jim Dennis lost heavily, but quickly recouped himself when better days dawned.

Sergeant Doonan married Sal, and Jim Dennis had to look out for another housekeeper.

He searched in vain for some time, until at last he was well-nigh in despair of securing a suitable person. About this time he visited Barragong, and again met Molly Corbold at Adye Dauntsey's house.

The magistrate's wife died suddenly and she came to keep house for her cousin.

Molly Corbold's father had met with many severe reverses in business in Sydney, and she was glad to accept such a position as Adye Dauntsey offered her in order to relieve him. She admired Jim Dennis and was not afraid to show it, and he was not insensible to her charms and many good qualities, but considered she was 'a cut above him,' as he put it.

Mr Dauntsey saw how matters were drifting and was not ill-pleased. He knew Jim Dennis's worth, and also that he was a man of substance and well calculated to make a woman like Molly Corbold happy.

'Molly,' he said to her one day, when Jim Dennis had returned to Wanabeen. 'I think Dennis admires you. Do you like him?'

'Yes, I like him very much,' she replied openly. 'He is a very genuine man.'

'Precisely, that exactly describes him,' said her cousin. 'He is well off, and, although not well educated, he may be said to be one of Nature's best make. He is coming again next week.'

'Oh,' she replied, 'I shall be very pleased to see him.'

Jim Dennis came and tried his chance, and Molly Corbold accepted him as her husband, and was thankful she had secured such a good match.

They were married, and at the time of which we read had been living happily together for three years at Cudgegong. Willie Dennis was very fond of his father's wife, and they were a united family.

Jim Dennis found it very different living at Cudgegong, with such a clever wife as Molly, to the deserted life he spent at Wanabeen.

He told her the history of his past life, omitting no details, and she pitied him for all he had suffered.

Molly Dennis was as popular as her husband at Swamp Creek, which had developed into quite an important township owing to the discovery of gold in the vicinity.

The population had increased by leaps and bounds, until Dr Tom found he had quite as much work on his hands as he could manage, and had serious thoughts of obtaining the services of an assistant from Sydney.

Sergeant Doonan's position was no sinecure, and he had his headquarters at Swamp Creek. The rough element, attracted by the rush for gold, abounded, but he kept them in order with a firm hand, and Swamp Creek was grateful to him.

The races there were the most important out West, and the valuable prizes given attracted owners from far distant parts.

It was at such races as these Willie Dennis often rode his father's horses with signal success, but he refused to ride for anyone else, although offered large sums to do so. Jim Dennis remonstrated with him, but Willie stood firm, and his father allowed him to have his own way.

The Cudgegong stud was fast becoming famous, and breeders from many parts of New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland visited the station and made extensive purchases.

They were surprised to find in Molly Dennis a well-educated, refined woman, and wondered how she managed to exist in such a lonely part.

Molly Dennis was not lonely; she was very happy. Her husband was kind and devoted to her, and she did all in her power to please him. They generally had someone staying with them, and constant visitors came from Swamp Creek and Barragong. Altogether it was a 'jolly life,' Molly said, and she meant it.

She was an excellent horsewoman, and had long gallops over the big paddocks with Willie Dennis.

Adye Dauntsey generally spent the week-end with them, and on the occasion of these visits Dr Tom would drop in for a chat.

Dr Tom had never been so prosperous before, and he was quite accustomed to having his fees paid, a thing he had never dreamt of even in his most sanguine moments.

He had built a new house at Swamp Creek, and his buggy and pair was highly presentable.

Altogether Dr Tom was somewhat of a reformed character, but he was still the same good-natured, even-tempered, kind-hearted man who had answered Jim Dennis's call for help when Willie lay at death's door.

No man was more beloved than the doctor, and no trouble was too great, he thought, to deserve the kindness of his many friends. Molly Dennis was his favourite, and he amused her for hours with his quaint tales of ship life and his early struggles at Swamp Creek. He still had a mania for poetry, and Molly Dennis was his theme, 'his inspiration,' he said.

'I declare I am quite jealous of you, doctor,' said Jim. 'I wish you would teach me to write poetry so that I might have a chance of winning back Molly's affections.'

'Poetry is not taught,' said Dr Tom, grandly. 'It is born in men. It is a genius, a gift from the gods.'

'You don't say so?' replied Jim. 'Then you are a spoilt child of the gods.'

'Very much spoilt,' said Dr Tom, laughing. 'In order to calm your jealous suspicions I will write my next poem upon your many admirable qualities.'

'Don't; please spare me that,' said Jim. 'I could not stand it. Anything but that, doctor. Have some mercy upon me.'

'Jim, you are too severe upon him,' said Molly. 'I am sure some of Dr Tom's poetry is beautiful; the sentiment is charming.'

'I am amply repaid,' said the doctor. 'Such praise from so fair a lady is a grand recompense for hours of toil.'

They all laughed merrily, and Dr Tom vowed he would do something brilliant in the future.

One calm, peaceful night Jim Dennis sat on the broad verandah at Cudgegong, and, looking across the green lands before him, thought over the past and contrasted it with the present.

As far as his eyes could see he owned the land, it was his to hold for ever, until he died.

After all, fortune had favoured him, and Providence, having chastened him, was now amply recompensing him for his early sufferings.

He had a loving wife, a dutiful son; what more could he want?

He thought of the old days at Wanabeen; of the time when, well-nigh broken-hearted, he learned Willie's mother, his wife, had deserted them. It caused a passing sadness in the midst of his happiness. Then he recalled how the sinning woman came back to die, and he clenched his hands as he thought of Rodney Shaw and his villanies.

Of the fight at Barker's Creek he had a vivid recollection, and his eyes glistened as he thought of the hand-to-hand conflict with Dalton's gang.

A light touch on his shoulder, and Molly said in a low voice, —

'Dreaming of the past, Jim? Do not recall it; think of the present – and me.'

She nestled at his feet and laid her head on his knee. He stroked her hair, and said, —

'I was thinking of the past, Molly, but it is a very far-off memory. With you near me all the black days vanish and there is nothing but light and joy and peace. I little thought such happiness as this would ever be mine.'

'Then you are contented?'

'Yes; no man could be more so, and I owe it all to you,' he said.

The trials and troubles of Jim Dennis's earlier days were past, and the autumn of his life was full of peace and contentment.