The pool of St Branok

Very soon we had washed and changed from our traveling clothes. We went down to the pleasant dining room which had windows similar to those in the drawing room but these looked on a well-kept garden to fields beyond.

I stood there looking out and Ben came to stand very close to me.

"That's Morley country," he said.

"Morley country?"

"My neighbor, James Morley. He owns a lot of land round here. I bought this patch from him to build my house on."

"Did he make a fortune out of gold?"

"No. He's been here for years. He came before the Rush and bought the land for next to nothing. He's a farmer ... a grazier ... cattle and sheep. That's his business and he has never deserted it for gold. He has done very well for himself, I can tell you. You'll be sure to meet him sometime. Now we mustn't let the food get cold or you will be in Meg's bad books right at the start, I can tell you."

It was a wonderful evening, to sit there listening to Ben. He did most of the talking. We just plied him with questions.

There was hot soup followed by thick steaks.

"People here have big appetites," Ben told us. "It is the outdoor life."

We made the acquaintance of Minnie, who came in to help her mother.

Ben talked about what lay ahead of us.

The following day he would take us to see the accommodation he had found for us.

"I don't know how you ladies are going to like it," he said. "It is primitive. But it is what they all have."

"Except you," I reminded him.

"Well, I decided to put my earnings into this house. That's reasonable. They thought it was a bit crazy, I don't doubt. The general idea is to strike it rich and move out."

"And your intention was to stay?" asked Justin.

"Not I. When I have made the fortune I came out to find I shall go home. But it has to be a fortune. No little pickings for me. But in the meantime I want to make it comfortably. I have been thinking that you ladies ought to stay here."

"Tell us about these places you have found for us," said Morwenna.

"They are shacks really. It's a shanty town. You saw some of them coming in."

"It is good of you to suggest we stay here," I said. "Thank you, Ben. But we shall have to be together ... and do as the others do."

He looked at me ruefully.

"So we are to live in two of those shacks ..."

"The very same. At one time they were just in tents ... and then they put up these shacks. They are in demand. I had to arrange a few details to get even them for you. There are two side by side. I think you would like that. They are furnished with a bed, a few chairs and a table. There is a small rental. There is a division making a bedroom and a living room and there is a little wash house at the back. You have to get your water from the well. Water is rather precious here. The man who owns the places is another retired from the gold hunt. He finds his business of letting more profitable."

I looked anxiously at Morwenna and thought of her condition.

"I am sure we shall be all right," she said bravely.

"Well, you ladies are welcome to stay here whenever you like."

"It is so kind and thoughtful of you," said Morwenna, "but we should want to be with our husbands."

"Somehow I thought you might. It is what they would expect of you here."

"Who?" I asked.

"The rest of the community." Ben frowned. "You see, you are all living close together. They would want you to be as they are. They're a mixed lot ... all sorts and conditions. Some are quite aristocratic ... others ... well, definitely not. You have to mix with them. There is a certain code. We don't want trouble in the township. We have to keep a sharp look out for that sort of thing."

"What is there?" asked Gervaise. "Some sort of vigilante?"

"You could say that. Well, you will see soon enough how it works. Now tomorrow you will want to see about your claim. What you will buy will be your piece of land. I daresay you will want to work it together. I should think that was the best thing to do. The Mandeville-Cartwright Plot. You'll need two of you in any case. Well, we shall see."

"I can't wait to start digging," said Gervaise.

Ben gave him a strange look. I knew he was finding it difficult to imagine Gervaise as a miner.

That night I slept peacefully in the luxurious bed and I awoke early. I could not stay in bed so I left Gervaise there and went into the alcove and washed; and then went downstairs.

I found my way to the dining room, opened the French windows and stepped out.

The early morning air was delightfully fresh. I stood there looking out over the garden to what Ben had called Morley country.

I was thinking of a man who had come out here and bought up the land cheaply and started by grazing his sheep and cattle, unperturbed by the desire to make an easy fortune.

There was a step beside me and I was startled out of my reverie.

It was Ben.

"Taking the air?" he asked.

I nodded.

"Good, eh?"

I agreed that it was.

"Are you going to like it here, Angel?"

"Isn't it rather too soon to say?"

"Yes. You are going to find it rough, you know. Perhaps I should have given you more warning."