"Till the money's spent: or till you get within hail of a policeman."
"Now, governor, you didn't ought to talk to me like that; you really
oughtn't--I'm not that kind at all--I give you my word I'm not. When I
say I'll do a thing, I do it; I'm not like some of them. You can trust
me--straight, you can." Apparently he was endeavouring to train his
countenance to wear an expression which would inspire confidence. All
at once he seemed to see something in the steadfast gaze with which
the other was regarding him which filled him with uncomfortable
qualms. "Now then, stow it--I'll call!"
Shaping his lips to whistle, he moved back. But before he could utter
a sound, or get out of reach, or make an effort to defend himself, Mr
Frazer had sprung at him over the intervening bush. With one hand he
gripped his throat, with the other his arm; with a sudden, curious
twisting movement he spun him round, and flung him face downwards,
with a force which seemed amazing. Where the lad fell he lay,
motionless. Mr Frazer looked down at him.
"One doesn't always spend money in acquiring the art of ju-jitsu for
nothing, after all. I always had a feeling that that fall might come
in useful one day; and it has. For the present, you young blackguard,
I can trust you; but the point is, for how long. I sent him down with
a little more vigour than was perhaps absolutely necessary; there
wasn't time to be particular; so it'll probably be a good twenty
minutes before he comes back to consciousness; but I'm afraid that's
not quite long enough. Better make sure." He took the woollen scarf
off the young man's neck. "There's not very much strength about it;
but I think it'll serve." He drew the young man's arms behind his
back, and with his own scarf he tied his hands together, being careful
about the sort of knot he used. Taking off the belt with which the lad
held up his trousers, placing his ankles close together, he passed it
round, then drew it as tight as he could, with the buckle behind.
Turning him over on to his back, tearing off a handful of grass, he
crammed it between the young man's jaws. Then he regarded the result
of his labour with what seemed to be a smile of satisfaction. "When he
does come to I don't think he'll be able to make much noise; he
certainly won't be able to make enough to attract the attention of
those friends of whom he spoke; and I doubt if he'll be able to move
much either. By the time a friend does come and find him we ought to
have reached a port of comparative safety; and if it's some time
before a friend does come, it'll serve him right--and that'll pay him
anyhow; it's more money than he ever had in his life." He took a piece
of crinkly paper out of his own hip pocket which he placed in the
inside pocket of the young man's jacket. "Still, lest a friend should
come too soon, we'll place him a little more under the shade of the
bushes; which will also serve to protect him from the heat of the
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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