Hoggee (12 page)

Howard did not have time for liniment. He did not know where the family might get off the boat. He had to talk to them tonight. He sat down for a moment on the tiny lower deck, reached down to rub his legs, and gave himself another talking to. Just walk by the dining
room, he told himself, look in to see if they're eating. If they are, go up and wait for them. No, why not just go directly to the deck? It was not against the rules for him to go into the dining room to fill his plate, but it would be better to take no chances. The cook might still yell at him about his earlier mistake.

He climbed the front steps. The deck had several people on it, some standing about in small groups, some seated on chairs and benches. He looked them over and smiled when he saw them. Susan, with her cat in her arms, sat with her mother and grandmother on a bench at the other end of the deck. His eyes searched for the bag. There it was under the bench beside the empty cat box.

Biting his lip, he made his way through the people. He had just about reached them when the older woman looked up and saw him. “Stop where you are, young man,” she said loudly. “I don't want you to come any closer. We've been warned about boys like you! Now get away!”

Howard stopped. He could feel the eyes of the crowd on him. A large man who sat not far from the woman stood up. “Are you deaf, boy?” he shouted. “The lady does not want to talk to you. Now get away before I teach you some manners!”

Howard ran! He ran back through the crowd, down the stairs, and back to his bunk.

On his own bunk he felt safe. No one could fault him for being in his own bed. He lay, his heart pounding and his body shaking against the hard wood. What could he do? He knew the cook had turned the women against him. It was true that some of the boys who worked on the canal were rough. Many of them were
orphans who had never been taught how to behave. They were homeless and survived the winter the best they could, just as he had done, but he had not turned to stealing. It was unfair for him to be judged by other boys' behavior. He sighed. Things weren't always fair. Was it fair for Sarah to be deaf?

Should he go to Jack for help? No, Jack would say that Howard should mind his own business, to look sharp. He would say that old Cyrus would not want to know about the book, anyway. Howard clenched his fists. He had to see that book!

He was calmer now, no more shaking body or racing heart. A plan began to form in his mind. He would have to sneak a look at the book. Hadn't the mother said they had been assigned the first bench for sleeping? Yes, he was sure of that. He could slip into the ladies' side of the cabin at night, take the book from the bag, carry it out to the hallway, where a lantern would allow him to read it. When he was satisfied, he would slip back into the cabin and replace the book. He could do that, couldn't he? “Yes,” he said aloud. “I can.”

His next shift would begin at twelve. The process of bedding down began at nine. Most people would be asleep by ten. No, he would wait until ten thirty to be certain. The bench was right by the door. He would not have to go far, and it would be dark. No one was likely to see him.

Time went by slowly. Finally darkness fell and lanterns were lit. When Jack and the helmsman came by to sleep while the night crew took over, Howard held his breath and lay very still. Only when they had passed into the tiny room where the crew slept did he breathe again.

From the main cabin he could hear the preparations
for changing the dining hall into a sleeping room. The folding beds made a creaking noise as they were let down. Howard had never noticed before how much noise went into making the beds. Pads were spread on benches and tables, and people talked and laughed. Someone coughed over and over. On other trips he had slept through it all. Now he wondered how.

Finally, the cabin grew quieter. The snoring started. Some snored softly and could only be heard between the loud snorts of their neighbors. Howard hoped Susan, her mother, and grandmother were able to sleep through so much racket.

A big clock hung on the wall, and Howard watched it. The hands moved slowly toward ten thirty. When finally the time had come, he eased himself off the bunk. There was no need for tiptoeing until he got into the main cabin, but he stepped lightly, anyway, almost afraid to breathe.

Now he was in the main hall. The door to the cabin was slightly ajar. Howard's hand shook as he reached for the knob. Very slowly he eased open the door, just enough to squeeze through. For a moment he stood looking in. No, it would be better if he crawled into the room.

He dropped to all fours and eased his body through the opening. There was too much light from the hall. He reached back and pushed the door almost closed. For a moment he stayed perfectly still, letting his eyes grow accustomed to the blackness. Then he began to make out tables and benches with dark shapes on them. The walls were full of fold-down bunks like his except these were covered with pads for comfort. He inched into the room. The first bench was right before him,
and there was the bag beneath the bench. Slowly he moved his hands and knees toward the bench. When he could touch the bag, he drew in a deep breath and reached for it.

The bag felt heavy, and he tugged at it. It slid slightly away from the bench. Howard reached for the sides. He pulled them apart, and put his shaking hand inside. First he touched an object made of cloth, probably a scarf. He pushed it aside, and his fingers touched the book. He had it! Carefully he began to draw it out of the bag. Just then the cat, still in the box, let out a loud, long
meow
as if it had been attacked!

“Matilda,” the grandmother said softly, and she dropped her hand from her bed. The hand brushed her bag, and she sat up, screaming. “Help! Help! I'm being robbed!”

Howard sprang to his feet and turned back to the door. He ran for the stairs. He could hear someone behind him, but he did not look over his shoulder. Racing for the steps, he flung his body onto the first step. He had made it to step four when he felt the hand around his ankle. “Got you, you little devil,” a man's voice said, and the strength went out of Howard's body.

The great, unexpected kindness overwhelmed Howard. After he carved the words, he was surprised to feel tears slipping from his eyes. He had never before cried with joy. But before that wonderful moment, there were dark ones.

They stood in the captain's small cabin. Howard had been dragged there by the man who caught him on the stairs. He sat now in a small wooden chair, his face in his hands.

The grandmother was there, too, along with the captain, a large, red-faced man. Jack had come in just as the captain shoved Howard into the chair. Howard did not know how Jack had learned of his predicament. He also did not know whether he was glad his brother stood in a line with those who accused him, or whether he wished they had thrown him overboard with weights around his feet so that he could have drowned peacefully in the canal without his brother ever having to know what had happened.

“By thunder,” bellowed Captain Wall, “I'll throw you off the boat tonight, with no town near. I won't tolerate a thieving hoggee! I won't.”

Jack moved around the grandmother to speak to the captain. “Please, sir,” he said softly, “if I might say a word in my brother's defense.” The captain nodded slightly, and Jack rushed on. “My brother, sir, is no thief. I can't tell you what he was doing with that bag, but sir, I would wager my life on the fact that he was not stealing. Let him explain please, sir.”

An angry huff came from the woman. “His hand was in my bag. I saw that with my own eyes!”

Howard raised his head then. “Please, madam,” he said, and his voice shook. “I wanted to see the book, the one about how to talk with your hands.”

“Are you daft, boy?” said the captain. “Talk with your hands. What gibberish is that?”

“For deaf people, sir. This lady has a book that shows how to talk to deaf people.” Howard looked pleadingly at the lady.

The woman looked at Howard long and hard before she spoke. “It's true, Captain,” she said. “My granddaughter is a deaf-mute, and we have a book that shows how to communicate with her.”

The captain reached out, grabbed the collar of Howard's shirt, and pulled him roughly to his feet. “And why,” he thundered, “would the likes of you be wanting a book. You can't read, can you, boy?”

“I can, sir,” said Howard, “and I wanted to see the book for a friend, a friend who cannot hear or speak.”

The captain shoved the boy back into the chair. “That's a likely story.” The captain shook his large head, and the red in his face deepened. “If you had an honest desire, why did you not speak to the lady? Why did you not ask?”

“I tried, sir,” said Howard, and a small hope flamed in his heart.

The woman sighed. “It's true,” she said. “The boy tried to speak to me, but the cook said I should not trust him. She said his kind is up to no good.”

“Our cook, madam, has an excellent hand in the kitchen. She may not prove to be so good a character judge as she is a judge of a good recipe.” Then he turned back to Howard. This time he put his hand on the boy's shoulder. “God help me, boy, I believe you. If I find you to be false later, God will not be able to help you. But if not a thief, you are at least a fool to go pawing about in the ladies' sleeping chamber. Many a captain on this canal would have drowned you for such an act without giving you so much as a word in your own defense.”

“You are a generous and patient man, sir,” said Jack quickly, “and a fair one, too. My brother and I are grateful, aren't we, Howard?” He shot Howard a look that meant speak.

“Yes,” said Howard. “Oh, yes, very grateful!”

“Save your gratitude,” said the captain. “I am not finished with you yet.” He turned to the woman. “Madam,” he said, “this boy is due back on the towpath. To punish him now would also be to punish the other hoggee who waits for relief.”

The woman's face softened. “He need not be punished at all, sir, as far as I am concerned.”

The captain shook his head. “No, my dear lady, this boy disturbed your sleep and the sleep of many other passengers. I cannot take such behavior lightly.” He took his hand from Howard's shoulder. “When you are next off duty, you will report to the cook. I daresay she can think of a way to keep you busy for a few hours. Now
get out on the towpath, boy, and mind you, the next time you get yourself into trouble, you will not find me so lenient.”

For the next six hours, Howard walked behind the mules, Joe and Otis. They were a docile pair, well accustomed to the towpath. Every inch of his body ached from lack of sleep, and his head felt strange, as if he walked in a dream. “I'll sing,” he told the mules after a time, and for a while the songs eased his weariness. Then his mind became too tired, and he could not think of the words.

Somehow, he made it until six in the morning. “Hey,” said Bert when he came to take over. “I've heard some wild stories about you, I have! Old Howard in the ladies' sleeping chamber! Now that's one for you! Who would have thought the likes of you would be up to such shenanigans.” He reached out and slapped Howard on the back.

“If I had the strength, I'd wallop you one,” said Howard, but he grinned. He turned and went back to the boat, glad to see that it almost touched the canal bank on his side. The helmsman was likely asleep. At least the jump back on would be all right.

He gathered what seemed to be his last bit of energy and jumped onto the boat. Now he had to face the cook. He pulled himself up as straight as he could and made his way toward the kitchen. He found the kitchen door closed, and he paused outside of it. Was it possible that the cook was still in bed? Breakfast, he knew, was not served until eight so passengers need not be awakened too early. The meal had to be prepared, but maybe she could do that while the captain oversaw the storing of mattress pads. He leaned close
to the door to listen. There was no sound. Suddenly, however, he felt a heavy hand grab his shoulder. He swung around to face the cook.

“I was listening to see if you were still asleep,” he said quickly. “I didn't want to wake you.”

“At this hour? Still asleep?” She made a snorting sound. “There'd be no breakfast on this boat then!” She let him go.

“The captain said I should help you.” He leaned back against the wall as far from her as possible.

She, too, leaned, extending her long neck so that her face was not far from his. “You look puny,” she said. “Been working all night, right?”

He nodded. She waved her arms. “Go away. You come back some other day to help Della.”

Amazed, Howard inched away from the wall. “Thank you,” he said. “I will. I promise to come back to help you.”

The big woman nodded her head. “I think maybe I was wrong about you,” she said. “I think maybe not all hoggees steal.”

“Thank you,” Howard said again, and moved away down the hall toward his bunk, too tired to think. When his sleep was disturbed five hours later by the laughter of some passengers who walked by his hall, he sprang up. He had not meant to sleep so long. He had to find the woman with the book. Surely she would talk to him now.

He hurried through the main cabin, but there was no sign of the family. He climbed the stairs to the deck, his eyes scanning the group even before his feet reached the top. No sign of Susan, her mother, or her grandmother.

The boat was not big. A great fear began to grow inside
him. Jack sat at the front of the boat on duty as the bowman.

“Have you seen the deaf girl?” Howard called before he reached his brother.

“They got off,” said Jack, “a couple of hours ago at Schenectady.”

“What? You let them go without telling me!” Howard drew in his breath and let it go in an explosion. “You knew I wanted to see that book.”