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Updated: May 28, 2025
In the afternoon, when the grown-up members of the household drove off in state to attend garden parties at neighbouring mansions, the Captain found it infinitely more enjoyable to punt slowly down the stream, dreaming his own dreams, or listening with a smile while the older child amused her juniors by quaint and adventurous stories. She was always happy, this little Mamzelle Paddy.
Here, the sole occupant of the shining stream was a maternal swan, white as a cloud on the summit of Mont Blanc, floating in stately ease up and down the water, carrying her young brood of cygnets on her back, under the snowy curve of her arching wings. Walden unchained the punt and sprang into it, Nebbie dutifully following, and then divested himself of his coat.
Rowles brought in a handful of mustard-and-cress as a relish for bread-and-butter. And soon they were all seated at the table. "Not a boat in sight," said Mr. Rowles; "nor yet a punt." "It is early yet," replied his wife; "wait until the first train from London comes in." "Like enough there will be folks come by it," rejoined Rowles; "they must be precious glad to get out of London this hot day."
The water was as still as glass, and as clear; the pike that would have taken our spinning bits of metal must have been very dull-eyed pike indeed. Tita sat at the bow of the long punt reading, while our boatman steadily and slowly plied his single oar.
I trust myself without a tremor to those shoulders." Arnold rose to his feet with alacrity. "You get into the boat-house down that path," Sabatini continued. "There is a comfortable punt in which I think I could rest delightfully, or, if you prefer to scull, I should be less comfortable, but resigned." "It shall be the punt," Arnold decided, with a glance at the river.
"We had a black, scraggy pond two miles away, dotted with stumps and rotting tree trunks. About sundown we fellows would steal a leaky old punt anchored there and pole along the water's edge until we reached a place where the water was deep, and then we'd toss a line in among the roots. It wasn't long before there would be something doing," concluded he, with a merry laugh.
Get well twissen!" cried Dave; and as the lad obeyed, the punt, already in motion, was for a short distance literally drawn by the strong fish in its desperate efforts to escape. "Let me come this time, young Tom Tallington!" cried Dave. "No, no; I'll help!" cried Tom. "But I shouldn't like you to lose this un, lads. Theer, go on and charnsh it.
"A stout gent in a straw 'at," answered the boy, staring round him bewilderedly. "Well, where is he?" asked Amenda. "I dunno," replied the boy, in an awed voice; "'e was a-standin' there, at the other end of the punt, a-smokin' a cigar." Just then a head appeared above the water, and a spent but infuriated swimmer struggled up between the houseboat and the bank.
They had been bathing, and were light clad and bare-footed, and were bound for the meadows on the Berkshire side, where the haymaking had begun, and were passing the time merrily enough till the Berkshire folk came in their punt to fetch them.
But he could not stand still, for he was on a soft spot, so he struggled on to where the ground looked more dry, and fortunately for him it proved to be so, and he stood looking round and thinking of going back. "I wish I had brought something to eat," he said, gazing wistfully in the direction in which he believed the punt lay.
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