Chapter X

Sally at the sea-coast. • Our lodgings. • The land-lady and family. • A quarrel, and change of rooms. • My top bed-room. • Advances towards Sally. • Small liberties. • On the sands with her. • Cheap fingerings. • The sands by day. • Ladies bathing. • What the sad sea-waves exposed. • An incomprehensible lady. • Enticed by her, and snubbed. • Wanting fornication. • Masturbation on the sands. • Alone in the lodgings. • A journey to town. • Baulked. • From Saturday to Monday. • My return unexpected. • Sally alarmed. • Her cunning. • My caution. • Waiting expectant. • Sally upstairs. • Hesitation and determination. • Whisky and water. • I enter her bed-room.

In the autumn of the year that Mrs. Y* * *s* * *e, then big with child, and thus satisfied, refused further sexual connection with me, we went to a well-known, healthy, but not fashionable seaside town. We took a young lady (Miss E***s) with us as companion, and got lodgings close to the sea at an ordinary lodging-house. For several reasons we would not go to an hotel. There were two rooms on the ground-floor of this house let to a married couple. We had on the first-floor a sitting-room and bed-room, and wanted an old bed-room for Miss E***s; but they would not let a bed-room above us, unless we took both on that floor, which we did. So we slept in the back room first-floor, I taking to the nuptial couch again for a time, and Miss E***s slept overhead. The other room was empty. That constituted the house together with the kitchens in the basement, and a room at the back in the yard.

The landlady's husband was a seafaring man, or was said to be so, and only at home in the winter, — perhaps he kept away in the season, so that the rooms of his house might be let well. The landlady whom we scarcely ever saw excepting to pay her her bills, slept in the kitchen, and so did her two children, whom we did not even know were in existence for some time, so quiet and out of the way were they kept. The servant was a short sturdy girl with lightish brown hair, a very weather-beaten florid face, and merry blue eyes (quite like dozens of girls at the part of the coast), who said she was seventeen years old (she did not seem sixteen). The mistress' sister also waited and assisted when all the lodgings were let, and went home at night. The little servant also went home at night to her father's, a laborer, when the top-rooms were let. If they were not, she slept there. In fact when lodgers filled the house the landlady and her brats pigged to-gether in the kitchen, and when any rooms were empty slept upstairs. We did not however know all this at once; lodging-house keepers carefully hide their mode of living, and so on, for fear that if people knew all they would not take their apartments. Above all they prevent lodgers from knowing there are children in the house, for people don't like them in the kitchen where their food is cooked.

Soon the ground-floor people left, and we were the only lodgers. We had been there but a few days when as usual my wife and I quarrelled. I refused to sleep with her, and went to sleep upstairs. “It's impossible for you to sleep upstairs next to Miss E***s, — what will the people think?” “Think what they like.” “Well Miss E * * *s must come down, and sleep with me.” “I don't care who sleeps with you, — I won't.” So I slept upstairs, Miss E * * * s came down, and the two ladies occupied the same bed on the drawing-room floor. Soon afterwards the landlady asked if she would mind the young servant using the odd bed-room until we wanted it, so as to prevent her going home of a night. But my wife would not hear of that, for I had remarked that she was a fresh, active little girl, and that was enough to prevent her being allowed to sleep near me. So the one room remained empty, and the servant still went home to sleep.

I had taken a fancy to the little girl, — Sally she was called (I have known intimately half-a-dozen Sarahs) — the instant I saw her. Within a couple of days I had given her a kiss, and tipped her a shilling, — I had to stoop to kiss her. She resisted with the, “Adun now sir” so common among the country lasses; but as she found a shilling and a kiss went together, it altered in about three days to, “Oh! don't yer now sir be a doing that, — Missus will be a catching you, and what will I say?” Then being sure my Missus was out, one day I gave a kiss, held her close to me, and gave a nudge near to her notch. That riled her. She was saucy, so I did not give her a shilling, and got kiss and nudge for nothing. But as I wandered about the coast (I was in and out of the house a dozen times a day), she got frequent kisses, and at length nudges as well. She responded by pushing me away, but without saying a word when I nudged her grummit. One day I went in when my people were out, and having just met the ground-floor lodgers I therefore knew they were out also. I got her to me with, “Here's a bob for you,” and said, “I'd give a pound to be in bed with you, and put my fingers on the naked just there,” giving a hard push towards her notch. This could not have occurred more than a week after I had taken the lodgings. The lass showed her displeasure by, “Now don't sir,” and pushing me away, but taking my little shilling nevertheless; and by this time she must have been quite aware, that I was thinking a good deal about her cunt; and probably she thought what I wanted to do with it, and with what, — so that I had set her thinking lewedly.

It was just then that I became aware that she went home after supper (we had a primitive early dinner, and a slight supper). She had said, “Please Ma'am do you want anything more to-night? — if not I'm a going.” That roused my curiosity. The next night I kept outside the street-door, and as she left went up as if by chance to her. “Ulloah! Sally, going to fetch beer!” “No sir, I'm a going home.” “Home?” “Yes, I goes home to sleep at father's.” I walked towards home with her, flattered her I dare say instinctively, and got her to walk with me on to the Promenade by the sands. There we sat down on a seat, had a chat, a kiss, and in the dark I said I'd give a pound to be in bed with her. “Oh! law I must go, — if I'm not in by ten o'clock father will kick up a row, and go and ask Mrs*** why I'm home so late.” I walked towards home with her, and got her to have some sort of liquor. She would not go into the public-house, saying they knew her, — so I took a glass outside to her. Then I walked on outside the town into a dark road. She begged me to go no further, as her father might be coming along. I kissed her, stooped and put my hands up her clothes to her quim. With a cry she pushed me away, and ran off.

The next morning she sulked, — I laughed. “She is a funny little girl,” said my wife. “She is,” said I. The next night I coaxed her to sit down with me again by the sands. “Oh! now I won't let you do that, — I don't like it, — I don't want yer half-crowns if you wants to do that, — oh! — now, — I won't — now — doan't, — leave off, — I'll call out, — now, — here is some one coming.” “So there is, now don't make a noise, or her will fancy something,” said I.

Then I got my hand up her petticoats, and onto her split, I was holding her tight, and she was struggling to get away, when a man approached. I desisted, and she sat quite demurely. When the man's figure had faded away in the distance I recommenced. “I know that man,” said she, “I'm sure.” “What does that mat-ter?” “If it be he, he'll tell my father I'm on the sands with a man.” “He won't know you, — he did not look. I've felt your cunt,” said I. “You let me go.” “Never mind, make it up, — here is a half-crown.” She took the money, and we made it up with kisses, and a promise that I would not do it again. What a wonderful effect kisses have on young women, and so have half-crowns on poor girls. The mistress paid her no wages she said.