In the Great Chicken Rescue the three boys had gone to see the great flood on the River and saw a chicken coop with chickens inside floating on the roiling brown flood waters. The two elder boys, Peter and Roddy, decided that they would try to save the chickens and, assuming that Derec was close behind, they ran as fast as they could to the yacht anchorage downstream to seek help. So focussed were they that they ran off without checking to see if Peter’s brother Derec was with them and then they were so immersed in the chicken rescue that it was not until that drama was over that they realised that Derec was nowhere to be seen. In panic they ran back to where they had last seen the chicken coop floating down the River with images Derec having suffered some awful fate flashing through their guilt ridden minds.
Below is the story of what happened next.
Arriving at place on the River bank where they had last seen Derec, they looked desperately for any sign of him. Despite carefully scanning the riverbank he was nowhere to be seen. Roddy could see that Peter was beginning to wonder if something terrible had happened to his brother and was beginning to panic. Roddy could not believe that anything bad had happened to Derec, after all Peter’s younger brother was cautious and rather fearful of trying new things or even facing slightly dangerous situations; always the last to try new tree climbing routes that his brother pioneered and often refusing to follow the rest of the Gang on one of their hair-raising escapades. No, there had to be some other explanation for his absence from the chicken coop episode.
They continued to look anxiously around them, scanning the flat terrain for any sign of Derec. After all, in this flat country there was almost nowhere to hide unless you could find a slight dip in the grass, perhaps caused by some old river current that long ago had deposited less mud there than elsewhere. Even then, if you wanted to hide you had to push yourself into the ground to make yourself inconspicuous. If Derec was still here he must be visible and they could not conceive of any reason that would have caused him to leave or why he should attempt to hide. The boys stood back-to-back and, shading their eyes from the bright sky light, they carefully searched around them for signs of the missing boy. It was Roddy who finally detected a movement near the River bank and well inside the big bend that the boys had earlier had to circumvent in order to outpace the chicken coop. Yes, there was definitely a movement and strangely it looked as if there were two bodies there. Nudging Peter he pointed to where he could still see some movement. Whatever caused it was just below the edge of the River bank and for that reason, more difficult to see.
“What is he doing?” enquired a perplexed Peter; “it looks as if he has someone else with him.”
Clearly the only way answer that was to go there and find out, so the two boys started to run again, only this time with a sense of relief that was evident in their more relaxed jogging, compared with the tense fast run that had brought them back to the spot where they had left Derec earlier. As they neared the cusp of the great bend in the River, they could see that he was crouched just below the grassy bank, and was busy with something. Neither boy was quite tall enough to see what it was until they were almost on top of him.
“Derec, what are you doing”, screamed Peter, letting out all of the worry and frustration that had been building inside him since he had realized that he had completely forgotten about his brother.
Derec turned to them with a complete lack of concern. Instead his face was suffused in happiness.
“Look at what I found!” he shouted back at them with a broad self-satisfied beam of pride spreading across his round face.
The two boys arrived at the edge of the grassy bank, their chests heaving and panting from the relief at having found Derec alive and unharmed as with their recent exertions. They looked down to see a dog, not just any dog but a very large and muddy dog that Derec was trying to clean up. It was lying on a slab of grassy bank that had sunk toward the River and while its tail was thumping contentedly, it was lying very still as if ill or hurt. They looked at Derec who was carefully cleaning the caked mud from the dog’s flanks and at the same time stroking and talking softly to the animal. The dog was looking directly into Derec’s eyes with a look of utter adoration.
“What, where?” sputtered Peter whose face was a mix of puzzlement and consternation.
Derec looked calmly at his brother and announced, “ I rescued him from the River!”
Peter was so shocked by what his brother had said and all that it implied in terms of the danger that he must have put himself in to accomplish this rescue, that all he could do was stand there, slack-jawed, and stare at his younger brother. As well as the picture of a catastrophe that was playing through Peter’s imagination, there was the issue of Derec’s fear of anything that was new and even remotely dangerous. Something very profound had just occurred and Peter suddenly realized that his brother was no longer the rather scared and docile boy that he had sprinted away from seemingly just a short while ago. Derec continued to take care of the dog and as he patted, stroked and wiped away river mud he began his story.
When the older boys ran to cut off the chicken coop to seek the help of the men at the yacht anchorage, Derec had felt slighted that they would run off as if he did not exist. It was as if he did not count for very much and was just a junior appendage to their adventures. He was so upset that he decided that he would just leave them there and make his way home. That way, when they missed him, they would be become worried that something terrible may have happened and then they would have been scared at the prospect of going home and explaining everything to his parents. That would really give them a good shock and teach them a lesson he thought. So he turned to walk back up the River to the railway bridge and the Lane to home.
It was then that he saw the dog. It looked about the size of a Labrador Retriever but was more brindled with a long tail and a brown snout and it was balanced on a brushy branch that was bobbing and twisting its way along with the flood. The dog was yowling pitifully and it was a miracle that it had not been swept off its footing. Luckily the branch was not just a single log but also a substantial portion of a tree and despite the bucking and churning of the flood, it was relatively stable. The smaller branches that stuck up from the main part of the log, acted as a restraint to help the dog keep its balance. Immediately and without even thinking it through, he knew that he had to save that poor animal but he had no idea as to how to do it. Turning around he jogged along the bank of the River keeping pace with the dog on its brushy floating island, while madly trying to think of some way to rescue it.
One possibility was to just follow it to where his brother and Roddy were already alerting the people at the yacht anchorage about the chicken coop. If the dog could keep its balance and the log did not collide with something or start to sink, maybe someone there could save it. However, the brushy branch holding the dog was swaying and yawing quite a bit in the roiling current, and the dog would cry and whimper pitifully every time it seemed that the log might roll over and pitch it into the River.
Desperately Derec scanned the ground ahead of him for something that he could use to snag the log and pull it closer to the bank. It wasn’t in the middle of the stream but was closer to his side of the River, yet still too far away to reach without the aid of a long branch or something similar. As he jogged along he wished that he had a lasso like cowboys always carried on their saddles. He could then swing that loop of rope over his head and it would land just perfectly over one of the smaller vertical branches that stuck out from the log, and he would carefully haul it to the bank. It was wishful thinking he knew but he was desperate for something and he could not help but think of things that were impractical and were only possible in the dark, sweet warmth of the Saturday morning children’s matinee.
It was then that he noticed that further downstream, a protrusion of rubble that someone had dumped on the far bank of the River caused the current to veer toward his bank and he realized that the branch would be caught in this cross current and come closer to him. In desperation he raced ahead in the hope that he might see something that he could use, or come up with some other idea. But there was nothing that he could see that would help.
Looking back he saw that he was now ahead of the branch bearing the dog and that the current was indeed swinging it toward his bank. Quickly, and without thinking, he kicked of his shoes and pulled off his socks and threw them in a heap on the grass. Then he did something that under normal circumstances, he would have never done, he began to slip and slide his way toward the water’s edge. It was quite a way down and the muddy bank was very slippery so that he often lost his footing and slipped. Each time that he did this he flung his arms behind him to break his fall, but he could not help but fall on his bum from time to time and by the time he reached the water his legs and short trousers were covered in the gelatinous grey-brown mud of the River. He didn’t care and didn’t even really feel it as his focus was now on the dog and how to rescue it. He stood on the edge of the water, with angry flood washing over his feet and looked at the approaching branch and the frightened dog.
Suddenly he had a flash of inspiration and wild hope crossed his mind. He remembered that when he went for swimming lessons in the City baths, the first thing that they tried to teach him was the dog paddle. That was how dogs swam, with their legs working away beneath them as if they were trying to walk their way through the water. Derec remembered thinking how very interesting that was and he wondered how dogs learned to swim. It seemed that they did it naturally and instinctively and this was the key to his sudden inspiration. He moved into the water as far as he could, taking care to dig his toes into the muddy bottom. It was a scary thing for him to do and usually he would have refused to even contemplate doing such a thing, but the sight of that miserable and frightened dog inspired him to sink some of his old fears and take risks. He was now standing in the flowing water that was lapping around his knees. Because of the disturbance to the current caused by the rocks on the far bank, the current was strong and he could feel it tugging against his calves. Yet there was no time dwell on this and worry about what might happen if he slipped and was dragged into the River. The branch, with the dog still desperately hanging on, was approaching and was already being swung toward his bank by the deflection in the current. That deflection was also having another effect on the already roiling flood and was pushing out big eddies in the water that began to spin and shake the dog’s tree branch. The poor dog was desperately trying to keep its footing but the branch, with all of its side branches, was now beginning to spin and roll unsteadily. Derek knew that it had to be now and he just hoped that it was not a case of misplaced hope. Whistling to the dog while slapping his thighs encouragingly he looked straight at it and willed it to make a move and jump off that twirling and twisting branch that looked as if, at any moment, it might suddenly turn over. He thought that he could see some movement from the dog that was now looking intently at him and moving its head and chest as if bracing for a jump. Derec hoped that if the dog did jump it would not become entangled in the other branches as then it might be forced under the water by the brushy log and drowned.
Pushing those awful thoughts out of his head he kept calling to the dog to come to him. The current was now sweeping the branch closer and closer to Derek’s bank but it was also beginning to cause the branch to swing from side to side. If one of those eddies caught it, the whole thing might be spun around and the dog would be facing the wrong way for a successful jump. It had to jump now as the thick branch looked as if it would roll over. It really was now or never.
Looking back on that moment he was unsure if it was luck, an accident or the result of his increasingly animated encouragement. Whatever the cause, the dog either jumped or fell into the water and realizing that the figure whistling and shouting at it was a possible safe haven, it began to madly paddle its way toward the bank. The timing was amazingly lucky for soon after the dog jumped, and perhaps helped by the push-off that the dog must have given it, the brushy branch began to slowly spin its way back out into the main current. The dog was gamely trying to reach the bank but it was swimming toward Derek and not directly toward the bank. The swift current was keeping the dog headed downstream and it looked as if it would sweep past Derek and be too far to reach.
Hurriedly changing position and with all thought of his safety now displaced by the focus on getting hold of that poor frightened animal, he somehow managed to move along the edge of the muddy water without falling over, though he did slip and slither around a lot. Just ahead there was a slight ridge in the bank that stuck out just a little into the River. Not by much, but just enough that it might put him within arm’s reach of the dog. He quickly splashed and slopped his way to the ridge of mud and moved out on it as far as he could and stepped further into the water. Perhaps because of scouring, the water deepened more quickly here, not at all like the shelving bottom that he was standing on previously. The possibility of danger flashed through his mind, but he was now so intent on the poor dog as its struggles brought it closer to the bank. Closer and closer came the dog, and yet so painfully slowly. Well, this was the final chance, thought Derek and as the dog came near he made a lunge that caused him to slip further into the deeper water, but he managed to get a grip on the dogs thick fur and he spun around and, with his free hand he pushed down through the turbid flood and grasped the muddy bottom with his fingers. He knew that if he pushed hard enough, his fingers would penetrate the harder mud below and he would be able to gain a better purchase. He was lucky and he dug his fingers into the harder mud as firmly as he could, forming a claw with his hand, and then he yanked at the dog, pulling it past him toward the water’s edge. The poor, half drowned animal, sensing that its ordeal might be over made a lunge toward the bank and safety and was rewarded by feeling his paws touching the bottom. With a yelp, it scrabbled its way out of the water and continued up the bank, sliding and scrabbling, until it reached the grassy bank, without so much as a glance back at its rescuer. Derec meanwhile, was left behind in the muddy swirling water. He pushed his other hand into the mud, gained some more purchase, and heaved himself out of the water and collapsed on his knees. He was exhausted by the combination of physical effort and the mental strain of facing such a dangerous situation. He had never done anything like this in his life before and there was no feeling of exhilaration or success, just overwhelming tiredness and a cold creeping fear as his rational brain began to play out all of the bad endings that could have been.
Slowly, he made his way up the bank to the grass with a half crawling, half crouching gait. The feel of the grass beneath his hands and the smell of the turf overwhelmed him and he finally realized that the dangerous drama that he had just gone through was finally over. For some time and completely unnoticed by Derec, the Sun had been breaking through the clouds and he now felt the peculiar and familiar warmth of the sea-washed grass. He buried his face in its friendly stalks, his lung still heaving after his exertions. A whirl of images, fears along with a strong feeling of relief ran through his mind. He wasn’t even thinking about the dog, that creature that had been the burning focus of his thoughts for what seemed like an eternity. As he lay there panting, a warm slobbery tongue poked into his ear. Derec rolled onto his side and looked into the face of a drooling, muddy and smelly dog that was panting and attempting to lick him. Weakly raising his arms and, completely forgetting all of the troubles and the explaining that would follow his turning up at home a besmeared and muddy mess, he hugged that sodden animal to his chest. The dog, as if in understanding of the boy’s strained and exhausted mental state, also collapsed, and they lay in a heap on the grass. After lying there for a few minutes, Derec finally found enough energy to start to clean the dog of its coating of mud. It was while doing this that through his tiredness; Derek heard the sounds of Roddy and his brother calling.
Derec stirred at the sound, which was entering his brain as if penetrating a fog. The dog also stirred and he put his arm around it and began to rub at some of the River muck that was sticking to the dog’s coat. Suddenly a wave of fatigue hit him and he realized that he was completely exhausted. It was as if all of the physical and mental energy that he possessed had been sucked out of him. Slowly the sound of shouting became louder and more coherent and he moved his head to try to locate its source. That is when he finally sat up, arms still around the dog and saw the boys look his way and start to run toward him.
Peter was struck dumb by Derec’s story. He could not believe that his younger brother, the one who always held back or found an excuse for not taking part in anything risky, had found the courage and strength to do such a thing. If he had heard the story hours or days later he would never have believed it, but there, before his eyes was the evidence; a muddy exhausted dog and his equally exhausted and muddy younger brother.
He looked at Roddy and simply said, “Can you believe this?”
All that Roddy could do was look at Peter with a face that was filled with bewilderment but not one trace of doubt. During Derec’s entire account he had stood and looked at the muddy pair in a state of slack-jawed amazement. Finally he found his voice.
“ I don’t know how you were able to do all of that?” was all that he could say at first. “Weren’t you afraid of slipping into the River and being swept away? I always thought that you were afraid of water, as you never even seemed to enjoy our visits to the swimming baths.
Peter however had recovered from his initial surprise and was beginning to think of more practical issues. The sun had now broken free of the clouds that were the final remnants of the great storm and, from the length of the shadows cast by the boys’ bodies, it was clearly late in the day. Late enough to mean major trouble and here they were with a muddy dog and an even muddier looking brother who had just taken a great risk. Everything about this was crying out that they had disobeyed one of their parents’ major rules about staying away from the water. Not only that, they had a dog, covered in mud and stinking of River that they would have to bring home. Peter’s mother did not welcome even clean dogs and there was no way to clean up this one before getting home. Then there was the awkward part of the story that he could see no way around; that he and Roddy had been off on another part of the River bank watching the rescue of chickens and completely forgetting about his responsibility toward his young brother. That was a violation of a cardinal family rule that elder children were responsible for the safety of younger ones at all times. There would be no getting around this; at least that was how he saw it. No one to turn to who could help; the muddy clothes and the muddy and stinking dog could not be easily explained and once it came out that Derek had accomplished the dangerous rescue all by himself, the very heavens themselves would fall on Peter and he knew that the punishment would be harsh and long. Worse, the incident would follow him for months, if not years and would poison relations between himself and his parents.
No doubt, this was going to result in the biggest trouble that he had ever experienced. Strangely, he did not blame Derec for all of this. What his brother had achieved in the dog rescue had greatly boosted Derec’s stature in Peter’s eyes. His little brother had suddenly become his equal and he could never be condescending to him again. No, the feeling that settled over him was one of misery as he contemplated the consequences of all their heroic actions. They could not take pleasure in what had happened and could not talk about it, or even boast a little. It would all be clouded by the rows and the restrictions from which they would all have to suffer. No more rambling across the Lamby and along the sea bank whenever the mood took him. No chance of ever being able to persuade suspicious parents to let them go on a voyage in Albert’s beautiful boat. It was all over!
Peter turned to Roddy, who looked equally dejected and suggested that they just make their way home and face the questions and the horrified reactions from parents when they realized the danger that their children had been in.
“Come on Derec, we need to get going,”
“What about the dog,” said Derec anxiously, “he has to come too. We can’t leave him here.”
“I know,” said Peter wearily, “he has to come too, although I don’t know what we are to do with him. You know how mum and dad feel about dogs in the house.”
“Perhaps I can persuade my parents to let me keep him,” said Roddy. My Father used to have a dog just a few years ago, so he doesn’t mind them and my Mother didn’t seem to mind either.”
With that tiny sliver of optimism in an otherwise very dark prospect, the elder boys turned and began the walk back to the railway and the bridge to the Lane. Derec hauled himself to his feet and steadied himself. He was still very tired after all of the exertions and excitement. Come on boy, he called to the dog even though it suddenly struck him that he was not sure if it was a male or a female dog. No matter, that was a minor point right now and could be taken care of later. The dog wagged its tail weakly and staggered to its feet and followed. Its ordeal and near death encounter in the great flood had weakened it but it gamely staggered behind the boys as they tramped along dispirited and dejected at the prospect of what might face them when they reached home.
LAMBY MEMORIES 