Chapter 20

“A conference? What would be the purpose Mr Small?” Doctor Waite.

“I think, Doctor Waite, that we might be able to draw on the expertise of our neighbouring inspectors’ of schools; and we may be able to share our new approaches. It would demonstrate how Southhamptonshire was at the forefront of education.

I would hope that we might get the chair of our Education committee to provide a welcoming speech, and perhaps Mrs Dolmaine could provide closing remarks. I would explain what I have been attempting to do, and perhaps one of our teachers from a primary school could explain how our advice has benefited that teaching.”

“Yes, yes, I see. Would we also have someone from one of the girls’ schools? That could be most interesting.”

“Excellent idea, I wonder. Would it be too radical to ask if St A’s could provide some young people to help out and guide people.” Small asked.

“Young fillies to serve teas and the like? Yes, if the school is willing. It would be a good advertisement for them as well, would it not?” Actually, he was more interested in being asked to speak. “Ho ho, this will put us on the map. You’ll need a budget? Who will you invite?”

“A budget would be useful – though obviously attenders ... delegates? Well, they would be self funding. As to who to invite. I would suggest all the inspectors from the South of England. If it is a success then in future events we could cover the country. Perhaps once every three years would be a good approach?”

The event began to take wing. Having influential people on the committee was useful. A country house owner was persuaded that loaning his house whilst he was in London for the season could be just that final piece of charitable work that would get him his knighthood.

“Oh, I say, Blethers? Blethers House? That is truly amazing. Oh well done! So our neighbouring committees need only find the funds for travel. What about catering?”

“Mr Angus Smyth-Blethington has plenty of money. He will have much of his staff with him in London, but there will be maids to make the beds, and the under-cook will have an opportunity to demonstrate her skills. Angus implied he wanted reports of how well it goes. He will fund all the accommodation costs. I have to persuade our Chair of the Council to recommend Angus for a KBE, I’ve taken the liberty of asking him to attend to open the proceedings, then I’ll make a more pertinent welcoming speech. I say, old man, can you keep a secret? Yes, I rather think our Chair will bring his ‘niece’. Make sure there is a room beside his with a connecting door. Say nothing.” He had actually made speech marks around the word ‘niece’.

Jack smiled. He had invited Miss Havers to talk about her school, she had suggested another teacher as well, the one where the reading skills had improved dramatically after extra books and lunches had been supplier by the charity committee. They would share a room, but he was sure he could get Miss Havers alone over the three days.

Angela Pritchard was not, initially, invited. The county inspector of schools took the invite to be for him alone, she expected that. It was most unfortunate that he should have contracted typhus – probably from one of the less salubrious schools. He would be a long time recovering. The county agreed that they had to have a representative so she was substituted. She was sure she could get Mr Small alone over the three days.

The new head of St A’s was delighted to be asked to speak, and was also pleased when three ex-pupils were requested by name: Jezebel O’Hanlon, Mary Martin and Cynthia March; could they provide three short talks explaining how their education had fitted them for the modern world. All three were delighted to be asked, but also knew that the man who would introduce them had seen far more of the pleasing bodies than any other man had, yet. They wondered if he was hoping to get them alone for a second look. Oddly, Jezebel O’Hanlon, who had disgraced herself by wetting herself, was thinking that perhaps he would enjoy more than a look, and she thought she wouldn’t mind that. She was wondering about getting him alone.

Jack Small arrived two days early to ensure that all was prepared. The girls from St A’s who were to help with the conference also arrived in the company of a teacher. They were to take some of the servants’ vacated rooms. He welcomed them, showed them which rooms were to be used, which were out of bounds, and which could be used for quiet perusal. He told them that the grounds were open and inadvertently suggested that they explore the swimming pond before the main party arrived. He had meant simply to point out that using the swimming pond was allowed, but not alone. The ten girls took this to mean they should go to it as soon as they could. Miss Chalmers their teacher was more than willing to let them go off alone so she could lie on her bed reading her murder mystery - “The girls were all assaulted in a particular way, sir.” “Come, out with it, sergeant.” She was intrigued, how were the girls assaulted? Were they raped and killed? Oh, she had to know.

At the pond, the girls found the changing facilities were Spartan. A stone building with three walls shielded them from view except from the pond itself. Aside from that, there was nothing. Ten piles of carefully folded clothes later, ten girls were frolicking in the water. Jack had been quietly swimming up and down the pond, and had climbed out at the far end at a call of nature. He was sure no-one would notice if he peed in the pond, but was equally sure that a gentleman did not do that. For some inexplicable reason, the girls did not notice the clothes covered with a towel in the changing shelter. Now he was in the bushes, naked and observing ten water nymphs. “Oh, dear, well, nothing for it, but...” He ran across the short grass bank and dived in. When he surfaced, all was silence, not the reaction he expected. “Good afternoon, a fine day is it not?”

“Yes, umm. Yes. Did you change in the bushes?”

“No no. I changed in the shelter, perhaps you saw my clothes? I got out for a ... for a moment. I’m sure we can all be adult about this? I shall leave you to your amusements.” With that, aware he was watched by nine pairs of eyes (Felicity Moran was short sighted and could not see anything further than ten feet away without her glasses), he clambered up the stone steps, body erect as it could be, penis thankfully not so, wrapped himself in a towel and dried himself. To their credit, the girls stopped staring and slowly began to play again. To his credit, Jack Small did not watch the bouncing young breasts and buttocks, the interestingly varied shapes of hair around the pubis and the varying colours too. He walked away as if this was the most natural activity known to man.

Chalmers, the teacher, had fallen asleep. She had no idea, and no interest in any ‘goings on’. She was dreaming that she was one of the victims in the cheap novel she was reading. The things the murderer did to her should have been shocking to an unmarried lady of good education; since they were coming from her own imagination (the sergeant hadn’t divulged anything before she fell asleep), it was clear that she would only feign shock at suggestions that were probably illegal in several countries (including Britain).

Jack met the girls later for dinner, wondered where their teacher was, and gave it no more thought. If she couldn’t be bothered to be on time then it was her look out. The cook might make her a cheese roll. He continued eating his beef Wellington whilst slyly observing the girls and trying to put naked breasts and bottoms to the uniformed bodies before him. For their part, half were wondering if they might see him swimming again. No mention of the dip was made.

The Mayor (the Chairman of the council had recently been offered the titular post of Mayor, and rather liked the regalia) welcomed the delegates, Doctor Waite welcomed the delegates with some ill-informed observations on education, and then the real conference began. The head of St Alsagers and Bottomly gave a spirited and impassioned talk on “Education for the New Modern Woman” which was well received by fifty percent of the audience; the other fifty percent thinking that such new fangled ideas would not work in their county. Another lecture followed after coffee; served by the young lasses that Jack had already met. They all went pink whenever they met him. After lunch, Jezebel, Mary, and Cynthia presented themselves with three short talks and then a Question and Answer session was offered. They were asked what girls could learn in school that they might not learn at home. Some people were still living in the past. Jack asked if they thought learning in school allowed them to present themselves unvarnished and uncovered away from the protective layers of the family. They looked at him, smiled and agreed. The four of them knew precisely how uncovered they could be at school.

They were sorry to leave to catch the later train home, back to their dreary lives with their mothers. Two of them decided that being a teacher was something to which they could aspire. One was already relishing the prospect of soundly slapping a well rounded naked female bottom. Since it would be a while before she could practice on a stranger, she blackmailed her sister with a spurious crime that she would tell on, unless a private punishment could be agreed.

The single men and single women were, of course housed in separate floors. The women all shared – that was assumed to be the safest approach. Mr Small was housed in the centre of the house; it was assumed that he might need to be at the centre of things to organise and sort out problems. Regina Havers arrived on Friday evening, travelling after the lessons were over. “Will that nice Mr Small be there?” asked Miss Marchant with a knowing smile. Not for the first time Miss Havers wondered if Miss Marchant knew anything, but she was sure she did not. Obviously an old biddy like her would have made a fuss if she knew. Miss Marchant remembered the two brothers she had known fifty five years ago; she remembered what they had done with her before they had joined the army and gone to India. Only one had returned and he had lost his zest for live.

Regina was sharing with another teacher from a neighbouring county. That would make life difficult if she want to creep out.

Angela Pritchard was pleased to find that she did not have to share. “I’m afraid the lady chair of Omsshire Council Education had to cancel at the last minute.” was all she was told. The newspapers would soon have the story of how she arrived back from a shorter than usual committee meeting to find her husband ‘in congress’. The story would describe how she had allegedly smashed a valuable vase over his head; how the two young people, who may or may not have been professional women of the night, were discovered standing in the park pond with ‘less clothing than Eve was supposed to have fashioned’ and their feet fettered to large chains; how the investigators were still discovering body parts presumed to have once belonged to the self-same husband. One particular part had not been discovered. So Angela Pritchard was alone in her room. This could only be good. Should she visit or should she expect him to visit her? This time, she would tell him why it was safe to invade her person.