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Memories of Yesteryear...

THE IRON RING

A Short Story

J. W. B. Laing

Hamish and James were good pals; of that there was no doubt. They were of that wonderful age of adventure; the excitement of visions of buried treasure, secret panels, unexplored caves and other childhood pastimes filling their minds and days. The day of 'Iron Ring' was one neither of them would soon forget. It was the middle of summer and they were sitting on Hamish's low front garden wall, kicking the dirt with their strong black boots, facing the road and the village Green. They were trying to think of something interesting to do the following day, which was Saturday. The evening sun was hidden behind the tall sheltering trees that surrounded St. Machar's church and cemetery at the western end of the Green. The warm air was still and filled with the tranquil scent of lilac, honey-suckle and pine trees...not conducive to dreaming up new and exciting adventures.

In exasperation, they both decided to clear out the sloping, overgrown, terraced garden at the rear of the School House where Hamish lived. His father was the headmaster of the century old school that sat about three hundred yards from the house, across the Green. The School House was just as old, and had an 'old world' charm with all the 'new world' benefits of inside plumbing, electricity and such. It had a fairly large, rambling, series of neat terraced gardens; front, both sides and back that were sectioned off and considered suitable for domestic use.

The part of the garden that Hamish and James decided to clear was, without a doubt, not domestically suitable. This area was also terraced, but overgrown with impassable wild bushes, trees of all sizes, and weeds, which were firmly entrenched, refusing to be moved without a considerable amount of violence on the part of the duo. The area just had to be cleared since it obstructed the view of the river Dee from their 'Headquarters' they'd recently built. All this was absolutely necessary for being able to watch for unwelcome raiders or other evildoers who might be about.

The 'Headquarters,' or hut, was a rather odd looking structure with a pane of glass filling a space cut in the wall facing the river, for a window that didn't open, a door that loosely closed with mismatched hinges, a sloping roof covered with odd sized, tarred shingles and would probably leak at the first drop of rain. Not to mention a raised, wood plank floor that shimmied ominously---along with the rest of the hut when you stepped inside. The entire structure was crafted from odds and ends of boards; some still with the bark on them, that they'd scrounged from the local sawmill. It was held together by about fifty pounds of nails of various sizes. With so much twisted metal from misdirected hammers, it would probably be more likely to attract lightening before the lightning rod atop the nearby steeple of the Free Church of Scotland would...but it was their hut and 'Headquarters,' a necessity that started the whole adventure.

It took them several days to complete the clearing of the 'Woods' as they so named the new, bright and airy unused part of the terraced back garden. Hamish's father had stopped them dead in their tracks, just as they were about to assault one of the larger trees with their saws, but he did praise their work and their hut.

Now that they could spy the land and the river, they felt that their magnificent construction achievement deserved a more appropriate path to its door. They figured that if they dug down through the dirt a few inches, they would at least hit hard packed clay or something that would be substantially more suitable for the purpose.

They dug and scraped for hours until they'd created a ditch that ended up about a foot deep, two feet wide and about four feet long, leading away from the hut. Sweating and covered with dirt, they paused and finally realized they weren't doing too well with their path building, and had better refill the 'ditch' before Hamish's father came home. Growing tired of the whole thing, they replaced their diggings, deciding that, maybe all they really need do, was just rake a bit off the top surface of the soil on the existing path which spanned the entire length of the terrace away from the hut. This path crossed the main sloping pathway and old stone steps that led down from the School House laundry green to the bottom of the newly cleared 'Woods' and on to the river. When they'd cleared a path to the point where it crossed the one from the upper garden...Hamish's rake suddenly hit metal. Excitement rising, they got on their hands and knees and with screwdrivers, hammers and bits of board, feverishly dug away the ancient, impacted earth covering their great discovery of a large iron ring. Thoughts of hidden treasure, or at least a mysterious and secret tunnel, raced through their minds.

When they'd cleared all the dirt away, they looked in awe at a circular stone slab with a rusty iron ring laying flat in the centre. Unable to contain their excitement, they struggled for an hour with the ring and the slab. They knew they had to act quickly before Hamish's father found out about it. He would, no doubt, ruin everything by forbidding them to proceed further until he had someone in authority find out what their discovery was. Having that done to them would be an unforgivable and unacceptable act.

In what seemed an eternity, they managed to heave, tug and pull at the slab and its ring until it slowly surrendered to the determination and cursing of its attackers, and grated noisily about a foot from its seating. Unable to allow patience prevail, they scrambled, with bated breath, to see what was under the slab that now revealed the edge of a dark, almost black, hole going straight down to...who knew where. With a considerable amount of more sweat, determination and knuckles scraping on stone, the now extremely excited adventurers finally succeeded in gradually moving the stone slab with the iron ring, clear of what appeared to them to be a secret tunnel; the only thing that they'd recognize in their imaginative mind's menu of adventurous items. Cautiously, they peered down the dark opening, noting its circular sides were lined with rounded stones, obviously taken from the river. Being unable to see down into the deep darkness, Hamish ran back to the house to get a flashlight. While he was gone, James dropped a small stone down the shaft, which suddenly emitted a 'plop' telling him there was water at the bottom.

Hamish soon returned with the flashlight, happily stating that his parents were not home. When they shone the light down, it reflected on the water James had noted and illuminated the sides of the shaft. To their delight, they spotted a large opening on either side, just above the water level. Again, thoughts of secret tunnels raced through their minds. James couldn't stand it any longer...he just had to get down there.

Hamish ran back to the garage to pick up a good solid rope he'd seen coiled in a corner. On his breathless return, they checked the strength of the rope, and the width of the hole that was just wide enough for someone to pass through. James, being a skinny young lad and Hamish being stocky with more meat on his bones, it was James who tied the rope around his waist and dangled his feet over the edge of the shaft. With the sides of the shaft being lined with stones, there were lots of footholds so he gingerly eased himself over the edge and into the mysterious depths. He'd taken the flashlight with him and he slowly inched downward while Hamish held onto the other end of the rope to make sure James wouldn't slip and fall into the unknown... never to be seen again.

James had only advanced about five feet down the shaft when he halted his descent, deciding to use the flashlight to get a better view of the two openings. Suddenly, to his horror, he noticed a large white creature with huge, fierce and fiery red eyes climbing up the wall towards him.

Up on top, Hamish heard a frightening scream coming from the shaft, followed by a hysterical voice pleading, "Hamish...Get me tae hell oot o' here...quick." Spluttering, gasping for air and shaking with fear, James shot out of the shaft like a missile and ran, non-stop, up the garden steps to the next terrace above them. Hamish sped close behind, holding on to the rope that was still attached to James and not knowing what he was running from.

After the initial shock had eased, James gaspingly, related to Hamish what he'd seen (the creature had grown considerably in size and ferocity as the vision was described several times.) They both kept their distance, waiting to see if the 'Thing' would show its ugly monster head above the edge of the shaft...they were ready to run like hell if it did.

When nothing happened and only the sound of the birds and the wind in the trees was heard, they slowly crept back to the shaft. With great disappointment, they dejectedly established that it had to be just an old well; one that provided fresh water for the house before plumbing and running water was installed many years later. Upon nervously and carefully peering over the edge of the well, they saw no sign of the monster. Not wanting the creature to come out and roam the garden, they quickly, and strenuously, hauled the stone slab back over the well where it clunked into its old seating.

When they told Hamish's father about the well and it's contents, much to their chagrin, they were informed that what they'd seen was probably just a large white rat, and were forbidden to go near that part of the garden again, even to their 'Headquarters' until such time as the well was checked out, to which they begrudgingly acquiesced.

That 'forbidden' week, they spent cycling west along the main road to a favourite haunt...the moor. There, was a cave hidden behind a waterfall, and reputed to be another of the many resting places of the ubiquitous and famous, or infamous, Scottish outlaw Rob Roy, who roamed the countryside in the eighteenth century harassing the English Red Coats, among others, who weren't too popular in Scotland at that time. It was only four or five miles away and happily occupied their time, soaking.

When the 'forbidden' area was finally declared safe, they were allowed to go back to 'The Woods' and their 'Headquarters'. On that first day, they dashed to see what had happened to their discovery, only to find that the slab covering the well had been removed and was now replaced with a smooth surface of finished cement. They were told that the well had been filled with crushed stones and sealed forever with concrete. James wasn't too disturbed about that, having had several nightmares of his huge, white monster with the fiery red eyes, coming to get him.

The summer, being at it's height, the well with its iron ring, was soon forgotten as the two intrepid adventurers drifted off to the excitement and anticipation of building a raft with which to explore foreign lands along the River Dee.

Yes...Hamish and James were good pals in those days when they were both eleven.

END

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The Iron Ring by J.W.B. Laing

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Bobby R Woodall Author of "Mercer's Manor"

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