Chapter 30.00: Chapter viii. — A childish incident, in which, however, is seen a good-natured disposition in Tom Jones.

**
Chapter viii. — A childish incident, in which, however, is seen a
good-natured disposition in Tom Jones.
**

The reader may remember that Mr Allworthy gave Tom Jones a little horse,
as a kind of smart-money for the punishment which he imagined he had
suffered innocently.

This horse Tom kept above half a year, and then rode him to a neighbouring
fair, and sold him.

At his return, being questioned by Thwackum what he had done with the
money for which the horse was sold, he frankly declared he would not tell
him.

“Oho!” says Thwackum, “you will not! Then I will have it
out of your br—h;” that being the place to which he always
applied for information on every doubtful occasion.

Tom was now mounted on the back of a footman, and everything prepared for
execution, when Mr Allworthy, entering the room, gave the criminal a
reprieve, and took him with him into another apartment; where, being alone
with Tom, he put the same question to him which Thwackum had before asked
him.

Tom answered, he could in duty refuse him nothing; but as for that
tyrannical rascal, he would never make him any other answer than with a
cudgel, with which he hoped soon to be able to pay him for all his
barbarities.

Mr Allworthy very severely reprimanded the lad for his indecent and
disrespectful expressions concerning his master; but much more for his
avowing an intention of revenge. He threatened him with the entire loss of
his favour, if he ever heard such another word from his mouth; for, he
said, he would never support or befriend a reprobate. By these and the
like declarations, he extorted some compunction from Tom, in which that
youth was not over-sincere; for he really meditated some return for all
the smarting favours he had received at the hands of the pedagogue. He
was, however, brought by Mr Allworthy to express a concern for his
resentment against Thwackum; and then the good man, after some wholesome
admonition, permitted him to proceed, which he did as follows:—

“Indeed, my dear sir, I love and honour you more than all the world:
I know the great obligations I have to you, and should detest myself if I
thought my heart was capable of ingratitude. Could the little horse you
gave me speak, I am sure he could tell you how fond I was of your present;
for I had more pleasure in feeding him than in riding him. Indeed, sir, it
went to my heart to part with him; nor would I have sold him upon any
other account in the world than what I did. You yourself, sir, I am
convinced, in my case, would have done the same: for none ever so sensibly
felt the misfortunes of others. What would you feel, dear sir, if you
thought yourself the occasion of them? Indeed, sir, there never was any
misery like theirs.”

“Like whose, child?” says Allworthy: “What do you mean?”

“Oh, sir!” answered Tom, “your poor gamekeeper, with all
his large family, ever since your discarding him, have been perishing with
all the miseries of cold and hunger: I could not bear to see these poor
wretches naked and starving, and at the same time know myself to have been
the occasion of all their sufferings. I could not bear it, sir; upon my
soul, I could not.” [Here the tears ran down his cheeks, and he thus
proceeded.] “It was to save them from absolute destruction I parted
with your dear present, notwithstanding all the value I had for it: I sold
the horse for them, and they have every farthing of the money.”

Mr Allworthy now stood silent for some moments, and before he spoke the
tears started from his eyes. He at length dismissed Tom with a gentle
rebuke, advising him for the future to apply to him in cases of distress,
rather than to use extraordinary means of relieving them himself.

This affair was afterwards the subject of much debate between Thwackum and
Square. Thwackum held, that this was flying in Mr Allworthy's face, who
had intended to punish the fellow for his disobedience. He said, in some
instances, what the world called charity appeared to him to be opposing
the will of the Almighty, which had marked some particular persons for
destruction; and that this was in like manner acting in opposition to Mr
Allworthy; concluding, as usual, with a hearty recommendation of birch.

Square argued strongly on the other side, in opposition perhaps to
Thwackum, or in compliance with Mr Allworthy, who seemed very much to
approve what Jones had done. As to what he urged on this occasion, as I am
convinced most of my readers will be much abler advocates for poor Jones,
it would be impertinent to relate it. Indeed it was not difficult to
reconcile to the rule of right an action which it would have been
impossible to deduce from the rule of wrong.