From this
time they began to feel the weight of the tyranny of Flashman and his
friends, and, now that trouble had come home to their own doors, began
to look out for sympathizers and partners amongst the rest of the fags;
and meetings of the oppressed began to be held, and murmurs to arise,
and plots to be laid as to how they should free themselves and be
avenged on their enemies.
While matters were in this state, East and Tom were one evening sitting
in their study. They had done their work for first lesson, and Tom was
in a brown study, brooding, like a young William Tell, upon the wrongs
of fags in general, and his own in particular.
"I say, Scud," said he at last, rousing himself to snuff the candle,
"what right have the fifth-form boys to fag us as they do?"
"No more right than you have to fag them," answered East, without
looking up from an early number of "Pickwick," which was just coming
out, and which he was luxuriously devouring, stretched on his back on
the sofa.
Tom relapsed into his brown study, and East went on reading and
chuckling. The contrast of the boys' faces would have given infinite
amusement to a looker-on--the one so solemn and big with mighty purpose,
the other radiant and bubbling over with fun.
"Do you know, old fellow, I've been thinking it over a good deal," began
Tom again.
"Oh yes, I know--fagging you are thinking of.
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