It never occurred to them to consider why such and such
rules were laid down: the reason was nothing to them, and they only
looked upon rules as a sort of challenge from the rule-makers, which it
would be rather bad pluck in them not to accept; and then again, in the
lower parts of the school they hadn't enough to do. The work of the form
they could manage to get through pretty easily, keeping a good enough
place to get their regular yearly remove; and not having much ambition
beyond this, their whole superfluous steam was available for games and
scrapes. Now, one rule of the house which it was a daily pleasure of all
such boys to break was that after supper all fags, except the three
on duty in the passages, should remain in their own studies until nine
o'clock; and if caught about the passages or hall, or in one another's
studies, they were liable to punishments or caning. The rule was
stricter than its observance; for most of the sixth spent their evenings
in the fifth-form room, where the library was, and the lessons were
learnt in common. Every now and then, however, a prepostor would be
seized with a fit of district visiting, and would make a tour of
the passages and hall and the fags' studies. Then, if the owner were
entertaining a friend or two, the first kick at the door and ominous
"Open here" had the effect of the shadow of a hawk over a chicken-yard:
every one cut to cover--one small boy diving under the sofa, another
under the table, while the owner would hastily pull down a book or
two and open them, and cry out in a meek voice, "Hullo, who's there?"
casting an anxious eye round to see that no protruding leg or elbow
could betray the hidden boys.
Pages:
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
207
208