That Scholarship Boy

Cham

ar that other jacket to go to school,' sa

, and his mother had heard incidentally that one of

id no one lived this

and so do I a bit, and we got talking about those old battles, and almost forgot the time. Now, mother,

ther l

a month ago,' she said, 'but you

wear the old jacket a bit longer, as I should wear out so many boots; but now--' And there Horace

ile you do your chemistry work,' remarked his mother, 'for

s poking too far through the sleeves of that old one, and Warren is

es than you are. Yes, wear the best jacket by all means, and I hav

boys had a pleasant chat on all sorts of subjects as they walked along the road. Just before the schoo

er if I am late, I have plenty of time i

e me for?' said Warren, thrusting

and if you know what for, it's more than I do, so that it

too far this time, and I mean to let the whole lot see that I won't follow the lead, when I don't think it's fair and square. If they had any good reason for

nd you to Coventry a

sure to do it, and I dare say they will rage like a bull in a

ate, and Horace changed colour and his arm shook; but Warr

g to me if the rest don't

that lot?' Warren's face was flaming, and he held his head high, as he led Horace through

hooting had to cease, for fear the master should insist upon knowing what it was about. 'I have been thinking a lot of what we were talking about last night, and it's my opinion that there would not be so many tyrants in the

people. I am only a scholarship

children in the nursery, so you may know we haven't got money to roll in, like Curtis. No, old fellow, we are two poor boys, and so we'll just stand shoulder to shoulder, and fight the lot, if they want to fight us. Now mind, you've got to fight for me,

fight for his new friend, and when one or two tried to hustle them apart as they were going

ed at Horace. 'Who are y

me sharp thrusts at those who were trying to push between them. There could be no great demonstra

towards the scholarship boy, and so had contrived to find something for him to do in the chemistry laboratory during the recess; and Horace was only too glad of the change to d

rison. I want him to come with us, for I know that "cock of the walk" is bullying him, and if he'll just join us we shall be three to the othe

, 'if you go talking to Warren now he's joined that fellow in Coventry, you'll be sent there yourself by the rest of the school. I'll give you a week to think over what we were talking

her to rebel against their rule, and so the two lads walked home

Then a quarrel broke out in the ranks of the popular party, and Warren heard that Taylor was so hectoring the others as to what they should do, that at last, out of she

you to tell me how you get your lessons done, for you're always ready with an answer, and I've been so floored lately that I

royal road to the acquisition of lessons but

are so mad about. Taylor says Torrington's will be nothing better th

ht we went to school that we mig

ows have come to think of it as an easy-going plac

turn over a new leaf he should send me somewhere else. Now I propose we make

eats would,'

e that we'll stick to our work of an evening til

so before they separated each pledged himself to join the new swatting club. It was not an elegant name for a party of students to call thems

ool, they were mistaken; for Taylor and the more popular party soon found out by the answ

Torrington's; and the sooner they take themselves off the better!' he exclaim

nd was not averse to a duel of w

ed-'those who live in glass houses, an

objectionable word could be spoken Warren r

unfairly that there was an instant cry of,

ee the boy open his eyes and the colour slowly return to his face. They were outside the school premises when the incident occurred, and they all took care to walk away as quickly as they could, lest the master's attention should be called to the quarrel, and the

ted. There were plenty to urge Warren to 'take it out' of Taylor another day, and plenty more to side with the bigger lad, and urge him to 'have it out' wit

of the foremost in urgi

f you,' urged Leonard. '

e has taken that fellow out of Coventry, it was a plucky thing to do in the fac

crow as loudly as usual, and walked home without noticing what his satellites said, his eyes bent on the ground

e of the thought and attention than the earlier question; and so Horace walked into scho

his friend. But the day passed, and he did not appear, and the boys' spirits were damped a little in conse

ng along the road together the next morning, and when Taylor ap

at I did the other day, for I can't fight you,

t you said the other day?'

have no business to blame you for what--No, I'm not going to say anything,' he whi

t the matter drop, then, and, mi

oin Horace, for he had drawn Taylor aside to say this,

t without bringing the danger to his antagonist of being charged with manslaughter, had brought such a shock to the boy that it was this, rather than the effects of the fall, that made his father forbid him going to school the previous day. The lad had wondered how he was to get o

stand his difficulty; and Horace had counselled that he should make up his quarrel wit

its. But don't tell them I can't stand up and fight, for fear the other fellow should get sent to prison afterwards. That's the dreadful part

Horace, who was ready to make a hero of his new friend for managing the affair with Taylor with

eve I was born a fighter, and now for the sake of other pe

they are like, but I know you will have plenty of the other sort of courage whe

now, and two or three pressed eagerly forward,

d it now,' an

s. They are just going off t

off, are you, Taylor?' shouted

ettle our own affairs in our own way!' And having said this, he p