e School-house prayers. They were the same on
the first night as on the other nights, save for the gaps caused by the
absence of those boys who came late, and the line of new boys who stood
all together at the farther table--of all sorts and sizes, like young
bears with all their troubles to come, as Tom's father had said to him
when he was in the same position. He thought of it as he looked at the
line, and poor little slight Arthur standing with them, and as he was
leading him upstairs to Number 4, directly after prayers, and showing
him his bed. It was a huge, high, airy room, with two large windows
looking on to the School close. There were twelve beds in the room. The
one in the farthest corner by the fireplace, occupied by the sixth-form
boy, who was responsible for the discipline of the room, and the rest
by boys in the lower-fifth and other junior forms, all fags (for the
fifth-form boys, as has been said, slept in rooms by themselves). Being
fags, the eldest of them was not more than about sixteen years old, and
were all bound to be up and in bed by ten. The sixth-form boys came to
bed from ten to a quarter-past (at which time the old verger came round
to put the candles out), except when they sat up to read.

Within a few minutes therefore of their entry, all the other boys who
slept in Number 4 had come up. The little fellows went quietly to their
own beds, and began undressing, and talking to each other in whispers;
while the elder, amongst whom was Tom, sat chatting about on one
another's beds, with their jackets and waistcoats off. Poor little
Arthur was overwhelmed with the novelty of his position. The idea of
sleeping in the room with strange boys had clearly never crossed his
mind before, and was as painful as it was strange to him. He could
hardly bear to take his jacket off; however, presently, with an effort,
off it came, and then he paused and looked at Tom, who was sitting at
the bottom of his bed talking and laughing.

"Please, Brown," he whispered, "may I wash my face and hands?"

"Of course, if you like," said Tom, staring; "that's your
washhand-stand, under the window, second from your bed. You'll have to
go down for more water in the morning if you use it all." And on he went
with his talk, while Arthur stole timidly from between the beds out
to his washhand-stand, and began his ablutions, thereby drawing for a
moment on himself the attention of the room.

On went the talk and laughter. Art