your behavior towards Mr. Mason I intend to lick the whole of the
Upper School to-morrow when I give you your journey-money. This will
include the three study-boys I found dancing on the form-room desks when
I came up. Prefects will stay after call-over."

The school filed out in silence, but gathered in groups by the gymnasium
door waiting what might befall.

"And now, Flint," said the Head, "will you be good enough to give me
some explanation of your conduct?"

"Well, sir," said Flint desperately, "if you save a chap's life at the
risk of your own when he's dyin' of diphtheria, and the Coll. finds it
out, wha-what can you expect, sir?"

"Um, I see. Then that noise was not meant for--ah, cheek. I can connive
at immorality, but I cannot stand impudence. However, it does not excuse
their insolence to Mr. Mason. I'll forego the lines this once, remember;
but the lickings hold good."

When this news was made public, the school, lost in wonder and
admiration, gasped at the Head as he went to his house. Here was a man
to be reverenced. On the rare occasions when he caned he did it
very scientifically, and the execution of a hundred boys would be
epic--immense.

"It's all right, Head Sahib. _We_ know," said Crandall, as the Head
slipped off his gown with a grunt in his smoking-room. "I found out just
now from our substitute. He was gettin' my opinion of your performance
last night in the dormitory. I didn't know then that it was you he was
talkin' about. Crafty young animal. Freckled chap with eyes---Corkran, I
think his name is."

"Oh, I know _him_, thank you," said the Head, and reflectively. "Ye-es,
I should have included them even if I hadn't seen 'em."

"If the old Coll. weren't a little above themselves already, we'd chair
you down the corridor," said the Engineer. "Oh, Bates, how could you?
You might have caught it yourself, and where would we have been, then?"

"I always knew you were worth twenty of us any day. Now I'm sure of it,"
said the Squadron Commander, looking round for contradictions.

"He isn't fit to manage a school, though. Promise you'll never do it
again, Bates Sahib. We--we can't go away comfy in our minds if you take
these risks," said the Gunner.

"Bates Sahib, you aren't ever goin' to cane the whole Upper School, are
you?" said Crandall.

"I can connive at immorality, as I said, but I can't stand impudence.
Mason's lot is quite hard enough even when I back him. Besides, the
men at th