our seat properly."

"Take your seat properly!" he then roared.

"Pip, you may read about the 'Caravan,' on the fifth page. Take Wort's
book."

"Jutht thee--" began Pip.

"Juggie and Tony, you may both go into the closet for giggling," sharply
interposed the teacher. "Go now!"

There were now five boys inside the closet, five restless immortals with
ten restless legs and ten restless arms.

"Read, Pip, about the caravan."

"Jutht thee, the wild beathth--"

In harmony with this thought came a loud roar from the closet.

"Now you've got to be better," said Sid, turning to the wild beasts, "or I
will resign and I won't teach."

"Let me be teacher," squeaked Pip.

The principal, though, did not resign; but, advancing to the closet or
cage door, was about to make an appeal to his infuriated caravan. They
anticipated him.

"Teacher, Charlie is pinching me."

"Ow! somebody's on my foot."

"There isn't room! I can't breathe!" declared a third.

"It is disgraceful, boys, how you act," said their aged teacher. "You
can't play school worth a cent. Pip, come here!"

The only scholar now on duty had disgraced himself by making up faces
behind his teacher's back, and as Sid suddenly turned, the culprit was
detected.

"Pip, hold out your hand. There, take that!"

"Ow! you hit too hard."

"He will cry. Don't hit too hard!" shouted a warning voice from the
closet.

"Booh-ooh-ooh!" went Pip.

"I didn't hit you hard," explained the "principal of the academy," as he
had several times called himself. "You mustn't be a-foolin' in school. If
you were in a real school you would get worse whippings than that."

Pip's only answer was, "Booh-ooh-ooh!"

"Wort, come here. You are not presenting a respectful face to your
teacher. I caught you, sir. Hold out your hand."

"I don't want to."

"Do you rebel?" and the principal swelled as if ambitious to puff himself
into a giant.

It is not pleasant to put it on record that Wort did rebel. He refused to
hold out his hand, and when Sid seized him he resisted. Then a tussle set
in, and it was doubtful whether the teacher would floor the scholar, or
the scholar floor the teacher. But they drew off and scowled at one
another like two thunder clouds.

"There," said the principal of the academy finally, "I am not going to be
teacher any more. Who wants my chance may have it."

"And I won't belong to this old club any more," said Wort, smarting under
the castigation he ha