for you to know the rule. I hope you'll forgive me?" and he
held out his hand.

What could I do? Perhaps he was telling the truth after all, and we had
thought too badly of him. And when a big boy comes and asks pardon of a
small one, it is always embarrassing for the latter. So I gave him my
hand, and told him I was sure he did not mean it, and that it did not
matter at all.

"Thanks, Batchelor," he said, smiling quite gratefully. "It's a relief
to me."

Then I watched him go on what I knew was a similar errand to Smith, but,
as I expected, his reception in that quarter was not quite so flattering
as it had been in my case. I could see my chum's eyes fire up as he saw
the elder boy approach, and a flush come over his pale cheeks. I
watched Hawkesbury blandly repeating his apology, and then suddenly, to
my astonishment and consternation, I saw Smith rise in his seat and
throw himself furiously upon his enemy. Hawkesbury was standing near a
low form, and in the sudden surprise caused by this attack he tripped
over it and fell prone on the floor, just as Miss Henniker re-entered.

There was a brief pause of universal astonishment, then the Henniker
demanded, "What is this? Tell me. What is all this, Hawkesbury?"

Hawkesbury had risen to his feet, smiling as ever, and brushing the dust
from his coat, replied softly, "Nothing, really nothing, ma'am. I fell
down, that's all."

"I knocked you down!" shouted Smith, panting like a steam-engine, and
trembling with excitement.

"Oh," said Hawkesbury, kindly, though not quite liking the downright way
in which the adventure had been summed up. "It was only play, Miss
Henniker. My fault as much as Smith's. He never meant to be so rough.
Really."

"Silence, both!" said Miss Henniker. "Smith, follow me!"

"Oh, Miss Henniker, please don't punish him," said Hawkesbury.

"Silence," replied the Henniker, icily. "Come, Smith."

Miss Henniker had the wonderful art of knowing by instinct who was the
culprit in cases like this. She was never troubled with a doubt as to
her verdict being a right one; and really it saved her a great deal of
trouble.

Smith was haled away to justice, where, in addition to a flogging and
further term of imprisonment, he was reduced for a given period to a
bread-and-water diet, and required publicly to beg Hawkesbury's pardon.

That there might be no delay about the execution of the last part of the
sentence, the culprit was condu