rm in that? Father smokes."

"But he doesn't smoke when he is preaching," said the mother.

"No, but he smokes right afterwards."

"But not in church."

"Well, perhaps not in church, but school's different. And anyway, he
makes them read better, and write better too," said Hughie, stoutly.

"Certainly," said his father, "he is a most remarkable man. A most
unusual man."

"What about your sums, Hughie?" asked his mother.

"Don't know. He doesn't bother much with that sort of thing, and I'm
just as glad."

"You ought really to speak to him about it," said Mrs. Murray, after
Hughie had left the room.

"Well, my dear," said the minister, smiling, "you heard what Hughie
said. It would be rather awkward for me to speak to him about smoking. I
think, perhaps, you had better do it."

"I am afraid," said his wife, with a slight laugh, "it would be just as
awkward for me. I wonder what those Friday afternoons of his mean," she
continued.

"I am sure I don't know, but everywhere throughout the section I hear
the children speak of them. We'll just drop in and see. I ought to visit
the school, you know, very soon."

And so they did. The master was surprised, and for a moment appeared
uncertain what to do. He offered to put the classes through their
regular lessons, but at once there was a noisy outcry against this on
the part of the school, which, however, was effectually and immediately
quelled by the quiet suggestion on the master's part that anything but
perfect order would be fatal to the programme. And upon the minister
requesting that the usual exercises proceed, the master smilingly
agreed.

"We make Friday afternoons," he said, "at once a kind of reward day for
good work during the week, and an opportunity for the cultivation of
some of the finer arts."

And certainly he was a master in this business. He had strong dramatic
instincts, and a remarkable power to stimulate and draw forth the
emotions.

When the programme of singing, recitations, and violin-playing was
finished, there were insistent calls on every side for "Mark Antony." It
appeared to be the 'piece de resistance' in the minds of the children.

"What does this mean?" inquired the minister, as the master stood
smiling at his pupils.

"Oh, they are demanding a little high tragedy," he said, "which I
sometimes give them. It assists in their reading lessons," he explained,
apologetically, and with that he gave them what Hughie called, "that
r