r glories of the lakes,[3] when tea came in, and immediately
after the Doctor himself.

[3] #The lakes#: Dr. Arnold and family, during the vacations,
made their home in the lake district in the northwestern part
of England.

How frank, and kind, and manly was his greeting to the party by the
fire! It did Tom's heart good to see him and young Brooke shake hands
and look one another in the face; and he didn't fail to remark that
Brooke was nearly as tall and quite as broad as the Doctor. And his
cup was full, when in another moment his master turned to him with
another warm shake of the hand, and, seemingly oblivious of all the
late scrapes which he had been getting into, said: "Ah, Brown, you
here! I hope you left your father and all well at home?"

"Yes, sir, quite well."

"And this is the little fellow who is to share your study. Well, he
doesn't look as we should like to see him. He wants some Rugby air,
and cricket. And you must take him some good long walks, to Bilton
Grange, and Caldecott's Spinney, and show him what a pretty little
country we have about here."

Tom wondered if the Doctor knew that his visits to Bilton Grange were
for the purpose of taking rooks' nests (a proceeding strongly
discountenanced by the owner thereof), and those to Caldecott's
Spinney were prompted chiefly by the conveniences for setting
night-lines. What didn't the Doctor know? And what a noble use he
always made of it! He almost resolved to abjure rookpies and
night-lines forever. The tea went merrily off, the Doctor now talking
of holiday doings, and then of the prospects of the half-year, what
chance there was for the Balliol scholarship, whether the eleven[4]
would be a good one. Everybody was at his ease, and everybody felt
that he, young as he might be, was of some use in the little
school-world, and had a work to do there.

[4] #The eleven#: the number of players selected by a club to
play a cricket match.

Soon after tea the Doctor went off to his study, and the young boys a
few minutes afterward took their leave, and went out of the private
door which led from the Doctor's house into the middle passage.

ARTHUR'S DEBUT.

At the fire, at the further end of the passage, was a crowd of boys in
loud talk and laughter. There was a sudden pause when the door opened,
and then a great shout of greeting as Tom was recognized marching down
the passage.

"Hullo, Brown, where do you come from?"

"Oh, I