hree boys who had been beaming on him with good humor in their
eyes stared blankly. Then the one in the middle, with a sudden whoop of
laughter, swung the two others round and led them off at a run; and as
they went, their delighted laughter floated back to Irving's ears.

His cheeks were tingling, almost as if they had been slapped. He
followed the boys at a distance; they moved towards the Upper School.
His heart sank; what if they were in his dormitory?

He entered the building just as the last of the three was going up the
Sixth Form dormitory stairs.

CHAPTER II

HE ACHIEVES A NAME FOR HIMSELF

At the foot of the staircase Irving hesitated until the sound of the
voices and footsteps had ceased. The three boys had not seen him when he
had entered; he was wondering whether he had better be courageous, go
right up after them, and introduce himself,--just as if they had not
caught him off his guard and put him into a ridiculous position,--or
delay a little while in the hope that their memory of it would be less
keen.

He decided that he had better be courageous. When he reached the top
floor, he went into his room; he was feeling nervous over the prospect
of confronting his charges, and he wished to be sure that his hair and
his necktie looked right. While he was examining himself in the mirror,
he heard a door open on the corridor and a boy call, "Lou! Did you know
that Mr. Williams won't be back this term?"

Farther down the corridor a voice answered, "No! What's the matter?"

"Typhoid. Mr. Randolph told me."

"Who's taken his place?" It was another voice that asked this question.

"A new man--named Upton. I haven't laid eyes on him yet."

"Wouldn't it be a joke--!" The speaker paused to laugh. "Suppose it
should turn out to be the new kid!"

"'I am not a new kid; I am a master.'"

The mimicry was so accurate that Irving winced and then flushed to the
temples. In the laughter that it produced he closed his door quietly and
sat down to think. He couldn't be courageous now; he felt that he could
not step out and face those fellows who were laughing at him. Of course
they were the ones who ought to be embarrassed by his appearance, not
he; but Irving felt they would lend one another support and brazen it
through, and that he would be the one to exhibit weakness. He decided
that he must wait and try to make himself known to each one of them
separately--that only by such a beginning would he be like