pen."

"Why, is it a bad place, then?"

"Oh, no, not at all," laughed Silk with a mysterious wink. "All serene
for follows like Gilks; but if it was known we'd taken _you_ there, we'd
be done for."

Wyndham began to feel he had had a narrow escape of "doing" for his two
patrons without knowing it.

"Promise you won't tell anybody," said Silk.

"Of course I won't," said Wyndham, rather scornful at the idea of
telling tales of a schoolfellow.

"Thanks; and I'll take care and say nothing about you, and Gilks won't
either, I know. So it'll be all right. I don't know what possessed the
fellow to suggest going in there."

All this was somewhat perplexing to Wyndham. He had never imagined
Beamish's was such a terrible place, or that the penalty of being found
there was so severe. He felt that he had had a fortunate escape, and
was glad Silk had put him up to it before he had let it out.

He became more friendly with his ally after this. There is always a
bond of attraction where a common danger threatens, and Wyndham felt
that, however determined he was not to be led away any more by these
friends of his, it was just as well to be civil to them.

So he even accepted an invitation to come and have tea in Silk's room
that evening, to look at a volume of "Punch" the latter had got from
home, and to talk over the coming boat-race.

Had he overheard a hurried conversation which took place between Silk
and Gilks shortly afterwards in the Sixth Form room he would have looked
forward to that evening with anything but eagerness.

"Well?" asked Gilks.

"Hooked him, I fancy," said Silk. "He's coming to tea this evening."

"Good man. How did you manage it?"

"Oh, and by the way," said Silk, "that going to Beamish's last week was
no end of a crime. If it's found out it's expulsion, remember. He
believes it all. I've told him we won't let out on him, and he's
promised not to say a word about it. Fancy we've rather a pull on him
there."

"You're a jolly clever fellow, Silk," said Gilks, admiringly.

"May be, but I'm not such a nice boy as you are, Gilks."

CHAPTER ELEVEN.

THE SCHOOLHOUSE BOAT AT WORK.

Giles and his ally knew their business well enough to see that they must
go to work "gingerly" to recover their lost Limpet. Consequently when
Wyndham, according to promise, turned up to tea in Silk's study, nothing
was said or done in any way likely to offend his lately awakened
scruples.

The tea