The Fifth Form at Saint Dominic's Part 31

CHAPTER NINETEEN.

AN OLD FIRE RE-KINDLED.

Saint Dominic's rea.s.sembled after the holidays in an amiable frame of mind.

The Guinea-pigs and Tadpoles, as the Doctor had prophesied, had cooled down considerably in spirit during the period, and now returned quietly to work just as if the mighty "strike" had never existed. Stephen's regular fights with Bramble recommenced the very first day, so that everything was quite like old times.

Oliver found that the Fifth, all but one or two, had quite forgotten their suspicions of his bravery which had spoiled the pleasure of his last term, and there seemed every prospect of his getting through this with less risk to his quick temper than before.

As for the Sixth, the Fifth had forgiven them all their offences, and would have been quite prepared, had it been allowed, to live in peace with their seniors, and forget all the dissensions of the Summer term.

But it was not allowed, and an event which happened early in the term served to revive all the old animosities between the two head cla.s.ses.

At Saint Dominic's, for reasons best known to the all-wise beings who presided over its management, the princ.i.p.al examinations and "removes"

of the year took place not, as in most schools, at the end of the Midsummer term, but at the beginning of the Autumn term, about Michaelmas; consequently now, with the examinations looming in the distance, everybody who had anything to hope for from hard work settled down to study like mad. Cricket was over for the year, and football had not begun. Except boating there was not much doing out of doors, and for that reason the season was favourable for work. Studies, which used to be bear-gardens now suddenly a.s.sumed an appearance of respectability and quiet. Books took the place of boxing-gloves, and pens of fencing-sticks. The disorderly idlers who had been in the habit of invading at will the quarters of the industrious were now given to understand they must "kick-up their heels" elsewhere. _They_ might not want to grind, but others did.

The idlers of the Fifth, to whom this warning was addressed on every hand, had nothing for it but to obey, and, feeling themselves greatly ill-used, to retire sadly, to some spot where "they could kick-up a row to themselves."

Casting about them for such a spot, it happened that Braddy and Ricketts one day lit almost by accident on an old empty study, which some years since had been a monitor's room, but was now empty and tenantless.

It at once occurred to these two astute heroes that this would be a magnificent place for boxing-matches. In the other studies one was always banging against the corners of tables, or tripping over fenders, but here there was absolutely nothing, but four bare walls to interfere with anybody.

They called in two more friends--Tom Senior and another--who declared it was a splendid find, and the four thereupon took formal possession of their new territory, and inaugurated the event by a terrific eight-handed match.

Nothing could have been more satisfactory. The room was well out of the way; the studious ones of the Fifth were spared all annoyance, and the riotous ones had an asylum to go to. No one was a bit the worse for the move; every one, on the contrary, found himself decidedly the better.

"Go and kick-up a row in the monitor's room," became quite a common objurgation in the Form, among the diligent; as common, in fact, as "Come along, old man, and have it out in the monitor's room," was among the idlers.

But, as ill-luck would have it, this delightful retreat happened to be situated immediately over the study occupied by Wren of the Sixth. That worthy hero, seated one afternoon over his books, was startled by a terrific noise, followed by a vibration, followed by the rattling of all his tumblers in the cupboard, followed by a dull, heavy thud over his head, which tempted him to believe either that an earthquake was in progress, or that one of the chimney-stacks had fallen on to the roof.

When, however, the noise was repeated, and with it were blended laughter and shouts of "Now then, let him have it!"

"Well parried!"

"Bravo, Bully!" and the like, Wren began to change his mind, and laid down his pen. He walked up the stairs to the upper landing, where, at once, the noise guided him to the old monitor's room. Then the truth dawned upon him. He stayed long enough to get a pretty clear idea of who the "new lodgers" were, and then prudently retired without attempting a parley single-handed.

But next morning, when the festive rioters of the Fifth approached once more the scene of their revels, what was their amazement and rage to find the door locked, and the following notice, on a piece of school paper, affixed to the panel--"Monitor's room. This room is closed by direction of the monitors."

You might have knocked them over with a feather, so stupefied were they by this announcement! They stared at the door, they stared at one another, and then they broke out into a tempest of rage.

"The blackguards! what do they mean?" exclaimed Braddy, tearing down the paper and crushing it up in his hands.

"Monitor's room, indeed!" cried Ricketts. "_We'll_ let them see whose room it is!"

"Kick open the door, can't you?" said Tom Senior.

They did kick open the door between them. The lock was a weak one, and soon gave way.

Once inside, the evicted ones indulged their triumph by an uproar of more than usual vehemence, longing that it might tempt into their clutches the daring intruders who had presumed to interfere with their possession. No one came. They had their fling undisturbed. But before they quitted their stronghold one of their number, by diligent searching, had found in the lock of a neighbouring study-door a key which would fit theirs. Repairing, therefore, the catch, damaged by their late forcible entry, they calmly locked the door behind them when they went, and affixed to it, in the identical place where the other notice had hung, "Fifth Form. Private study. Not to be entered without permission."

Of course, the news of this interesting adventure soon spread, and for a day or two the diligent as well as the idle on either side looked on with increasing interest for the issue of the contest.

For a while the Fifth had the best of it. They defied the enemy to turn them out, and procured and fixed an additional lock on the door. The Sixth threatened to report the matter to the Doctor, and summoned the invaders for the last time to capitulate. The invaders laughed them to scorn, and protested the room belonged to them, and leave it they would not for all the monitors in the world. The monitors retired, and the Fifth enjoyed their triumph.

But next day the Doctor abruptly entered the Fifth Form room, and said, "There is an unoccupied room at the end of the top landing, which some boys in this cla.s.s have been making use of to the annoyance of other boys. This room, please remember, is not to be entered in future without my permission."

Checkmate with a vengeance for the Fifth!

This event it was which, trivial in itself, re-kindled once more with redoubled heat the old animosity between the two head Forms at Saint Dominic's. Although the original quarrel had been confined to only half-a-dozen individuals, it became now a party question of intense interest. The Sixth, who were the triumphant party, could afford to treat the matter lightly and smile over it, a demeanour which irritated the already enraged Fifth past description. The two Forms cut one another dead in the pa.s.sages. The Fifth would gladly have provoked their rivals to blows, but, like sensible men, the Sixth kept the right side of the law, and refused to have anything to do with the challenges daily hurled at them.

As might be expected, the affair did not long remain a secret from the rest of the school. The Fourth Senior, as a body, stood up for the Sixth, and the Third and Second, on the whole, sided with the Fifth.

But when it came to the junior school--the Guinea-pigs and Tadpoles--all other partisanship was thrown quite into the shade.

The quarrel was one completely after their own hearts. It had begun in a row, it had gone on in a row, and, if it ever ended, it would end in a row.

A meeting was summoned at the earliest opportunity to take the momentous matter into consideration.

"What I say," said Bramble, "is, it's a jolly good job!"

"What's a jolly good job?" demanded Stephen, who, of course, was red-hot for the Fifth.

"Why, chucking them out! I'm glad to see it, ain't you, Padger?"

"They didn't chuck them out!" roared Paul; "they went and sneaked to the Doctor, that's what they did!"

"I don't care! I say it's a jolly good job! Those who say it's a jolly good job hold up--"

"Shut up your row!" cried Stephen; "you're always sticking yourself up.

I say it's a beastly shame, and I hope the Fifth will let them know it!"

"You're a young idiot, that's what you are!" exclaimed Bramble in a rage. "What business have you got at the meeting? Turn him out!"

"I'll turn _you_ out!" replied the undaunted Stephen; "I've as much right here as you have. So there!"

"Turn him out, can't you?" roared Bramble. "Bah! who goes and swills ginger-beer down in a public-house in the town, eh?"

This most unexpected turn to the conversation startled Stephen. He turned quite pale as he replied, "_I_ did, there! But I didn't go in at the public door. And you've been sneaking!"

"No, I haven't. Padger told me, didn't you, Padger? Padger peeped through the door, and saw you. Oh, my eye! won't I kick-up a shine about it! I'll let out on you, see if I don't. Bah, public-house boy!

potboy, yah!"

Stephen's only answer to this was a book, accurately shied at the head of his enemy.

The subsequent proceedings at the meeting were a trifle animated, but otherwise not interesting to the reader. The chief result was that the Guinea-pigs emerged as uncompromising champions for the Fifth, and the Tadpoles equally strong for the Sixth, while Stephen felt decidedly uncomfortable as to the consequences of Bramble's discovery of his secret visits last term to the c.o.c.kchafer.

Stephen had in a confidential moment during the holidays told Oliver of these visits, and of his intimacy with Mr Cripps. The elder brother was very angry and astonished when he heard of it. He set before the boy, in no measured terms, the risk he was running by breaking one of the rules of the school; and, more than that, he said Cripps was a blackguard, and demanded of Stephen a promise, there and then, that he would never again enter the c.o.c.kchafer under any pretext whatever.

Stephen, forced to submit, although not convinced that Cripps was such a wicked man as his brother made out, promised, but reserved to himself mentally the right to see Cripps at least once more at the Lock-House, there to return him the bicycle lantern, which it will be remembered that kind gentleman had lent the boy before the holidays. As to the c.o.c.kchafer, he was thoroughly frightened at the thought of having been seen there, and fully determined, even before Bramble's threat, never again to cross its threshold. After all, Stephen knew he had little enough to fear from that small braggadocio; Bramble had neither the wit nor the skill to use his discovery to any advantage. For a day or two he followed his adversary up and down the pa.s.sages with cries of "Potboy!" till everybody was sick of the sound, and felt heartily glad when, one fine afternoon, Stephen quietly deposited his adversary on his back on the gravel of the playground.

But to return to the feud between Fifth and Sixth.