THE EXPOSURE--GOOD-BY TO OAK HALL
"Doctor Clay, we must see you about something that is very
important."
Thus spoke Dave, the next morning, as he and his chums filed into the
doctor's private office after the opening of the school. Job Haskers
was not at his class, but in his room, straightening out his things,
while some men had been sent up, to get rid of the tree-top and repair
the window. The storm was a thing of the past, and no other damage of
importance had been done.
"Very well, boys," returned the master of the school, kindly. "Come in
and let me know what it is."
The students came in, rather awkwardly it must be admitted, for they
had much on their minds and did not know just how the worthy doctor
would take it. But they had decided on a course of action, and they
had given their word to stick together to the end. Dave, as the
natural leader, had been chosen spokesman.
"Doctor Clay, we want to bring up a subject of great importance,"
said Dave. "Important to us, and to you, and to the whole school. The
boys have asked me to speak for them and for myself."
"About what?" demanded the master, somewhat shortly.
"About Mr. Haskers and how he has treated us."
"What has he done now?"
"It isn't what he has done now, Doctor Clay, it is what he did some
time ago--did his best to get us into grave trouble," answered Dave,
warmly. "You'll remember the letter Mr. Sparr got, stating we were
guilty of trying to blow up his hotel. We are now satisfied that Mr.
Haskers penned that letter--in fact, we have the evidence to prove
it."
"Impossible!"
"No, sir, it is true, and I dare him to deny it. It is an absolute
fact, Doctor Clay, and we have come here this morning to inform you
that we can no longer attend a school where he is a teacher," went on
Dave, firmly.
"But--but you--er--you astound me, Porter! Tell me what you know, or
think you know."
In a plain, straightforward manner Dave mentioned the letter and the
printing that had appeared on it. Then he told how he and his chums
had searched the bedroom after the tree-top crash and found the
sheets of paper with that same printing, and he produced them.
"And we also found these, in a corner of the broken writing-desk," he
continued. "Some writing by Mr. Haskers, in which he practiced
backhand. This writing is just like that which appears in the letter
Mr. Sparr got. Compare the two and you will see we are right. Wilbur
Poole said Mr. Haskers saw him blow up the hotel, and he told the
truth, even if he is weak-minded."
"But why should Mr. Haskers do such an outrageous thing?" asked the
master of Oak Hall.
"I will tell you why, sir," returned Dave, and related the affair of
the Widow Breen. "That made him very sore on us, and he wanted to get
us out of the school. At first he tried it by overworking us in our
lessons, and when he found that that didn't work he tried this game of
making out that we were criminals."
"Yes, but--but would a teacher of mine stoop so low?" murmured the
worthy doctor, shaking his head doubtfully.
"No ordinary teacher would, Dr. Clay. But Mr. Haskers is not an
ordinary man--he is very dictatorial and harsh, and he hates boys even
though he has to teach them. He isn't a bit like Mr. Dale, or the
others."
"We never had any trouble with any teacher but Haskers," put in
Phil.
"And if we have to leave Oak Hall I'm going to get my father to sue
Haskers for damages," added Roger.
A talk lasting the best part of an hour followed, and at last the
worthy doctor had his eyes opened to the unworthiness of his
assistant. He scanned the sheets of paper and the writing the boys had
brought with interest.
"You are right--this is Mr. Haskers's hand," he said, slowly. "But is
it the same hand that wrote that villainous letter to Mr. Sparr?"
"Compare the two and you will see that we are right," answered Dave.
"I will," answered the doctor; and a little later he set off for
Oakdale in his buggy, going alone.
The boys walked down to the gymnasium, resolved to keep out of all
classes until the matter had been settled. They had impressed it on
Doctor Clay's mind that either Job Haskers must leave the school or
they would do so.
It was nearly noon when the master of Oak Hall came back, driving
slowly and looking very thoughtful. The boys met him at the entrance
to the grounds and he told them to come to the office, and closed the
door carefully behind them.
"You were right," he said, almost brokenly. "I have been deceived by
this--this--I do not know what to call him! It will make a great stir
when the truth is known--and it will hurt the school," he added, with
a sigh.
"Why should we make a stir about it?" asked Dave, quickly. "Let him
go, that is all we ask. He can resign."
"No, the truth must come out," was the firm reply. "He shall not
shelter himself behind you, even for the benefit of the school. I have
already told the authorities the facts in the case. If they wish to
arrest him they can do so, and you may appear against him, if you
wish."
"When will you tell him?" asked Phil, as there came a brief pause.
"At once! And I wish you to be present and hear what is said,"
returned Doctor Clay. He rang a bell and a servant appeared. "Tell Mr.
Haskers to come here immediately."
There was silence after this, the boys not knowing what to say, and
the master of the school being busy with his thoughts. Presently the
door opened and Job Haskers came in, with a look of curiosity on his
face.
"You sent for me, Doctor?" he inquired.
"I did, Mr. Haskers," was the cold reply. "I want your resignation,
and I want it at once!"
The master of Oak Hall had gotten to his feet and the two men stood
facing each other. Doctor Clay had his jaw set, and never had the
students seen him look so determined. He was no longer a kindly
schoolmaster, he was a judge, and a stern judge at that.
"You--you want my resignation?" faltered Job Haskers.
"Yes, and at once."
"Why?"
"Because you are not fit to teach here--you are not fit to teach
anywhere!" thundered the doctor. "I want your resignation, and then I
want you to leave just as soon as you possibly can."
"But--but--I want you to explain. I want----"
"It is not necessary for me to explain, Haskers. You have been found
out. You are a despicable villain, and you ought to be in jail. I
trusted you, and you have deceived me. More than that, you have tried
to get these young gentlemen into serious trouble. Don't deny it, for
it will do no good. We have the absolute proof against you, and those
proofs are also in the hands of the law. If you don't want to be
arrested, you will leave this school as soon as you can get your
baggage packed."
"Sir, I want you to know----" commenced Job Haskers, but stopped
short, for Doctor Clay had taken a stride forward and was shaking a
finger in the teacher's face.
"I will not argue with you, Haskers. For a long time I have not been
satisfied with your work, for you did not seem to have the students'
interest at heart. You have a good education. But a teacher must have
more than that--he must have a heart for his work. Now you are found
out, and I want nothing more to do with you. I will give you a check
for what is due you up to to-day, and you will sign a receipt in full,
and also your resignation, and then I never want to see or hear of you
again."
"And suppose I won't resign?" snarled the teacher. "I have a
contract----"
"If you don't get out, you'll go to jail."
"And we'll sue you," Dave could not help putting in.
"That's right, we'll push the case as far as the law allows," added
Phil.
"Ha! you think you are smart, but you don't know it all," snarled the
teacher, but his manner showed his uneasiness. He attempted to argue,
but Doctor Clay would not listen, and when he said he would send for a
constable, Job Haskers quickly capitulated, signed his resignation,
took his check, and hurried away to pack his baggage. He left about an
hour later, by the back way, so that none of the students saw him go.
An hour after that a man came for his trunks and bags; and that was
the last seen or heard of him at Oak Hall.
"Hurrah!" cried Dave, when the affair was at an end. "How glad I am
that Haskers is gone! I feel as if a weight had been taken from my
head!"
"I guess everybody will be glad," returned Roger, and he was right.
Some of the students wanted to get up a celebration in honor of the
unpopular teacher's departure, but this was not permitted. But the
boys had a time on the quiet, and thoroughly enjoyed it.
With the going away of Job Haskers, and the clearing up of the mystery
surrounding the letter, Oak Hall settled down once more to its normal
condition. Another teacher came to take the place of the man who had
left, and he proved popular all around, and made Doctor Clay wonder
why he had not made a change long before.
With their minds free from worry, Dave and his chums buckled down to
their lessons, and our hero spent much time over his paper on "The
Future of Our Country." Soon the examinations started, and then the
boys fell to worrying over how they would fare in this final test.
"Well, I hope I pass," remarked Phil, when the last examination was
over. "I don't expect to be near the top. I lost too much, going to
Cave Island, and when I ran away."
"Me for the passing mark, too," chimed in Ben.
"Well, I am hoping for something better," said Roger.
"What about you, Dave?" queried Buster.
"I am like Roger, hoping for something better," answered our hero,
with a smile. "But I'm prepared to take what comes," he added.
At last came the day when the announcements were to be made. Dave had
sent in his theme and he expected to hear from this as well as from
his studies. In the meantime, preparations were going forward for the
graduation exercises, and visitors were expected from far and near.
Nearly all the folks from Crumville were coming, and also the parents
of Phil, Roger, and the other seniors.
The big assembly room was crowded when the announcements were made.
The passing mark was seventy-five per cent., and many of the boys
dreaded to think that they might be below that.
"I will read the names in the order of merit," said Doctor Clay, after
the opening exercises. "Only two boys have failed to pass for
graduation, and they will be conditioned, if they so desire. I am
proud of the record." And then the master of the school proceeded to
read the list. Polly Vane and Dave had each ninety-six per cent.,
Roger had ninety-four, Shadow ninety, Sam and Luke each eighty-eight,
Phil eighty-seven, Gus eighty-six, and so on down to Buster, who
squeezed through with seventy-eight. The boys who had failed to pass
were Nat Poole, who had only sixty-eight, and one of his cronies, who
was marked sixty-nine.
"It ain't fair! I did as well as lots of 'em," said Nat, when the
reading was over. But nobody listened to him, for all knew that the
examinations had been just in every particular.
"I will now announce the prizes for the best themes on the subject,
'The Future of Our Country,'" went on Doctor Clay. "The reading of the
nine papers handed in has afforded me great pleasure, for all are good
and many of them excellent. But I think the best of all is that
written by David Porter, and the committee of teachers who have
examined the papers agree with me. Porter, I congratulate you, and I
will now ask you to come forward and read your meritorious composition
to your fellow-students."
And amid a general handclapping our hero went to the platform and
commenced to read the theme. Everybody listened with close attention,
and loud was the applause when he had concluded. It was certainly a
fine paper, and later on Doctor Clay had it published in one of the
school journals, where it attracted not a little attention.
Dave was certainly happy and he had good reason to be. He sent word
home that night of how he had fared and the next day received several
messages of congratulation. One message from Jessie he prized very
highly, for she wrote, "You deserve a big hug for coming through so
finely. My very best wishes." The other boys also got congratulations;
and that night and the night to follow were "bonfire nights," in more
ways than one.
"Well, we are rid of Haskers, and also Merwell and Jasniff," remarked
Roger to Dave. "We ought to be happy, eh, Dave?"
"Yes, and especially over coming out so well for graduation," answered
Dave.
"Do you think we'll ever see Haskers or Merwell again?" questioned
Phil.
"I don't know--I trust not," answered our hero. But his wish was not
fulfilled. He did meet the pair, and in a most unexpected fashion, as
will be related in the next volume of this series, to be called "Dave
Porter in the Gold Fields; or, The Search for the Landslide Mine," in
which we will learn how Dave went West with some of his chums, and
joined an old prospector in a hunt for a lost mine that had been
willed to Roger Morr's mother.
The graduation exercises at Oak Hall that year formed a gala event
long to be remembered. The school and the campus were crowded, and
Dave and his chums surprised even Doctor Clay by "chipping in" and
hiring a brass band to play outside, after the exercises were over.
The boys also presented their teachers and the master with some
volumes of history and poetry, and received numerous gifts in return.
From his father Dave got a bank-book, with an amount written therein
that was a complete surprise. His sister gave him a neat stickpin and
his uncle a set of books, and from Jessie and her folks came a desk
set, of solid silver, suitably engraved.
"Well, I think I ought to be the happiest boy alive," said Dave, after
the exercises were over, and he had his diploma, tied with a broad
ribbon. "I feel just as if I was walking on air."
"And I am glad, too," said his sister Laura, warmly.
"We are all glad," put in Jessie, and gave him her brightest smile.
"Glad and proud, Dave," said his father. "My boy, you have done very
well."
And then the whole party went down to the gymnasium, where
refreshments were being served to the visitors. And here let us leave
Dave Porter, wishing him well.
THE END
DAVE PORTER SERIES
By EDWARD STRATEMEYER
"Mr. Stratemeyer has seldom introduced a more popular hero than Dave
Porter. He is a typical boy, manly, brave, always ready for a good
time if it can be obtained in an honorable way."--Wisconsin,
Milwaukee, Wis.
"Edward Stratemeyer's 'Dave Porter' has become exceedingly popular."
--Boston Globe.
"Dave and his friends are nice, manly chaps."--Times-Democrat,
New Orleans.
DAVE PORTER AT OAK HALL
Or The School Days of an American Boy
DAVE PORTER IN THE SOUTH SEAS
Or The Strange Cruise of the Stormy Petrel
DAVE PORTER'S RETURN TO SCHOOL
Or Winning the Medal of Honor
DAVE PORTER IN THE FAR NORTH
Or The Pluck of an American Schoolboy
DAVE PORTER AND HIS CLASSMATES
Or For the Honor of Oak Hall
DAVE PORTER AT STAR RANCH
Or The Cowboy's Secret
DAVE PORTER AND HIS RIVALS
Or The Chums and Foes of Oak Hall
DAVE PORTER ON CAVE ISLAND
Or A Schoolboy's Mysterious Mission
DAVE PORTER AND THE RUNAWAYS
Or Last Days at Oak Hall
DAVE PORTER IN THE GOLD FIELDS
Or The Search for the Landslide Mine
DAVE PORTER AT BEAR CAMP
Or The Wild Man of Mirror Lake
DAVE PORTER AND HIS DOUBLE
Or The Disappearance of the Basswood Fortune
DAVE PORTER'S GREAT SEARCH
Or The Perils of a Young Civil Engineer
DAVE PORTER UNDER FIRE
Or A Young Army Engineer in France
DAVE PORTER'S WAR HONORS
Or At the Front with the Fighting Engineers
For sale by all booksellers, or sent postpaid on receipt of price by
the publishers.
LOTHROP, LEE & SHEPARD CO. BOSTON
End of Project Gutenberg's Dave Porter and the Runaways, by Edward Stratemeyer