On the Wednesday after the Games Committee's activities in the library,
Ferrers banged into Betteridge's study, his arms laden with books. There
was a Stoics meeting on the next Saturday, and the card drawn up at the
beginning of the term announced that there would be a reading of _Arms
and the Man_, by Bernard Shaw. But Ferrers, who was now president, never
took any notice of the programme, which he invariably altered a day or
two before the meeting. This imposed a considerable strain on those who
had to get up fresh parts and prepare different speeches at a second's
notice. But as the alterations were nearly always an improvement no one
minded.
"Sorry, Betteridge--had to change Stoics' thing. Just picked up
this--_Younger Generation_, by Stanley Houghton--ordered fifteen copies
from Sidgwick & Jackson--good publishers. Do you know them? I've marked
our parts--here they are--no more time. Good-night."
He was gone in a second. And the unfortunate secretary was left with the
lot of distributing copies and drawing up fresh notices. It was just on
lock-up, so there was no time to do anything till the next day. He
settled himself down to read the play. In a very short while he was
thoroughly engrossed; by the time he had reached the end of the first
act he had no doubt that Saturday would witness the most successful
meeting of the Stoics since the historic occasion when Macdonald and
Rogers had been persuaded to speak on opposite sides on "Trade
Unionism," and Rogers had been most gloriously routed.
Betteridge went in search of Tester and Gordon.
"Come up to my study and read a play Ferrers has got hold of for the
Stoics. It's glorious stuff."
"All right," said Gordon. "I will go and fetch Rudd."
"For God's sake, don't bring that outsider."
"Oh, hell, why not? He is quite respectable; and, after all, he is one
of the best of our regular readers."
"All right then: fetch him along."
Since their scandalous ramble Gordon had become more or less friends
with Rudd, and had to a large extent helped to make his life more
bearable.
The four sat silent, reading the play. There was occasionally a
suppressed laugh: otherwise no one spoke at all.
In under an hour they had all finished.
"Jolly good," said Gordon. "I do like seeing this younger generation up
against the rotten conventions of the mid-Victorian era."
"Deal gently with them," murmured Betteridge. "Their horsehair
arm-chairs have stood the test of time very well."
"Too well: but their Puritan ideas are in the melting-pot now. Their day
is over."
"You know I am not sure that the Stoics is the right audience for a play
like this," said Tester.
"Good heavens, man," protested Gordon, "you don't think it would corrupt
their morals, do you?"
"Of course not, you ass! I don't think they would understand it: that's
all. They will laugh at it, and think it funny. But they won't really
see what Houghton is driving at. They won't understand that he is trying
to cut away the shackles of mature thought that are impeding the limbs
of youth. The lads in the Remove will be frightfully amused; they will
think the father an awful old fool, and the son the devil of a rip. They
won't see that both of them are real characters, and that a hundred
families to-day are working out their own little tragedy just on these
very lines."
"But surely there are really no fathers quite so absurd as old Kennion.
Does not Houghton exaggerate the type, as Dickens exaggerates all his
types?"
"Oh no, he's real enough; I expect there are a good many like him living
in Fernhurst now."
The truth of the last remark was brought home three days later.
On the Friday before the debate Ferrers got a bad attack of influenza.
There would be no one to take the chair. Moved by an instinct of
courtesy, Ferrers wrote to Christy a little note, enclosing the book,
and asking him to preside.
On Saturday morning Christy went up to Betteridge in break.
"Ah, Betteridge, Mr Ferrers has asked me to take the chair at the
Stoics. Well, I myself would not be present when such a play was read.
It is aimed at the very roots of domestic morality. It might do very
well in a small circle of Senior boys. But it would have a very serious
effect on young boys who are not as mature as you or I are. None of my
house will attend; and, from a conversation I had with Mr Rogers and Mr
Claremont, I am fairly certain they will not allow their houses to go
either. It would be really much better to wait until Mr Ferrers is well
again before anything is done. It would be quite easy to postpone the
meeting, I suppose."
"Oh yes, sir, of course."
Betteridge was not paying much attention: he was thinking hard. The bell
for school rang.
"That will be all right then, Betteridge."
"Quite, thank you, sir."
Christy, bubbling with satisfaction, rushed off to tell the head of
Buller's that the meeting had been postponed. Things were turning out
well for him. He had obtained the beating of Caruthers, and now he had
most distinctly scored off Ferrers. He did not stop to think that both
these campaigns had been carried on behind his enemy's back.
But in his moment of triumph over Ferrers he did not pause to think
whether he had also triumphed over the School House spirit of antagonism
which he himself had stirred up.
During the half-hour between morning school and lunch, Betteridge,
Tester and Gordon held a council of war.
"Of course, whatever we do," said Betteridge, "is bound to be in the
nature of farce. Three houses, you see, won't turn up at all,
Abercrombie's hardly ever sends anyone, and I don't mind betting that
Christy gets round 'the Bull' somehow."
"Yes; but, confound it all," said Gordon, "are we going to be dictated
to by these outhouse potentates? The Stoics is more a School House
society than anything else; and, what's more, it is going to remain so.
These outhouse men can come or go if they want to. It does not matter to
us. Let us read this play with a School House cast, carry the thing
through somehow, and show these fools like Christy what we think of
them. Now is our chance of proving our independence."
"Won't there be a hell of a row, though?" said Betteridge reluctantly.
"What if there is, man?" said Gordon. "We can't help that. Somehow or
other that play is going to be read. Let this evening be a symbol of the
House's attitude. These houses have flung down the glove. They beat our
forwards when we win matches, and they try and stop our meetings. Damn
it, we'll pick up the glove!"
"Yes," shouted Gordon, "and fling it in their snivelling faces."
Betteridge drew up a huge notice of the meeting after hall and posted it
on the school board. It ran as follows:
In spite of the fact that many of the usual readers will be
prevented from attending the Second Meeting of the Stoics this
term, the Society will read, at seven-thirty, in the School
House Reading Room,
_THE YOUNGER GENERATION_
BY STANLEY HOUGHTON
Cast ....
(_Signed_) C.P. BETTERIDGE.
That evening was historic. Every member of the School House attended the
meeting, the members of the day-room as well as those from the studies.
The reading-room was packed. It was a record meeting. The reading was
erratic. Parts were forced at the eleventh hour on reluctant and totally
unsuitable persons. But somehow or other they got through it in the end;
and that was all that mattered.
But still it was not without a little nervousness that the conspirators
awaited developments. Christy saw the notice and fumed. Ferrers heard of
it and laughed. Rogers rushed to the Chief palpitating with rage.
After lunch the Chief sent for Betteridge, and asked for a copy of _The
Younger Generation_. There was an air of nervous anticipation pervading
the studies. Just before tea the Chief sent for Betteridge again.
"A very interesting play. Very modern, of course, but extremely clever.
Thank you so much for lending it me. I wish I had been at the reading. A
record attendance, I hear. Well, ask me to come next time you get as
good a play as that."
There was no reference to the outhouse boycott. The Chief was very
tactful, and, moreover, he had enjoyed reading the play immensely.
Besides, it would not have done any good if he had made a fuss,
especially when he was entirely in sympathy with Betteridge.
In _The Fernhurst School Magazine_, which was edited by Betteridge,
there appeared the following paragraph:--
"On Saturday, 5th March, before a record and appreciative
audience, the Stoics read _The Younger Generation_, by Stanley
Houghton. There was no one who failed to realise the
extraordinary insight into the life of the day that made such a
work possible. The enthusiasm and applause were highly
significant, as showing what a keen interest the school is
taking in all questions of social and domestic life. There were
rather fewer representatives from the outhouses than usual, but
this was as well, as there would have been little room for
them."
The victory of Christy was not so very complete after all.
With this successful demonstration Gordon's excitement in House politics
abated.