But Saunders minor said, "Much more can be done. In fact, I challenge
you to fight; and Thwaites is my second, and West will referee."
Foster was much astonished at this.
"I'm bigger than you," he said. "It wouldn't be fair. I'm bound to
lick you if we have a real serious fight."
"You might lick me, no doubt," said Saunders minor. "But I shall do a
bit first: and I dare say you'll know what'll happen then."
"The only thing that can happen is that you'll have to give in," said
Foster.
"Something else will happen besides that," answered Saunders minor.
"However, you'll see. To-morrow week in the wood, if that will suit
you."
He mentioned a half-holiday, and as the first had no match on, West
would be able to referee comfortably, while everybody was looking at the
second eleven match fixed for that day.
"Saturday week in the wood; but you'd better think twice," said Foster.
"I have," said Saunders minor.
And then Foster himself appeared to think twice. At least, Tin Lin Chow
reminded him of something, and he came back rather mildly to us after he
had walked away in a very cold and haughty manner.
"Look here, Saunders," he said; "would you mind putting off this fight
till next term? I'm not in the least anxious not to oblige you; but for
private reasons I would rather not fight this term."
"Yes, I know," said Saunders minor; "and for private reasons I rather
would. You've knocked me out of the Good Conduct Prize when it was a
dead certainty for me; and now----"
Foster went away to think; but, needless to say, his thinking didn't get
him out of the mess. In fact, the fight had to come off, though Foster
met Saunders minor three times before the day, and once actually sank to
offering him a valuable and remarkable knife if he would put off the
fight till the next term.
But Saunders minor jolly well scorned to do so.
*II*
What Foster did in the matter of training I don't know, but Saunders
minor had rather bad luck. We sat together, and I gave up my meat at
meals to him in exchange for his pudding. Well, of course, to eat all
my meat as well as his own ought to have made him strong. But,
unfortunately, it didn't. He seemed to miss his puddings frightfully,
and his tongue went white the day before the fight, and he got a
headache. The matron spotted him looking a bit off, and then a
frightful thing happened, for the very night before the fight she made
him take a huge dose of some beastliness, and of course, instead of
being full of solid meat and strength for the fight, when the time came
Saunders minor was quite the reverse.
Needless to say, he gave up all hope, and at dinner wouldn't eat any
meat worth mentioning, and wouldn't give up his apple tart to me, but
ate it himself. He said he was bound to lose, so it didn't matter,
especially as apple tart was his favourite food.
The time came, and those in the fight sneaked off to the great wood that
runs by Merivale playing-fields, and everything went very smoothly
indeed. Saunders minor had me and Saunders minimus for his seconds, and
Foster had Tin Lin Chow and Trelawny. And West not only was referee,
but he wrote a magnificent description of the fight, like a newspaper.
He had read about thousands of proper prize fights in a book of his
brother's at home; so he understood everything about it. And he and
Trelawny rather hoped that Masterman, who is the editor of our school
magazine, would put the fight in; and if he had, it would have been far
and away the best thing that he ever did put in. But Masterman
wouldn't, though he was jolly sorry not to. He said--
"You see, West, the people who read the magazine most are the parents,
and they like improving articles about foreign travel and what old boys
are doing, and poetry, and so on. If I published this fight, the Doctor
would get into an awful bate, because it would be too ferocious, and
very likely frighten the parents of future new boys away when they read
it."
Certainly it was a very horrid account written as West wrote it; but as
he most kindly let me have the description to copy, I shall write it out
again here; because certainly I couldn't do it half so well as him--him
being champion of the lower school, and champion of the upper school,
too, when Trelawny goes.