Aspasie trillistos epeluthe nux erebenne.--_Homer_.
For a few days after the Sunday walk narrated in the last chapter Upton
and Eric cut each other dead. Upton was angry at Eric's declining the
honour of his company, and Eric was piqued at Upton's unreasonableness.
In the "taking up" system, such quarrels were of frequent occurrence,
and as the existence of a misunderstanding was generally indicated in
this very public way, the variations of good-will between such friends
generally excited no little notice and amusement among the other boys.
But both Upton and Eric were too sensible to carry their differences so
far as others similarly circumstanced; each thoroughly enjoyed the
other's company, and they generally seized an early opportunity for
effecting a reconciliation, which united them more firmly than ever.
As soon as Eric had got over his little pique, he made the first
advances by writing a note to Upton, which he slipped under his study
door, and which ran as follows--
"Dear Horace,--Don't let us quarrel about nothing. Silly fellow, why
should you be angry with me because for once I wanted to go a walk
with Russell, who, by the bye, is twice as good a fellow as you? I
shall expect you to make it up directly after prayers.--Yours, if you
are not silly, EW."
The consequence was, that as they came out from prayers Upton seized
Eric's hand, and slapped him on the back, after which they had a good
laugh over their own foolish fracas, and ran upstairs, chattering
merrily.
"There's to be an awful lark in the dormitories to-night," said Eric;
"the Doctor's gone to a dinner-party, and we're going to have no end of
fun."
"Are you? Well, if it gets amusing, come to my study and tell me, and
I'll come and look on."
"Very well; depend upon it I'll come." And they parted at the foot of
the study stairs.
It was Mr Rose's night of duty. He walked slowly up and down the range
of dormitories until every boy seemed ready to get into bed, and then he
put out all the candles. So long as he was present the boys observed
the utmost quiet and decorum. All continued quite orderly until he had
passed away through the lavatory, and one of the boys, following him as
a scout, had seen the last glimmer of his candle disappear round the
corner at the foot of the great staircase, and heard the library door
close behind him.
After that, particularly as Dr Rowlands was absent, the boys knew that
they were safe from disturbance, and the occupants of Number 7 were the
first to stir.
"Now for some fun," said Duncan, starting up, and, by way of initiative,
pitching his pillow at Eric's head.
"I'll pay you out for that when I'm ready," said Eric, laughing; "but
give us a match first."
Duncan produced some vestas, and no sooner had they lighted their
candle, than several of the dormitory doors began to be thrown open, and
one after another all requested a light, which Duncan and Eric conveyed
to them in a sort of emulous torch-race, so that at length all the
twelve dormitories had their sconces lit, and the boys began all sorts
of amusement, some in their night-shirts, and others with their trousers
slipped on. Leap-frog was the prevalent game for a time, but at last
Graham suggested theatricals, and they were agreed on.
"But we're making a regular knock-me-down shindy," said Llewellyn;
"somebody must keep cave."
"Oh, old Rose is safe enough at his Hebrew in the library; no fear of
disturbing him if we were dancing hippopotami," answered Graham.
But it was generally considered safe to put some one at the top of the
stairs, in case of an unexpected diversion in that direction, and little
Wright consented to go first. He had only to leave the lavatory door
open, and stand at the top of the staircase, and he then commanded for a
great distance the only avenue, in which danger was expected. If any
master's candle appeared in the hall, the boys had full three minutes'
warning, and a single loudly-whispered "cave" would cause some one in
each dormitory instantly to "dowse the glim," and shut the door; so that
by the time of the adversary's arrival they would all be (of course)
fast asleep in bed, some of them snoring in an alarming manner.
Whatever noise the master might have heard, it would be impossible to
fix it on any of the sleepers.
So at the top of the stairs stood little Wright, shoeless, and shivering
in his night-gown, but keenly entering into the fun, and not unconscious
of the dignity of his position. Meanwhile the rest were getting up a
scenic representation of Bombastes Furioso, arranging a stage, piling a
lot of beds together for a theatre, and dressing up the actors in the
most fantastic apparel.
The impromptu Bombastes excited universal applause, and just at the end
Wright ran in through the lavatory.
"I say," said the little fellow, "it's jolly cold standing at the top of
the stairs. Won't some one relieve guard?"
"Oh, I will," answered Eric good-naturedly; "it's a shame that one
fellow should have all the bother and none of the fun," and he ran to
take Wright's post.
After watching a minute or two, he felt sure that there was no danger,
and therefore ran up to Upton's study for a change.
"Well, what's up?" said the study-boy approvingly, as he glanced at
Eric's laughing eyes.
"Oh, we've been having leap-frog, and then Bombastes Furioso. But I'm
keeping `cave' now; only it's so cold that I thought I'd run up to your
study."
"Little traitor; we'll shoot you for a deserting sentinel."
"Oh no!" said Eric, "it's all serene; Rowley's out, and dear old Rose'd
never dream of supposing us elsewhere than in the arms of Morpheus.
Besides, the fellows are making less row now."
"Well, look here! let's go and look on, and I'll tell you a dodge; put
one of the tin washing-basins against the iron door of the lavatory, and
then if any one comes he'll make clang enough to wake the dead; and
while he's amusing himself with this, there'll be lots of time to
`extinguish the superfluous abundance of the nocturnal illuminators.'
Eh?"
"Capital!" said Eric; "come along."
They went down and arranged the signal very artistically, leaving the
iron door ajar a little, and then neatly poising the large tin-basin on
its edge, so as to lean against it. Having extremely enjoyed this part
of the proceedings, they went to look at the theatricals again, the boys
being highly delighted at Upton's appearance among them.
They at once made Eric take a part in some very distant reminiscences of
Macbeth, and corked his cheeks with whiskers and mustachios to make him
resemble Banquo, his costume being completed by a girdle round his
night-shirt, consisting of a very fine crimson silk handkerchief, richly
broidered with gold, which had been brought to him from India, and which
at first, in the innocence of his heart, he used to wear on Sundays,
until it acquired the soubriquet of "the Dragon." Duncan made a superb
Macbeth.
They were doing the dagger-scene, which was put on the stage in a most
novel manner. A sheet had been pinned from the top of the room, on one
side of which stood a boy with a broken dinner-knife, the handle end of
which he was pushing through a hole in the middle of the sheet at the
shadow of Duncan on the other side.
Duncan himself in an attitude of intensely-affected melodrama, was
spouting--
"Is this a dagger which I see before me?
The handle towards me now? come, let me clutch thee."
And he snatched convulsively at the handle of the protruded knife; but
as soon as he nearly touched it, this end was immediately withdrawn and
the blade end substituted, which made the comic Macbeth instantly draw
back again, and recommence his apostrophe. This scene had tickled the
audience immensely, and Duncan, amid shouts of laughter, was just
drawing the somewhat unwarrantable conclusion that it was:
"A dagger of the mind, a false creation."
when a sudden grating, followed by a reverberated clang, produced a dead
silence.
"Cave," shouted Eric, and took a flying leap into his bed. Instantly
there was a bolt in different directions; the sheet was torn down, the
candles dashed out, the beds shoved aside, and the dormitories at once
plunged in profound silence, only broken by the heavy breathing of
sleepers, when in strode--not Mr Rose or any of the under-masters--but
Dr Rowlands himself!
He stood for a moment to survey the scene. All the dormitory doors were
wide open; the sheet which had formed the stage curtain lay torn on the
floor of Number 7; the beds in all the adjoining rooms were in the
strangest positions; and half-extinguished wicks still smouldered in
several of the sconces. Every boy was in bed, but the extraordinary way
in which the bed-clothes were huddled about told an unmistakable tale.
He glanced quickly round, but the moment he had passed into Number 8 he
heard a run, and, turning, just caught sight of Upton's figure vanishing
into the darkness of the lavatory, towards the study stairs.
He said not a word, but stalked hastily through all the dormitories,
again stopping at Number 7 on his return. He heard nothing but the deep
snores of Duncan, and instantly fixed on him as a chief culprit.
"Duncan!"
No reply; but calm stertorous music from Duncan's bed.
"Duncan!" he said, still louder and more sternly; "you sleep soundly,
sir, too soundly; get up directly," and he laid his hand on the boy's
arm.
"Get away, you old donkey," said Duncan sleepily, "'taint time to get up
yet. First bell hasn't rung."
"Come, sir, this shamming will only increase your punishment," but the
imperturbable Duncan stretched himself lazily, gave a great yawn, and
then awoke with such an admirably-feigned start at seeing Dr Rowlands,
that Eric, who had been peeping at the scene from over his bed-clothes,
burst into an irresistible explosion of laughter.