"Yes, yes, exactly," said the Doctor, smiling. "It was very brave, and--really, I cannot conceal the fact that I felt alarmed myself when the great furious beast came charging across the grounds. Yes, he speaks highly in praise of your conduct, and really, young gentlemen, I--I must apologise for having spoken to you as I did while suffering from a misunderstanding. Er--hum!" continued the Doctor didactically, and he rose slowly to stand waving the gold spectacles through the air, "it is the duty of every gentleman when he finds that he is in the wrong to acknowledge the fact with dignity and good grace. My dear young pupils, I hope I have properly expressed myself towards you both; and let me add that this will be a lesson to us, to me, against speaking in undue haste, and to you both as--er--

"Well, gentlemen," he continued with a smile, "I don't think I need detain you longer from your studies--I mean--er--from your pleasurable pursuits, as this is a holiday, and we will consider the incident as closed."

Smiling benignantly, the Doctor marched slowly round the end of the table again, shook hands warmly with both his pupils, and then showed them to the door.

"Stop! By the way, a little idea has occurred to me. This is a day of relaxation. Mr Singh--er--it is an understood thing, as you know, that your t.i.tle is to be in abeyance while you are my pupil; for, as I explained to your guardian, Colonel Severn, it would be better that there should be no invidious distinctions during your scholastic career--I should be glad if you and your friend the Colonel's son would dine with me this evening. No dinner-party, but just to meet your three preceptors and a Mr--dear me, what was his name? Really, gentlemen, I am so deeply immersed in my studies that names escape me in a most provoking manner. A gentleman resident in the town here--a Sanskrit scholar, and friend of Mr Morris. Dear me! What was his name? There was something familiar about it, and I made a mental note, _memoria technica_, to be sure, yes--what was it? I remember the word perfectly now. `Beer.' Dear me, how strange! And it doesn't help me a bit.

Really, gentlemen, I am afraid this _memoria technica_ is a mistake.

How, by any possibility could the name of the ordinary beverage of the working cla.s.ses have anything to do with the professor's name?

Professor Beer--Professor Ale--Professor Porter--Stout? Dear me, how strange! Ah, of course--the great brewers, Barclay--Professor Barclay!

At half-past six."

"Thank you, sir. We will come," said Singh, smiling.

"Precisely," said the Doctor, and he stood smiling in the doorway as the boys pa.s.sed out.

They were at the end of the hall pa.s.sage when the door closed, and Wrench shot out from somewhere like a Jack from its box.

"Aren't caught it very bad, gentlemen, have you?" he cried eagerly.

"Oh no, Wrench," said Glyn, smiling.

"Thought not, sir, for the Doctor had got a twinkle in his eye when he'd done with the wild-beast man. It would have been hard if you'd caught it after what you did. Pst! There's the study-bell." And the man hurried away, leaving the culprits to stroll out together into the playground, where they found fully half the boys waiting to hear the result of their interview with the Doctor, Slegge and his courtiers hurrying up first.

"Well, beast-tamers," he cried sneeringly, "how many lines of Latin have you got to do?" And he grinned offensively at them both.

"When?" said Glyn coolly.

"When? Why, now, at once."

"We haven't got any lines of Latin to do," said Singh quietly. "To-day is a holiday."

"For us," cried Slegge; "but I know the Doctor. You have both got a pretty stiff dose to do, my fine fellows, and I wish you joy."

"Thank you," said Glyn; "but you are all in the wrong."

"Wrong? Then what did the Doctor say to you?"

"Oh," said Glyn, in a most imperturbable manner, fighting hard the while, though, to keep his countenance as he realised the strength of the shot he was about to send at his malicious persecutor, "he asked Singh and me to come and meet the masters and dine with him to-night."

CHAPTER NINE.

THE NEW PROFESSOR.

"Let 'em go," snarled Slegge to his courtiers. "It's only another way of getting a hard lesson. I know what the Doctor's dinner-parties are.

Let the stuck-up young brutes go. But if I wasn't about to leave the blessed old school I would jolly soon let the Doctor know that this sort of thing won't do. The old humbug told me once that fairplay was a jewel. I don't call it fairplay to be currying favour with a new boy because he's an Indian prince. Indian prince, indeed! Indian bear-- cub; that's what I call him, with his leader, currying favour like that!

Ha, ha! Ho, ho! Haw, haw!"

This was a melodramatic laugh of the most sarcastic description, prefatory to the letting off of a very ponderous joke. "Currying!

Indian curry! That's what he was brought up on. Curry and rice instead of pap. Look at the colour of his skin. But only wait a bit,"

continued Slegge darkly. "Just wait till the right time comes, and I'll let you all see."

But the Doctor's dinner-party was not quite so ponderous and learned as usual, for the incidents of the day formed the main topic of conversation. The Doctor was in high good-humour, and naturally felt rather proud of his pupils. They had distinguished themselves, and in so doing had distinguished him and his school, and the consequence was that the masters readily took up the subject and were most warm and friendly to the two lads, the other guest in particular, Professor Barclay, as Morris took care that he should be called, much to the annoyance of the cla.s.sical master, who looked at the new-comer, Morris's friend, rather suspiciously, regarding him as one likely to poach upon his preserves.

During the dinner, the Professor had much to say about Sanskrit, military colleges, and India, and was very attentive to Singh and Glyn, but found the boys quiet and retiring in the extreme.

All, however, seemed to be enjoying themselves but Mr Rampson, who grew more uneasy and suspicious over the coffee, p.r.i.c.king up his ears as he bent over his cup and kept on stirring it, but without drinking, while the Doctor and the Professor were talking together as if discussing some subject in a low tone.

The fact must be recorded against the cla.s.sical teacher that he was eavesdropping, ungentlemanly as it may sound; but the only thing that reached his ears was the conclusion of the conversation, when the Doctor said, raising his voice slightly, "Certainly, Mr Barclay, I shall give every attention to your testimonials; but my staff of preceptors is complete, and I have always considered Greek and Latin sufficient for my pupils, of course with the modern languages thrown in."

The Professor thanked the Doctor effusively, and in the course of the evening contrived to fix himself like a burr upon Singh, while Mr Rampson made an effort and secured Glyn to himself, jealously taking care that the stranger guest and friend, it seemed, of Morris should not monopolise both the boys.

"It's all a plot," said Rampson to himself--"all a scheme to oust me, and I'll never forgive Morris so long as I live.--I say," he said aloud, "that Mr Barclay seems to have a deal to say to your friend the Prince.

Do you know what they are talking about?"

"India, and Sanskrit, and catching elephants," replied Glyn. "Has he been out in India?"

"Oh, don't ask me," said Rampson with asperity; then correcting himself quickly, and with a rather ghastly smile, "I say, you two did distinguish yourselves to-day."

"Oh, did we, sir?" said Glyn, who looked rather tired and bored.

"Please don't say more about it."

"Oh no, of course not, if you don't want to hear it. But your friend doesn't seem to mind. Why, the Professor's taking him out into the garden, and the Prince is talking to him as hard as ever he can. Yes, he doesn't seem to mind."

"No," replied Glyn, as he saw Singh, in obedience to a gesture from his new acquaintance, sit down upon one of the garden-seats, and for the next quarter of an hour the boy was talking in quite an animated way, and evidently answering questions put to him by the Professor.

The evening soon glided away, and the boys gladly thanked their host and retired to their own room, utterly wearied out by the events of the day.

As a rule, they lay for some time carrying on conversation and discussing the next day's work; but that night very little was said, and the only thing worth recording was a few sentences that were spoken and responded to by Singh in the midst of yawns.

"Talking about India and Sanskrit?" said Glyn.

"Oh yes; he asked me all sorts of questions about Dour, and he asked me if I had ever seen Sanskrit letters."

"Well?"

"And I told him I had, and he shook his head and asked me where I had seen them."

"Well, what did you say?"

"That I had got some precious stones in my box with some Sanskrit letters cut in."

"Why, you never were so stupid as to tell him about that belt?"

"I don't know that there's anything stupid in it," replied Singh sleepily. "I didn't want him to think I was so ignorant as not to know about a language that your father can read as easily as English, and has talked to us about scores of times. Why, of course, I did."

"Well, of all the old _Dummkopfs_ I ever knew, you are the stupidest.