"A real, live school story that carries conviction in every line."--_Standard_.

"Mr. Desmond c.o.ke has given us one of the best accounts of public school life that we possess.... Among books of its kind 'The Bending of a Twig' deserves to become a cla.s.sic."--_Outlook_.

The School Across the Road

Ill.u.s.trated in Colour by H. M. BROCK.

The incidents of this story arise out of the uniting of two schools--"Warner's" and "Corunna"--under the name of "Winton," a name which the head master fondly hopes will become known far and wide as a great seat of learning. Unfortunately for the head master's ambition, however, the two sets of boys--hitherto rivals and enemies, now schoolfellows--do not take kindly to one another. Warner's men of might are discredited in the new school; Henderson, lately head boy, finds himself a mere n.o.body; while the inoffensive Dove is exalted and made prefect by reason of his attainments in cla.s.s work. There is discord and insurrection and talk of expulsion, and the feud drags on until the rival factions have an opportunity of uniting against a common enemy.

Then, in the enthusiasm aroused by the overthrow of a neighbouring agricultural college, the bitterness between them dies away, and the future of Winton is a.s.sured.

"This tale is told with a remarkable spirit, and all the boys are real, everyday characters drawn without exaggeration."--_British Weekly_.

The House Prefect

Ill.u.s.trated in Colour by H. M. BROCK.

This story of the life at Seiton, a great English public school, mainly revolves around the trouble in which Bob Manders, new-made house prefect, finds himself, owing to a former alliance with the two wild spirits whom, in the interests of the house, it is now his chief task to suppress. In particular does the spirited exploit with which it opens--the whitewashing by night of a town statue and the smashing of certain school property--raise itself against him, next term, when he has been set in authority. His two former friends persist in still regarding him as an ally, bound to them by their common secret; and, in a sense, he is attracted to their enterprises, for in becoming prefect he does not cease to be a boy. It is a great duel this, fought in the studies, the dormitories, upon the field.

"Quite one of the books of the season. Mr. Desmond c.o.ke has proved himself a master."--_World_.

"Quite the best school story of the year."--_Morning Leader_.

By A. C. CURTIS

The Voyage of the "Sesame"

A Story of the Arctic. Ill.u.s.trated in Colour.

The Trevelyan brothers receive from a dying sailor a rough chart of a locality where much gold is to be found in the Arctic regions. They set out in quest of it, but do not have things all their own way, for some rival treasure-seekers have got wind of the enterprise, and endeavour to secure the gold for themselves. There is a race between the two expeditions, and fighting takes place, but the crew of the Sesame are victorious, and after enduring great hardships amongst the ice, reach home safely with the gold on board.

The Good Sword Belgarde

or, How De Burgh held Dover. Coloured Ill.u.s.trations by W. H. C. GROOME.

This is the story of Arnold Gyffard and John Wotton, pages to Sir Philip Daubeney, in the days when Prince Lewis the Lion invaded England and strove to win it from King John. It tells of their journey to Dover through a country swarming with foreign troops, and of many desperate fights by the way. In one of these Arnold wins from a French knight the good sword Belgarde, which he uses to such good purpose as to make his name feared. Then follows the great siege of Dover, full of exciting incidents, when by his gallant defence Hubert de Burgh keeps the key to England out of the Frenchman's grasp.

By FRANK H. MASON, R.B.A.

A Book of British Ships

Written and Ill.u.s.trated by FRANK H. MASON, R.B.A.

The aim of this book is to present, in a form that will readily appeal to boys, a comprehensive account of British shipping, both naval and mercantile, and to trace its development from the old wooden walls of Nelson's time down to the Dreadnoughts and high-speed ocean liners of to-day. All kinds of British ships, from the battleship to the trawler, are dealt with, and the characteristic points of each type of vessel are explained.

By GEORGE SURREY

Mid Clash of Swords

A Story of the Sack of Rome. Coloured Ill.u.s.trations by T. C. DUGDALE.

Wilfrid Salkeld, a young Englishman, enters the employ of Giuliano de Medici, the virtual ruler of Florence, whom he serves with a zeal that that faint-hearted man does not deserve; he meets Giovanni the Invincible; and makes friends with the great Benvenuto Cellini. He has many a fierce tussle with German mercenaries and Italian robbers, as well as with those whose jealousy he arouses by his superior skill in arms.

A Northumbrian in Arms

A Story of the Time of Hereward the Wake. Ill.u.s.trated in Colour by J.

FINNEMORE.

Harold Ulfsson, companion of Hereward the Wake and conqueror of the Wess.e.x Champion in a great wrestling bout, is outlawed by the influence of a Norman knight, whose enmity he has aroused, and goes north to serve under Earl Siward of Northumbria in the war against Macbeth, the Scottish usurper. He a.s.sists in defeating an attack by a band of coast-raiders, takes their ship, and discovering that his father has been slain and his land seized by his enemy, follows him into Wales. He fights with Griffith the Welsh King, kills his enemy in a desperate conflict amidst the hills, and, gaining the friendship of Harold, Earl of Wess.e.x, his outlawry is removed and his lands restored to him.

By Rev. J. R. HOWDEN, B.D.

Locomotives of the World

Containing sixteen plates in Colour.

Many of the most up-to-date types of locomotives used on railways throughout the world are ill.u.s.trated and described in this volume. The coloured plates have been made from actual photographs, and show the peculiar features of some truly remarkable engines. These peculiarities are fully explained in the text, written by the Rev. J. R. Howden, author of "The Boy's Book of Locomotives," etc.

By JOSEPH BOWES

The New-Chums

A Story of Adventure in Australia. Ill.u.s.trated in Colour.

The "New-Chums" is a capital story of rough-and-tumble adventure in the "Territory," as the little-known northern region of the Australian continent is called. Mr. Bowes knows this region thoroughly, and much of the "New-Chums" is evidently based upon personal experience. His knowledge of the aborigines, too, is extensive, and he is able to describe their mode of life, their customs and curious beliefs in detail. They figure largely in this story, for the two heroes, after suffering shipwreck, fall into the hands of natives, who spare their lives and treat them with rough kindness. The boys pa.s.s through many strange experiences in company with the tribe, and have some exciting adventures before they find their way back to their own people.

Comrades

Ill.u.s.trated in Colour by CYRUS CUNEO.