s the early writing on our opening
page. Canning's words at the head of our present chapter set forth a
superstition that had a powerful hold on the English governing class of
that day, and the new Etonian never shook it off. His attachment to Eton
grew with the lapse of years; to him it was ever 'the queen of all
schools.'

'I went,' he says, 'under the wing of my eldest brother, then in the
upper division, and this helped my start and much mitigated the sense of
isolation that attends the first launch at a public school.' The door of
his dame's house looked down the Long Walk, while the windows looked
into the very crowded churchyard: from this he never received the
smallest inconvenience, though it was his custom (when master of the
room) to sleep with his window open both summer and winter. The school,
said the new scholar, has only about four hundred and ninety fellows in
it, which was considered uncommonly small. He likes his tutor so much
that he would not exchange him for any ten. He has various rows with
Mrs. Shurey, his dame, and it is really a great shame the way they are
fed. He and his brother have far the best room in the dame's house. His
captain is very good-natured. Fighting is a favourite diversion, hardly
a day passing without one, two, three, or even four more or less mortal
combats.

MANNERS AT ETON

You will be glad to hear, he writes to his Highland aunt Johanna
(November 13, 1821), of an instance of the highest and most honourable
spirit in a highlander labouring under great disadvantages. His name is
Macdonald (he once had a brother here remarkably clever, and a capital
fighter). He is tough as iron, and about the strongest fellow in the
school of his size. Being pushed out of his seat in school by a fellow
of the name of Arthur, he airily asked him to give it him again, which
being refused, with the additional insult that he might try what he
could do to take it from him, Macdonald very properly took him at his
word, and began to push him out of his seat. Arthur struck at him with
all his might, and gave him so violent a blow that Macdonald was almost
knocked backwards, but disdaining to take a blow from even a fellow much
bigger than himself, he returned Arthur's blow with interest; they began
to fight; after Macdonald had made him bleed at both his nose and his
mouth, he finished the affair very triumphantly by knocking the arrogant
Arthur backwards over the form w