here was absolutely nothing, but four bare walls to interfere
with anybody.

They called in two more friends--Tom Senior and another--who declared it
was a splendid find, and the four thereupon took formal possession of
their new territory, and inaugurated the event by a terrific
eight-handed match.

Nothing could have been more satisfactory. The room was well out of the
way; the studious ones of the Fifth were spared all annoyance, and the
riotous ones had an asylum to go to. No one was a bit the worse for the
move; every one, on the contrary, found himself decidedly the better.

"Go and kick-up a row in the monitor's room," became quite a common
objurgation in the Form, among the diligent; as common, in fact, as
"Come along, old man, and have it out in the monitor's room," was among
the idlers.

But, as ill-luck would have it, this delightful retreat happened to be
situated immediately over the study occupied by Wren of the Sixth. That
worthy hero, seated one afternoon over his books, was startled by a
terrific noise, followed by a vibration, followed by the rattling of all
his tumblers in the cupboard, followed by a dull, heavy thud over his
head, which tempted him to believe either that an earthquake was in
progress, or that one of the chimney-stacks had fallen on to the roof.
When, however, the noise was repeated, and with it were blended laughter
and shouts of "Now then, let him have it!"

"Well parried!"

"Bravo, Bully!" and the like, Wren began to change his mind, and laid
down his pen. He walked up the stairs to the upper landing, where, at
once, the noise guided him to the old monitor's room. Then the truth
dawned upon him. He stayed long enough to get a pretty clear idea of
who the "new lodgers" were, and then prudently retired without
attempting a parley single-handed.

But next morning, when the festive rioters of the Fifth approached once
more the scene of their revels, what was their amazement and rage to
find the door locked, and the following notice, on a piece of school
paper, affixed to the panel--"Monitor's room. This room is closed by
direction of the monitors."

You might have knocked them over with a feather, so stupefied were they
by this announcement! They stared at the door, they stared at one
another, and then they broke out into a tempest of rage.

"The blackguards! what do they mean?" exclaimed Braddy, tearing down the
paper and crushing it up in his hands.

"Monitor's r