her cadets admired it.

"Now as the day arrived for the Primaner to pack together his scattered
belongings in order to go home, he looked to buckle on his fine
belt--and all at once the thing was missing.

"A great to-do followed; search was made everywhere; the belt was not to
be found. The Primaner had not locked it in his wardrobe, but had put it
with his helmet in the dormitory behind the curtain where the helmets of
the other cadets lay openly--and from there it had disappeared.

"It could not possibly have disappeared in any other way;--some one must
have taken it.

"But who?

"First they thought of the old servant who was accustomed to blacken the
boots of the cadets, and keep the dormitory in order--but he was an old
trusty non-commissioned officer, who had never during the course of his
long life allowed himself to be guilty of the least irregularity.

"It surely could not be one of the cadets? But who could possibly think
such a thing? So the matter remained a mystery, and truly an unpleasant
one. The Primaner swore and scolded because he must now leave wearing
the ordinary institution belt; the other cadets in the room were
altogether silent and depressed; they had at once unlocked all their
wardrobes and offered to let the Primaner search them, but he had merely
replied: 'That's nonsense, of course; who could think of such a thing?'

"And now something remarkable happened, and caused more sensation than
all that went before; all at once the Primaner got back the belt.

"He had just left his room with his portmanteau in his hand, and had
reached the stairs, when he was hastily called from behind, and as
he turned about, Little L came running up, holding something in his
hand--it was the Primaner's belt.

"Two others happened to be passing at the time, and they afterward told
how deathly pale Little L was, and how every member of his body was
literally shaking. He had whispered something into the ear of the
Primaner, and the two had exchanged all quietly a couple of words, and
then the Primaner affectionately stroked the other's head, took off his
regulation belt, buckled on the fine one and was gone; he had handed
the regulation belt over to Little L to carry back. Naturally the story
could now no longer be concealed, and it all came out accordingly.

"A new assignment of rooms was ordered; Big L was transferred; and just
at the time all this was taking place, he had completed his removal to
the ne