FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138   139   140   141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   150   151   152  
153   154   155   156   157   158   159   160   161   162   163   164   165   166   167   168   169   170   171   172   173   174   175   176   177   >>   >|  
crammed with Latin and Greek, and in the afternoon he produced a Latin prose that would have revolted the easy conscience of a fourth form boy. Finally, on the third day, in an unseen passage set from the Georgics he translated _tonsisque ferunt mantelia villis_ by _having pulled down the villas (i. e. literally shaved) they carry off the mantelpieces_ which he followed up with translating _Maeonii carchesia Bacchi_ as the _lees of Maeonian wine (i.e. literally carcases of Maeonian Bacchus)_. "I say, Lidderdale," said Emmett, when they came out of the lecture room where the examination was being held. "I had a tremendous piece of luck this afternoon." "Did you?" "Yes, I've just been reading the fourth Georgics last term, and I don't think I made a single mistake in that unseen." "Good work," said Mark. "I wonder when they'll let us know who's got the scholarship," said Emmett. "But of course you've won," he added with a sigh. "I did very badly both yesterday and to-day." "Oh, you're only saying that to encourage me," Emmett sighed. "It sounds a dreadful thing to say and I ought not to say it because it'll make you uncomfortable, but if I don't succeed, I really think I shall kill myself." "All right, that's a bargain," Mark laughed; and when his rival shook hands with him at parting he felt that poor Emmett was going home to Rutland convinced that Mark was just as hard-hearted as the rest of the world and just as ready to laugh at his misfortune. It was Saturday when the examination was finished, and Mark wished he could be granted the privilege of staying over Sunday in college. He had no regrets for what he had done; he was content to let this experience be all that he should ever intimately gain of Oxford; but he should like to have the courage to accost one of the tutors and to tell him that being convinced he should never come to Oxford again he desired the privilege of remaining until Monday morning, so that he might crystallize in that short space of time an impression which, had he been successful in gaining the scholarship, would have been spread over four years. Mark was not indulging in sentiment; he really felt that by the intensity of the emotion with which he would live those twenty-four hours he should be able to achieve for himself as much as he should achieve in four years. So far as the world was concerned, this experience would be valueless; for himself it would be beyond price. So
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138   139   140   141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   150   151   152  
153   154   155   156   157   158   159   160   161   162   163   164   165   166   167   168   169   170   171   172   173   174   175   176   177   >>   >|  



Top keywords:
Emmett
 

Maeonian

 
Oxford
 

privilege

 
scholarship
 

experience

 

examination

 
convinced
 

unseen

 

Georgics


achieve
 

afternoon

 

fourth

 

literally

 

Rutland

 
laughed
 

bargain

 
hearted
 
college
 

staying


parting

 

granted

 

wished

 

finished

 

Sunday

 

Saturday

 

misfortune

 

accost

 

spread

 

indulging


sentiment
 

intensity

 

gaining

 
successful
 

impression

 

emotion

 

concerned

 

valueless

 
twenty
 
crystallize

courage

 

intimately

 
content
 

tutors

 

Monday

 

morning

 

remaining

 

desired

 

regrets

 

translating