FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   84   85   86   87   88   89   90   91   92   93   94   95   96   97   98   99   100   101   102   103   104   105   106   107   108  
109   110   111   112   113   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   >>  
inguishing himself during the half-year: however hard a 'reported' boy might work, he could gain no prize that term. So no wonder that poor Carlo repeated in amazement, "'_Report_ me?' "'Yes,' said Sawyer. 'I don't want to do it, but if you continue to disobey me, I must,' and he turned away. "Off went Carlo to his cronies with his tale of wrongs. The general indignation was extreme. "'I'd like to see him dare to do such a thing,' said one. "'I'd risk it, Berkeley, if I were you,' said another. 'Anything rather than give in to such a cowardly sneak.' "In the midst of the discussion up came Jack, to whom, with plenty of forcible language, his brother's woes were related. Jack's first impulse was to discredit the sincerity of Mr. Sawyer's intention. "He'd never _dare_ do such a thing as report you for nothing worse than bar-jumping,' he exclaimed. "But Carlo shook his head. "'He's mean enough for anything,' he replied. 'I believe he'll do it fast enough if ever he catches me bar-jumping again.' "'Well, you'll have to give it up then,' said Jack. 'It's no use hurting yourself to spite him,' and as Carlo made no reply, the elder brother went away, satisfied that his, it must be confessed, not very exalted line of argument, had had the desired effect. "But Carlo's silence did _not_ mean either consent or assent. When Jack had left them the younger boys talked the whole affair over again in their own fashion and according to their own lights--the result being that the following morning, with the aggravation of a whoop and a cry, Carlo defiantly jumped the bar on his way to chapel for prayers. "When Jack came to hear of it, as he speedily did, he was at first very angry, then genuinely distressed. "'You will only get what you deserve if he does report you,' he said to Carlo in his vexation, and when Carlo replied that he didn't see that he need give up what he had always done 'for a cad like that,' Jack retorted that if he thought Sawyer a cad he should have acted accordingly, and not trusted to _his_ good feeling or good nature. But in his heart of hearts Jack did not believe the threat would be carried out, and, unknown to Carlo, he did for his brother what he would never have done for himself. As soon as morning school was over he went to Mr. Sawyer to beg him to reconsider his intention, explaining to the best of his ability the extenuating circumstances of the case--the tacit indulgence so long
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   84   85   86   87   88   89   90   91   92   93   94   95   96   97   98   99   100   101   102   103   104   105   106   107   108  
109   110   111   112   113   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   >>  



Top keywords:
Sawyer
 

brother

 

intention

 
replied
 

morning

 
report
 

jumping

 

prayers

 

chapel

 

speedily


jumped

 
deserve
 

genuinely

 

distressed

 

defiantly

 

affair

 

reported

 

talked

 

younger

 
fashion

aggravation

 

lights

 
result
 

vexation

 

school

 

unknown

 

threat

 
inguishing
 

carried

 
reconsider

circumstances

 

indulgence

 

extenuating

 

ability

 
explaining
 

hearts

 

retorted

 
thought
 

trusted

 

feeling


nature

 
consent
 

sincerity

 

cronies

 

discredit

 

impulse

 

related

 

turned

 

disobey

 

exclaimed