it troubles my mother greatly; and
then to have her die--though I know she is going to heaven--I cannot
bear the thought." He said more in the same style. "And then, should
my father come back--oh, what will he do!" he added.

"I thought from what you said that you had no father," I remarked.
"Where is he then, Arthur?"

"That is what I do not know," he answered. "Do not speak about it to
any one, Harry. He went away a long time ago, on account of something
that had happened. He could not bear to stay in England. But he was
not to blame. That is all I know. He could not take her with him; and
my grandmother and aunts with whom she was left died, and their fortune
was lost; and what she has now got is only for her life, and that
troubles her also greatly."

I tried as well as I could to comfort Arthur, and after this felt more
than ever anxious to stand by him an a friend. "I may some day be able
to help him," I thought--but I did not tell him so. Our friendship had
been disinterested, and thus I wished it to remain.

I said that I had many friends at school, but there were some few whom I
looked upon in a contrary light; especially one big boy, Houlston, of
whom all the little ones were dreadfully afraid. He used to make us do
anything that seized his fancy, and if we ventured to refuse, often
thrashed us. Poor Arthur Mallet frequently came in for his
ill-treatment, and bore it, we all thought, with far too much patience.
At last Tony and I and a few other fellows agreed that we would stand it
no longer. One day Houlston and one of the upper form boys, who was
younger than himself, had a dispute. We thought that he was going to
thrash the other fellow; but the latter standing up in his own defence,
Houlston walked off, not venturing, as we supposed, to encounter him.
This, of course, gave us courage. A few day afterwards Tony was
reading, when Houlston, coming by, seized his book, saying he wanted it.
Tony watched his opportunity, and snatching it up, made off out of the
school-room, through the play-ground into a yard on one side, which, not
being overlooked by any of the windows from the house, was the usual
place for pugilistic encounters. Houlston followed. I saw Arthur
Mallet and several of those who had promised to side with us standing
near. Arthur joined us, though somewhat unwillingly. We made chase.
Tony, who had fled to the yard, was at length overtaken by his pursuer,
who began hittin