lesson was said to the master; and this
was likely to go on till Christmas, as the new usher, of whom, it was
said, Mr Tooke thought so highly as to choose to wait for him, could
not come before that time. Of course, with so much upon his hands, Mr
Tooke had not a moment to spare; and slow or idle boys were sent back to
their desks at the first trip or hesitation in their lessons. Hugh was
afraid, at the outset, that he should be like poor Lamb, who never got a
whole lesson said during these weeks: and he was turned down sometimes;
but not often enough to depress him. He learned to trust more to his
ear and his memory: his mind became excited, as in playing a game: and
he found he got through, he scarcely knew how. His feeling of fatigue
afterwards proved to him that this was harder work than he had ever done
at home; but he did not feel it so at the time. When he could learn a
lesson in ten minutes, and say it in one; when he began to use Latin
phrases in his private thoughts, and saw the meaning of a rule of
syntax, so as to be able to find a fresh example out of his own head, he
felt himself really a Crofton boy, and his heart grew light within him.

The class to which Hugh belonged was one day standing waiting to be
heard, when the master was giving a subject and directions for an
English theme to Dale's class. The subject was the Pleasures of
Friendship. In a moment Hugh thought of Damon and Pythias, and of David
and Jonathan,--of the last of whom there was a picture in Mrs Watson's
great Bible. He thought how happy he had been since he had known Dale,
and his heart was in such a glow, he was sure he could write a theme.
He ran after Mr Tooke when school was over, and asked whether he might
write a theme with Dale's class. When Mr Tooke found he knew what was
meant by writing a theme, he said he might try, if he neglected nothing
for it, and wrote every word of it himself, without consultation with
any one.

Hugh scampered away to tell Dale that they must not talk over this theme
together, as they were both to do it; and then, instead of playing, he
went to his desk, and wrote upon his slate till it was quite full. He
had to borrow two slates before he had written all he had to say. Phil
ruled his paper for him; but before he had copied one page, his
neighbours wanted their slates back again,--said they must have them,
and rubbed out all he had written. Much of the little time he had was
lost in this w