hat I
realized afterwards was excellent for me. Forthwith we moved my
friend's desk into my corner of the room which was always safe when I
was around, though later some practices of the others to which I took
exception led to a combination which I thought of then as that made by
the Jews to catch Paul, and which I foiled in a similar way,
watchfully eluding them when they were in numbers together, but always
ready to meet one or two at a time. The fact that I had just taken up
"racquets" impressed it on my memory, for considering the class-room
temporarily unsafe for "prep" work, I used that building as a
convenient refuge for necessary study. It would have been far better
to have fought it out and taken, if unavoidable, whatever came to
me--had it been anywhere else I should probably have done so. But the
class-room was a close corporation for Foundation scholars, and not
one of my chums had access to it to see fair play.

My friendship for "Mad G." was largely tempered by my own love for
anything athletic, and eccentricities paid a very heavy price among
all boys. Thus, though I was glad to lend my protection to my friend,
we never went about together--as such boys as he always lived the life
of hermits in the midst of the crowd. I well remember one other boy,
made eccentric by his peculiar face and an unfortunate impediment of
speech. No such boy should have been sent to an English public school
as it was in my day. His stutter was no ordinary one, for it
consisted, not in repeating the first letter or syllable, but in
blowing out both cheeks like a balloon, and making noises which
resembled a back-firing motor engine. It was the custom of our form
master to make us say our repetition by each boy taking one line, the
last round being always "expressed"--that is, unless you started
instantly the boy above you finished, the next boy began, and took
your place. I can still see and hear the unfortunate J. getting up
steam for his line four or five boys ahead of time, so that he might
explode at the right moment, which desirable end, however, he but very
rarely accomplished, and never catching up, he used, like the man in
the parable, always to "begin with shame to take the lowest place."
Sometimes the master in a merciful mood allowed us to write the line;
but that was risky, for it was considered no disgrace to circumvent
him, and under those circumstances it was very easy for the next boy
to write his own and then yo