dful to have the father
present if anything went wrong. But on the other hand, if ... well, what
was there to happen anyhow?

On the morning of the great day, a host of parents and relatives and
other interested spectators crowded into the big assembly hall where
places were reserved for them in the rear and along the walls. In the
meantime the pupils gathered in their respective class-rooms, and from
there they marched by twos to the hall, the lowest grade leading. Every
boy was in his best clothes, and every one showed his nervousness in his
own peculiar way. Keith laughed hysterically a few times before they
started, and then he turned into an automaton that breathed and moved
and heard and saw only as part of a gigantic machine. His own
individuality seemed to melt and become a mere drop in the all-exclusive
individuality of the school.

This mood lasted through the early part of the exercises, the prayer
read by the _primus_ of the senior class, the hymn singing, the Rector's
speech, and so on. Everything came to him as out of a mist, and he was
not even sufficiently conscious of himself to look around for a glimpse
of his parents. When the distribution of exercises began, the whole
atmosphere changed. Until then it had been collective and impersonal.
Now it became intensely personal. Every one wanted to hear. Necks were
craned, whispered questions asked. It was as if a sudden breeze had
stirred waters which until then had been still as the mirroring surface
of a forest pool. Keith's mood changed with the rest, and he grew
painfully conscious of himself and his surroundings.

Starting with the lowest grade, the Rector read out the names of the
prize winners, the character of the prizes, and sometimes the reasons
why they were bestowed. At the mention of each name, a boy rose from his
seat, squirmed past his closely packed comrades, marched up the centre
aisle to the platform, bowed awkwardly to the Rector, grabbed the prize,
bowed still more awkwardly if possible, and marched back to his seat
with a face that burned or blanched, grinned or glowed, according to
temperament.

The second grade was soon reached. Most of the prizes consisted of
books. Davidson, _primus_, got two gilt-edged volumes of poetry. Keith
caught a glimpse of them and experienced a twinge of envy. His heart was
beating so that he thought he could hear it. His eyes clung to the
Rector's mouth, and when the next name was read, he half rose. Th