No, that's the knob half-way down we see from the school window.
The stiff part begins after that."

Really Wally, if he had tried to be heartless, could not have succeeded
better. Had he but expressed some hint at regret that the distance was
so long, or vouchsafed the least semblance of a growl at the labour
involved, they would have loved him. As it was, they durst do nothing
but hate him, and accept his information joyously.

"That's nothing," said Lickford. "I feel quite fresh; don't you, you
chaps?"

"Rather!" they chimed in plaintively.

"Better get on," said Wally, after a few minutes more. How they loathed
Wally then!

The new slope was worse than the first; for the grass was more boggy,
and big stones here and there jarred their tender feet. Besides, it
grieved them to see Wally zigzagging steadily on ahead, utterly
regardless of their distress behind. Yet no one exactly liked to stop.
Had any one had the courage to do so, they would have gone down like a
row of ninepins.

Let no one charge these boys with chicken-heartedness. On the contrary,
they worked up that slope like heroes; all the more so that they were
ready to drop, and durst not for very shame. There is no hero like the
coward who compels himself to be brave. Many a man in history has
become famous for an exploit that cost him far less than this climb cost
the Fellsgarth juniors. Therefore let this record at least award the
the credit they deserve.--It was some satisfaction, when the knob was
reached, and they looked up at the black towering crags above, to see
that even Wally seemed staggered for a moment.

"We may as well have a rest and some grub before we tackle that lot,"
said he. "What do you say?"

The motion was carried unanimously.

"It's eleven o'clock," said Cash. "We've been five hours already."

"Thank goodness we've broken the back of it," said Fisher minor.

"I don't know so much about that," said Percy.

"We shan't get up that as easily as we've done so far, I fancy."

"Rather not," said Wally, cheerfully, with his mouth full of sandwich.
"I believe it's not so bad after we get past those rocks though, on to
the top."

"What," cried Fisher, "isn't _that_ the top then?"

"Bless you, no. We have to go down a bit when we get there, and cross a
bog, and then the real pike begins."

The information was received with dead silence, and the party sat grimly
munching their lunch with upturned eyes.

"Which