" asked Ashby.

Percy reflected. This was a decided point.

"Well, you see," said he, "it's this way. If young Fisher minor hadn't
been born, he wouldn't have had a governor and a mater, and if he hadn't
had a governor and a mater, no more would Fisher major. And if Fisher
major hadn't had a governor and a mater he'd never have been elected
treasurer, and if he'd not been elected treasurer he wouldn't have lost
the money. So you see the young un's at the bottom of it again."

"I know a shorter way than that," said D'Arcy. "If young Fisher minor
hadn't fetched Rollitt up to vote that day, Fisher major wouldn't have
been elected, and then he couldn't have lost the money."

"Isn't that what I said?" said Percy, indignant to be thus summarily
paraphrased.

"Are you going to lick me for being born?" inquired Fisher minor.

"Good mind to. It's all your fault good old Rollitt's gone."

"Those six Abernethys won't last him long," suggested Cash.

"No. We must keep a stock of them now, and call them `Rollitt's
particular.' I fancy they might fetch three-halfpence each."

"I say," said Wally, "I vote we find Rollitt. He's not a bad sort, you
know."

"All very well," said Percy, "if one only knew where to look."

"It's my notion he's either gone home or to the top of Hawk's Pike. I
don't well see where else he could be."

"London?" suggested Cottle.

"Not got the money."

"Walked there?"

"Not got the boots."

"He can't be hanging about near here. Everybody knows him. No; you bet
he's gone to the top of Hawk's Pike, and he's going to stay there till
the clouds roll by."

This brought up a painful reminiscence. None of the party, except
Wally, exactly favoured the idea of another attempt on the great
mountain.

"Tell you what," said Percy, "those biscuits will last him over to-
night. We'll see if there's any news of him in the morning, and if not
we'll organise an expedition to find him. I say, let's go and have
another shop committee somewhere."

"Where?"

"Suppose we have it in Rollitt's study. He was a jolly good sort, you
know. It would please him."

The logic of this proposition did not detain the meeting.

They decided to go in the usual way. That is, the four Classic boys
boldly marched into their house together, and the five Moderns dropped
in one by one artlessly and quite by accident.

As Fisher minor passed his brother's door he thought he would just look
in. At the same