arcastic
remarks of the Welsh newspapers. As a matter of curiosity it may be
satisfactory to find out what famous Oxford teams of former years think
of the one you happen to be in, but it was exceedingly disagreeable of
the Welsh papers to suggest that we should not like to hear the
opinions of these heroes, and one sporting reporter went out of his way
to be nasty to me. "When I saw Marten at back and remember the
brilliant exponents of the game who have filled his position in
previous Dark Blue fifteens, I really cannot refrain from smiling. But
it is a pity all the same." If I could have got hold of that fellow I
think I might have curtailed the length of his smile, but Foster gave
me a little satisfaction by saying that if a man was ass enough to
write about "exponents of the game," he was probably paid a penny a
line for what he wrote, and had sacrificed me for the sake of
threepence.

We had a very good time during our first "vac." I think that Nina
expected me to come back from Oxford with a very fine equipment of
airs; in fact I know that she did for she told me so, but I was in a
humble mood and gave her no chances to squash me, and she and Fred got
on splendidly together. My first term had taught me that I did not
know in the least what I wanted, which was an upsetting lesson for any
one to learn who had always done what came next without bothering about
the consequences. This result had been brought about by the Warden and
Dennison, the one had in his curious way tried to urge me on, the other
had sickened me of men who rag from morning to night, and I felt
bothered for several days in succession. Then, however, I stopped
worrying myself and regained my normal spirits, to the annoyance of my
father who was at that time inveighing against Russia and the
ritualistic vicar of our parish, and had a lot to say about the thin
end of the wedge. He told me that I must take more interest in
politics, and he made both Fred and me promise that we would speak at
debating societies during our first year.

But when I recollected the discussions I had listened to at our college
debating society I could not remember a single one at which I could
have said anything to the point; how could I know whether "It is better
to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all," or what could
I say about marriage being a failure? There was, indeed, only one man
at St. Cuthbert's who could possibly know anything about ma