, led Harry from the
room, looking wistfully at his mother as he went.

"Ah, Alan, darling Alan!" she sighed, when she was alone in the silent
twilight of the room, "if you were only here, it would be so much
easier to die! Just to say good-bye once more. And you'll only see my
grave when you come home. Oh, God," she prayed, "forgive me, and take
me to Thyself." And then her words grew wandering. "Scotland with
uncle Robert--how rough the waves are!--when shall we get to
Malta--Alan! Alan! when will Alan come?--Alan, darling, don't be
long!--I am so tired!" and so she fell into a broken slumber.

CHAPTER IX.

HARRY PUT ON TRIAL.

The geography paper--Before Dr Palmer--The accusation--Sentenced--The
doctor's study--William's reminiscences--The doctor--Enter
Egerton--Punishment--A hasty summons--Heart-stricken.

Not a single word greeted Harry on his entering the playground the
following morning; neither was there any symptom of the persecution of
the previous evening. No murmured words flung at him; no hissing; but
only a few stares of wonder, almost, at his recent achievement. He was
treated as a mere cypher,--sent to Coventry in fact. But this he did
not mind; it certainly was preferable to positive persecution; and as
he wished to keep calm for his coming ordeal, he was glad that nothing
ensued to cause another fight--a contingency he had been fully prepared
to expect. Warburton scowled at him. Egerton turned his face away as
they passed. This, however, did not make the slightest impression on
Harry; he felt proud of his victory over the former, and despised the
meanness of the latter.

He was allowed to proceed with the examination; but his place had been
changed, and he now sat close to Mr Prichard. The reason was evident,
and he asked himself wearily, as he bent over his paper, when would he
ever be set clear in the eyes of the masters and his schoolfellows?

Strangely enough, one of the questions (it was a geography paper) was,
"What do you know of Malta?" Harry here felt at an advantage. He
remembered, of course, nothing from his own experience; but he had
heard his mother's description, and as his pen ran quickly, echoing in
boyish language her words whom he loved so well, it is not much to be
wondered that his interest almost banished from his mind the memory of
his sorry plight.

But "like a dream, when one awaketh," he came back suddenly to a
recollection of how he was situate