ught cricket
by old John Lillywhite, with his very best top hat of those days, and
battles fought on the football ground against rival colleges, occurred
until the end of the third year. I happened to have come out, at the end
of that year, top of my class. I had practically won most of the prizes.
It was the custom of the school that the senior boys of the upper classes
were permitted to study more advanced subjects than the school had
actually laid down for the curriculum of that particular class for the
year. These extra subjects were called "honours." They were studied in
voluntary time; the examinations therein and the marks gained in no way
counted towards the result of the class examinations for the year.

These class examinations were held before the "honours" examination. A
friend of mine in a higher class, who was sitting behind me in the study
room, asked me if I'd like to read an English translation of "Caesar." I
promptly said "Yes" and borrowed it, and was soon lost in its perusal,
with my elbows on my desk and my head between my hands. Presently I felt
a gentle tap on my shoulder. I looked up to see the prefect of studies
standing by me. He told me afterwards that he had thought, from the
interest I was taking in my book, that I was reading some naughty and
forbidden novel, which he intended to confiscate, of course, and probably
read. He was surprised to find it was an old friend, "Caesar." Being an
English translation it was considered to be a "crib." He asked me where I
had got it. I couldn't give away my pal, just behind me, so I said I
didn't know. "Don't add impertinence to the fact that you've got a
'crib.' Just tell me where you did get this book," he remarked. "I don't
want to be impertinent," I said, "but I refuse to tell you." "Very well,
then," he said, "go straight to bed."

I heard nothing more on the subject till a few days afterwards, at the
presentation of the prizes, the breaking-up day, on which occasion the
parents and friends of the scholars were invited to be present. At an
interval in the performance the prizes were presented. The prefect of
studies would begin to read from the printed prize list, which all the
visitors were supplied with, the names of all the fortunate prize winners
in succession, from the highest to the lowest. As the name of each prize
winner was called he stood up, walked to the table at which the prizes
were presented, received his, and, after making a polite b