Such were the gleeful shouts of the Fourth when they beheld Horace Elgert on the ground. And the Fifths, alarmed for the honour of their class, rushed to pick up their fallen champion, saying—
"Don't make such a row! Of course he will fight. Get over to the other side, where we shall not be seen, and we will come!"
But Ralph would not listen to any such arguments. He stood there, looking down at his fallen foe, and he said shortly—
"You fellows will please to mind your own business! I am going nowhere to fight until this chap has apologized, then, if a fight is wanted, we will move!"
"But you cannot fight here! The Head will see us!" cried a score of voices.
"I cannot help that! This fellow has told a lie about my father, and he has got to unsay it, or take the consequences! I suppose that he thinks I was afraid because I tried to avoid a fight the very first day of being at school. Well, I am not afraid! If he had only talked about me I might have taken no notice, but when he comes to speaking as he has done he is going too far, and he has got to take back his words now, or finish it here!"
Meanwhile, Elgert had struggled to his feet, and he looked dazed from the effects of the blow, while his face was already growing swollen and discoloured.
"Stand aside!" he said hoarsely. "I will fight him here! If the Head himself were looking on, I would fight him!"
"You are a pair of fools!" muttered a Fifth-Form monitor. "We shall be spotted, for a certainty, and all of us get carpeted for this! Go calmly, you silly fellow, or he will smash you!" and he broke off in his complaint to give this last advice to Elgert, who had rushed at his opponent, mad with pain and anger, and had gone down for the second time!
"Look out! I knew how it would be! Here comes the Head!" shouted one boy; and a hurried rush took place, leaving the two boys and Warren and Charlton alone when the master reached the spot.