"I should rather that the school did not know, sir," suggested the master; but at this Dr. Beverly shook his head.
"No, no, Delermain, I will not have that. We will have no favouritism—no keeping things back. If it was my own son who was implicated, the thing should be gone on with. For the sake of every one concerned, it must be gone on with."
But what a sensation it caused when the doctor made the announcement to the school! He had classes stopped, and all the school assembled in the hall; and there, standing at his great desk, he spoke to the lads, telling them that the banknote was lost.
"It can hardly have been mislaid," he said, "for Mr. Delermain put it beneath a heavy paper-weight; and upon his return he found that weight had been moved. Now, there are two things I want to impress upon you all, very solemnly. Some one must have done this—some one acting, perhaps, under a sudden temptation; some one, perhaps, who did not understand the full gravity and magnitude of his offence. Let that some one come and own his fault to me, like a man and a Christian should do. Remember, also, that the number of that note is known. It cannot be parted with, or converted into money, without eventually being traced, even through successive stages, back to the one who originally parted with it.
"Then, remember also, that there is one of your number who is particularly affected by this loss; there is one boy who knew this note was there, and who is known to have been near the study during Mr. Delermain's absence. A boy who frankly explains what took him there, and who declares that some one passed him hurriedly in the darkness of the corridor. That boy is Ralph Rexworth, and the boy who passed by him must undoubtedly be the thief!"
It was kindly put by the Head, for it seemed as if it exonerated Ralph from all suspicion; but there were those in the classes who, as the Head had foreseen, did not look at it from that standpoint; and Dobson muttered to his nearest neighbour—
"That is all very well, but why may not Rexworth have taken it himself? He is the only one who knew that it was there."
And the boy to whom this was addressed nodded.
"I again earnestly entreat the boy who has done this thing to confess his fault!" the Head went on. "Do not let us have the taint of a thief amongst us! Let the culprit act the better part, and remove the disgrace from the school! Now go to your classes, and think over what I have said, and I trust ere the morning has passed, the boy who is guilty will have taken the better course and have come to own his fault to me!"