“Bravo, Fairlegh! all right, old fellow! never say die! hurrah!” exclaimed half a score voices, all at once, while both my hands were seized and nearly shaken off, and I was almost annihilated by congratulatory slaps on the back from my zealous and excited friends.
“Well,” exclaimed I, as soon as I could make myself audible amidst the clamour, “I suppose by your congratulations I'm not plucked, but how high do I stand?” “Silence there!” shouted Lawless. “Order! order! hear the governor; he's got the list. Fire away, sir.”
Thus appealed to, Mr. Frampton, who was still mounted on the shoulders of his supporters, having cleared his throat and grunted proudly, with an air of majesty read as follows:—
“Kushbrooke, Senior Wrangler—Crosby, second—Barham, third—Fairlegh, fourth!”
“Nonsense,” exclaimed I, springing up, “the thing's impossible!”
“What an unbelieving Jew it is,” said Archer; “hand him the list, and let him read it himself. Seeing is believing, they say.”
Yes, there it was, beyond all possibility of doubt; with my own eyes did I behold it. “Fairlegh, fourth Wrangler!” Why, even in my wildest moments of hope my imagination had never taken so high a flight. Fourth Wrangler! oh! it was too delightful to be real. So overcome was I by this unexpected stroke of good fortune, that for a minute or two I was scarcely conscious of what was going on around me, and returned rambling and incoherent answers to the congratulations which were showered upon me. The first thing that roused my attention was a shout from Lawless, demanding a hearing, for that “the governor,” as he persisted in calling Mr. Frampton, was going to make a speech. The cry was immediately taken up by the others, who for some moments defeated their own purpose by calling vociferously for “silence for the governor's speech!” Having at length, from sheer want of breath, obtained the required boon, Mr. Frampton, waving his hand with a dignified gesture, began as follows:—
“Umph! on this happy occasion, gentlemen—set of noisy young scamps!—on this happy occasion, I say”—(shouts of encore! bravo! etc.)—“what I was going to say was—umph!” (a cry of “You have said it,” from a man near the door, who thought he could not be seen, but was). “Much obliged to you, sir, for your observation,” continued Mr. Frampton, fixing his glance unmistakably on the Detected One, “but I have not said it, nor does it seem very likely I ever shall say it, if you continue to interrupt me with your wretched attempts at wit.” (Cries of “Hear! hear! don't interrupt the governor! Shame! shame!” and an aside from Mr. Frampton, “Had him there, umph!” during all of which the detected individual was striving to open the door, which several men, who had perceived his design, held firmly against him.) “What I was going to say,” resumed the speaker, “when that gentleman who is trying to leave the room interrupted me” (more cries of “Shame!”), “was, that I beg, in the name of my friend, Frank Fairlegh, to invite you all to a champagne breakfast in his rooms to-morrow,” (tremendous cheering, and a cry of “Bravo, governor! you are a brick!” from Lawless), “and in my own name to thank you all, except the gentleman near the door, who has not yet, I see, had the grace to leave the room, for the patience with which you've listened to me,” (laughter, and cries of “It was a shame to interrupt him,” at which the Detected One, with a frantic gesture, gives up the door, and, turning very pale, glances insanely towards the window), “and for the very flattering attentions which you have all of you generally, and Mr. Archer in particular, done me the honour of paying me.”
A perfect tornado of cheers and laughter followed Mr. Frampton's speech, after which I thanked them all for the kind interest they had expressed in my success, and begged to second Mr. Frampton's invitation for the following day. This matter being satisfactorily arranged, certain of the party laid violent hands on the Detected One, who was a very shy freshman of the name of Pilkington, and, despite his struggles, made him go down on his knees and apologise in set phrase to Mr. Frampton for his late unjustifiable conduct; whereupon that gentleman, who enjoyed the joke, and entered into it with as much zest as the veriest pickle among them, sternly, and with many grunts, rebuked and then pardoned him.