He led the way down a long passage to another staircase, ran up, and I recognised the floor where our bed room was, when, just as we were making a rush for it, a door opened, and the big fat boy Dicksee came out, stared, and then burst into a roar of laughter.
“Oh, here’s a game!” he shouted. “Old Senna’s been diving after podnoddles, and giving the new chap lessons.”
Mercer rushed at him so savagely that Dicksee stepped back, and the next minute we had reached our room, rushed in, and banged the door.
“Oh, isn’t he a beast?” cried my companion, panting, and looking all aglow now. “He’ll go and tell the boys, but we mustn’t say where we’ve been.”
Half an hour after, we went down, dressed in our other suits, feeling very little the worse for our adventure, and just as we reached the big schoolroom, the big clock up in the turret chimed.
“Why, we’re in good time for tea after all,” said Mercer. “They always have it late on holidays. Quarter of an hour to wait. Let’s go and walk down to the boys’ gardens.”
He led the way out and across the playground to a gate in the hedge, through which we passed, to come plump on the Doctor, three ladies, and Mr Rebble, who carried a creel by the strap, and had a rod over his shoulder.
“So you’ve had no sport, Mr Rebble?” the Doctor was saying.
“No, sir, none. The wind was in the wrong quarter again.”
“Aha!” said the Doctor, as he caught sight of us; “our new young friend, Burr junior. My dears, this is our new student. Burr junior, my wife and daughters.”