“I didn’t mean— It’s not wicked to lose money,” pleaded Fisher minor. “I never thought—”
“That’s just it,” said Wally. “You couldn’t if you tried. Dangle will make a nice thing out of it, thanks to you. Classic treasurer been and collared Modern boys’ money—that sort of thing—and they’ll kick him out and stick in one of their own lot, and call it triumph of honesty. Oh, you beauty; you can do things nicely when you try?”
“I wish I’d never come up here at all,” moaned Fisher minor.
“Humph. That would have been a bad go for Fellsgarth,” said D’Arcy. “Shut up—Forder’s looking. If we’re lagged we shan’t get in to the meeting.”
The dreaded misadventure did not occur; and punctually at the hour our four young gentlemen trooped into Hall. Everything was very quiet there. The place was only half full. The Classics had turned up in force, but the mutineering house was so far unrepresented. Presently, however, five juvenile figures might be seen marching arm in arm across the Green, keeping a sharp look-out on every side.
Before they arrived in Hall, a solitary figure wearing the Modern colours had made his way up to the seniors’ end. It was Corder, looking very limp and haggard, and with a savage flash of the eyes which told how ill “Coventry” was agreeing with his spirits. The cheers, with which he was greeted, due quite as much to his pluck in coming to-day as to his exploit at the match last Saturday, appeared to disconcert rather than please him, and he took a corner seat as far as possible from the Classic seniors present. When, however, Percy and Co. entered the Hall, a much livelier demonstration ensued. Cheers and compliments and pats on the back showered fast on the youthful “blacklegs,” and tended greatly to exaggerate in their own eyes the importance of their action.
“We shall get jolly well welted for it, you fellows,” said Percy, with all the swagger of a popular martyr. “Never mind; we aren’t going to be done out of Hall for anybody.”
“At any rate, they won’t hurt you for it,” cried Wally, disparaging. “Kids like you won’t hurt.”
“We’ve come to see you cads don’t get it all your own way,” said Cash. “That’s what we’ve come for!”
“Ho, ho! Hope you’ve brought your lunch. You’ll be kept here a day or two, if you’re going to wait for that!”