[43] Felony: a serious offence or crime.
[44] Primum tempus: first time.
[45] Bulls'-eyes and toffee: the former are hard balls of sugar, the latter a kind of candy made of brown sugar and butter.
[46] Bulls'-eyes and toffee: the former are hard balls of sugar, the latter a kind of candy made of brown sugar and butter.
[47] Humble bees: "bumble-bees."
[48] Bounds: the school limits, beyond which boys are not to go without permission.
[49] Necromancer: (one who communes with the dead) a conjurer.
[50] Phosphorus: the yellowish, inflammable substance used in making common matches—in a pure state it burns on exposure to air. Matches—called "Lucifers" or "light-bringers"—were invented in England about 1829. Previous to that time the only way of striking a light was by flint and steel, the spark being caught on a bit of tinder (half-burnt rag) which was then blown into a blaze.
[51] Rugby: a small village in Warwickshire on the river Avon, nearly in the centre of England. It is the seat of Rugby School,—one of the great public schools,—and was founded by Lawrence Sheriff, a native of the neighboring village of Brownsover, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth. The school owes its fame chiefly to Dr. Arnold, who became head master in 1827, and held the position until his death in 1842.
[52] Doctor: Dr. Arnold.