"He was conceived by the Holy Ghost," was the ready answer.
"Of whom was He born?" was the question to the next boy.
"He was born of the Virgin Mary," responded the youth boldly.
"Under whom did He suffer?" was the question addressed to the third in order.
"He was crucified, dead and buried," said the boy in a whining, hesitating tone, as if conscious that all was not right.
"No, no! Under whom did He suffer? By whom was he crucified?"
The lad repeated the same words in the same drawling tone. The question was put a third time, and the same answer returned; when one of the class, more intelligent than the rest, stepped forward, and, after a twitch of his frontal lock, and an awkward scrape of the foot, said, in a tone half supplicatory, half explanatory:
"Please, Sir, Pontius Pilate has getten th' ma-sles!" Meaning, of course, that the boy who had been crammed to give the answer to that particular question was laid up at home of the measles.
An exacting critic of the story might be ready to object and say that it was within the right of the Examiner to put his questions to the boys in an "order promiscuous." Well, I can only answer that he didn't; besides, it is not the proper thing to spoil a good story by captious criticism.