“And how about you?” asked Mr. Wendell of Tony Larcom.
“Oh, I think Dr. Drayton is an old dodo,” answered Tony recklessly.
Mr. Wendell mastered an inclination to smile.
“Your opinion is ruled out of court,” he said with as much gravity as he could summon.
Tony subsided.
“I am sure I do not know what you mean by ‘want of tact,’” continued Mr. Wendell.
“Well, take our own case for example,” answered Ray. “Now, no one who understands human nature at all would ask a student point blank to betray some of his companions in mischief. Almost any one would know that such a question would not only obtain no satisfactory answer, but would arouse in the student a bitter feeling of opposition.”
“And did Dr. Drayton ask you such a question?”
“Yes, sir. My match box of course betrayed me, and when I told the faculty I had loaned the box shortly before the cannons were discharged, Dr. Drayton pressed me to tell the name of the person to whom I gave it. Of course I wouldn’t answer that.”