I looked round, and found my middle stump knocked on one side, and the bails keeping the ball company upon the ground.

"Give him another try!" cried one or two kind-hearted boys; so the bails were replaced, and once more I held the bat, stiffly and awkwardly, before the wickets.

"Hurrah! Well done! Run, run!" the Scamp called out, dancing round his bat at the other wickets, as by a lucky fluke I "slipped" the ball, and scored one run.

Unfortunately, that was the end of the over, so the change of places only brought me again under fire of the ball, without any intervening rest. It was Johnnie Harris who was bowling now, and very straight his balls came, too.

“Blocked, for a kid!" cried the Scamp, condescendingly, as by the merest chance I contrived to save my stumps from a second total destruction.

But the next ball, rising abruptly after it had pitched, caught me sharply on the fingers, making me bite my lips to keep back the tears which started to my eyes at the acuteness of the pain.

"Hullo! didn't that hurt? I thought it caught your knuckles!" exclaimed Willie Knowles, kindly.

"Not m-m-much, thanks," I faltered, still clinging tightly to the bat-handle, though my fingers felt numb and dead from the blow.

But it was no use! and the next ball passed clean through my wickets, with scarcely an attempt on my part to prevent it. Then I gladly let the bat slip out of my trembling hands, and walked slowly away to my fielding-place, holding the wounded fingers tightly in my other hand.

"I am sure that must have hurt you, young'un !" said Willie Knowles, following me, " for I know well enough what it is to have a ball on your knuckles. Let's look and see how much damage it has done."

I looked up at him with tears welling to my eyes, strongly belieing my words of a minute ago. How kind he was!

Even then, with my fingers aching and tingling so, I forgot, for one brief moment, the physical pain that I was suffering, and thought only how much I should like to be like him-so strong and handsome, yet so clever and good-natured, that in my estimation he seemed to embody every quality and virtue that the most fastidious hero-worshipper could desire.

"Why, they are bleeding; it must have been a hard whack! But don't cry-there's a brave youngster; it won't make them any the better to bathe them in salt water of that sort, you know!"

I smiled faintly, as I hastily drew my sleeve across my eyes. "There! if I tie your handkerchief round, so, they will soon get easy again it is the first pain that's the sharpest, nearly always."

So, the operation completed, I went back to my old position. on the field, in spite of Willie's advice that I "had far better give up playing cricket, for this afternoon at any rate.”

For some time I had nothing to do but to think how badly my fingers smarted still.

The Scamp got out before long, and Hugh Marshall took his place, Harry holding his ground manfully at the opposite end. Presently Harry hit a ball feebly in my direction, and set off running at once.

Amidst a general shout of excitement, I rushed forward, and picked up the ball to throw it in to the wickets. In my flurry it dropped from my fingers, rolling away for a yard or so, whilst a dismal howl of disappointment rose from the boys as Harry and Hugh set off for a second run. The next instant I had recovered the ball, and flung it with all my might towards the wicket-keeper.

Alas! alas! Either my wrapped-up fingers, or the state of agitation into which the mingled cries and cheers had thrown me, resulted in an unexpected want of aim, and to my horror and amazement, I beheld the ball fly straight as an arrow at the back of Rogers' head, and, striking him sharply, fall to

K

the ground behind him like a plummet. His hand was not yet well enough for him to join in the game, so he had volunteered to umpire for us, and accordingly was standing only a few yards in front of me in a straight line with the wickets.

I shall never forget the sudden look of anger and surprise that he turned upon me, as he put his hand quickly to his head, and sprung round the next minute to avenge himself upon the perpetrator of such an insult.

The boys were all laughing; for to them it was a new form of a good practical joke. But to him and to me, it was nothing less than a downright, earnest reality, as I could see by the quick gleam of passion in his eyes; and without waiting for further warning, and never daring to offer one word of explanation or apology, I turned and fled for protection to Miss Royce.

I suppose terror added swiftness to my feet, for I kept my dis tance-short though it were-in front of him, and arrived first, breathless and terrified, at the little knoll upon which the teachers were seated, keeping watch over our various movements. Half defiant, half fearful of what might follow, I threw myself down in the midst of them, never dreaming but that for the present moment, at any rate, I should be safe and secure in such awe-inspiring company.

But Rogers, blind with fury, and regardless of all consequences, dragged me struggling to my feet, before any one was sufficiently recovered from their surprise to interpose, and was just on the point of commencing to execute a vigorous and summary punishment upon me, when Miss Royce sprang to her feet with a startled cry, and seizing him by the arm, shook him so sternly that he was forced to loose his hold upon me almost immediately.

"Tom, Tom, what are you doing? Do you know where you are, and how you are behaving, sir? Leave go of him, this minute-this very minute-do you hear me, Rogers?" and though she spoke in her sternest tone of authority, her voice

seemed to shake a little, as if with suppressed wrath and unusual excitement.

Checked in his attempt to wreak his summary vengeance upon me, and still boiling over with ungovernable rage, which the pain he suffered in his injured hand served greatly to increase, he swung swiftly round, hitting out hard at the firm steady hand that was restraining him thus from his purpose. But a bad aim, and an insecure footing on sloping ground, threw him off his balance, and, with Miss Royce's hand still clutching his collar, he fell heavily to the ground, almost dragging her with him. There, bursting into a storm of angry tears, he rolled upon the ground, hitting out right and left with his one sound hand, and kicking furiously in all directions with both legs at

once.

Miss Royce contrived dexterously to disengage herself, and stepping aside out of reach of his vigorous kicks, said, in an outwardly composed voice, "I am not going to struggle with you, Rogers; so you had better get up and calm yourself at once."

Every one was standing round in almost breathless excitement, for the boys had hastened up in all directions at the first sign of an approaching "scene"; and certainly never before had such a flagrant instance of braving the authorities been witnessed in this school, through all the many years of its existence.

Even Mrs. Royce did not attempt to interfere at this stage of the proceedings, for it was very obvious that it would be worse than useless to say anything to Rogers, until he should have recovered from the blinding influence of his passion.

I was standing close beside her, trembling violently from the effects of my recent fright, and quietly wiping away the tears with one corner of my handkerchief, when up came Willie Knowles.

66 Cheer up, and be a little man!" he said, putting his arm affectionately round my neck; "for you can't have been much hurt so far, and are not likely to be now, you see. It is no use

to cry out before you are hurt, is it?" he added, pulling away my handkerchief and looking into my tear-stained face with a kind smile.

"It is not much use crying afterwards!" I replied, smiling dimly through my tears, though I felt my mouth twitch ominously, as though another sob wanted to come, whether

or no.

It becomes rather wearisome and monotonous after a while, to lie for long together on your back kicking out savagely into the air, with a number of spectators watching you, and no one troubling to interfere with you; so before long, Rogers became less violent, and eventually, cramming his fist into his eyes, turned over, and lay quietly face downwards on the ground.

But as soon as Miss Royce attempted to raise him to his feet, he shook himself petulantly, and letting his legs hang limp and jointless, slipped back again, sulkily, to the old position, with a fresh sob and another moan.

"Mother, perhaps you had better send the boys away, now," said Miss Royce at last.

"I daresay we shall be able to manage him better when alone," she added, under her breath.

"Yes, boys," said Mrs. Royce, "you had better run off now; I am grieved that our holiday should be marred by so painful and disgraceful an incident as this—but I will not detain you to talk about that now. It is time for some one to see about boiling the kettle for tea, so you can go and assist Miss Baxter in picking up sticks and kindling a fire, if you like."

The idea, of course, was hailed with enthusiasm, for where is the boy, anywhere, who would refuse so splendid an opportunity for forming, free from danger or detection, a closer acquaintance with that most popular of elements,-fire? So, whilst some of the group went back to collect the cricket things, the others made off for the spot, near the great spreading oak-tree under which we had dined, which had been selected by Mrs. Royce as the most suitable position upon which to erect our fire-place.