Anna Chapin Ray

“ Lieutenant Wilde met him with equal directness.
“What boys?” he inquired. “Has there been any fresh trouble, Mr. Boniface?”
“No,” burst out the other; “nothing fresh, but it’s a matter of every day, and it’s wearing the life out of me. They hate me and they try to annoy me in every way, till I feel like an old dog, at the mercy of a crowd of snarling, yelping puppies. I’ve tried everything, but it’s getting worse every day. I want the boys to like me, and I want to like them,” he continued, resuming his march; “but it’s come to where we regard each other as sworn enemies. ”

“ If you nine boys would make up your minds to stand by Mr. Boniface, you could carry the school along with you, till he wouldn’t have any more trouble at Flemming. Why not do it? Every young knight must win his spurs by helping the poor and oppressed. You won’t find many giants and dragons in your way, so why not lend a hand to help on Mr. Boniface? If you boys will treat him like a man and a friend, you’ll be more than repaid, for he is only waiting for a chance to know you and help you. And in some ways, he’s the finest teacher we have ever had at Flemming. ”

“ Such boys as Stanley go far towards making the solid men who are much more the real leaders of the nation, than the brilliant talkers and thinkers that float lightly along on the surface of events but, like all other driftwood, lodge and stick fast when they come to a rock in their passage. And moreover, silent and unresponsive as Stanley was generally thought to be, Lieutenant Wilde and his intimate boy friends knew him better. True, the lad could not talk easily, partly from shyness, partly from utter inability to rattle off the random nonsense which was the delight of the other boys ”

“ The boy stood behind the half-open door, comparing two or three of the flasks before him, when he heard an ominous click and a short, sharp exclamation from Lieutenant Wilde. The next instant, the room echoed with a loud explosion which jarred the windows and doors in their casements, and set every flask and funnel to dancing on its shelf; there was a rush of suffocating vapor that filled the room and, catching fire where it was densest, blazed up in a dull blue flame about the desk. Then came that sickening sound, the thud of a heavily-falling body. ”

“ Flemming to the table, as Jack rose and offered his arm to the doctor. If the fun had been great before, it was perfect and complete now, for the Flemmings entered into the frolic as heartily as did their young hosts, tasting all the goodies and laughing at all the jokes with as much enthusiasm as if they had been fourteen, instead of forty. They had not spent twelve years in work among boys to no purpose, and they understood just how to meet them on their own ground without loss of dignity or lessening of influence. Suddenly the doctor rose to his feet, with a glass of lemonade in his hand. ”

“ The Flemming cheer came up from the lake, in a stormy chorus, as the doctor, with a tiny morocco case in his hand, stepped into the boat which was awaiting him, and was rowed away towards the upper end of the course, where a stake, adorned with the colors of the two classes, marked the goal. For a time, the Flemming was the centre of interest; then, as it slowly came round into position and dropped anchor, every eye was turned back, to look away to the southern end of the lake, where the crews were still hidden in the lee of the Flemming boat house. ”

“ A second glance told her that the shortest of the group was leaning on crutches, and that the tallest had in his buttonhole a flower singularly like the carnations she had worn in her belt, that evening. Then they began to sing; but before she had time to recognize her brother’s clear, high voice, and the deep bass notes of Alex, it had dawned upon her that the Flemming quartette had come to serenade her and, finding someone else upon the scene before them, had taken the quickest and surest means of driving away the intruder. ”

“ Boniface, Jack and Alex brought the young man into the house and up to the room which Mrs. Flemming had made ready for him; then the quick trot of the doctor’s horse, as he came hurrying up the hill; all the stir throughout the house, that comes with any sudden illness. Then followed the dreadful stillness, when the old doctor went into the room and the door closed behind him, and Stanley, Alex and Jack sat on the stairs outside, listening oh! so intently for any sound that might tell them what was passing within. ”

“ This little conversation had been carried on in a hurried undertone, while the old man was still bowing and beckoning to the boys to approach the fire. Stanley now turned to him and, following the direction of his hand, went up to the stove in the corner.
“Jerry,” he began, “do you know little Gypsy Flemming?”
Jerry shook his head in hopeless bewilderment.
“It’s no use, Stan,” said Louis, in a low voice; “you’ll never get it through his head, and we’re only just wasting our time talking.”
“Wait a minute, Wing,” said Harry; “it’s worth trying. Go ahead, Stan.” ”

“ This idea had come from Max, who had spent much time and shown considerable ingenuity in devising the costumes from the material at hand. A short curly bang, a great bath-sponge fastened to the top of his head, eyeglasses and a sheet gracefully draped into a robe and enlivened with a crimson portière, by way of court train, transformed Miss Margaret Eliot, as she was introduced, into a very fair type of society girl; while Harold King’s delicate face and slight figure were set off by a red tablespread for a skirt, surmounted by a pale blue dressing-gown belonging to Louis. ”

“ And yet, with all his attraction for Leon, the younger boy felt a certain distrust of this brilliant comrade, which prevented their daily association from ever ripening into anything like an intimacy. It was not that he was not always bright and companionable, quick to plan and bold to execute the frolics which seemed to add zest to his school life, and equally ready to take the consequences of his many sins. ”

“ After an informal dinner and an evening of pleasant talk, the boys reluctantly rose, to say good night. Dr. Flemming rose, too, and, taking Leon’s hand in both his own firm, slender ones and looking down into the lad’s eyes so keenly that Leon felt he could see into the very depths of his soul, he said kindly,—
“Arnold, you are just starting out into a new life, and I say to you what I say to all the boys when they come here. You will miss your home in many ways; you will find many things here that are new and strange. Do the very best you can in everything, whether it is work or play. ”

“ Dame Pinny was ready for them with a hot supper, and they gathered in the dining-room to eat and talk at once, for moments were precious. Harry, Louis and Stanley had not yet appeared; but the boys were expecting them at any minute, for no one but Leon knew where they had gone, and none of the boys had been up-stairs to see him. In their excitement, nobody noticed that he did not come down to supper. ”

“ Every school has its slightly different atmosphere, and calls for its different historian. For that reason, I offer this picture of life at Flemming Hall.
Though Irving Wilde and the doctor may not be portraits, still the school life of each one of us has known one or more similar teachers, from whom we have gained the inspiration to do broader, truer work, inspiration which, although unconsciously received, perhaps unconsciously given, has yet left its stamp upon all our later work in life. ”

“ Boniface had confided to Lieutenant Wilde his fear that it was too sudden and too good to last.
“Even Eliot is behaving like a model boy,” he remarked, the Tuesday night after Thanksgiving. “He is a likable fellow at times, too.”
“Max is a splendid fellow,” answered Lieutenant Wilde enthusiastically. “He’s freakish and thoughtless in his fun, often a little too much so, but he is the soul of honor and, in my opinion, that covers a multitude of sins.” ”

“ With scarcely a word to Louis, he went to bed, but not to sleep. Far into the night, he lay staring at the darkness, while Dr. Flemming’s last words still echoed in his ears,—
“But above all, my dear boy, you will never be a full-grown man until you have learned to stand alone, without leaning on your friends. Whenever the question arises, make up your mind, once for all, where the right lies, and then go towards it, even if your path leads across the bodies of your dearest friends. Right is always right; and I am here only just to help my boys to find it out and march steadily towards it. ”

“ I say, Wing, why didn’t you put your hair in papers over night, to give it an aristocratic curl?”
“It’ll have to go as ’tis,” replied Louis complacently, as, with his eye, he measured the points of his collar, to see that they were even.
“I don’t really see, myself,” continued Max gloomily; “the use of playing the agreeable to a girl old enough to be your maiden aunt. One of these damsels is eighteen and the other is twenty-two; and they most likely regard you as a promising infant, Wing. Why can’t you be sensible and leave them to Lieutenant Wilde and Bony?” ”

“ Meanwhile in Louis’s room, the boys were restlessly lounging about, while they waited for the reappearance of the young sinner.
“He must be having a bad time,” said Jack, taking out his watch for the twentieth time in the last half hour.
“I’m afraid Bony’s giving it to him strong,” added Paul.
“You don’t suppose Bony’d whip him, do you?” suggested Leon, in an awed tone.
“Whip Max? Nonsense!” responded Harry.
“Don’t you be too sure, Hal,” said Jack. “Bony looks as if he’d be ready for anything when his blood is up. He’s just made up his mind that he is not to be interfered with.” ”

“ Leon bowed in silence.
“Then why did you do it?” asked the doctor again.
The boy hesitated.
“Because there wasn’t anything else I could do,” he said at length.
“I can hardly believe that, Arnold. Fighting is thoroughly lowering and brutalizing, besides destroying the order of the school. Questions of discipline must be left to me, not settled by each one of you boys. I think you understood that when you came here, although you have now disobeyed the established rule of the school. Is there anything you wish to say for yourself?” ”

“ Boniface a little dubiously, for he was reflecting upon how large an expanse it had to work in the case in hand. “Eliot is a truthful boy, I think; but what a comfort it would be, if all the boys were as steady and as anxious to learn as little Smythe. That boy is a perfect wonder.”
“Yes,” said Irving Wilde, in a tone of deep disgust; “he’s a wonderful little prig. He learns like a poll parrot, and his only desires on earth are to show off what he knows, and to turn out his toes at a proper angle, when he’s on parade. ”

“ The boys never knew just how it was, but they soon ceased to be surprised when Lieutenant Wilde seemed to divine their thoughts, and spoke some word of encouragement for their nobler aims, or let fall a quiet remark of disapproval for some wild, boyish freak. It was impossible for them to resent any interference on the part of a man who was not only an excellent teacher, but a champion in all athletic sports as well, and always ready to join them in their expeditions up and down the valley and over the hills. ”

“ Now aren’t you boys all of you loyal enough to the doctor to feel that you must be polite and respectful to any man he may choose to put in here over you? Any rudeness to one of his teachers is an insult to himself.”
“I hadn’t thought of that,” confessed Max frankly. “But Bony and the doctor are two different people.”
“That may be,” responded Lieutenant Wilde, as he pulled off his spectacles and fell to twirling them by the slender, bent ends of the bows; “but Mr. Boniface represents the doctor in his classes. ”

“ Ninety-two had recovered from her shock and, with thirty-four strokes to the minute, was cutting the water like a knife, close in the rear, so close that Captain Howard made a final spurt.
Ninety-two answered with another, gained a little, lost a little, gained again, and for a second the boats stood bow to bow, and the goal was close at hand. Not a cry rose from bank or boat; nothing could be heard but the sound of the oars and the labored breathing of the men, as the boats swept past the stake, not eighteen inches apart. There was a hush, as the crowd drew one long, deep breath ”

“ He was a terror, then.”
“Perhaps the change is in us,” remarked Max, in a sanctimonious falsetto. “Maybe we’re getting good at last.”
“No danger for you, Max,” said Leon reassuringly.
“We didn’t treat him decently, though,” returned Max, whose loyalty to Mr. Boniface had dated from the day of their long talk together. “He was queer and green and cross, and we made him more so.”
“I like old Bony pretty well, now,” said Jack, as he stretched out his arms along the shoulders of the boys beside him. “He’ll always be too solemn; but he’s improved immensely, and he’s a first-rate teacher, anyway.” ”

“ The consequences of the intimacy were often disastrous to poor Max, for while his friend contrived to emerge unscathed from scrape after scrape, Max was singularly luckless, and was continually finding himself reduced from the rank to which his brilliant scholarship and excellent drill had raised him.
Of all the boys in the school, there was no other set so closely bound together in all their tastes and pursuits, as the little group of seniors and juniors who were most often to be found in the Arnolds’ room, or with Max and Louis, across the hall. ”

“ It’s no easy work to punish a fellow like that, for you or I would have done just as he did, if we’d been in his place.”
“It strikes me that our color-guard is getting demoralized about as fast as it can,” Max observed to Louis, as they were going to bed. “With Frank Osborn down, and Leon down, and Winslow half-way in disgrace, Smythe can have it all his own way, confound him! But I’ll tell you one thing,” he added vindictively; “I’ll make it hot for that Winslow. He deserves to be court-martialled for his pains.” ”

“ Let me take Max, with all his sins, and with proper training and influences, I’ll make ten times the man of him.”
“Well, I think I prefer Smythe,” replied Mr. Boniface.
“You’re welcome to him; I don’t want him,” answered Lieutenant Wilde. “Life is something besides committing schoolbooks to memory; put the two boys into the same emergency, and balance the selfish conceit of Smythe against the quick, impetuous generosity of Eliot, and tell me which will do more to help on his fellow-men. Smythe is just the boy to put behind a counter, to sell ribbons and tape and spools of thread ”