Amabel Vaughan.*

two classes of upper boys above the fifth form , and ranking next to the Deput y Grecians , he explained to Mabel ) ! and old T . went solemnly over and took that boy in to be caned by the head master for making a noise in school . ' ' " What a shame , " said Mabel laughingly at Fitz . " Oh , it was all right , " he answered ; " he would be sure to deserve it next day , if he didn ' t then . "

" Poor old S ., our master , he was a nice old fellow—and we were awfully fond of him ; but we used to make desperate fun of him on account of his deafness . "I've often seen Fitz and other fellows go up to him in school , and say in an undertone , 'I say , S ., you are an old fool , you know you are , now don't deny it , ' or some impudence of that sort .

" Mr . S . would say mildly , putting his hand to his ear , ' Eh , what did you say !' "' Please , Sir , may I go out into the quadrangle to see my friends . ' ' Certainly , ' he would say . Sometimes a shadow of suspicion would come over him , as it appeared the sentence first put was rather longer than the second , —and he would remark , ' Are you quite sure you said that . ' 'Oh , dear , yes , Sir , ' the boy would answer , with injured innocence depicted iu his countenance . "Sometimes he would order a boy into his study to be caned—and another fellow

, would go in with an air of the greatest importance and say : ' If you please , Sir , there ' s one of the governors waiting in the Hall Cloisters , ( the farthest from the School , ) and he ¦ wants to see you . ' Mr . S . would g ive a slight brush to his mortar-board , sweep the dust off his rather aged M . A . gown , and go off to see the gentleman , who it is needless to say was non est inventus . " After wandering about for half-am hour , he would come back disconsolate ,

muttering to himself that he supposed he must have missed the Governor somewhere , ancl wondering who he could be . " Meanwhile , of course , he had forgotten all about the boy who was to be caned , — who got off for that day at least . " " Your recollections are amusing , though not altogether conducive to good morals , " Miss Griss remarked mildly ; " hut why the gentleman should want to take a mortarboard with him when he weut out , passes my comprehension . " " Perhaps it was because he was a h ( odd ) man , " suggested Fitz .

Mabel laughed , and said it was a wretched pun , ancl quite unworthy of Reginald . " My dear , " Mr . Brig observed , smiling at his sister-in-law ' s remark , and reminded of his own Oxford days , " a mortar-board is a synonym for college cap . " " Slang , I suppose you mean , " Miss Griss said drily . " I dislike slang very muoh . " " What an old humbug Fitz-George was , " Mark began again , speaking of one of the writing-masters . " Yes , he was a jolly old humbug , " Fitz answered ; " but I liked him very much . What stories that man used to tell ! "

" You don't mean to say , " Bliss Griss interrupted , adjusting her spectacles , " that one of the master ' s actually was remarkable for telling falsehoods 1 " " Not at all , " Fitz replied , laughing , ( though they were awful crammers , I verily believe , he added sotto voce ); but he was a great anecdotist , and he used to say to his class : ' You ' ve done that sum in compound interest or decimals very well , —and if you H all keep quiet , I'll tell you a story ; but mind , ' he would add , ' the first boy who

laughs will be caned . ' " Then he would tell us some Joe Miller , as old as the hills—and in order to give it a personal ancl fictitious interest , he would say the adventure , or whatever it was , happened to his own father , —which we , in our innocence , religiously believed . He was very funny ; and some boy , whose sense of humour was rather keen , would completely forget himselfj and burst out in a roar of laughter , that could be heard almost all over the School , in spite of the Babel of sound coming from 300 or 400 boys . " Fitz-George would look up , take out bis cane , solemnly call the boy up and thrash him then and there . "