A Day of Punishment 



appeared at a loss. He had had an excel- 

 lent dinner, and the rage of the passionate 

 man had subsided into the purely profes- 

 sional severity of the schoolmaster. 



'' Who told you to get up there again ? " 

 he said. " I desire that another time you 

 will await my orders before you do anything 

 of the kind. Come down at once ! " 



I thought at the time, he said this that I 

 might make my ludicrous and difficult 

 descent before the boys, and I hated him 

 accordingly ; but I know now that it was 

 from motives of humanity, for I must have 

 looked very pale, I fancy. He set me 

 a copy : " Honour thy Father and thy 

 Mother," he said, reading the words aloud 

 in a slow and meaning manner, and bade 

 me take and write it at a desk standing 

 apart from all the others. It quite failed 

 in making the desired impression. I felt 

 little fear of curtailing the length of my 

 days in the land by my conduct of that 

 morning, for Mary was only a sister ; and 

 as I took the book from his hand I was 

 moved with secret scorn to think how wide 

 of the mark he was. 



Many years later I held in my hands for 

 half an hour a florid but beautiful fifteenth- 

 century missal, and as I looked I realised 

 that in this way of cunning fantastical line 



