joel, in such an emergency, wiped his black eyes and looked up sharply. david sank on the upper step.
“oh, no, tom,” cried joel, crowding in between beresford and the door, “it can't be. get out of the way; let me try.”
“it is—it is, i tell you,” howled tom in what was more of a whine, as he kept one eye out for john and his lantern. “the mean sneak has got the best of us, joe.” he set his teeth hard together, and his face turned white.
joe dropped the doorknob, and whirled off the steps.
“julius cæsar! where are you going?” began tom, as joel disappeared around the corner of the dormitory.
“he's gone to see if john is coming, i suppose,” said davie weakly.
tom, preferring to see for himself, skipped off, and disappeared around the angle. “oh—oh!”36 was what david heard next, making him fly from his step to follow in haste.
what he saw was so much worse than all his fears as tom gripped his arm pointing up over his head, that he screamed right out, “oh joe, come back, you'll be killed!”
“he can't come back,” said tom hoarsely. “he'd much better go on.” joel, more than halfway up the lightning conductor, was making good time shinning along. he turned to say, “i'm all right, dave,” as a window above them was thrown up, and a head in a white nightcap was thrust out.
“it's all up with him now; there's old fox,” groaned tom, ducking softly back over the grass. “come on, dave.”
but david, with clasped hands and white face, had no thought of deserting joel.
the person in the window, having the good sense to utter no exclamation, waited till joel was up far enough for her to grasp his arm. then she couldn't help it as she saw his face.
“joel pepper!”
“yes'm,” said joel, turning his chubby face toward her. “i knew i could get up here; it's just as easy as anything.”37
mrs. fox set her other hand to the task of helping him into the dimly lighted hall, much to joel's disgust, as he would much have preferred to enter unassisted. then she turned her cap-frills full on him, and said in a tone of great displeasure, “what is the meaning of all this?”
“why, i had to go out, mrs. fox.”
“why?”
“oh—i—i—had to.”
she didn't ask him again, for the matron was a woman of action, and in all her dealings with boys had certain methods by which she brought them to time. so she only set her sharp eyes, that dr. marks' pupils always called “gimlets,” full upon him. “go to your room,” was all she said.
“oh mrs. fox,” cried joel, trying dreadfully to control himself, and twisting his brown hands in the effort, “i—i—had to go. really i did.”
“so you said before. go to your room.” then a second thought struck her. “was any other boy with you?” she demanded suddenly.
joel gave a sharp cry of distress as he started down the hall, revolving in his mind how he would steal down and unlock the door as soon as the matron had taken herself off.38
“here, stop—come back here! now answer me—yes or no—was any other boy with you?” as joel stood before her again.
joel's stubby black curls dropped so that she couldn't see his face. as there was no reply forthcoming, mrs. fox took him by the arm. “you needn't go to your room, joel,” she said sharply. “you may go to coventry.”
“oh mrs. fox,” joel burst out, “don't—don't send me there.”
“a boy who cannot answer me, is fit only for coventry,” said mrs. fox with great dignity, despite the nightcap. “wait here, joel. i will get my candle, and light you down.” she stepped off to a corner of the hall, where she had set the candlestick on a table, when startled by the noise outside. “now we will go.”
it was impossible that all this confusion should not awake some of the boys in the hall; and by this time there was much turning on pillows, and leaning on elbows, and many scuttlings out of bed to listen at doors opened a crack, so that nearly every one of the occupants, on that particular hall soon knew that “old fox” had joel pepper in her clutches, and that he was being led off somewhere.39
and at last joel let it out himself. “oh mrs. fox—dear mrs. fox, don't make me go to coventry,” he roared. he clutched her wrapper, a big, flowered affair that she wore on such nocturnal rambles, and held it fast. “i'll be just as good,” he implored.
“coventry is the place for you, joel pepper,” said mrs. fox grimly; “so we will start.”
meanwhile david, holding his breath till he saw, in the dim light that always streamed out from the dormitory hall where the gas was left turned down at night, that joel was safely drawn in to shelter, frantically rushed around to the big door, in the wild hope that somehow admittance would be gained. “joe will come by and by,” he said to himself, sinking down on the steps.
“we're done for,” said tom's voice off in the distance.
“oh tom, are you there?” cried davie, straining his eyes to catch a glimpse.
“hush!” tom poked his head out from a clump of shrubbery. “don't you dare to breathe. i tell you, dave, our only hope is in staying here till morning.”
“oh dear me!” exclaimed david in dismay.
“oh dear me!” echoed tom in derision. it40 was impossible for him to stop talking, he was so keyed up. “it's paradise, i'm sure, compared to being in old fox's grip.”
this brought david back to joel's plight, and he sighed dismally, and leant his head on his hands. how long he sat there he couldn't have told. the first thing he did know, a big hand was laid on his shoulder, and a bright glare of light fell full on his face.
“oh my soul and body!” cried john, the watchman, bending over him, “if here ain't one of th' boys dead asleep on the doorsteps!”
“little goose, to sit there!” groaned tom, huddling back into his bushes. “now it's all up with him. well, i'll save my skin, for i don't believe those boys will tell on me.”
“coventry” was a small square room in the extension, containing a bed, a table, and a chair, where the boys who were refractory were sent. it was considered a great disgrace to be its inmate. they were not locked in; but no boy once put there was ever known to come out unless bidden by the authorities. and no one, of course, could speak to them when they emerged from it to go to recitations, for their lessons must be learned in the silence of this room. then41 back from the class-room the culprit must go to this hated place, to stay as long as his misdemeanor might seem to deserve.
it was so much worse punishment than a flogging could possibly be, that all dr. marks' boys heard “coventry” with a chill that stopped many a prank in mid-air.
but joel didn't get into “coventry” after all, for at the foot of the stairs, another candle-beam was advancing; and back of it was the thin, sharp face of mr. harrow, one of the under-teachers.
“oh mr. harrow,” screamed joel, breaking away from the matron, to plunge up to him, “she's going to put me into coventry. oh, don't make me go there; it will kill my mamsie, and polly.”
“hey?” mr. harrow came to a sudden stop, and whirled the candlestick around to get a better view of things. “what's this, mrs. fox? and joel pepper, of all boys!”
“i know it,” said mrs. fox, her candlestick shaking in an unsteady hand. “well, you see, sir, i was going upstairs to see if little fosdick had blankets enough; it's turned cold, and you know he's had a sore throat, and——”42
“well, come to the point, mrs. fox,” said the teacher, bringing her up quickly. joel clung desperately to his hand, shaking violently in every limb.
“oh, yes, sir—well, and i heard a noise outside, so i bethought me to look, and there was this boy climbing up the lightning conductor.”
“up the lightning conductor?” echoed mr. harrow.
“yes, sir,”—mrs. fox's cap-frills trembled violently as she nodded,—“joel pepper was climbing up the lightning conductor, sir. and i thought i should have dropped to see him, sir.”
the under-teacher turned and surveyed joel. “well, i think, mrs. fox,” he said slowly, “if he's been over that lightning conductor to-night, we won't put him in coventry.”
“he wouldn't answer when i asked him if any other boys were there,” said the matron, a dull red spot coming on either cheek.
“that's bad—very bad,” said mr. harrow. “well, i'll take joel under my care. do you go to bed, mrs. fox.”
it was all done in a minute. somehow mrs. fox never quite realized how she was left standing43 alone. and as there really wasn't anything else for her to do, she concluded to take the under-teacher's advice.
“now, joel,”—mr. harrow looked down at his charge,—“you seem to be left for me to take care of. well, suppose you come into my room, and tell me something about this affair.”
joel, with his heart full of distress about david and tom, now that the immediate cause of alarm over his being put into “coventry” was gone, could scarcely conceal his dismay, as he followed mr. harrow to his room. he soon found himself on a chair; and the under-teacher, setting his candlestick down, took an opposite one.
“do you mind telling me all about this little affair of yours, joe?” said mr. harrow, leading off easily. his manner, once away from the presence of the matron, was as different as possible; and joel, who had never met him in just this way, stared in amazement.
“you see, joe,” the under-teacher went on, and he began to play with some pencils on the table, “it isn't so very long ago, it seems to me, since i was a boy. and i climbed lightning conductors too. i really did, joel.”44
joel's black eyes gathered a bright gleam in their midst.
“yes, and at night, too,” said the under-teacher softly, “though i shouldn't want you to mention it to the boys. so now, if you wouldn't mind, joel, i should really like to hear all about this business of yours.”
but joel twisted his hands, only able to say, “oh dear! i can't tell, mr. harrow.” his distress was dreadful to see.
“well,” said the under-teacher slowly, “perhaps in the morning you'll feel better able to tell. i won't press it now. you must get to bed, joe,” with a keen look at his face.
“oh mr. harrow—would you—would you—” joel jumped out of his seat, and over to the under-teacher's chair.
“would i what?” asked mr. harrow in perplexity, wishing very much that “mamsie,” whom he had seen on her visits to the school, were there at that identical moment.
“would you—oh, might i unlock the—the back door?” gasped joel, his black eyes very big with distress.
“unlock the back door?” repeated mr. harrow. then he paused a moment. “certainly;45 i'll go with you.” he got out of his chair.
“oh, no, sir,” cried joel tumbling back, “i'll—i'll do it alone if i may; please, sir.”
“oh, no, joel, that can't ever be allowed,” mr. harrow was saying decidedly, when steps were heard coming down the hall, and there was john, the watchman, hauling david pepper along the dimly lighted hall to the extra gleam of the under-teacher's room.
“i found this boy asleep on the steps,” announced john, coming in with his charge.
“why, david pepper!” exclaimed mr. harrow in astonishment. then he turned a cold glance on joel, who flew over to davie's side.
“joel!” cried david convulsively, and blinking dreadfully as he came into the light. “oh, i'm so glad you're safe—oh, so glad, joey!” he hid his face on joel's arm, and sobbed.
“you may go, john,” said the under-teacher to that individual, who kept saying, “i found that boy asleep on the steps,” over and over, unable to stop himself. “and don't say anything about this to any one. i will take care of the matter.”
“all right, sir,” said john, glad to be relieved of all responsibility, and touching his cap. “i46 found that boy asleep on the steps,” he added as he took himself off.
“now, see here.” mr. harrow laid his hand on david's shoulder, ignoring joel for the time, and drew him aside. “the whole of this business must be laid before me, david. so begin.”
“oh dave!” cried joel, springing up to him. “oh, sir—oh, mr. harrow, it was all my fault, truly it was. david only came after me. oh mr. harrow, don't make him tell.”
“you go and sit down in that chair, joel,” said mr. harrow, pointing to it. so joel went, and got on it, twisting miserably.
“now, then, david.”
“you see,” said david, the tears still rolling down his cheeks, “that—oh dear!—joel was gone, and—”
“how did you know joel was gone?” interrupted the under-teacher.
“oh dear!” david caught his breath. “another boy told me, sir.”
“who?”
david hesitated. “must i tell, sir?” not trusting himself to look at joel.
“certainly.”47
“tom beresford.”
“ugh!” joel sprang from his chair. “he hadn't anything to do with it, sir. tom has been awfully good. he only told dave.”
“go back to your chair, joel,” said mr. harrow. “now, then, david, go on. so you went out with beresford to find joel, eh?”
“yes, sir,” said david faintly.
“any other boy?” asked the under-teacher quickly.
“no, sir.”
“well, then, tom is waiting out there, i suppose, now.” mr. harrow got out of his chair.
“he didn't have anything to do with it, sir,” cried joel wildly, and flying out of his chair again, “truly he didn't.”
“i understand.” mr. harrow nodded. “i'm going to bring him in. now it isn't necessary to tell you two boys not to do any talking while i'm gone.” with that he went over to a corner, took down a lantern, lighted it, and passed out.
when he came back, both joel and david knew quite well by tom's face, that the whole story was out; and joel, who understood as well as any one that floyd jenkins never by any possibility48 could be a favorite with instructors, any more than with the boys, unless he changed his whole tactics, groaned again at thought that he had made matters worse for him.
“now all three of you scatter to bed,” was all the under-teacher said as he came in with tom. “no talking now; get up as softly as you can. good night.”
