Mr. Harmer took away both the batteries, and the coil as well, while Walter and Steve slunk away, feeling very small at the failure of their little joke.
“Walter,” said Steve, “what will Mr. Cottenham say to-night if you tell him that you have not brought your batteries?”
“Let’s ask Mr. Harmer just to give them back to us for this once; perhaps he will,” suggested Steve.
“I know he won’t,” replied Walter. “Whatever he says he always sticks to, so it would not be any good.”
Walter was quite right in his opinion of Mr. Harmer, as he was a man who did stick to what he said. If he said a boy should do an imposition, all the tears and entreaties in the world would not move him.
After the roll-call Mr. Harmer set the boys their lessons, and then called Alfred up to him.
Alfred left his seat and went up to the master.
“Do you know that you left your sum-book on the desk when you went away yesterday with Dr. Phillips?”
“Please, sir, I am very sorry, but I quite forgot all about it. I won’t do it again, sir.”
“Do you know what the imposition is for leaving books about?”
“Then you must do three sums. I never excuse a boy.”
“Do you know any other reason why I called you here?”
“No, sir,” replied Alfred, not remembering having done any wrong.
“Just think a minute,” said the master, looking at him very closely. “Doesn’t your conscience tell you the reason?”
“Please, sir,” said Alfred, ready to cry, “I don’t know anything wrong that I’ve done. I don’t really, sir.”
“Look at this sum. Tell me how many seven and nine make?”
“I am sorry, sir, I was so careless. I really will try not to do so again.”
“You have made another mistake in the same sum. You have added the farthings up incorrectly, and have put one halfpenny, when it should be three farthings.”
“I have not yet finished, Davidson,” continued Mr. Harmer. “What is strangest of all is, that your result, thus incorrectly done, should be the right answer. If you had added up the figures correctly, your answer would have been wrong. That is very strange, is it not?”
“Do you know that I don’t allow any boy to use an arithmetic book with answers at the back of the book?”
“How dare you stand there and tell me that falsehood? Do you see this?”
The master held up a page of answers, evidently torn out of an arithmetic book, which had all the answers at the back.