She
looked harassed and ill; was in vain endeavouring to exert some
authority with her gentle voice. Her eyes showed unmistakable
gratitude as the teacher appeared, for his approach meant that she
would be relieved from the three elder children. Waymark called
sharply to his pupils to come and take their places, but without any
attention on their part. Master Felix openly urged the rest to
assume a defiant attitude, and began to improvise melodies on a
trumpet formed by rolling up a copy-book.
"Felix," said Miss Enderby, "give me your copy-book and go to the
drawing-lesson."
The boy removed the trumpet from his mouth, and, waving it once
round his head, sent it flying across the room at the speaker; it
hit her on the cheek. In the same minute, Waymark had bent across
his knee a large pointer which stood in a corner of the room, and
had snapped it into two pieces. Holding the lighter of these in one
hand, with the other hand he suddenly caught Master Felix by the
coat-collar, and in a second had him out of the room and on to the
landing. Then did the echoes of the Academy wake to such a bellowing
as they had probably never heard before. With a grip impossible even
to struggle against, Waymark held the young imp under his arm, and
plied the broken pointer with great vigour; the stripes were almost
as loud as the roarings.
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