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School Day Scrape Of Lord Lorne

School Day Scrape Of Lord Lorne image
Parent Issue
Day
7
Month
March
Year
1879
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

At Elton Lord Lorne was already noted f or his seriousness of demeanor. He did not board at any tutor"s or dame's, but lodged witli his brother, Lord Archibald Campbell, and his cousin, Lord llonald Leverson Gower, at the house in the High-street opposite the "Christopher." Here they lived very quietly, dispensing no hospitality and joining but little in school games. Sometimes they played flves, and more rarely football; but they were very seldom seen either on the river or in the playing fields. Their private tutor, Mr. L , was a jovial burly layman, tal] as a life-guarsdman, wlio grounded them well in mathematica and modern languages, but did not cram them much with classics, so that none of his pupils ever took good places in the school trials. Lord Lorne could always construe fairly when "called up," he wrote fair verses, was never late for school, "absence," or chapel, and was altogethera mild, well-conducted boy, who only once stood in any danger of being chastised by the head-master. His one scrape occurred in connection with an idventure about a white rat. Lord Lorne was standing on the steps of Upper .School one morning, waiting for eleven o'clock school, when one Campbell, a namesake of his, but no relative, asked him to hold a rat for a moment, while he - the owner of the beast - ran back to his dame's to fetch a book which he had forgotton. Onreceiving the assurance that the rat was perfectly tamo, and would not even hite a kitten, Lorne put it into the pocket of his jacket, and told the owner to make liaste, but just at that moment the masters came out of "Chambers" and ascended the staircase, so Lome was (ibliged to go into school with the brute. All went well for five minutes, but Boon the rat, indifferent tothéhonor of inhabiting a marquis' pocket crept out and jumped on to the iloor. Some b ; :;; ,v it and set up a titter, which excited the attontipn of the form-master, Mr. Y , nicknamed "Stiggins," a strict disciplinarían. "Who brought that rat into school V" he asked. Lorne confessed that he was the culprit. "Well, make haste to catch him and carry him out, or I shall complain of you," said Mr. Y . My lord laid down his Homer. but to catch the rat ras not easy. Seeing himself an object of general attention, the animal dartod under the scarlet curtain which separated one división from another, and, rushlng aniid a new lot óf boys, provoked an aproar. In the minute all the boys in the upper school-room, some two hundred and odd, were on their feet shouting, laughing, hooting, and preparing to throw their books at the rat, who, however, sparéd tliem tliis trooble liy ducking down i lio,-, where he disappeared for good and a'. Lorne had come back, red and breathless, declaring that his game had eluded pursuit; whereupon Mr. Y., who disliked riots, proceeded to make out a "bilí" which consigned his lordship after school to the care of the Sixth Form Prseposter. Luckily Dr. Goodford took a merciful view of the affair, and, as Lorne had not yet had "flrst fault," absolved him from kneeling on the block. It is to be noted that Lorne might easily have exonerated himself by expla'ning under what circumst anees he had taken charge of the rat ; but he was not the kind of boy to back out of a scrape by betraying a friend, and if Dr. Goodford had refused him the benefit of a first fault, he would certainly have taken his flogging without a murmur. An artist who, instead of satisfying the highest demands of his art, tries to suit bimself to the great public, will neyer become an extraordinary mind. It is true, as regards the ordinary race of artists, we need take no lantern to look for them - they stand at the corner of every street throughout the world

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Subjects
Old News
Michigan Argus