Arthur proceeds to read out the passage in Greek before construing it, as the custom is.  Tom, who isn’t paying much attention, is suddenly caught by the falter in his voice as he reads the two lines—­

[greek text deleted]

He looks up at Arthur.  “Why, bless us,” thinks he, “what can be the matter with the young un?  He’s never going to get floored.  He’s sure to have learnt to the end.”  Next moment he is reassured by the spirited tone in which Arthur begins construing, and betakes himself to drawing dogs’ heads in his notebook, while the master, evidently enjoying the change, turns his back on the middle bench and stands before Arthur, beating a sort of time with his hand and foot, and saying; “Yes, yes,” “Very well,” as Arthur goes on.

But as he nears the fatal two lines, Tom catches that falter, and again looks up.  He sees that there is something the matter; Arthur can hardly get on at all.  What can it be?

Suddenly at this point Arthur breaks down altogether, and fairly bursts out crying, and dashes the cuff of his jacket across his eyes, blushing up to the roots of his hair, and feeling as if he should like to go down suddenly through the floor.  The whole form are taken aback; most of them stare stupidly at him, while those who are gifted with presence of mind find their places and look steadily at their books, in hopes of not catching the master’s eye and getting called up in Arthur’s place.

The master looks puzzled for a moment, and then seeing, as the fact is, that the boy is really affected to tears by the most touching thing in Homer, perhaps in all profane poetry put together, steps up to him and lays his hand kindly on his shoulder, saying, “Never mind, my little man, you’ve construed very well.  Stop a minute; there’s no hurry.”

Now, as luck would have it, there sat next above Tom on that day, in the middle bench of the form, a big boy, by name Williams, generally supposed to be the cock of the shell, therefore of all the school below the fifths.  The small boys, who are great speculators on the prowess of their elders, used to hold forth to one another about Williams’s great strength, and to discuss whether East or Brown would take a licking from him.  He was called Slogger Williams, from the force with which it was supposed he could hit.  In the main, he was a rough, goodnatured fellow enough, but very much alive to his own dignity.  He reckoned himself the king of the form, and kept up his position with the strong hand, especially in the matter of forcing boys not to construe more than the legitimate forty lines.  He had already grunted and grumbled to himself when Arthur went on reading beyond the forty lines; but now that he had broken down just in the middle of all the long words, the Slogger’s wrath was fairly roused.

“Sneaking little brute,” muttered he, regardless of prudence—­“clapping on the water-works just in the hardest place; see if I don’t punch his head after fourth lesson.”