“Not I,” said East.  Then with an effort he went on, “I’ll tell you what it is.  I never stop the Sacrament.  I can see, from the Doctor downwards, how that tells against me.”

“Yes, I’ve seen that,” said Tom, “and I’ve been very sorry for it, and Arthur and I have talked about it.  I’ve often thought of speaking to you, but it’s so hard to begin on such subjects.  I’m very glad you’ve opened it.  Now, why don’t you?”

“I’ve never been confirmed,” said East.

“Not been confirmed!” said Tom, in astonishment.  “I never thought of that.  Why weren’t you confirmed with the rest of us nearly three years ago?  I always thought you’d been confirmed at home.”

“No,” answered East sorrowfully; “you see this was how it happened.  Last Confirmation was soon after Arthur came, and you were so taken up with him I hardly saw either of you.  Well, when the Doctor sent round for us about it, I was living mostly with Green’s set.  You know the sort.  They all went in.  I dare say it was all right, and they got good by it; I don’t want to judge them.  Only all I could see of their reasons drove me just the other way.  ’Twas ‘because the Doctor liked it;’ ’no boy got on who didn’t stay the Sacrament;’ it was the ‘correct thing,’ in fact, like having a good hat to wear on Sundays.  I couldn’t stand it.  I didn’t feel that I wanted to lead a different life.  I was very well content as I was, and I wasn’t going to sham religious to curry favour with the Doctor, or any one else.”

East stopped speaking, and pegged away more diligently than ever with his pencil.  Tom was ready to cry.  He felt half sorry at first that he had been confirmed himself.  He seemed to have deserted his earliest friend—­to have left him by himself at his worst need for those long years.  He got up and went and sat by East, and put his arm over his shoulder.

“Dear old boy,” he said, “how careless and selfish I’ve been.  But why didn’t you come and talk to Arthur and me?”

“I wish to Heaven I had,” said East, “but I was a fool.  It’s too late talking of it now.”

“Why too late?  You want to be confirmed now, don’t you?”

“I think so,” said East.  “I’ve thought about it a good deal; only, often I fancy I must be changing, because I see it’s to do me good here—­just what stopped me last time.  And then I go back again.”

“I’ll tell you now how ’twas with me,” said Tom warmly.  “If it hadn’t been for Arthur, I should have done just as you did.  I hope I should.  I honour you for it.  But then he made it out just as if it was taking the weak side before all the world—­going in once for all against everything that’s strong and rich, and proud and respectable, a little band of brothers against the whole world.  And the Doctor seemed to say so too, only he said a great deal more.”