“The boys will please form themselves in a line,” said the teacher, in a clear, commanding voice.

This was done.

The positions assumed were, most of them, far from military.  Some stood with their legs too far apart, others with one behind the other, some with the shoulders of unequal height.  Frank alone stood correctly, thanks to the private instructions he had received.

“Now, boys,” said Mr. Morton, “when I say ‘attention!’ you must all look at me and follow my directions implicitly.  Attention and subordination are of the first importance to a soldier.  Let me say, to begin with, that, with one exception, you are all standing wrong.”

Here there was a general shifting of positions.  Robert Ingalls, who had been standing with his feet fifteen inches apart, suddenly brought them close together in a parallel position.  Tom Wheeler, who had been resting his weight mainly on the left foot, shifted to the right.  Moses Rogers, whose head was bent over so as to watch his feet, now threw it so far back that he seemed to be inspecting the ceiling.  Frank alone remained stationary.

Mr. Morton smiled at the changes elicited by his remarks, and proceeded to give his first command.

“Heels on the same line!” he ordered.

All the boys turned their heads, and there was a noisy shuffling of feet.

“Quit crowding, Tom Baldwin!” exclaimed Sam Rivers in an audible tone.

“Quit crowding, yourself,” was the reply.  “You’ve got more room than I, now.”

“Silence in the ranks!” said the instructor authoritatively.  “Frank Frost, I desire you to see that the boys stand at regular distances.”  This was accomplished.

“Turn out your feet equally, so as to form a right angle with each other.  So.”

Mr. Morton illustrated his meaning practically.  This was very necessary, as some of the boys had very confused ideas as to what was meant by a right angle.

After some time this order was satisfactorily carried out.

“The knees must be straight.  I see that some are bent, as if the weight of the body were too much for them.  Not too stiff!  Rivers, yours are too rigid.  You couldn’t walk a mile in that way without becoming very tired.  There, that is much better.  Notice my position.”

The boys, after adjusting their positions, looked at the rest to see how they had succeeded.

“Don’t look at each other,” said Mr. Morton.  “If you do you will be certain to make blunders.  I notice that some of you are standing with one shoulder higher than the other.  The shoulders should be square, and the body should be erect upon the hips.  Attention!  So!”

“Very well.  Haynes, you are trying to stand too upright.  You must not bend backward.  All, incline your bodies a little forward.  Frank Ingalls is standing correctly.”

“I don’t think that’s very soldierly,” said John Haynes, who felt mortified at being corrected, having flattered himself that he was right and the rest were wrong.