After he had read for about a quarter of an hour he fell into a doze.

* * * * *

Sledge arrived at the rooms about half-past ten, and an ugly sight met his eyes.  There had been an accident.  The picture over the chimney-piece had fallen down right on Ferrol.  His face was badly cut.  They put Ferrol to bed, and his wounds were seen to and everything that was necessary was done.  A nurse was sent for to look after him, and Sledge decided to stay in the house all night.  After all the arrangements had been made, the doctor, before he went away, said to Sledge:  “He will recover all right, he is not in the slightest danger; but I don’t know who is to break the news to him.”

“What is that?” asked Sledge.

“He will be quite blind,” said the doctor.

Then the doctor went away, and Sledge sat down in front of the fire.  The broken glass had been swept up.  The picture had been placed on the Oriental divan, and as Sledge looked at the chimney-piece he noticed that the little Ikon was still in its place.  Something caught his eye just under the low fender in front of the fireplace.  He bent forward and picked up the object.

It was Ferrol’s green Egyptian god, which had been broken into two pieces.

THE THIEF

To Jack Gordon

Hart Minor and Smith were behind-hand with their sums.  It was Hart Minor’s first term:  Smith had already been one term at school.  They were in the fourth division at St. James’s.  A certain number of sums in short division had to be finished.  Hart Minor and Smith got up early to finish these sums before breakfast, which was at half-past seven.  Hart Minor divided slowly, and Smith reckoned quickly.  Smith finished his sums with ease.  When half-past seven struck, Hart Minor had finished four of them and there was still a fifth left:  3888 had to be divided by 36; short division had to be employed.  Hart Minor was busily trying to divide 3888 by 4 and by 9; he had got as far as saying, “Four’s into 38 will go six times and two over; four’s into twenty-eight go seven times; four’s into eight go twice.”  He was beginning to divide 672 by 9, an impossible task, when the breakfast bell rang, and Smith said to him:  “Come on!”

“I can’t,” said Hart Minor, “I haven’t finished my sum.”

Smith glanced at his page and said:  “Oh that’s all right, don’t you see?  The answer’s 108.”

Hart Minor wrote down 108 and put a large R next to the sum, which meant Right.

The boys went in to breakfast.  After breakfast they returned to the fourth division schoolroom, where they were to be instructed in arithmetic for an hour by Mr. Whitehead.  Mr. Whitehead called for the sums.  He glanced through Smith’s and found them correct, and then through Hart Minor’s.  His attention was arrested by the last division.

“What’s this?” he demanded.  “Four’s into thirty-eight don’t go six times.  You’ve got the right answer and the wrong working.  What does this mean?” And Mr. Whitehead bit his knuckles savagely.  “Somebody,” he said, “has been helping you.”