The Triple Alliance

ss over many things which happened at the preparatory school, in order that full justice may be done to the

as a new boy, was regarded quite as an old and trusty comrade. Acton displayed marked favour towards the Triple A

by the humiliation of their mud bath, and for many m

s from war to love-making, and therefore I shall make no excuse for relating a little experience of

the dux; he seemed to take no interest in the doings of his companions in the playground, and only

shed found him sitting on the carpenter's bench, with his chin

! what

on had been repeated; then he sat up and straightened h

ore that I meant some day to propose to Miss Eleanor. Well," he

"to buy a ring with, but I can't make up my mind wheth

ter a moment's thought, "that the be

have you g

, here it is. Now, then, front you speak, and

ep in his trousers pockets, "what had I better say? I shall be fifteen i

says that," answered Jack Vance, k

ou say 'Dear Miss Eleanor,' or 'Dear Miss Welsby

o have a great idea of letting the fates decide these matters: "

ng, and let her have it to-morrow. Did you notice I gave

Jack Vance, "and she always wears them, either i

e rose, and a white rose

ll events, she'll have

when I give it her, on

word to an

gford, because he's one of the Alliance, and we've sworn n

a late hour discussing the situation. Mugford's

he'll acc

hy

I should think old Welsby

was prepared for the venture. He was wearing a clean collar and new n

nce; "only I promised I wouldn't say what was in it, but

which was to decide his future; and as soon as the classes were dismissed,

he was in the hall, and I gave it to her as I came

lapsed into silence, and stood with gloomy looks upon their faces

red Acton!" The dux turned a trifle pale, but pulling himse

" murmured Diggory; "

t up rough over the letter, she might have called him Mr. Acton. Hullo, here he comes!" As he spoke Acton emerged from the house, and came down the path towards them; his stra

ppened?" inqui

ans

?" cried Diggory;

embling with suppressed emotion: "she said I w

m on the spot. Diggory opened his eyes and mouth wide, and then exploded w

nishment; then he began to smile, Jack Vance commenced to

ou fellows," said the rejected suitor; "I

, you won't have to get the ring now, so you can do what you like with that five and ninep

er, "wait till you're as old as I am: when you're close on fiftee

famous supper club. About a week after the events happened which have just been described, Acton invited the Triple Alliance to meet the "House of Lords" in the work-shed, to disc

et-money is given out, and have a feed together; one time in your room, and the next in ours, after every one's gone to bed. You know I saved some money at the

ous offer, mingled with sympathy for the unhappy circumsta

e sea, and they used to go out and catch shrimps; and they only had one old coffee-pot, that they used to boil over the gas; so they cooked the shrimps in it first, and made the coffee after.

that we have on

ecognizing the mutual interest of the Triple Alliance, Jack Vance was appointed to a

and that is, I thought we might have, say, six bottles of ginger-beer. Then each man must take

eft all day in the "Main-top" was found drooping out of the perpendicular, and when the Triple Alliance retired to rest their bedroom felt like an oven. They were just dozing off to sleep, when

hispered Jack Vance; "wasn't

ething fell on the fl

g's rolled off eithe

gory and Mugford examined the room; but nothin

op.' I expect they dropped a book or upset a

ting on their clothes, when Mugford, who had just thrown aside a dirty collar, gave

! what

ottle of ginger-beer hasn't gone a

nds had managed to smuggle upstairs, under their jackets, a pork-pie, a plum-cake, a bag of

r members quite ready to commence operations. The good things were spread out on the top of a chest of drawers, and

I didn't get engaged. It must be rather a bore having to spend all your money in rings and that s

n at the proper time. For instance, eating this pork-pie at a table, with knife and fork and a plate, wouldn't be a quarter the fun it is having

a swell in his way, and among other things he'd got his jam put out in a flat glass dish. It was a fine feed, and they'd just begun, when they heard some one coming. They'd only just got time to turn out the gas and jump into bed before the door opened, and in came one of the masters called Weston. Well, of course, they all pretended to be asleep. But the master had heard them scrambling about, and he walked in the dark up the ais

leasantly enough, until full justice had been do

must be full," he continued, as he raised the sash; "it's nearly as light a

feet, and the light was

e others crowded round him. "You see the door at the bottom of the garden; well, just when I spoke some one op

ming back till to-morrow morning. Old Welsby went to bed hours ago; and, besides, what should eith

e's come home sooner than he expected, and I shouldn't wond

"because I've got the key of the she

away all traces of the feast; the Triple Alliance retired to their ow

pper club were inclined to regard Diggory's vision of the midnight intruder as a sort of waking nightmare, resulting

ut of the shed, and not putting them back. Last week I missed a saw and two chi

gards quantity and quality. Every one, however, denied having touched the things mentioned. A general searc

soon as dinner was over he called the school together, and after standing for som

y in joke; if so, let me tell him that the joke has been allowed to go too far, and that, unless they are returned at once, a shadow of doubt will be cast upon the honour and integrity of all here present. It is impossible for such large articles as a saw and a brace to be mislaid or lost on such small premises as these, and I trust

something in it caused every one to leave the room in a state of great

ked the latter; "and until those things are

a bull's-eye lantern belonging to himself had disappeared from the shelf on which it usually stood; while Mugford declared t

, of course, I've got the key of the shed; and didn't you hear what old Welsby said about it? It looks uncommonly as if I were the thief. You remembe

ou. It was a man; but whether he comes regularly and goes into th

ow

were asleep, the Triple Alliance lay awake engaged in earnest conversation; and in the morning,

lan to find out if any one g

's '

Sneak out of the house directly after evening 'prep,' and

down the path, and found Diggo

one will see it, and if they go through the door, the thread will simply draw out of one of the slits without their noticing it, and we shall see that it's been disturbed. Jack Vance says th

dust. Diggory went down on his hands and knees, and producing an old clothes-brush from his p

very night, and any morning if we find the cotton gone we must look here fo

ht to tell Blake about

walked back to

hall say, 'I did;' and then he'll want to know how I saw the playground door from my bedroom window, whi

o the playground to set their trap; but when morning came there was no sign of t

ng about it any more," said Acton; "

t," answered Diggory, "and

cton was sauntering tow

up the path in a stat

he cotton

ocked the door of the

d; "it is some man. Look at these footpri