The Island School — page 126: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

THE RULING OF GROBY. Mr. Groby went through the action of swallowing something disagreeable, and turning to Mrs. Farrell, resumed : | “The boys who absented themselves from school without leave have returned. Their names are Morse, Terry, Ganthony, and Felton. As I have already told you, they induced Romeo to go with them, but he being a simple-minded negro, [ think we may pass over his misconduct. The boys must, however, be punished, if only to deter the rest from following their example.” “T hope you are not going to beat them >” said Mrs. Farrell, in a helpless manner. “Tt is not my intention to do so,” replied Mr. Groby. “shall merely curtail their hberty, compel them to keep within certain bounds for a time. I trust you will approve of that?” | “Oh!” cheerfully exclaimed Mrs. Farrell, “there is nothing in that. What do you say, Eveline ?” “ Nothing, mamma!” was the answer. “Then I may assume,” said Mr. Groby, “ that I am at liberty to do as I please in this matter P” He did not wait for any further assent, but left the room. Mrs. Farrell addressed Eveline in a somewhat acrid tone. “T wish you would be more civil to Mr. Groby,” she said. “‘T do not like him,” answered Eveline. “Now that your papa has deserted us, we have nobody else to look up to.” “1 think it would have been better if Mr. Groby had gone with papa.” _Mrs. Farrell burst into tears. “Was ever any woman troubled as I am?” she wailed. “‘ What a husband and daughter lL have! It is enough to break my heart!” “‘T am sorry, mamma, that I vex you,” said Eveline, “because I do not intend to do so, You have been very much upset, and your nerves are unstrung, or you would be able to see things asI do. If I do not like Mr. Groby, I cannot help it.” “He merely wishes to punish unruly boys.” “If the boys had not been what he calls unruly, we should now be in the hands of those horrible men. It was their leaving school without permission— although Jim—that is, Gordon—says that he had the tacit permission of Mr. Groby—which led to our rescue. I think that, if on no other account, mamma, we might have overlooked their breach of discipline.’ But Mrs. Farrell, instead of answering in a direct way, merely continued to sob and wail and bemoan her lot, and Eveline, wearying of it, left her. Meanwhile Mr. Groby summoned the delinquents into his presence, and informed them that “ Mrs. Farrell” had decided upon restricting their outdoor movements fora week. They could go fifty yards to 103 the right of the house, and fifty yards to the left, but no further, and on no account were they to enter the temporary prison-house of Jim Gordon. “And if you do not give your word to keep within bounds, you will be confined to the house,” concluded Mr. Groby. ““T regret to say, sir,” said Morse, ‘that I cannot give my word.” | “ Not give your word ?” “No, sir. Once outdoors, the temptation to go beyond the bounds specified would be irresistible.” “Then you will be confined to the class-rooms,” said Mr. Groby, hotly. ‘ What say the rest of you 2” They echoed the words of Morse, because, now that Jim was laid by the heels, for some heurs, at least, Morse was their leader. Obeying the mandate of Mr. Groby, they marched off to the class-room. He shortly followed them up and locked the door. “That secures them,’ he muttered, windows are barred.” The boys heard the click of the lock, and Terry turning to Morse, asked him what his reason was for refusing to accept a little liberty, which he thought was better than none. “ Because I should be obliged to keep within bounds which I do not intend to do now. Groby has some scheme in his head, and he wants to be free from our interference.’ “ You guess that much?” suggested Ganthony. “T do. The man is completely changed. He is another Groby altogether. Now, let us see what chance we have of getting out here when we have a mind to.” The windows of the class-rooms looked out both back and front, and together they ran quite across the house. It was to the windows at the back that Morse turned his attention. It will be remembered that some time before Mr. Farrell had set Martin to work preparing the iron bars for all the chief windows of the house, and in due time they were fixed. They were bars of the ordinary class, with flattened turned-in tops and bottoms, and perforated with a single hole apiece for a screw. Morse had a pocket screw-driver attached to his knife, with which he set to work loosening the screws of one of the bars that covered the opening portion of a window. It was a tough job, and some of the wood under the bar had to be carefully scraped away ere he could loosen the screw. : But it was done at last, and the first being removed a little wriggling of the bar loosened the upper one, and the second screw was taken out without the least difficulty. ‘Tt is all we need do for the present,” said Morse. “for the 3,00 (Ole) mn ‘Ss a (@( 0)