"You come here," said he, "not only to receive your bachelor's degree, which you could get just as well at Constantinople or Damascus or Smyrna, but in order to become good and upright Christian men. We desire that these years of study may be blessed for you, and that later, when you are struggling with the difficulties of life, you may always remember gladly the days you have spent with us here." He spoke well, and Archag's heart was touched by his words. How many good resolutions he made then, together with his comrades! The course of our story will show whether or not he kept them. When the speaker had finished, the boys stood up and sang one of their favorite hymns: "Rab der bisé Kaimi kala Fourtunada émin meldja. Oi Kayanin Kavourhounda Boulouroum her-den bir meldja." "The Lord is our strong fortress, A sure refuge in the storm, Beside this Rock I may always find a refuge." The Sophomores were to begin their work in Natural Science on this morning. The course was given by Professor Pagratian, who was also proctor of their class. "It's sheer luck that we have him for proctor," said Aram to Archag. "He's a saint come out from his church, an angel descended from heaven. Do you know, he has an aureole about his head like Sourp Hagob (Saint James) in my prayer-book; that's why he never takes off his fez. Last year we had fat Piralian, who is as harsh as a Turkish pasha. He used to make us fail just for the pleasure of it; he teaches English, for he spent several years in Yankeestan. [19] It was so cold down there his heart got frozen." The arrival of the professor interrupted the flow of Aram's nonsense; he then began to draw a caricature of Mr. Piralian, "Yankee Doodle," as he called him. Mr. Pagratian was a chilly little man, who kept his cloak wrapped about him in summer and winter. His face was partly hidden by a thick black beard, and a shabby old fez covered his meditative brow, but his luminous black eyes transformed him, banishing any thought of ridicule that might be suggested by his old-fashioned clothing. When these eyes, with their look of goodness, had once been fastened on one, they could never be forgotten. They laid bare one's soul, and seemed to expose one's bad thoughts only to drive them away and forgive them. And his voice--how it would thrill one, now stern and hard, now sweet and tender as that of a father talking with his child! He had a profound love for Natural History; his explanations were clear and interesting and the forty-five minutes in class passed all too quickly for Archag.