Then the professor broke the string with which the bundle was tied, and calling up his assistants, handed them several papers each to distribute. They were the papers from the printer containing the fatal questions. CHAPTER V. ONE OF THE MISSING PAPERS. Three or four minutes passed while the assistants were distributing some papers. Then one of them approached the professor and said: "I need two more for my section, sir." "Well," said the professor, looking around the room, "if you're short two, somebody must have two to spare." Nobody said anything. "Which of you," asked the professor of his assistants, "has two more papers than necessary." No one answered. Prof. Babbitt looked very savage. "I counted that bundle of papers just as soon as it came from the printers," he said, sharply, "and there was just the number called for. The printers never make a mistake, and I'm sure they haven't this time." Still there was silence in the room. "Gentlemen," said the professor, this time addressing the students, "see if any of you have an extra paper accidentally stuck to the one on your desk; there must be two spare papers here somewhere in the room." Every student took up his paper, felt of it, shook it, but without result; the room was certainly two papers short, and two students sat, therefore, with nothing to do. The professor frowned. "I'm certain," he exclaimed, "that I made no miscount. Mr. Jackson," turning to one of the assistants, "count the students here." Mr. Jackson counted and found that there were one hundred and forty-six. "That's it," said Prof. Babbitt, "and I had one hundred and forty-six papers. This is very extraordinary." He glared savagely about the room, his glance resting longest upon the desk where Merriwell sat. Frank was already busily engaged in working out the first problem. Most of the other students had already gone to work, but some of them were idly watching to see what the professor was going to do, and hoping that he would postpone the whole examination. This may have been in his mind; but if so, he thought better of it. "We shall have to go on," he said, presently. "I will write out two papers for those who are short." He did so, and in the course of a few minutes all the students were at work. Frank could not help but smile when, after a rapid glance at the problems on the paper, he saw that he had hit exactly the subject chosen by the professor to floor him. The questions were all confined to the one topic which he and his friends had been studying on. "Now, unless they lose their heads," he thought, "they'll all write a perfect paper." He had previously warned them not to be in a hurry during the examination. According to the custom at Yale a written examination of this kind lasts for three hours, that is, three hours is the longest time during which any student is allowed to work at the problems.