“No,” she said, “they would never have done anything like that; but I’m sure they would have thought you were making too much of the whole affair; and that would have hurt your feelings.” So we left it in that way, and I not merely forgave Aunt Augusta, but thanked her for saving me from what might have been a considerable peril and very likely damaged my future prospects in the Apollo. When the great evening actually did come, only about a dozen sporting clerks, including Mr. Blades and Dicky Travers, dropped in to see the presentation, and Mr. Septimus Trott, in about six well-chosen words, handed me my bat and congratulated me on winning it. In return I merely said: “Thank you, sir. I’m very glad to have had such luck.” It was like those rather dreadful accounts of hangings, when you read that from the moment of pinioning till the drop fell was a period of less than two minutes. Not one of the meagre handful of clerks who attended the ceremony need have feared to miss his train; and doubtless they were well aware of this before they came to the ceremonial. On the whole, I wasted a good deal of valuable time and thought on this subject, and shall never regard it as one of the most satisfactory things that happened to me during my first year in London. In fact, it was rather sad in a way, though very satisfactory from a purely sporting point of view. XIV Just as my first year in London was drawing to a close I received the gratifying news from Mr. Westonshaugh that I might take a holiday of a week’s duration. Naturally, my first idea was to go out of town, and Aunt Augusta reminded me that Doctor Dunston had said he would like to entertain me as a guest at Merivale when the opportunity offered.