"You know best, but I should advise you to be careful. What's the rag?" He shot his cuffs down and stroked his upper lip, as he always did when he was going to say anything which he thought interesting. "Dennison is getting it up, which means that it will be jolly well done. He has found out that Thornton knows nothing, so he is teaching him a lot. To begin with, he has invented a society called 'The Hedonists,' which is supposed to get pleasure out of anything extraordinary, and he has filled up Thornton with the idea that he is the very man to be President if we can get him elected." "Does he believe all that?" "He believes it all right; Dennison is splendid at that sort of thing. But we must make some opposition, or Thornton might think it was too easy a job, so we are getting Webb to stand against Thornton, and Dennison and I want you to propose him. We thought it would be a chance to show that you didn't mean all that rot you talked about us last year." "I meant every word of it," I replied, but Lambert shook his head. "Really you didn't," he said. "Dennison declares that you hate smugs and prigs and the sort of men who wear red ties and baggy trousers. Besides, you have fair rows with the dons yourself. You are made to enjoy yourself; that's all about it, and it is time some benefactor told you so." "I shan't have anything to do with this rag; it seems to be playing a pretty low-down game on a fresher, and if I can stop it I shall. Tell Dennison that from me," I replied. Lambert got up and put his fingers into the pockets of his waistcoat. "Don't be a fool, Marten," he said sadly, "if you had thought of this yourself you would have been delighted with the idea; it's so funny." "Ask Jack Ward to help you." "Ward! Between ourselves Dennison and I think that Ward is rather a bounder." "I'll tell him; he will be glad to hear it." "You make me ill; can't you see that this is too good to miss?" "You'd better leave this wretched lunatic alone; but if you stand there talking until you spoil the pockets of your waistcoat I shan't help you." He took his fingers from his pockets and rearranged his tie. "You disappoint me greatly," he said, and strode out of the room. Our footer match that afternoon was against Oriel, who play soccer better than rugger, so we beat them without much trouble. Fred didn't play for them, because the captain of the 'Varsity team objected to his team playing in college matches, but he watched the game and came back to tea with me afterwards. I wanted to give him a cheque for the fifty pounds I still owed him, for I had just got my year's allowance, and I thought I ought to pay him. But he would not listen to what I said, and only tore up my cheque when I gave it to him. "It's no use," he said, "you will only be short at the end of the year." That, I knew, was the truth, for economy was a thing which evaded me, however zealously I pursued it.