Parkhurst Boys, and Other Stories of School LifeReed, Talbot Baines
General
Parkhurst Boys, and Other Stories of School Life
Reed, Talbot Baines
Schools -- Fiction
We had an awful doing, as Bunker would call it--by the way, did he pull
off his tennis match against Turner on breaking-up day?--when we got to
Paris. The row at Holborn was a fool to it. Just fancy, they made Jim
and me open both our portmanteaux and hat-boxes before they would let us
leave the station! I can tell you, old man, I'm scarcely cool yet after
that disturbance, and if it hadn't been for Jim I guess they'd have
found out how a "Rug" can kick out! Jim says it's the regular thing,
and they collar all the cigars they can find. All I can say is, it's
robbery and cool cheek, and I wish you or some of the fellows would
write to the _Times_ or the _Boy's Own Paper_ and get it stopped. We
had to turn every blessed thing out on the counter, and pack up again
afterwards. It's a marvel to me how the mater stowed all the things
away. I couldn't get half of them back, and had to shove the rest into
my rug and tie it up at the corners like a washerwoman's bundle. Jim's
too easy-going by half. I'm certain, if he'd backed me up, we could
have hacked over the lot of them; and I shouldn't have lost that spare
pair of bags, which I forgot all about in the shindy. I hope there'll
be a war with France soon. We were jolly fagged when we got to the inn,
I can tell you. The old woman had got the pater's letter, so she
expected us. She's rather an ass, and must have been getting up her
English for our benefit, for she's called us "nice young Englese
gentilman" about a hundred times already.
I don't think Jim's got over the blues he had watching the English coast
yesterday. He's asleep still, so I'm writing this while I'm waiting for
him to come to breakfast. I shall not wait much longer, I can tell you.
Ta-ta! Remember me to any of the old crowd you see; also to your young
sister.
Yours truly, Thomas Hooker.
P.S.--By the way, see what your French dixy says for doughnut, and let
me know by return. We're going on to Switzerland in a day or two.
Paris, _August_ 6.
Dear Gus,--The dictionary word of yours won't wash here. We've tried it
all round Paris, and you might as well talk Greek to them. I don't
believe there's any word in the language for dough-nut. Jim's not bad
at French, either. We should be regularly floored if it wasn't for him.
And I expect they guess by his accent he comes from Rugby, for fellows
all touch their hats to him.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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