Why, they were twice the friends they were before! Twice! Fifty times! And they laughed and talked and made fools of themselves for a whole half-hour over the discovery, and might have done so for an hour, had not Stephen, who had patiently remained outside for a reasonable time, now returned to join in the celebration. "Stee, you young beggar," said Wraysford, as the boy entered, "if you don't have my tea piping hot to-night, and fresh herrings for three done to a regular turn, I'll flay you alive, my boy. And now, if you're good, you may come and kick me!" Stephen, overflowing with joy, and quite rickety with emotion, flew at his old friend, and, instead of kicking him, caught hold of his arm, and turning to his brother, cried, "Oh, Noll! _isn't_ this prime? Why, here's old Wray--" "That beast Wraysford," suggested the owner of the title; "do give a fellow his proper name, young 'un." This little interruption put Stephen off his speech; and the three, locking the study-door, settled down to talk rationally, or, at any rate, as rationally as they could, over affairs. "You see," said Wraysford, "I can't imagine now what possessed me to make such a fool of myself." "Now you needn't begin at that again," said Oliver. "If I hadn't cut up so at that jackass Simon, when he began about my being in the Doctor's study that evening, it would never have happened." "Bah! any one might have known the fellow was telling lies." "But he wasn't telling lies," said Oliver. "I _was_ in the Doctor's study all alone that evening, and at the very time the paper went too. That's just the queer thing about it." "You were?" exclaimed both the boys, for this was news even to Stephen. "Yes, of course I was. Don't you know I went to see him about Stephen, and that row he had up at the Lock?" "Oh, yes," said Stephen, "I remember. I was in a regular blue funk that evening." "Well, the Doctor wasn't there. I hung about a few minutes for him, and then, as he didn't turn up, I left, and met that old booby just as I was coming out of the door." "And he's gone and told everybody he saw you coming out with the paper in your pocket." Oliver laughed loud at this. "Upon my word, the fellow must have sharp eyes if he could do that! Well, I was so disgusted when he came up after the examination, and began to insinuate that I knew all about the missing paper, that--Well, you know how I distinguished myself." "It would have served him right if you'd throttled him," observed Wraysford. "But I say, Noll," added he more gravely, "why on earth, old man, didn't you say all this then? What a lot of unpleasantness it would have saved." "What!" exclaimed Oliver, suddenly firing up, "do you suppose, when the fellows all chose to believe that miserable idiot's story, I was going to stir a finger or bother myself a snap about what they thought? Bah! I'm not angry now, Wray; but, upon my word, when I think of that time--"