"You must study Greek, Ellis. We get it from two words in the Greek, or from one word made up of two others, which mean _extreme_, or _beginning_ and _order_. In an acrostic the beginnings of the lines are arranged in order. Do you understand how we get that word now?" "Yes, sir." "Well, now, you would all like to know what this talk is for. I want every boy in school who can write, to bring an acrostic on his own name for his next composition." The boys groaned, and exclaimed, "They couldn't do it, they were sure; they couldn't _begin_ to do it!" "Yes, you can," said Mr. Burrows; "I don't give my scholars any work that they _can't_ do. You may quote it, or make it original, as you please; but I want every one of you to _try_." Johnny Thorpe, the smallest boy in school who could write, now seemed in trouble, and stretched up his arm to its full length. "Well, Johnny, what will you have?" asked his teacher. "If you please, sir, I don't know what you mean by quote." Mr. Burrows laughed pleasantly. "I must remember, I see, to speak plain English; I mean you may borrow your essay from a book, or a dozen books, if you like, so that you don't try to make us believe the thoughts are your own. You may write in poetry or not, as you please; but I want each to choose a subject, and stick to it better than Howard did just now. I have given you something to do that will keep you hard at work, but you will succeed at last." Tip went home in a tumult. What could he do? He had never written a composition in his life, having made it a point to run away from school on composition-day; but running away was done with now. It didn't seem possible that he could write anything: certainly not in such a new, queer way as Mr. Burrows wished them to. Supper and wood-splitting were hurried over for that evening, and Tip took his way very early to the seat under the elm-tree down by the pond. He wanted to think, to see how he should meet this new trouble; it was a real trouble to him, for he had set out to do just right, and he saw no way of getting out of this duty, and thought he saw no way of doing it. "There is no place on the road so dark but this lamp will light you through, if you give it a chance." This is what Mr. Holbrook had said when he gave Tip his Bible. And Tip had thought of his words very often, had already proved them true more than once; but he didn't see how it could help him now. He took it out, and slowly turned the leaves; it couldn't write his composition for him, that was certain. But oh, the bright thought that came to Tip just then! Why not find his acrostic in the Bible, and write it out? among so many, _many_ verses, he would be sure to find what he wanted. But then, how very queer it would be for _him_, Tip Lewis, to copy anything from the Bible! What would the boys think? What would Bob Turner say? Still, what else could he do? Besides his spelling-book and a worn arithmetic, it was the only book that he had in the world.