When told to construe a passage read out not two minutes before by one of the upper boys, they knew nothing about it, and feared it was too hard for their overwrought capacities; and when pinned down where they sat to the acquirement of some short rule or passage, they explained sorrowfully that that had not been Mr Moss's method.

In divinity they raised discussions on questions of dogma, and so subtly evaded challenge on questions of Greek Testament construction and various readings.

In history they fell back on a few stock answers, which rarely possessed the merit of having any connection with the questions which they pretended to satisfy.

But the gapers were men of peace, after all.

They rarely insisted upon their own opinion, nor did it offend them to be told they were wrong.
The noisier element were less complacent; it is true, they never did a lesson through, or construed a sentence from one end to the other.
Still, when they took the trouble to "mug" a question up, they expected to be believed.