Railsford." Mr Bickers was hardly the man to neglect the opportunity afforded by this letter for a crushing reply; and accordingly he spend a pleasant hour that same afternoon in concocting the following polite rejoinder:-- "_February_ 1.
"Dear Railsford,--Many thanks for your note just to hand.

I can quite believe that the version of yesterday's proceedings which you are disposed to credit, given by your prefects (two of whom were absent, and the other two participators in the disturbance), differs materially from my own.

Such diversities of opinion are not uncommon in my experience.
As to the management of your house, I assure you in what I did yesterday I had no intention of assisting you.

In fact, you were not there to assist.

It was because you were not, that my duty to the school suggested that I should attempt to do what you would have done infinitely better, I am aware, had you been on the spot.