At the end of a week the happy thought struck Ripon that a subscription should be made to buy a new dictionary. The amount was a serious one, as they found that the book could not be purchased under two guineas; but every boy subscribed to his last farthing. Some promised their pocket-money for weeks in advance; others wrote home to their parents to ask for money, and in ten days the boys had the satisfaction of seeing Ripon at the commencement of school walk up to Mr. Porson's desk and present him with the handsome volume in the name of all the boys. Ripon had taken some pains in getting
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up an appropriate speech, and it was voted a great success.
" Mr. Porson," he said, " in the name of ail the boys in the school I beg to ask your acceptance of this volume. It cannot have the value to you of that which you have lost, as that was a prize; but we hope, that as a proof of the respect and affection which we all have for you, and as a token of our appreciation of your very great kindness towards us, you will accept it in place of the other."
Mr. Porson's face lit up with pleasure.
" My boys," he said, " I am very highly gratified at this proof that I have succeeded in my endeavour to make you feel that I am your friend as well as your master, and I shall value your gift far more highly than my college prize. That was simply the result of my own labour; this is a proof of kindness and affection on your parts. I shall value it very greatly all my life. And now, as I don't think you will be able to pay much attention to your work this morning, and as I have been for some days awaiting an opportunity to go over to York, where I have some pressing business, I shall start at once, and can just catch the stage, and shall get back in time for school to-morrow morning, so you will have the day to yourselves."
With a shout of pleasure the boys started off for a long day in the cricket-field, while Mr. Porson hurried away to catch the stage-coach for York.
CHAPTER VI.
THE THIEF DETECTED.
tVWrtirWi
j]R. PORSON was in his place next morning having returned only half an hour before school began; he looked fagged, and he was scarcely so attentive as usual to the lessons his thoughts seeming to be elsewhere.
"He seems regularly done up with his journey," Ripon said as the boys came out of school.
" I think he is upset about something," Ned remarked. " Sometimes he hardly seemed paying attention to what was going on, and he did not speak as cheerfully as usual. I noticed a sort of change in his voice directly he began. I hope nothing wrong has occurred, we were getting on so jollity."
When afternoon school began Mr. Porson placed on the
desk before him a packet done up in brown paper.
"Boys," he said, "I have got my book again."
An exclamation of surprise and pleasure burst from the
boys. The mystery had weighed heavily on the school, and
a look of eager curiosity came over every face to hear how
the book had been recovered. " It was found in a bookseller's shop in York," Mr. Porson went on. "I myself had inquired at Leighton's here, but with little hope of finding it, for no one who stole it would have disposed of it so near home. I then wrote to several friends in the large towns, and one of them, a clergyman at York, wrote to me two days ago to say that just such a book as I had described was on sale in the window of one of the booksellers there. It was a second-hand copy, but in excellent preservation. The fly-leaf was missing. On going over yesterday I found that it was my book, and was able to prove it by several marginal notes in my handwriting.
" The bookseller said at once that it was sent him by a general dealer at Marsden who was in the habit of picking up books at sales in the neighbourhood and sending them to him; he had given eighteen shillings for it. This morning I have called upon the man, whose name is White, accompanied by a constable. He admitted at ence that he had sent the book to York, and said that he bought it from some one about a month ago. His customer came late, and as White is short-sighted, and there was only a tallow-candle burning in the shop, he said that he should not know him again, and could say nothing about his age; however, I shall call him in; he is now outside with the constable. I am sure that for your own sakes you will not object to his taking a look at you."
Mr. Porson went to the door, and the constable and White entered. The chief constable, when Mr. Porson had called upon him to ask for one of his men to accompany
him to the dealer's, had told him that White bore a very bad reputation. He was suspected of being the medium through whom stolen goods in that part of Yorkshire were sent up to London for disposal. A highwayman who had been caught and executed at York, had in his confession stated that this man had acted as his go-between for the disposal of the watches and other articles he took from travellers, and White's premises had then been thoroughly searched by the constables; but as nothing suspicious was found, and there was only the unsupported confessions of the highwayman against him, he had got off scot-free. " I don't think you will get anything out of him, Mr. Porson," the constable said. "The fact that he has been trusted by these fellows shows that he is not a man to peach upon those with whom he deals; and in the next place he would know well enough that if any one were convicted of stealing this book he would be liable to a prosecution as receiver; and though we could scarcely get a conviction against him, as we could not prove that he knew that it was stolen, it would do him no good."
The boys all stood up in a line. " I will look at 'em, sir," White said; "but, as I have told you, I should not know the man as I bought that book from, from Adam. Anyhow none of these little ones couldn't be he. If it weren't a man, he were as big as a man. You don't suppose an honest tradesman would buy an expensive book like that from a kid."
So saying he placed a pair of horn spectacles on his nose and walked round the line.
* I don't see any one here whose face I ever see before as far as I knows; but bless you, the man as I bought it of, might have had hair all over his face, and I be none the wiser looking at him across that counter of mine in the dark."
"Thank you," Mr. Porson said; "then it is of no use troubling you further. I have got my book back; but I confess that this affords me but small gratification in comparison to that which I should feel if I could unravel this mystery."
The discovery of the book reopened the interest in the matter, and nothing else was talked of that evening in the playground.
"Ripon," Ned said, putting his arm in that of the head-boy, " I want to tell you a thing that has been in my mind for the last three weeks; mind, I don't say that there's anything in it, and I hate to think harm of any one. There is another thing; he and I ain't good friends. If it hadn't been for that I should have spoken to you before; but I was afraid that it would look like a piece of dirty spite on my part; but I do think now that as head-boy you ought to know, and I want your advice whether I ought to say anything about it or not."