"I was in the second book of the Anabasis."

"You will go into the first class, then. I hope you will become one
of the ornaments of the institute."

"Thank you. Is the first class under Mr. Smith?"

"No; I teach the first class," said Crabb, with a modest cough.

"I thought the principal usually took the first class himself?"

"Mr. Smith comes into the room occasionally and supervises, but he
has too much business on hand to teach regularly himself."

"Is Mr. Smith a good scholar?" asked Hector.

"Ahem!" answered Mr. Crabb, evidently embarrassed; "I presume so.
You should not ask Ahem! irrelevant questions."

In fact, Mr. Crabb had serious doubts as to the fact assumed. He
knew that whenever a pupil went to the principal to ask a question
in Latin or Greek, he was always referred to Crabb himself, or some
other teacher. This, to be sure, proved nothing, but in an unguarded
moment, Mr. Smith had ventured to answer a question himself, and his
answer was ludicrously incorrect.

The schoolroom was a moderate-sized, dreary-looking room, with
another smaller room opening out of it, which was used as a separate
recitation room.