on this particular morning. O'Hara would then so arrange matters with
Mr Banks that they could meet in the passage at that hour, when O'Hara
wished to impart to his friend his information concerning the League.

O'Hara promised to be at the trysting-place at the hour mentioned.

He did not think there would be any difficulty about it. The news that
the League had been revived meant that there would be trouble in the
very near future, and the prospect of trouble was meat and drink to the
Irishman in O'Hara. Consequently he felt in particularly good form for
mathematics (as he interpreted the word). He thought that he would have
no difficulty whatever in keeping Mr Banks bright and amused. The first
step had to be to arouse in him an interest in life, to bring him into
a frame of mind which would induce him to look severely rather than
leniently on the next offender. This was effected as follows:--

It was Mr Banks' practice to set his class sums to work out, and, after
some three-quarters of an hour had elapsed, to pass round the form what
he called "solutions". These were large sheets of paper, on which he
had worked out each sum in his neat handwriting to a happy ending. When
the head of the form, to whom they were passed first, had finished with
them, he would make a slight tear in one corner, and, having done so,
hand them on to his neighbour. The neighbour, before giving them to
_his_ neighbour, would also tear them slightly. In time they would
return to their patentee and proprietor, and it was then that things
became exciting.

"Who tore these solutions like this?" asked Mr Banks, in the repressed
voice of one who is determined that he _will_ be calm.