The New Schoolfellow
IT was a cold, wet January day on whi went back to school: a day quite in keeping with this severe phase of his destiny. If he had not carried in his pocket a parcel of sugar dy and a small Dutch doll for little Laura, there would have been no ray of expected pleasure to ehe general gloom. But he liked to think how Laura would put out her lips ainy hands for the bits of sugar dy, and, to give the greater keeo these pleasures of imaginatioook out the parcel, made a small hole in the paper and bit off a crystal or two, which had so solag an effeder the fined prosped damp odours of the gig-umbrella, that he repeated the process more than on his way. `Well, Tulliver, were glad to see you again, said Mr Stelling, heartily. `Take off your ings and e into the study till dinner. Youll find a bright fire there and a new panion.
Tom felt in an unfortable flutter as he took off his woollen forter and other ings. He had seen Philip Wakem at St Oggs, but had always turned his eyes away from him as quickly as possible. He would have disliked having a deformed boy for his panion even if Philip had not been the son of a bad man. And Tom did not see how a bad mans son could be very good. His own father was a good man, and he would readily have fought any one who said the trary. He was in a state of mingled embarrassment and defiance as he followed Mr Stelling to the study.
`Here is a new panion for you, to shake hands with, Tulliver, said that gentleman oering the study, - `Master Philip Wakem. I shall leave you to make acquaintance by yourselves. You already know something of each other, I imagine - for you are neighbours at home.
Tom looked fused and awkward while Philip rose and gla him timidly. Tom did not like to go up and put out his hand, and he was not prepared to say, `How do you do? on so short a notice.
Mr Stelling wisely turned away and closed the door behind him: boys shyness only wears off in the absence of their elders.
Philip was at ooo proud and too timid to walk towards Tom. He thought, or rather felt, that Tom had an aversion to looking at him: every one, almost, disliked looking at him; and his deformity was more spicuous when he walked. So they remained without shaking hands or even speaking, while Tom went to the fire and warmed himself, every now and then casting furtive gla Philip, who seemed to be drawing absently first one objed then another on a piece of paper he had before him. He had seated himself again, and as he drew was thinking what he could say to Tom, and trying to overe his o making the first advances.
Tom began to look oftener and lo Philips face, for he could see it without notig the hump, and it was really not a disagreeable face - very old-looking, Tom thought: he wondered how much older Philip was than himself. An anatomist - even a mere physiognomist - would have seen that the deformity of Philips spine was not a genital hump, but the result of an act in infancy; but you do not expect from Tom any acquaintah such distins: to him, Philip was simply a humpback. He had a vague notion that the deformity of Wakems son had some relation to the lawyers rascality, of which he had so often heard his father talk with hot emphasis; and he felt too a half-admitted fear of him as probably a spiteful fellow, who, not being able to fight you, had ing ways of doing you a mischief by the sly. There was a humpbacked tailor in the neighbourhood of Mr Jacobs Academ