He came back to his classroom where three of his friends were looking for some paper to make paper chains.
'Something awful has happened,' he said and then told Darbishire, Temple and Atkinson the whole story.
'And his name under the portrait in big letters, too!' exclaimed Darbishire. 'What are you going to do?'
'It's a pity you made the drawing so funny,' said Atkinson. 'His ears are not as big as you made them, Jen.'
'And his eyes are not so big, either,' said Temple.
'And the words in the balloon about silly little boy! I can understand what he'll say when he sees it.'
'He mustn't see it,' Jennings cried. 'I must get my exercise-book back and rub out the picture while there is still time.'
But it was very difficult to do, of course. Nobody could tell when Mr Wilkins was going to correct the tests, when Jennings could rub out the drawing or when the staff room was empty and the teachers were in other parts of the building.
'I shall go to the staff room after tea with an eraser and knock on the door,' said Jennings.
'And what if there are any teachers there?' asked Darbishire.
'Then I shall - I shall...' Jennings thought' for a moment. 'I shall say something like:
Do they think the weather will be fine tomorrow. And then I'll go back and try again later.'
'And they may be there when you go back again. And you can't go all evening and ask them about the weather every five minutes,' said Atkinson.
'Well, you think of something better then,' said Jennings. 'All of you! All think of something.'
They thought!... And for some minutes they did not say a word. It was Jennings' fault, of course, but they wished to do all they could to help him.
'I think we must all help you,' said Temple.
'Thank you, but how?' asked Jennings
'One of us will go to the staff room,' Temple began to explain his plan, 'and if he finds that there are any teachers there, he will make his excuse and come back. Then the second one will do the same. Then the third. Then the fourth. But I'm sure one of us will succeed.'
The boys thought it was a good idea. They decided that Mr Wilkins was not going to correct the tests till the boys were in bed, because he was on duty that evening. So the best time for them was during the half hour, before the dormitory bell, when the teacher on duty usually walked round the building.
'That's what we'll do, then,' Jennings decided. 'We'll synchronize our watches, because we mustn't all go there at the same time, and we'll draw names out of a hat to see who goes first.'
So they wrote their names on pieces of paper and put them in a pencil-box (they had no hat). Then Jennings drew the pieces of paper.
'We'll go at five-minute intervals,' he said
'The first will knock on the door of the staff room at nineteen thirty-five.'
'What time is that?' asked Atkinson.
'Twenty-five minutes to eight, of course. If the staff room is empty he rubs out the drawing and reports to the others that he has done the work. If there is somebody there, of course, he makes his excuse and goes away, and the next one will go five minutes later.'
'I can never think of a good excuse when I need it,' said Darbishire.
'Then begin to think now,' said Jennings. 'It isn't difficult. One of us can ask him to sign his autograph book...'
'A very good excuse,' said everybody.
'...and somebody else can ask him...' For the moment he could not think of another good excuse. 'Well, somebody else can ask him something else; it doesn't matter what. The main thing is we all four go at different • times and all have different excuses. We must do it, by hook or by crook.'
The tea bell rang and the boys went to the dining hall. They all liked their plan which really was very good. But it was a pity that they did not have time to think of different excuses which they could use.
At half past seven that evening Mr Wilkins put his crossword puzzle on the table and stood up from his armchair. 'It's time for me to walk round the school and see what those boys are doing,' he said to Mr Hind who was also in the staff room.
'What if I ask you to change duties with me?' said Mr Hind. 'A friend of mine has invited me to the cinema tomorrow night when I must be on duty, and I'm looking for somebody to change duties with me.'
'All right,' agreed Mr Wilkins. 'It'll give me a chance to correct Form Three's geography test.' Mr Wilkins sat down again, and Mr Hind left the room. 'Form Three's geography test! Yes, of course, I'll begin it at once,' decided Mr Wilkins. He looked at the table and saw his unfinished crossword puzzle. 'Maybe I'll finish that first.'
He took the crossword puzzle from the table. The most difficult was number 17 down. He began to think what it could be.
Chapter Thirty-Six
Autograph hunt
At twenty-five minutes to eight there was a knock on the staff room door.
'Come in!' called Mr Wilkins.
The visitor was Temple. When he saw that the room was not empty he took an autograph book from his pocket.
'Please, sir, write something in my book, please, sir,' he asked.
That was not an unusual thing for Mr Wilkins.
'Do you only want my signature?' he asked.
'Yes, sir. Of course, you can write something else, if you like, sir,' said Temple. 'Something like, for example: By hook or by crook I'll be first in your book, sir.' , 'All right. Leave the book here. I'll do it later.'
Temple sadly went out of the room. It was too bad. Old Wilkie was there. But he had done what he could.
At twenty minutes to eight Mr Wilkins again heard a knock on the door. This time the visitor was Darbishire. He stood half in the room and half out of the door with an eraser in his hand.
'What's the matter, Darbishire? Do you want to see me?'
'N-no, sir. I didn't think you were here. sir.'
Mr Wilkins frowned. 'My dear boy, if you don't want to see me and you thought I wasn't here, why did you knock on the door?'
'I - I... just wondered whether you could write something in my autograph book.'
Mr Wilkins was surprised. Two boys asking him to write in their autograph books on one evening!
'You can write anything you like, sir, said Darbishire. 'Like: By hook or by crook I'll be first in your book.'
'I'm busy now,' answered Mr Wilkins. 'I certainly want to be first in your book. Bu1 you'll have to wait till I finish my cross - till I finish correcting your geography exercise-books.'
'Our geography exercise-books!' exclaimed Darbishire. 'You haven't corrected them, then, sir?'
'No, Darbishire, I haven't. And if any more people come and knock on the door. I'm sure, I shall not finish them this evening.'
'Excuse me, sir,' said Darbishire, put his autograph book on the table and left the room.
Five minutes passed during which Mr Wilkins could not find the answer to 17 down. He left it and began to think about 29 down.
Then Atkinson arrived. 'Oh, you are here, sir! I thought maybe there wasn't anybody here,' he said. 'I mean I thought you were on duty this evening.'
'Oh, I see,' Mr Wilkins said with a suspicion. 'And so you decided to come into the staff room to see what it looks like when it is empty, didn't you?'
'Oh, no, sir. I remember now. I really wanted to see you, sir.' He took an autograph book from his pocket. 'I wondered whether you could write something in this book for me, sir? Just something like: By hook or by crook I'll
