Since that time, he had never been happy when any one was in earshot of a lesson; but to-day he had no escape--Harry lay on the rug reading, and Ethel sat forlorn over her books on the sofa.

Tom, however, was bright enough, declined his Greek nouns irreproachably, and construed his Latin so well, that Ethel could not help putting in a word or two of commendation, and auguring the third form.

"Do let him off the parsing, Ritchie," said she coaxingly--"he has said it so well, and I want you so much." "I am afraid I must not," said Richard; who, to her surprise, did not look pleased or satisfied with the prosperous translation; "but come, Tom, you shan't have many words, if you really know them." Tom twisted and looked rather cross, but when asked to parse the word viribus, answered readily and correctly.
"Very well, only two more--affuit ?" "Third person singular, praeter perfect tense of the verb affo, affis, affui, affere," gabbled off Tom with such confidence, that though Ethel gave an indignant jump, Richard was almost startled into letting it pass, and disbelieving himself.

He remonstrated in a somewhat hesitating voice.

"Did you find that in the dictionary ?" said he; "I thought affui came from adsum." "Oh, to be sure, stupid fool of a word, so it does!" said Tom hastily.
"I had forgot--adsum, ades, affui, adesse." Richard said no more, but proposed the word oppositus.
"Adjective." Ethel was surprised, for she remembered that it was, in this passage, part of a passive verb, which Tom had construed correctly, "it was objected," and she had thought this very creditable to him, whereas he now evidently took it for opposite; however, on Richard's reading the line, he corrected himself and called it a participle, but did not commit himself further, till asked for its derivation.
"From oppositor." "Hallo!" cried Harry, who hitherto had been abstracted in his book, but now turned, raised himself on his elbow, and, at the blunder, shook his thick yellow locks, and showed his teeth like a young lion.
"No, now, Tom, pay attention," said Richard resignedly.