Billy Bunter's Benefit By Frank Richards - Friardale

Billy Bunter’s Benefit
By Frank Richards
to palm off as your own!”
“Oh, crumbs!” breathed Bob Cherry.
“Oh, scissors!”
“Ha, ha, ha!”
It was a serious moment. Quelch looked fearfully serious. But the juniors
really could not help it. The idea of Bunter seeking to palm off as his own,
verses which every master at Greyfriars knew by heart, was too much for
them. They yelled.
“Ha, ha, ha!”
“Silence!” roared Mr. Quelch. “This is not a laughing matter! Silence, I
say.”
The laughter died away. But many faces were grinning. The juniors
seemed to think that it was a laughing matter, if Quelch didn’t.
“Bunter—!”
“Oh, lor’!” I
I can make allowances for your unusual obtuseness— for your almost
incredible stupidity. This attempt to deceive me is so childish, so
infantile, that I must make some allowance for such almost unbelievable
foolishness. But I can make no allowance for dishonest intention, Bunter.
I shall cane you with the utmost severity for that.”
“Oh, crikey!”
Quelch slipped the cane from under his arm into his hand.
“Bunter! Bend over that chair!”
“I—I say, sir—.”
“Do you hear me, Bunter?”
“I—I never—I—I didn’t—it—it—it wasn’t me, sir—!” stuttered Bunter.
“Bend over!” thundered Mr. Quelch, in a voice that made Bunter jump.
Billy Bunter bent over the chair, with dire anticipations. His direst
anticipations were more than realised.
Swipe! Swipe! Swipe!
“Yow-ow-ow-ow-ow!” roared Bunter.
Swipe!
“Yaroooh!”
Swipe!
!Yooo-hoooooooop!”
SWIPE!
Quelch put his beef into it. Immemorial custom prescribed “six” as the
limit. Quelch kept to the six: but every one was a swipe, and the last
swipe was really terrific. Billy Bunter’s frantic roar woke every echo in
the Rag.
“Now, Bunter—.”
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