's days. She had large, floppy, limp collars specially
made for me, of the pattern worn by boys in her youth; every
single article of my unfortunate equipment had been obsolete for
at least thirty years. In my ignorance, and luckily not knowing
what was in store for me, I felt immensely proud of my new kit.
On the first Sunday after my arrival at school, I arrayed myself
with great satisfaction in a big, floppy collar, and my new velvet
tunic, amidst the loud jeers of all the other boys in the
dormitory. I was, however, hardly prepared for the yells and howls
of derision with which my appearance in the school-room was
greeted; my unfortunate garments were held to be so unspeakably
grotesque that boys laughed till the tears ran down their cheeks.
As church-time approached the boys produced their high hats, which
I found were worn even by little fellows of eight; I had nothing
but my terrible tasselled velvet cap, the sight of which provoked
even louder jeers than the tunic had done. We marched to church
two and two, in old-fashioned style in a "crocodile," but not a
boy in the school would walk beside me in my absurd garments, so a
very forlorn little fellow trotted to church alone behind the
usher, acutely conscious of the very grotesque figure he was
presenting.
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