Page:Dave Porter in the South Seas.djvu/67

Rh "Open the door, or I shall break in!" thundered Doctor Clay, and then the door was thrown open and Job Haskers stood there, a look of misery on his face and trembling from head to foot.

"What is the trouble?" asked the doctor.

"The ram—he butted me—knocked me down—nearly killed me!" spluttered the assistant teacher.

"The ram—what ram?"

"He's gone now—hit the window and jumped out."

"Mr. Haskers, have you lost your senses?"

"No, sir. There was a ram in this room—in the closet. I heard him, and opened the door—I—oh! I can feel the blow yet. He was a—a terror!"

"Do you mean a real, live ram?" questioned Andrew Dale, with a slight smile on his face—that smile which made all the boys his friends.

"I should say he was alive! Oh, it's no laughing matter!" growled Job Haskers. "He nearly killed me!"

"An' did he go through the winder?" asked Pop Swingly, as he stepped to the broken sash.

"He did—went out like a rocket. Look at the wreck of the table! I am thankful I wasn't killed!"

"How did the ram get here?" asked Doctor Clay.