ten minutes to nine
And with that Cadbury marched out of the housemaid 's cupboard with his hands in his pockets . Prayers were followed by early prep. , and early prep. , by breakfast , without a word on the subject uppermost in the minds of so many . The day-boys arrived , and saw at once that something was up , though what they could not make out . But at ten minutes to nine Mr. Peace entered the room with an excited air , and announced that all the boys were to stand together as at drill . Mr. West wished to speak to them . -LSB- Illustration -RSB- The head appeared almost immediately , and ordered the occupants of the two rooms , headed by Hallett and Trevelyan , to stand in front . He began with a short , studied preface about `` an unpleasant duty '' and `` flagrant breach of rules '' ; then gave a brief _ résumé _ of what had taken place , and proceeded to personal enquiries .