The Mill on the Floss Book the 1st Chapter III - Mr Riley Gives His Advice Concerning a School for Tom

In which Mr Tulliver, with the resolute air of a man determined to secure his son’s future beyond the mill and fields, confides in the affable Mr Riley about his intention to place Tom at a proper school, stirring a tender and protective response in young Maggie. Mr Riley, blending good-natured officiousness with a dash of local knowledge, recommends the Reverend Stelling—an Oxford-educated clergyman whose genteel tutelage promises to refine Tom’s education and prepare him for the world’s perplexities.