ght then," Harry said; "here's the plan of campaign and General
Pershing himself couldn't plan it better. You're going home, that's
settled. Prodigal son, and all that stuff. But first you've got to be
discovered. Give us another light, will you? I put it to you from man to
man, or from tramp to _what-is-it, you can't go home without being
discovered._ You've got to come over our way and get yourself discovered.
These scouts need a shack to meet in and a lot of stuff. They want to give
their scoutmaster a welcome home. He was in the scrap same as you and I.
It all hangs on that hundred dollars, Jib. I'm sorry, but you'll have to be
the goat. That young fellow Gaylong is a double barrel scout and he's
trying to pull through with that outfit of kids. He wouldn't take a cent as
an ordinary present. I've got his number, Of course, if you've got the
instinct of a baboon that doesn't mean anything to you. But all over the
fences in this happy berg, Costello is wanting to know if you're human. You
can't show you're human just by taking off that bear skin and washing your
face. I want to know if you're _human_ or not."

"Run out and ask Costello for a couple of marvelous, matchless matches,
will you, Roy?"

CHAPTER XXXII

JIB JAB TURNS OUT TO BE HUMAN

So that's all I can tell you about their talk, because when I went back
Harry was waiting for us near the entrance. All I can tell you is what
happened. On the way back through the woods Harry wouldn't talk at all,
only he said that the scouts were a blamed nuisance and he guessed he'd go
and work in a circus. Gee whiz, I hope he doesn't. But, oh boy, he'd make a
dandy _what-is-it_.

When we got to camp there was a peachy big fire and they were all sitting
around it. Brent Gaylong was lying on his back, same way as he always did,
with his knees up.

"Move up and give us a chance here," Harry said; "we're tired." And he
squeezed right in between little Willie Wide-awake and another one of those
kids. "Regular sewing circle, huh?" he said. "Well, Bill old top, what did
you see in the blaze?"

"He's been seein' things," Brent said, kind of laughing.

"Get out--_no_," Harry said.

"I saw a transport," Willie Wide-awake said; "that long log looked like a
transport. Then it crackled and I didn't see it any more."

Harry said, "Torpedoed, I guess. Didn't see anything of that scoutmaster of
yours, did you?"

"I looked, but I didn't see him," Willie said.

"Down in the