omes natural to you!"
exclaimed Tom. "But I have to plug away at it, and when I get through I
know less than when I started."

"And as for me," broke in Chet, "I can read a page all right in the
original, but when I come to translate I can make two pages of it in
English, and have enough Latin words left over to do half another one.
No, Swipes, it won't do; I've got to do some boning."

"Aw, forget it. Come on to a show. There's a good movie in town this
week. I'll blow you fellows. Some vaudeville, too, take it from me.
There's a pair who roll hoops until the stage looks like a barrel
factory having a tango dance. Come on. It's great!"

"Well, a movie wouldn't be so bad," admitted Tom. "It doesn't last until
midnight. What do you say, fellows?"

"Oh, I don't know," came from Andy, uncertainly.

"I'll go if you fellows will," remarked Frank.

"Oh, well, then let's do it!" cried Tom. "I guess we won't flunk
to-morrow. We can burn a little midnight electricity. Let 'er go!"

And so they went to the moving picture show. It was like others of its
kind, neither better nor worse, with vaudeville acts and songs
interspersed between the reels. There was a good attendance, scores of
the Milton lads being there, as well as many persons from the town and
surrounding hamlets.

Our friends found seats about the middle of the house. It was a sort of
continuous performance, and as they entered a girl was singing a song on
a well-lighted stage. Andy glanced about as he took his seat, and met
the gaze of Link Bardon. He nodded at him, and the young farmer nodded
back.

"Who's that--a new fellow?" asked Harry, who was next to Andy.

"Not at school--no. He's a hired man we found being beaten up by an old
codger of a farmer when we walked out this afternoon. We took his part
and made the farmer trot Spanish. I guess Link is taking a day off with
the wages we got for him," and he detailed the incident.

The show went on. Some of the students became boisterous, and there were
hisses from the audience, and demands that the boys remain quiet. One
lad, who did not train in the set of Andy and his friends, insisted on
joining in the chorus with one of the singers, and matters got to such a
pass that the manager rang down the curtain and threatened to stop the
performance unless the students behaved. Finally some of the companions
of the noisy one induced him to quiet down.

Following a long picture reel a girl came out to sing. She