feel like
speaking.

"Say, fellows, if that isn't the grandest----" suddenly blazed forth
Greg.

"It's all right," nodded Tom.

"I'm going camping, if I can get any of you fellows to go with me,"
announced Dave Darrin.

"If your folks will let you, you mean," interrupted Hazelton.

"They will," Dave contended. "And so will yours, Dick."

"I--I hope so," sighed Dick, his eyes dancing. "I never before in my
life wanted to do anything as much as I now want to go camping."

"With the still woods, all snow-covered!" cried Dan enthusiastically.

"And the cold nights, with the great fire roaring up the chimney!"
supplied Greg.

"And some hunting!"

"And the jolly fun of cooking our own food!"

These youngsters, as they hurried along the street, were in grave danger
of being lost in the depths of their own excitement.

"Say, I wonder if there'd be any fishing out there--through the ice?"
demanded Harry Hazelton.

"There'd be some rabbit hunting, anyway," supplied Dan.

"If we can only get leave to go!" groaned Greg anxiously.

"See here, fellows," muttered Dick, halting suddenly. "We've simply got
to get that leave from our parents!"

"But how?" challenged Dan.

"That's what we've got to think out right now. And, by hookey! I believe
I have an idea. Fellows, we have ten dollars apiece."

"My mother will say that I must put that in bank," grunted Dan.

"Wait! Of course, with ten dollars apiece, we've got to consult our
parents as to how the money is to be spent," Dick went on. "Now, that is
a matter that will call for a little diplomacy. Some of what our
principal, Old Dut, calls 'finish'--no, '_finesse_.'"

"What's that?" Dan wanted to know.

"Oh, it's a Latin or a Greek word, or something of the sort, meaning to
put a fine edge on a piece of business," Dick explained tranquilly.
"What I mean is this, fellows: Each one of us will go home and show the
money to his father--his father only. Then each one of us will ask
permission to spend five dollars of the money on a present for his
mother, to be given to her to-morrow morning as a surprise. Then we'll
ask our dads for leave to use the other five dollars towards
provisioning our camp. Fellows, if you go about it the right way, I'm
sure you can each get leave for the camping expedition! I feel just
about sure on my own account."

"But how about our mothers?" inquired Dan dubiously.

"Don't you think the present will smooth the way with the mothers?"