uff made me ill all day."

"Impossible, dear boy!" gasped Purt.

"I believe it's as Lance says," said Laura, gravely. "And Purt sets a
very bad example for the other boys."

"Sure!" grinned her brother. "We're all likely to run off and send for a
thousand monogrammed cigarettes."

"What! what!" cried Jess. "Did Purt buy a _thousand_?"

"I--I had to, Miss Josephine, to get the monogram printed on the
wrapper, you know."

"Come," said Laura, still with a serious air. "We must decide what is to
be done with this culprit, girls."

"I think he should not be allowed to associate with any of the girls of
Central High," said one of the twins.

"Or with the boys, either," suggested Lance.

"His example _is_ dreadfully bad," said Jess.

"Weally! I assure you----" panted Purt, wrigging all over, and not quite
sure whether the girls meant it, or were "rigging" him.

"Have you any more of those nasty cigarettes with you?" demanded Laura,
sternly.

Purt, looking greatly abashed, hauled out a saturated case of seal
leather and displayed nine of the pulpy looking things.

"So you only smoked one of them to-day?" was the next demand.

"And he only just got that lit when the vapor from the gasoline caught
fire. Like to have burned him to death," grunted Chet.

"That single smoke was certainly a very expensive one for you, Master
Purt," declared Laura. "For perhaps it has cost you your motor-boat At
least, it has cost you more than the whole thousand cigarettes were
worth. Kindly throw those disreputable looking things away!"

Purt obeyed instantly by tossing case and all into the lake.

"Ugh! now you'll poison the fish," complained Jess.

"Never mind the fish," said Laura, still intent upon the victim. "Now,
Purt, how many cigarettes have you left at home?"

"Oh--I--ah----"

"Do not prevaricate!" commanded the girl. "Answer at once."

"Why--I--I have most of the thousand left," admitted Purt.

"Say! you always carry around a full case to flash on the fellows--I see
you," cried Lance.

"Ye--es," admitted Purt.

"Tell the truth, sir! How many of the horrid things have you left at
home?"

Purt looked up at her, blinked a couple of times, swallowed like a toad
that has snapped up a live coal, and then blurted out:

"Nine hundred and ninety!"

At that a howl of laughter went up from the crowd.

"And--and you--you've nev--never smoked even _one_?" gasped Laura, at
last.

"Not until to-day," replied the sad