you could kill wild animals and dress them."

"Dress them!" exclaimed the boys in surprise.

"Yes, cut them up for packing, as we do cattle. Do you see this butcher
knife?" and he held it up to view.

The triplets did not like the look of the butcher and his knife. They
were anxious to move on and let the three strangers finish their sleep
in the grass, but this was not the wish of their new acquaintances.

"I will tell you what we will do," said the butcher after the three had
talked a moment in a low tone. "We are not far from a village where we
intend begging food. We will each take one of you boys to help, and when
we reach the end of the village we will divide what we have begged."

"No, we have never done that," cried Fritz. "We will not go from door to
door holding out our hands."

"No, we cannot do that, but we will each give you a nickel," said Paul
quickly, for he noticed frowns upon the faces of the strangers.

"Agreed!" said the three in a breath, and, rising to their feet, they
held out their hands.

Paul and Franz gave out their share immediately, but Fritz fingered so
long that the gold-piece fell out, and was seen by the three pairs of
eyes. Fritz picked it up quickly and replaced it in his purse, and the
three nickels were in the grimy hands of the strangers, who set out for
the village.

"You should not have let that butcher boy see your gold-piece," said
Paul. "We are traveling the same way, and we don't know what they are
planning. The thief in Frankfort got your money out of your pocket with
smooth words, but this butcher boy might take a shorter way."

"Let us lose no time in getting out of their path," advised Franz. "I
believe the better plan would be to take a train home."

"Oh, no!" objected Fritz; "the Trojans would never get done laughing
at us. It is bad enough that we have ridden part of the way, when we
boasted so much of taking the whole trip on foot."

"But Paul is right about that butcher boy. I believe that he would stick
a boy as willingly as he would a calf."

"I will tell you my plan," said Paul. "Those three tramps have taken
the main road; we will take the forest, and walk along where we can see
them, and they cannot see us. Then if they strike off in another
direction we will come out in the road again."

"That is a first-rate plan," said Fritz; "and it will be so cool and
pleasant in the woods."

The boys now took a long look at the apprentices, fearing they wo