how you that I can put up jobs, too, ef you think it is so
much fun."

Now Brie cheese is somewhat soft, so much so that it many times adheres
slightly to whatever it touches. Tom had rashly taken it up in his
fingers, and now, while breathing forth malice and threats against Bob,
he chanced to put his fingers up to his mouth. This brought them again
in close proximity to his nose.

"Gewhopper!" yelled Tom, as he thrust his hand into his trousers pocket
with a view to better protecting his nose. "I wouldn't er thought this
of you, Bob Hunter!"

Both Bob and Herbert were convulsed with laughter, and were holding
their sides from pain.

From the fact that they laughed so uncontrollably, and that they did
not deny his charge, Tom felt sure that he had been made the butt of
a foul joke, and he resented it spunkily. This of course only made the
situation more ridiculous, and the more Tom said, the harder Bob and
Herbert laughed. At length, however, Bob quieted down sufficiently to
remark:

"Tom, listen to me. You're the biggest fool I ever see."

"Yes, you think you've made a fool of me, don't you, Bob Hunter? But you
hain't, for I got on to your game before I got any er that durned stuff
into my mouth."

"Oh, don't you be so ignorant, Tom Flannery. The trouble is with you,
you're a chump, you don't know nothin' about livin' at high toned places
like this is."

"No, nor I don't want to nuther, Bob Hunter. Ef that stuff is what you
call high toned livin', why I don't want no more of it in mine.
I'll----"

In the excitement of the conversation, Tom forgot to keep his hand
housed up longer in his pocket, and now the tips of his fingers
unconsciously found their way close to his nose again.

This was what caused Tom to break off his sentence so abruptly. He
didn't say anything for a minute, but he looked a whole volume of
epithets.

Herbert and Bob started in on another round of laughter that still
further irritated Tom.

"I'm goin'," said he, slinging his napkin savagely upon the table; "I
won't stand this business no more, Bob Hunter."

"Sit down, Tom," commanded Bob; "there's more to come yet. You hain't
had no coffee yet, nor nuts and raisins."

Tom immediately replaced the napkin in his lap, and pulled up to the
table again. Coffee, nuts and raisins! Oh, no, Tom Flannery couldn't
allow his grievance to deprive him of these luxuries!

"Now, Tom," said Bob, "I jest want to show you that you've made a
foo