, Chub, but I don't want to go on bounds just when the
Hammond game is coming along. It's only a week, you know. You take my
advice and be good."

"I can't be good--to-day. I feel too kittenish," added Chub with a
gurgle of laughter. "There goes the bell. Will you come?"

"Yes, but won't fish."

"Oh, pshaw! Yes, you will. I'll borrow a rod for you anyhow."

And Chub slipped out of bed and scampered downstairs again.

At three o'clock two boys sauntered idly away from school in the
direction of the river. One of them held himself rather stiffly and his
side pocket bulged more than usual. But there was no one to notice these
trivial things. Once on the river bank they doubled back and struck
inland toward the Silver Cove road, Chub leading the way.

"Gee!" he said, "I'll be glad when I can take these poles out! They're
mighty uncomfortable."

"Did you bring two?" asked Roy.

"Sure! When you see the way those trout bite you'll want to take a hand
yourself. I borrowed Tom's. Otto Ferris had to come nosing around and
saw it, but he won't tell. If he does I'll make him wish he hadn't!"

"He might tell Horace," said Roy uneasily. "If Horace thought he could
get me into trouble he'd do it mighty quick."

"Oh, he's a back-number," answered Chub gaily. "This way, over the fence
and across the pasture; it's only about a quarter of a mile from here."

Soon they were treading their way along the bank of a fairly wide brook,
pushing through the alders and young willows. After a while Chub stopped
and jointed his pole.

"You're going to fish, aren't you?" he asked.

Roy shook his head.

"No, especially since there's a chance that Ferris will tell Horace. I
don't want to get hung up for the Hammond game. You go ahead, if you've
got to, and I'll watch."

"All right, if you won't. What's that?"

He started and turned, peering intently through the bushes.

"Thought I heard someone," he muttered.

"Hope it wasn't Cobb or Buckman," said Roy fervently.

"Oh, they don't spy," answered Chub, selecting a grey fly from a pocket
of the book that had swelled his pocket. "Well, here goes for that nice
black place over there where the little eddy is."

The line flashed in the air and fell softly into the shadowed water.
After that Chub seemed to forget Roy's presence entirely. Roy leaned
back with hands clasped behind his head and watched; that is, he watched
for a while; then his eyelids closed and with the babble of the str