shan't we!"

"Fishing! How are you going to fish without any rod and line? Expects
me to find 'em for yer, I s'pose!"

"No, but I thought you would catch the fish, and I could light a fire
and cook them."

"Oh, that's what yer thought, was it? Well, p'r'aps we shall, and
p'r'aps we shan't."

"Do you think they will come after us!" ventured Dexter, after a time.

"Sure to, I should say; and if they do, and they kitches us, I shall say
as it was you who stole the boat."

"No, you won't," said Dexter, plucking up a little spirit now he was
getting more himself. "You wouldn't be such a sneak."

"If you call me a sneak, I'll chuck you out of the boat," cried Bob
angrily.

"I didn't call you a sneak, I only said you wouldn't be such a sneak,"
protested Dexter.

"I know what you said: yer needn't tell me, and I won't have it, so now
then. If you want to quarrel, you'd better get out and go back."

"But I don't want to quarrel, Bob; I want to be the best of friends."

"Then don't yer call me a sneak, because if you do it'll be the worse
for you."

"Oh, I say, Bob," protested Dexter, as he tugged away at his oar, "don't
be so disagreeable."

"And now he says I'm disagreeable!" cried Bob. "Well of all the chaps
as ever I see you're about the nastiest. Look here, do you want to
fight? because if you do, we'll just go ashore here and have it out."

"I don't want to fight indeed, Bob."

"Yes, you do; you keep egging of me on, and saying disagreeable things
as would have made some chaps give you one for yourself ever so long
ago. Lookye here, only one on us can be captain in this here boat, and
it is going to be either me or you. I don't want to be, but I ain't
going to be quite jumped upon, so we'll get ashore here, and soon see
who it's going to be."

As Bob Dimsted spoke in a low snarling way, he gave his scull so hard a
pull that he sent the boat's head in toward the bank.

"First you want one thing, and then you want another, and then you try
to make out that it was me who stole the boat."

"I only said it wasn't me."

"There," cried Bob, "hark at that! Why, who was it then?" Didn't you
take yer clothes off and swim over while I stood t'other side?

Dexter did not answer, but went on rowing with a hot feeling of anger
rising in his breast.

"Oh, so now you're sulky, are you? Very well, my lad, we'll soon see to
that. If you don't know who's best man, I'm going to show you. It's
dark, but