280

XX. THE STRANGER 294

XXI. THE CONCLUSION 308

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

PAGE

I DON'T WANT TO FIGHT 71

I DID NOT KNOW IT WAS THERE 150

TIM SEIZED AN OAR 217

YOU MUST COME WITH ME 279

THE BOAT CLUB
OR
THE BUNKERS OF RIPPLETON

CHAPTER I

THE FOURTH OF JULY COMING

"How much money have you got, Frank?" asked Charles Hardy of his friend
Frank Sedley.

"Four dollars and seventy-five cents."

"That is more than twice as much as I have. Won't you have a glorious
time?"

It was the evening of the third of July, and the two boys were counting
the money they had saved for Independence. Captain Sedley, the father
of Frank, had promised to take him and his friend to Boston to attend
the celebration; and they had long looked forward to the event with the
liveliest anticipations of pleasure.

"I don't know, Charley," replied Frank Sedley, as he slid the money
into his purse; "I was thinking of something else."

"What, Frank?"

"I was thinking how poor the widow Weston is, and how much good this
money I am going to throw away on fire-crackers and gingerbread would
do her."

"Perhaps it would."

"I know it would."

"But you are not going to spoil our fun by giving it to her, are you?"

"There are a great many boys who will have no money to spend
to-morrow--Tony Weston, for instance," continued Frank.

"Tony is a good fellow."

"That he is; and his mother has a terrible hard time of it to support
herself and her son and daughter."

"I suppose she has. Why don't you ask your father to help her?"

"He does help her. He gives her wood and flour, and a great many other
things; and my mother employs her to do sewing. She is willing to
work."

"And Tony works too."

"He is too young to do much; but he loves his mother, and tries to do
all he can to lighten her burden."

"He makes a dollar a week sometimes."

"I was thinking just now that I would give Mrs. Weston the money I had
saved for Independence."

"Pooh! Frank."

"It would do her a great deal of good."

"What is the use of going to Boston, if you have no money?" asked
Charles, who was not a little disturbed by this proposed di