the book and at the paragraph devoted to him he added:

"_Easy to hook is hard to hold._"

But this did not satisfy him. He stood up and suddenly inspired sunk to
his knees and hurriedly gathered together the sand into a mound capable
of burying Miss Vivi's little body. Across it he laid the opened book.
At its head he placed the box of chocolates as a headstone. Then below
he wrote in the sand (symbol indeed of transient loves):

SACRED TO THE MEMORY
OF
VIOLET BALOU
SLAIN BY HER OWN HAND
August 27th, 1896.

Then as a masterly afterthought he added savagely:

GONE AND NOW FORGOTTEN

Mr. Skippy Bedelle then wriggled away through the sand dunes just as
Miss Vivi Balou with malice aforethought came up the beach accompanied
by Mr. Charles Brownrigger.

CHAPTER XXXVIII

THE PHILOSOPHICAL ATTITUDE

IT happened on the day before school opened; at that moment when Skippy
returning from his first sentimental summer had no other thought than to
rest up from the fatigue of the vacation and devote his activities to
the serious business of life. There were the freshman (a discouraging
lot) to be properly educated, taught to punctuate their sentences with a
humble "sir," "if you please" and "thank you;" there was a certain score
to be settled with Al at the Jigger Shop and the basis of a new credit
to be argued, there was the prize room on the third floor overlooking
the campus to be re-decorated with the loot of the summer, and one
crucial question to be decided forthwith:

"Shall we start training now or gorge ourselves for just one more day?"

"The Jiggers are peach, soft and creamy," said Snorky with a pensive
look. "But we should set an example you know, old top, and all that sort
of thing."

"Keerect, we must."

"I can see the crowd up at Conover's putting away the pancakes," said
Snorky insidiously.

"Be firm," said Skippy, returning to his trunk.

"It isn't only the Jiggers," said Snorky, who sometimes practised virtue
but without the slightest enthusiasm, "it's--it's those eclairs--never
tasted anything like them, big, fat, luscious, oozing with cream--"

"Shut up," said Skippy indignantly. "Where's your house spirit?"

"Can't a fellow be human?" said Snorky in an aggrieved tone.

"All right, all right--but pu