anyway,"

Westy said; "I lifted the oar-lock and felt underneath and I laid it down
again, right where it was--on a book or something. When I flashed the
light it wasn't there. Come on, we'll be late. I'd let you have two
bucks if I had that much extra, but I've only got two myself. You can
chip in yours to-morrow, it'll be all right."

I got up and I felt awful funny.

"Anyway, there's no use being late,"' he sald, because I kind of just
couldn't start.

"It isn't that I'm thinking about," I told him, "It's--"

"I know," he said, "I thought about that, too, but we've got to hustle."

So we started down the hill and neither of us said anything. Of course,
we were both thinking about Skinny, but neither one of us would say it.

"Pee-wee's to blame in a way," Westy said, after a while; it's the
belt-axe the poor kid was thinking about."

"No, he isn't to blame, either," I said; "he didn't mean anything--he
didn't mean for Skinny to do anything like that."

"He should have kept his mouth shut," Westy said.

"Anyway," I said, "I'm not going to make that speech; I just can't. I'm
not going to say anything to Skinny about it. Maybe I'll tell Mr.
Ellsworth sometime--I don't know. But anyway, I can't present him to the
Elks that way, I can't. I just can't. Poor kid, I don't suppose he ever
saw as much as two dollars before."

"You shouldn't have left it out like that," Westy said.

After that I guess neither of us said anything. Gee, I can't tell you how
I felt. I know if a fellow is low down and fires stones and calls names
and all like that, even still he can get to be a scout.

But if he steals-jiminy, I've got no use for a fellow that steals. A
plaguy lot I care about two bucks, but, oh, boy, I was looking forward
to that meeting and how we were going to have Skinny all decorated and
present him to the Elks. And now we couldn't do it, Honest, I didn't even
want to see him, I didn't feel sore at him, but I didn't want to see him.
Because he'd spoiled all the fun for me, that's all.

CHAPTER XXII

SHOWS YOU WHERE I DO THE TALKING

Westy said we shouldn't say anything to Mr. Ellsworth, but wait until
Skinny had taken the oath and knew all the laws and all about scouting,
and then maybe say something to him, how we thought maybe he had made a
mistake sometime and would like to fix it right. Westy said we'd call it
just getting off the trail. Westy's a mighty nice fellow, you bet, and
he's a good scout.