ve had a peach of a time getting up that story,"
commented Luke, evidently feeling himself justified.

"Good thing there are not a pair of them," came from Dave.

"Such stories are the fruits of idleness," was added by Buster,
solemnly.

"Oh, don't you poke fun at that joke," retorted Shadow. "It's a good
deal better than any you could get up."

Dave learned that Luke Watson's folks were now living in New York
City, and that Luke had invited Buster and Shadow to spend a week with
him.

"It's too bad you can't stop off, at least for a day or two," said
Luke to Dave. "It would suit me down to the ground to have you join
us."

"And I'd like first-rate to do it, Luke," answered our hero. "But I
promised to be in Washington by to-morrow, and that means that I've
got to take the midnight train from New York City."

"Well, we'll get down to New York by three o'clock this afternoon.
That will give us nine hours in which to have a good time. You've got
to come up to our house for dinner," continued Luke; and so it was
arranged.

"I was wondering what I would do with myself this evening," said our
hero. "I don't mind going around the city in the daylight, but after
it is dark it is rather hard for a stranger to put in his time, unless
he wants to go to some kind of show."

"We might all go to a moving-picture show after dinner," suggested
Buster. "I'll blow you to front seats," he added generously.

"You'll have to make it a seat farther back than that for me," put in
Shadow. "A front seat at a moving-picture show is no good," and at
this there was a general snicker.

"We'll see about the show after we have had dinner," said Luke.

The time on the train was spent in talk about Oak Hall and their
numerous classmates, many of them now well scattered throughout the
States.

"Polly Vane has gone into business, so I hear," announced Luke. "He's
in real estate, and in spite of the fact that he's a regular dude they
tell me he is doing very well."

"Well, Polly ought to do well," answered Dave, who had not forgotten
that the student who acted so very girlishly had at graduation stood
as high in his percentage as our hero himself had done.

"And they say Chip Macklin is doing pretty well, too," put in Buster,
referring to a small lad who had once been a toady to Gus Plum, the
Hall bully.

"Well, Plum is doing well," returned Dave. "I'm glad he reformed.
Evidently there was much better stuff in him than there was in