his bit of advice was endorsed by the entire company, and it was in
vain that Archie tried to make them understand that he was no ordinary
tramp, walking about the country in search of an easy time. He tried
to tell them that he was going to the city to work, not to beg; but the
leader, a big, dirty fellow, weighing two hundred pounds or over, said,
"Never mind, laddie, we knows you've run away from home to get away from
the folks, and we appreciates yer position. If yer a mind to stand by
us, we'll stand by you, and see thet ye comes to no harm."

On thinking things over, Archie decided that it was perhaps the wisest
thing for him to appear to sympathise with the tramps, and make himself
agreeable while with them. He had undoubtedly run into a gang of the
worst sort of vagabonds, and there was no way of getting away from there
without arousing their suspicions. So he partook of their slender meal,
and joined in the general laughter when the leader, "Fattie Foy," made
some crude attempt at punning. The meal was one to be remembered. The
coffee had been heated in an empty tomato can over the fire, and from
its taste was evidently a combination of various collections made from
the farmhouses round about. Besides the coffee there was a various
collection of sandwiches and bread and butter, and two pieces of cake.
One man had succeeded in striking a good house, and came back laden with
pickles and crackers and cheese, which were probably the remains of some
picnic basket. Another fellow had brought some pieces of cold bacon,
and these were warmed on sticks over the fire until they looked really
appetising. From some barn had come a half-dozen fresh eggs, and these
were quickly boiled in a can of hot water, and made a very fair showing
on the slab of granite which served as a table.

When everything was ready the provisions were equally divided among the
crowd, and every one shared alike. It made no difference how much more
one man collected than another, it was always shared with the entire
crowd. Poor Archie found it almost impossible to eat, but the men
insisted that he take something, so he did manage to swallow a few sips
of coffee and eat a slice of bread and butter. But as he looked about
him at the dirty hands and faces, and the filthy garments of the tramps,
he determined not to eat again while with them.

When the meal was over the two tin cans were washed at a spring of
water, and as it was now quite dark, they a