afternoon in June, as they sat together in Whimple's office, their respective "bosses"

't no good your buttin' in and telling me to cheer up and all th

to-day?" ventured Lucien, "it's

lliam impatiently. "I got up gloomy, and likely as not I'l

e ill," sugg

don't you eve

hout goo

l that I could tell. It just comes and sticks around till I don't know whether I'd sooner be a gloomer or a merry-ha-ha feller, with a smile for everybo

hy

ens do I know

my mind to a busi

mind well trained. If I had a mind like that, I'd take

that? I'd have t

with a mind like yours," said William

t the first day Pete went to school. That was two years ago-and he's nine now, and maybe he don't like school. Say, he'd go without a meal rather'n be late. He's got that medal bug in his brain pan; you know the gam

t is

ghter see him at it. Why, last week

at

, and every day since then Pete asks him does he wanter fight again, and he says, 'No.' That's the way with some folks, they know when they've had enough, but Pete nev

he went to school. One morning Pa says to Ma, '

ays, 'I guess he'll have to go,' and she says to Pete, 'Do y

him along, Willyum, I guess there's

take him, Joe, the first day,' she says, '

m, and I seen Ma crying when they starts, so I pikes out after 'em quick, f

orm, and, of course, it's a lady teacher. She bends down and pats Pete on the head-he's gotter great mop of curls-and says, 'Well, my little man,' she says, 'I hope you'll be a good scholar.' '

! what a name.' Pete walks over to him and says, 'My Ma likes it, and anything she likes goes, see

stop 'em? She stops 'em all right, and keeps Pete in after school to give him a spiel about being good and

business, but his face gets a kinder red, and Ma laughs a glad little laugh. And when I told 'em about Pete being kept in, they both looks awful solemn and plunks down on the steps to wait for him. Pa, he takes one'r Ma's hands and tells her to cheer up, and Ma says she can't, she fee

, and Pa laughs and Ma tells him he'd orter be ashamed to laugh at his boy fightin' the first day he's at school. But Pa laughs some m

and Pa says to Ma, 'Keep a stiff upper lip, Ma, the

in't old enough for school yet, and I s'pose Ma 'll feel gl

s going to look at the bulletin boards to see how the b

Lucien

if they lose this one it'll make me gloomier'n ever, and maybe I'll