“I’ll risk it; and, if you want to begin now, I’m ready. It isn’t likely I shall ever see anybody to speak to about it; but, if you’re going to lick me, I’ll go out of my way to tell,” said Wade stoutly; and he was confident, after their experience in the boat, he could thrash Lon every time. “Don’t make a row with him, Lon,” said the more prudent Matt. “Let’s make trade with him.” “What do you mean by a trade?” demanded Lon. “He can tell all he knows, if he has a mind to; and then where shall we be?” replied Matt. Lon did not like the idea any better than Matt; and he allowed him to tell what he meant. “You have lost the money you got for the boat, have you, Wade?” asked Matt. “I lost eighteen dollars of it, and I have only a dollar and eighty cents left; and I shall soon eat that up,” replied Wade gloomily. “I will give you ten dollars, and Lon shall give you the same, if you will agree not to say a word to any one about us, not even to Lon’s father or mine, if you should happen to see either or both of them,” said Matt, in soft tones. “That will be twenty dollars, more than you had before.” “Do you mean to give me the money you stole from your father?” asked Wade. “We haven’t any other money,” replied Matt. “We didn’t steal it: who said any thing about stealing?” “You can’t deny that you stole that money from your father; and I don’t see what he was thinking about, that he didn’t put it in a place where you couldn’t get it.” “Don’t say any thing more about stealing, Wade. That’s not the way to call it. But say whether you will take up with my offer.” “I won’t take up with it: I won’t have any thing to do with any money you stole. I’m not a thief; and I’ve heard your father say that the receiver is as bad as the thief,” replied Wade decidedly. “I knew it would be so,” added Lon, disgusted with the idea of compromising with a fellow like Wade Brooks. “I don’t want to talk about such a thing;” and the temptation was so great, that Wade was afraid to think of it. “I guess I’ll be going now.” Wade backed out at the open door, and neither of the runaways attempted to detain him, though Lon repeated his threat. Matt was alarmed; but Lon thought that the fear of a thrashing which he had promised the boy of all work would prevent him from saying any thing to the people in the hotel, though he would be likely to tell the whole truth when they all went home. Wade walked to the elevator, thinking what he should do. He did not like Lon’s threat; and knew that his father was even then worrying about his son. When the car came along on its way down, he got into it, and a moment later he was at the office. He had made up his mind to leave the hotel without saying any thing more to any one, for he had been laughed at enough for one day. But the joking clerk was not inclined to let him escape, at least without a little more quizzing. “Did you find your friend, young man?” asked the joker, with a smile and a wink at his fellow-clerk.