“Well now, look here,” said Tom, starting on another tack, “you’re feeling pretty nifty, aren’t you? No more pains or anything? You’re looking fine, I’ll say that. Why not see the doc and let him give you the once over, and if he says you’re all right——” “What’s done is done,” said Wilfred “Yes, that’s so,” agreed Tom ruefully. “I’m going to see the doctor on August first and not till then. Suppose he should tell me to lie on my back or something like that? Do you suppose I don’t like to walk?” “Well, I’m afraid you’ll walk alone,” said Tom. “Well, that’s what I’ve been doing right along,” said Wilfred. Tom tried to reach him from another angle. “I suppose you know the Ravens are planning to have you swim the lake for the record, don’t you? In the Mary Temple event on August tenth? Wig-wag Weigand won’t hear of anybody but you; he’s got Artie started now. Don’t you want to stick with that bunch and swim for it? I believe you would walk away with it in those arms of yours. All you’ve got to do is say you made a promise—these fellows up here all know what a promise means—they’ve got mothers, too. Let _me_ tell them. What do you say?” “I say no,” said Wilfred. “If they want to misjudge me——” “_Misjudge you?_ Well, what the dickens do you expect them to do? They’re not mind-readers. They’d care more for you than they would for that crazy, little white rag if you’d only tell them. The way it is now, you’re going to lose everything.” “It’s crazy for them to think I’m a traitor to them,” said Wilfred. “I haven’t seen Berry for two or three years. If a fellow would commit treason on account of living in a place, why then, he might commit treason on account of—on account of Hoboken, or Coney Island. The fellows that think that are crazy, and the others think I just got rattled and didn’t start running in time, and let them think so.” “That’s what you want them to think?” “I’m not going to have them thinking that maybe I’ll drop dead any time, and they have to treat me soft and kind.” “All right,” said Tom, tightening his lips conclusively, “I don’t think they’re likely to treat you very soft and kind. I’d like to know where an A-1 fellow like you got your notions from. It wasn’t from your sister, I bet.” It was funny how Tom had to drag in Wilfred’s sister. One might have suspected that he had some notions of his own. “Well then, you’ll just have to paddle your own canoe,” he said finally. And he added, “I don’t know that I blame you for not wanting to be on the list with Archie Dennison. When are your folks coming up, anyway, Billy?” “I was going to ask them to come up for the swimming contest on the tenth. I don’t know what I’ll do now.” “Well, come and watch me chop some wood this morning, anyway.” CHAPTER XVI OLD ACQUAINTANCE