"Yep."
"Why, you never said a word about thinking of West Point," exploded Prescott.
"You were making fun of Annapolis only the other day!" a.s.serted Dave, just as though making fun of Annapolis were one of the capital crimes.
"Hang West Point!" exploded Tom Reade.
"Oh! Then it"s Annapolis you"re after," grunted Darrin.
"Sink Annapolis!" exclaimed Reade.
"Then what on earth are you after?" demanded d.i.c.k.
"Have you any fool idea in your head, Tom, that you can take an exam and stand a chance of getting Congressman Spokes"s job away from him?" Dave asked.
Tom threw himself into one of the seats, crossed his feet, thrust his hands down in his ulster pockets, and surveyed the pair before he answered:
"I"ll tell you what ails you two. You have a notion that the sun rises at West Point and sets at Annapolis. Now, I know a heap better, and I haven"t an eye on either place. Can you fellows guess why I"ve taken the day off from school and why I"m going to Wilburville?"
"We surely can"t," declared Dave.
"Well, then, I"ll tell you," promised Tom amiably. "I knew you two good old chaps would be going to pieces with blue funk to-day.
I knew you"d be chattering inside, and turning all sorts of colors outside. You"d try to cheer each other, but each of you is too badly scared to be of any use to the other. So I"ve come along to take up your minds, jolly you and stiffen your backbones alternately.
That"s my whole job for to-day."
Looking in some amazement at Reade, the other two chums realized that good old Tom was telling the truth.
"Of course, I"ll admit," continued Reade, "that, if I were going on the grill to-day, I"d be worse than either of you. But I"m not. I wouldn"t live in West Point, and I wouldn"t be caught dead at Annapolis, so I shan"t have any scares or any nervous streak to-day. I"ll look after you both, the best I can, and do what little lies in my power to keep your minds off your troubles."
"Well, who"d ever have thought of a thing like that but Tom Reade?"
gasped d.i.c.k gratefully.
"It"s mighty good of you, old chum," declared Darrin fervently.
"Now, then,""resumed Reade, uncrossing his legs, "as I"m on the job to look after you, allow me to remind you that that is your train whistling at this moment."
Three very jolly boys, therefore, piled out of the station building and boarded the train.
Tom spoke to the conductor a moment before following the others to seats.
"You see," spoke Reade, "I"m even going to the trouble to make sure that this is the right train, and not a belated express."
"I never though of that," muttered Darrin, turning a bit pale.
"Great Scott!" gasped d.i.c.k. "I can feel the cold sweat oozing out at the bare thought. Suppose we had been harebrained enough to get on the wrong train, and be carried so far past that we couldn"t get back to Wilburville by nine o"clock!"
"Drop all worry. Don"t think of anything alarming, or even disconcerting,"
chuckled Tom. "I"ve taken charge of the whole job, and I guarantee everything. One of the little things I guarantee is that you"ll both win out to-day."
"In algebra," muttered Darrin, "I hope they won"t go too deeply into quadratic equations-----"
"Cut it!" ordered Reade severely. "Likewise forget it! Say, I heard a rattling good story last night. It carries a Dutchman, a poodle, a dude and an old maid. Let me see if I can remember just how it runs."
With that Reade got started. He soon had his two friends started as well. They laughed until the brakeman at last thrust his head in and called:
"Next station, Wilburville!"
"Stop and get out, young man!" called Tom. "Do you think we don"t know our way?"
Then into another story plunged Tom Reade. He spun it out, purposely, until the train slowed up at Wilburville.
""Bus right up to the town hall!" cried a driver, sizing the trio up shrewdly.
"Thank you; that"s our auto over there," nodded Tom, pointing to a lunch wagon. Reade started the chums at a brisk walk. Of the first native they met they inquired the way.
Tom was still talking at forty horse-power when they came to the town hall.
"That building holds our fate!" muttered Dave, as they drew near.
"Stop that!" ordered Tom. "Anyone would think that Annapolis was all the candy in the land. What are you worrying about, anyway?
Haven"t I taken all the responsibility for this thing upon myself?
Haven"t I promised you both that you shall find your little toy appointments in your Christmas stockings? Do you think I"m lying?"
"But the exams!" groaned Dave.
"Well, they"re compet.i.tive," quoted Tom cheerily.
"That"s just what ails "em!" argued Dave.
"You make me think of my cousin, Jack Reade, of the militia,"
taunted Tom. "He"s a captain. Now, Jack wanted to be appointed a.s.sistant inspector general of rifle practice. He was ordered up for his exam. Poor fellow spent three weeks, days and nights, boning for that exam. The family had the doctor in twice, for they were afraid Jack was studying himself crazy. Then the day came for the exam. Jack went into the ordeal shivering. The examiner asked Jack to write down his full name, the date of his birth, and the date of his entry into the militia. Jack answered all three questions straight, and got a hundred per cent. for his marking. Yet you fellows talk about exams as though they were really hard!"
Still laughing the three pa.s.sed inside.
d.i.c.k Prescott had firmly resolved to do no more talking about the ordeal. But Darrin hadn"t. So, after the boys had entered the building, and had climbed to the next floor, where the hall was, and had taken a look inside, Dave drew back into the corridor.
"Great guns, did you look inside?" he demanded. "There are a million boys in there already."
"Cheer up," soothed Tom. "Most of "em want to go to West Point."
Tom fairly forced his chums inside. The boys already there, some three-score, at least, turned to regard the newcomers curiously.
"The rest of you may as well go home," announced Tom laughingly.
"My friends have a first mortgage on the jobs you"re after."
Presently, more fellows came in. Then some more, and still more.
"Let"s go down and stand by the door, where we can get more air,"