nose was paid
to Beriah Bungel. And, using this good turn that was standing to her
credit, she would be the instrument which fate would choose, to pay
scout Harris back for his great sacrifice of two hundred and fifty
dollars. You see how nicely everything was going to work out.

The person who would now do Pepsy the good turn which would bring
success and fortune to their little enterprise and enable Scout Harris
to buy three tents, was Mr. Ira Jensen who lived in the big red house
up the road. A very mighty man was Mr. Ira Jensen almost as terrible
in worldly grandeur and official power as a prosecutor. Not quite, but
almost. At all events, Pepsy could muster up courage to go and face him,
and that she was now resolved to do.

Indeed, this had been her secret.

CHAPTER XXV

AN ACCIDENT

Mr. Ira Jensen sometimes wore a white collar and he was deacon in the
church and he was the one who selected the Everdoze school teacher, and
he was president of the Horden County Agricultural Association and he
had a khaki-colored swinging-seat on his porch and muslin curtains in
his windows. So you may judge from all this what a mighty man he was.

Such a man is not to be approached except upon a well-considered plan.
It required almost another week of idling in the refreshment parlor,
of vain hopes, and ebbing interest on the part of the scout partner,
to bring Pepsy to the state of desperation needed for her terrible
enterprise. A sudden and alarming turn of Pee-wee's fickle mind
precipitated her action.

"Let's eat up all the stuff and make the summerhouse into a gymnasium,
and we can give magic lantern shows in it, too. What do you say?"
Pee-wee inquired in his most enthusiastic manner. "We can charge five
cents to get in." He did not explain whence the audiences would come.
He had found an old magic lantern in the attic and that was enough. The
only stock now on hand was what might be called the permanent stock (if
any stock could be called permanent where Pee-wee was). No longer did
the fresh, greasy doughnut and the cooling lemonade grace the forlorn
little counter.

"No, I won't!" Pepsy said, tossing those red braids. "I won't eat the
things because we started here and I love them, so there!"

"If you love them I should think you'd want to eat them," said Pee-wee.
"That shows how much you know about logic."

"I don't care, I'm just going to stay here and if you promise to wait
we'