wider swath here than you two fellows put together."

Greg Holmes, who had been following Dodge with a gradually
widening grin of amazement, now burst into a hearty laugh.

"Well, what's so awfully funny!" demanded Bert.

"You--you--social swell!" exploded Greg hilariously. "Oh--wow!"

"Oh, enjoy yourself in your own way," retorted Bert in decided
anger, "but you'll soon find out."

Then looking about the room, he remarked, going on a new tack:

"I must say, you fellows are rather badly provided for showing the
social courtesies here. You haven't even a chair for a guest."

"Plebes are allowed only two chairs to a room," remarked Dick,
rising and pulling forward his own chair. "Take mine. I'll sit on the
corner of my table."

"There's just one chair in my room," continued Bert, as he seated
himself. "That's one reason I want to see the janitor, or steward, or
whoever the fellow is. I'm going to tell him to put in a decent
allowance of chairs."

Greg Holmes went off into another fit of laughter.

"Janitor? Steward?" sputtered Holmes. "Whew! That's great!"

"There are no such servants here, Dodge," Dick explained. "In fact,
every cadet has to learn to wait on himself in nearly everything. A
plebe, too, has to learn to be content with whatever he has given
him. If he even makes any talk about it he is called b.j. A cadet
who is found guilty of b.j.-ety has to put in all his spare time
learning to walk on one ear."

"Do you mean to say you've been made to swallow stuff like that?"
demanded Dodge, looking at Prescott in tall disdain. "Oh, well,
you may be inclined to submit to such treatment, but I know who
I am, and I'm not going to stand for any nonsense here. What's the
matter with you, Holmes? Are you ill?"

For Greg's face, in his efforts to stifle his mirth, had become
violently purple.

"I don't suppose you'll take advice, Dodge," continued Dick. "If I
thought you only could do it I'd advise you to walk mighty slowly
here, keep your lips together and not say a word until you've
learned a lot."

Dick had risen and was standing, unconsciously, in an attitude that
showed off, in his natty cadet uniform, all the strength and grace of
his fine and now well set-up young figure. But Bert, with a desire
to put this other fellow "back where he belonged," remarked
casually:

"Prescott, I don't just like the fit of your coat. Who's your tailor? I
want to get a different one. I'm going in for some of the
s