Sweet."

"I declare, I never saw him before," said Purt, making frantic efforts
to frighten the dog away.

He was a snarly haired dog, with one ear cocked up and the other half
chewed off, his coat muddied, only half a tail, which he wiggled
ecstatically, and the most foolish looking face that was ever given to
a dog.

"Did you ever see such a looking thing?" gasped Bobby, half choked
with laughter.

"And how well he matches Purt's suit," said Nellie, demurely.

"I'm not going to walk with you if you don't get rid of that dog!"
declared Lily, seeing that many bystanders were laughing at the boy
and the mongrel.

She went ahead with the other girls while poor Purt remained in the
rear, trying his best to chase away the friendly animal. But the more
Purt shooed him, or attempted to hit him, or strove otherwise to send
the brute about his business, the more the latter considered that the
boy was playing with him, and he welcomed the game with loud and
cheerful barks.

Soon a small crowd was collected, watching the performance with broad
grins. The girls, giggling, but rather worried by the attention that
was being attracted to their escort, darted into a store and left Purt
to settle the matter by himself.

CHAPTER VII

THE BARNACLE

The crowd was laughing loudly and Purt Sweet (although he was
frequently the source of mirth for his companions) did not enjoy it.
He began to hate that mongrel cur with an intense hatred.

"Get away from me, you brute!" he exclaimed, trying to kick the dog.

"Look out there, son," drawled one on-looker. "If you abuse your dog
the S. P. C. A. will do something to you that you won't like."

"It isn't my dog! I weally never saw it before," gasped the dude,
growing very warm and red as the dog leaped about him in delight.

"You'll have to tell that to the judge," the man assured him.

This really scared Purt. He did not want to be arrested for abusing
the strange dog. But he could not allow it to follow him, that was
sure. The girls were already disgusted with him for having attracted
the brute.

"And I never meant to!" thought the boy, in despair. "Oh! if I only
had him out in the woods, and had a good rock!"

But he dared not pelt the mongrel after what the bystander had said.
The crowd became so numerous that a policeman came strolling that way.
He saw Purt with the dog dancing about him.

"Here! this is no place for a circus. You and your dog get out!"
comman