new the dog
and smoking rules. You can't keep one, because, Mr. May says, it eats
what would keep a poor human being. I think, though, if I could find a
dog that would eat only fat, I could keep him, because I always leave
that, and no human being could live on that. Bridget hopes there isn't
any such dog to be found, because she is so stingy over her old soap
stuff.

When the house was done, the red roof just showing above the alders, and
looking so pretty just at the bend in the river, we didn't feel a mite
sorry for all the hard work we had put into it; though I do wish I
hadn't let Sam try and get the paint off my trousers, for he took cloth
and all. I have been mighty unlucky lately with my clothes. I scalded my
best shoes, and Polly Burr didn't notice, and wore my best jacket common
for two days, and got gravy on it. He's such a funny fellow! He used to
use any boy's tooth-brush. We put salt on ours, and cured him of that,
though we couldn't use ours for ever so long. My uncle wrote me a solemn
letter a little while ago, and said, "Robert Ames, you must never forget
you are a poor man's son." That was because I sawed my new gray
trousers. I felt solemn for a long while, and now I'm afraid he will
write another.

Nate named his boat the _Arrow_, because he said it went so well with
Yarrow. He chose Sam Fish for his stroke, as he is the strongest fellow
in the school. I named mine _Edith_, after my mother, and took Sandy for
bow oar. Sandy said he wasn't half so strong as Polly, and wanted to
give up; but I wanted just no fellow but Sandy. And then Polly has been
scared of boats, and rather a land-lubber, ever since his aunt got blown
up on a steamer. Besides, he cares more about his menagerie, and was
busy training his ant-eater.

We decided to have a race the 18th of June, as it was Mr. May's
birthday. Sam wanted a silver cup for a prize, but we couldn't get money
enough. Polly was mighty generous, and gave fifty cents for the prize.
We appreciated Polly's generosity, for we knew he didn't care a pin for
boating, and the express on his ant-eater cost him ninety cents. The
three Freshmen, Fritz Davis, Phil Hayes, and Billy Butler, each gave
twenty-five cents toward the prize, Sam a dollar, Nate all he had,
forty-three cents, Sandy fifty, and I eighty-three. I hope it wasn't too
much for a poor man's son. The boys made me captain and Polly treasurer
of the Yarrow Boat Club.

Sandy and I rowed every minute we co