n lifted by that salute. "You kids don't know One-Eye," he said,
a trifle loftily. "Well, do y' know Aladdin? or Long John Silver? or--or
Jim Hawkins? or Uncas? or King Arthur?"

The last name proved to be an error in selection. Instantly the
half-dozen boys about Johnnie set up a derisive shout: "He knows a King!
Aw, kids! He knows a King! Whee!"

A faint smile, betokening pity, curved Johnnie's lips. Oh, but they
_were_ ignorant! and had no stylish friends! "That gent, he come back t'
ask me t' be a scout," he explained calmly. "Didn't y' hear what he
said? And maybe I'll be one--that is till I go out West t' be a cowboy."

The shouting and the laughter broke forth again, redoubling. "And he's
goin' t' be a cowboy!" they yelled. "Look at 'im! Old rags! Yaw!"

Johnnie put the rope over a shoulder and again started for home. He
scarcely heard the screeching urchins. And he did not heed them. He was
in khaki and leggings now, and had on a wide hat held in place by a
thong which came just short of his chin. A haversack was on his back,
hanging from lanyards that creased a smart coat. He was also equipped
with a number of other things the names of which, as yet, he did not
know.

Tramp! tramp! tramp! tramp!--he was as military as a major-general.

CHAPTER XVI

HOPE DEFERRED

"BOY SCOUTS," explained Mrs. Kukor, "wass awful stylish. Say you wass a
scout, so you go in beautiful gangs for makink picnic und seeink birds,
mit eatinks from goot foods, und such comes healthy for you."

Cis added to that when she arrived home that evening. "Boy scouts help
the police sometimes," she declared, "and march in parades, and hunt
babies that get lost, and don't let bad boys hurt cats, or girls, and
they do nice things for grown people--just the way Sir Gawain did, and
Sir Kay. And I shouldn't wonder, at the Table Round, when King Arthur's
knights were little, if they weren't _all_ boy scouts. But, oh, Johnnie,
what would _he_ say if you told him when he gets in that you want to be
a scout?"

Johnnie laughed. "He'd have a fit!" he declared, the thought of Barber's
consternation and anger amusing him far more than it made him fearful.

He was still in this happy state of mind when Cis chanced to remark that
there were girl scouts as well as boy scouts. At once he was shocked,
and wrathy, and quite disgusted. For it spoiled the whole boy scout idea
for him if girls could be scouts.

"Aw!" he cried, getting red with ann