"Jock," he said, stopping short in front of his friend, "I know what
I'll do. Jock, do you hear? I know what I'm going to do!"

Jocko sat up straight, erected his tail into a huge interrogation
point, cocked his wise little head on one side, and regarded his ally
expectantly. The storm was over, and the afternoon sun sent a ray
slanting across the floor.

"I'm going anyhow! I'll run away, Jock! That's what I'll do! I'll get
a whack at them dagoes yet!"

Jim danced a gleeful breakdown on the patch of sunlight, winding up by
making a grab for Jocko, who evaded him by jumping over his head to
the banister, where he became an animated pinwheel in approval of the
new mischief. They stopped at last, out of breath.

"Jock," said the boy, considering his playmate approvingly, "you will
make a soldier yourself yet. Come on, let's have a drill! This way,
Jock, up straight! Now, attention! Right hand--salute!" Jocko exactly
imitated his master, and so learned the rudiments of the soldier's art
as Jim knew it.

"You'll do, Jock," he said, when the dusk stole into the attic, "but
you can't go this trip. Good-by to you. Here goes for the soger camp!"

There was surprise in the tenement when Jim did not come home for
supper; as the evening wore on the surprise became consternation. His
father gave over certain preparations for his reception which, if Jim
had known of them, might well have decided him to stick to "sogering,"
and went to the police station to learn if the boy had been heard of
there. He had not, and an alarm which the Sergeant sent out discovered
no trace of him the next day.

Jim was lost, but how? His mother wept, and his father spent weary
days and nights inquiring of every one within a distance of many
blocks for a red-headed boy in "knee-pants" and a base-ball cap. The
grocer's clerk on the corner alone furnished a clew. He remembered
giving Jim two crackers on the afternoon of the storm and seeing him
turn west. The clew began and ended there. Slowly the conviction
settled on the tenement that Jim had really run away to enlist.

"I'll enlist him!" said his father; and the tenement acquiesced in the
justice of his intentions and awaited developments. And all the time
Jocko kept Jim's secret safe.

Jocko had troubles enough of his own. Jim's friendship and quick wit
had more than once saved the monkey; for despite of harum-scarum ways,
the boy with the sunny smile was a general favorite. Now that he was