n hour's ride the train halted at a station, and
among the passengers to get aboard were two youths with suitcases.

"Hello! what do you know about this?" cried Jack, surprised. "If there
isn't Spouter Powell! I wonder what he is doing down here. He doesn't
live in this town."

"And look at the fellow who is with him!" burst out Fred. "Did you ever
see such a fat chap in your life?"

"Oh, say! I'll bet I know who that fellow is," declared Randy. "It must
be Spouter's friend, Will Hendry. Spouter told me about him. They call
him Fatty."

"And he fits his name," declared Randy. "Here they come now. They must
have seats in this car."

Spouter Powell, a tall, thin youth with a mass of wavy, black hair
overhanging his forehead, and wearing a small cap well back on his
head, strode forward towards them. Behind him came the fat youth,
struggling with a suitcase and puffing audibly.

"Hello, you Rover boys!" sang out the son of Songbird Powell,
cheerfully. "I thought you might be on this train."

"Glad to see you, Spouter. How are you?" returned Jack, grasping his
hand cordially. "Got a little friend with you, I see."

"Exactly! My chum, Will Hendry. Fatty, these are the Rover boys. This
is Jack, this is Fred, and these two little innocent lambs are the
twins, Andy and Randy."

"Glad to know you," came from all, and a general handshaking followed.

It was found that the new arrivals had two seats at the other end of
the parlor car; but there were other seats vacant near the Rover boys,
and an exchange for these was quickly made through the Pullman
conductor.

"Say! they don't make you pay extra fare, do they?" queried Andy, as he
looked at Fatty Hendry doing his best to squeeze into one of the
chairs.

"Not yet. But I don't know what I'm coming to," puffed the stout youth.
"Seems to me I'm taking on about a pound a day," he added, dolefully.

"Maybe you eat too much," suggested Randy, "Why don't you cut down on
your victuals?"

"Eat too much!" puffed Will Hendry. "I don't eat half as much as some
of you slim fellows. Why, Spouter here eats twice as much as I do!"

"Yes. But see the exercise I take," answered Dick Powell. "I walk at
least five miles to your one. And I spend lots of time in the gym,
too--something that you cut out entirely."

"Well, what would I be doing in the gym?" demanded the fat youth. "If I
got up on the rings or the bars, I'd pull the whole blamed business
down to the ground," and at t