nder one condition,"
said Dave.

"Do you mean to say you have that much on hand?" demanded Plum.

"Yes, I have exactly a hundred dollars in this pocketbook. It is a
special sum that my uncle advised me to keep for emergencies. He says he
may go away some time and I may need money before he can send it to me.
It has nothing to do with my regular allowance. I will loan you the
eighty-five dollars on one condition--no, on two conditions."

"What are they?"

"The first is, that you give me your word to cut out all drinking and
all gambling from now on."

"I'll do that readily, Dave."

"And the second is, that you remain at Oak Hall and fight your way
through in spite of what some of the fellows say. Show one and all that
you want to make a man of yourself, and sooner or later they will
respect you."

"It will be a terribly hard thing to do."

"Never mind, Gus, I will help you all I can, and I am sure some of the
others will help you, too."

For a full minute Gus Plum was silent, looking out of the long window at
the gathering darkness of the short winter day. Then he turned again to
Dave.

"All right, I'll take you up and stay, and I'll do my level best to
deserve your kindness, Dave," he said, in a husky voice.

"Good! Now here is the money, in five-dollar bills. If you don't mind,
I'll go along when you pay those fellows. I want to see that you get a
receipt in full from them. As you say you owe them the money, we'll let
it go at that, although it's more than likely they cheated you."

"Maybe they did, but I can't prove it."

With added thanks, Gus Plum took the eighty-five dollars and placed it
carefully away in an inner pocket.

"I'll write the men a note to meet me Saturday afternoon," said he.
"Will that suit you?"

"Yes, but don't meet them at the tavern. The depot will be better."

"Very well, I'll make it the depot," answered the former bully. He was
very humble, and once more Dave had great hopes of his keeping his
promises.

Some of the other students were now coming up, and Dave brought out some
books he had brought along from home, including a fine illustrated work
on polar exploration which Jessie Wadsworth had presented to him. She
had written his name and her own on the flyleaf, and of this inscription
Dave thought a great deal.

"I've read a part of it already," he said to Gus Plum. "It's very
interesting. Some day I'll let you read it, if you wish."

"Thanks, perhaps I will, Dave,