, because there was so much blood, but Doc said, "Give me the
iodine--that's nothing."

And I knew he knew what he was talking about.

While he was putting iodine in the cut I felt in Westy's pocket like Doc
told me to do, but there wasn't any knife there. But there was something
else there and I pulled it out. Oh, gee, I hate to tell you about it. It
was my two dollar bill. I could tell because it was new and because it
had a stain on it in the shape of a half circle.

I always kept oil on those oar-locks, so they wouldn't get rusty.

CHAPTER XXIV

TREASURE ISLAND

Nobody noticed me, I guess, and I just scrambled up the ditch and went
away behind a tree and looked at the two dollar bill again. I guess you
sure know the shape of an oar-lock all right--kind of round, but open at
the top. And that was just the shape of the stain on the bill. I could
have laid one of my oar-locks right on that bill and covered up the
stain.

Maybe you think I was glad to get the bill back but I wasn't. What did I
care about that bill? Gee, a two dollar bill isn't anything, compared to
a friend, it isn't. I could have another bill right away if I wanted it,
and anyway, I'd be sure to get one on Monday. It was Westy I was thinking
about, because you know how you heard me say we were special friends,
sort of, Jiminy Christopher! I didn't care about anything now.

Even once when I lost my bronze medal I didn't feel so bad. Then I said
I guessed Westy just put it in his pocket to fool me and that he was
going to give it to me. But cracky, there's no use trying to kid
yourself. Then, all of a sudden I thought how he wanted me to hurry
and run and how he didn't want to stop and talk much about it.

Jiminy, I didn't know what to do and I just felt like going home and
going up to my room and locking the door. I knew if I ever told
anybody it would be either Ruth or Marjorie. It's funny how when a
fellow really has a lot of trouble he'd rather tell a girl than
anybody else. You can laugh at girls, but that's true. Maybe they
can't run and all that, but they kind of know all about it when you
have a lot of trouble. Maybe I'd tell them, tool because they'd wonder
if Westy didn't come to the house any more.

Anyway, I was glad it was me to find the two dollars and none of the
other fellows. I decided that as long as it wasn't any good to me I'd
put it back in his pocket if I could get a chance. Then maybe it would
be kind of like a me