my own
calmness.

"Do you think I'm going to wait all night for an answer?" demanded Tom,
gruffly, before I had half finished dressing myself.

"If I am to give the answer, I expect you will wait till I get ready," I
replied.

"Do you, indeed?" stormed he.

"I do, indeed."

He moved towards me, and I retreated to a corner of the room, where
stood a heavy base-ball bat, which had been presented to me for skilful
playing. That corner was my base of supplies.

"Do you know where that girl is?" said he, pausing and glancing at my
muscular artillery in the corner.

"Hold on a minute, till I am dressed, and I will answer the question."

"Answer it now--this instant."

"Not yet."

"What do you mean, you young villain? Do you intend to insult me?"

"That question is rather refreshing, Mr. Tom Thornton, after coming to
my room in the middle of the night as you did. Do you mean to insult
me?"

"Insult you, you young villain!" sneered he.

"Insult me, you old villain! for I'm sure you have had a deal of
experience in the villain line."

"Will you answer my question, or not? Do you know where that girl is?"
he continued, when he saw it was as easy for me to use harsh epithets as
for him.

"When I have dressed myself I will answer, but not till then," I
replied, adjusting my collar with more than usual care. "Mr. Tom
Thornton, I don't wish to quarrel with you on our first acquaintance.
Besides it don't look well for near relations to quarrel."

"What do you mean by near relations?" he asked, evincing some alarm.

"Your name is Thornton, and so is mine. As you come to the house of my
uncle, I suppose we must be relations. But I assure you I have no
particular desire to claim kindred with you."

"You are an impudent young cub; and if you are any relation to me, you
shall have some of the starch taken out of you before you grow half an
inch taller," replied Tom; and in the war of words I felt that I had the
weather-gage of him, for I knew things of which he supposed I was
entirely ignorant.

"I don't think my impudence exceeds yours, Mr. Tom Thornton. You didn't
come into my room behaving like a gentleman," I answered, as I put on my
sack coat.

"I am not in the habit of having a boy speak to me as you do."

"I am not in the habit of having any one speak to me as you do," I
retorted. "But I don't want to quarrel with you, as I said before."

"Well, Mr. Ernest Thornton, if your high mightiness is ready to