s, and welcome. I've got too much
respect for my poor stomach to cram such prog down into it."

"Hold on," remarked Giraffe, looking up, hungrily; "perhaps everybody
ain't through yet; and Bob, I think those flapjacks you made are simply
delicious."

"Thanks, suh!" returned the cook of his mess, with a pretended bow; "but
I beg to diffah with you; and by the orders of the scout-master I am
handing the balance over to Smithy, from the other mess, who will
proceed to feed it to the prisoner. Our scout-master is afraid that if
you did get sick so early in the outing, he might have to exhaust the
medicine chest befo' your appetite returned."

"Oh! all right, Bob, just as you say; and perhaps I have devoured as
many as I had ought to; but they _were_ good, I don't care what you say.
Come again, Bob."

"Hey! anybody seen my head--" began Step-hen; when Davy interrupted him
to bawl:

"Anybody seen Step's head; he's done gone and lost that, now. Always
said he would have done it long ago, only Nature had it fastened on
tight. But the catastrophe has arrived at last. Step's lost his head,
fellows; not that it matters much. A liberal reward is hereby offered to
the finder. Apply to Step-hen Bingham."

"Think you're smart, don't you?" jeered the lean one, as he kept on
overturning all manner of things. "I was only going to ask if any one
had taken my head gear, otherwise known as my campaign hat? Of course I
know what the answer'll be--nobody's seen a thing of it. It does beat
the Dutch how _my_ things are always going, the funniest way ever. Now I
could declare I hung that hat up on the broken branch of this tree."

"Well, you've been sitting on it all the time you were eating breakfast;
and there it lies, as flat as any pancake that was ever cooked. Now
perhaps you'll learn sometimes just to put things where you c'n find
'em," said Bumpus.

Step-hen turned to shoot an accusing stare at the speaker that made the
fat boy writhe, for he knew what was passing in the mind of the other.

"Didn't, so there!" he snapped, as he turned away; and Step-hen,
looking after him, wagged his head as he muttered:

"Honest Injun now, I really believe he _did_ take it, and the joke's
gone so far he just hates to own up. Oh! all right, Bumpus, I'll get on
to your game sooner or later; and then the laugh will be with you, just
wait and see."

It was the purpose of Thad, in the absence of Dr. Philander Hobbs, the
real scout-master of Cra