"That sounds good to me!" declared Bristles, changing his way of
thinking, for while a very determined boy, he could always be reached by
argument, and was open to conviction, "and I hope you carry the plan
out, Fred. I'd just like to see those boys put under the ban for a
while. Some of them by rights ought to be in the State Reformatory,
according to my notion. They're getting too fresh with what they call
their pranks, and don't even stop at endangering human life."

"Well, of course we're glad that you haven't such a terrible cold,
Bristles," remarked Fred, "but all the same Colon here is sorry for one
thing."

"What might that be?" asked the said Colon.

"You see," continued Fred, "after I told him about how you called me up,
and wanted an interview right away, because you had something important
to tell, Colon here began to get terribly excited. He kept wondering
what it was you meant to explain; and I know that after we'd run that
mob off, nearly the first thing he said was that he felt cheated out of a
sensation, because you didn't want me so bad after all."

At that Bristles laughed loud and long, at the same time looking queerly
at his guests out of the tail of his eye.

"Too bad to disappoint you, isn't it, fellows?" he went on, in a tone of
mock sympathy, "but say, maybe I might scare up some little news after
all, that'd kind of take the place of the thrilling story they hatched up
for me."

"Let it be on the strict level then, Bristles," warned Colon, severely,
as he shook his forefinger at the other; "we don't want you to invent any
old yarn just to please us."

"What I'm going to tell you," began Bristles, very solemnly, "is straight
goods, believe me. I don't know whether Fred here will think it of much
importance, but late this afternoon I chanced to run across an old
acquaintance. Guess who it was, boys."

"Huh! I bet you it was Corny Ludson!" exclaimed Colon, quick as a flash.

Bristles started, and looked keenly at the long-legged chum.

"Well, you hit mighty close to the bull's-eye, then, Colon," he remarked;
"but you forget I never saw that same Corny Ludson in my life that I know
of, and so how could he be an old acquaintance. But he's got a little
girl named Sadie, a niece, or ward, or something like that, you may
remember."

"Then you saw her?" asked Fred, eagerly enough, for he had been wondering
lately what could have become of those two children.

"Not only saw her,"