his beds instead of in a shed in the
back yard, he would have consented. As it was, Stubby and Button came
near having fits from the amount of meat they ate as the Uncle had
given them the scrapings from the plates, making a pile of beef and
chop bones a foot high. He also gave Billy so many vegetables and so
much juicy fruit that he had cramps all night.

In the morning there was still plenty of food left for their
breakfast, but the Uncle insisted on giving them a fresh supply of
food and water.

"He is a mighty fine old man," said Billy, "and I feel like a villain
planning to run away from him, but we must or run the risk of being
sent back to our regiments in France, and I for one am sick to death
of war."

About ten o'clock in the morning the Uncle and the three sailors came
into the yard to see how the animals were faring, and the sailors
seemed pleased with the way they looked.

"Now we can tell the Captain when we return to the ship that we saw
the animals just before we went to the boat and that they were safe
and sound and in a good home where they will be well cared for until
he hears what to do with them."

"I guess I'll leave the door of the shed open," said the Uncle. "It
will make it more cheerful for them. And I think we had better take
those ropes off their necks as they can't get out of the yard without
going through the house or jumping the fence, and it is much too high
for them to do that."

Little did those sailors and the old man know of the jumping powers of
these three animals or he would never have had them untied. When the
sailors and the old man had disappeared in the house, the three Chums
walked around the yard looking for a loop-hole to crawl through, or
for a weak board Billy might butt down. As for Button, all he had to
do was to run up the fence and jump down on the other side. And did
they but know it, Stubby could do the same stunt as he had watched the
police dogs in Paris run up the side of an eight-foot fence, balance
themselves on the top and leap down on the other side. As for Billy,
when he was ready to go he could jump on top of an old packing box
that stood beside the shed, and from that leap to the roof of the
shed. From there he could spring into the alley. But what bothered
them now was where they should go when they escaped. The city was very
large and it stretched itself out along the banks of the Hudson River
for miles and miles. They wanted to go in that direct