“Where did you get this?” he asked, with a puzzled look at his first officer.
“It was on the ship,” the lieutenant answered. “These boys were so anxious to bring him along that I consented, leaving the final decision to you. Of course, if you say so, a bullet will soon settle the matter.”
“Oh, don’t do that, please!” exclaimed Bob, and then stopped short, flushing at his temerity.
The captain looked from one to the other of the anxious group, and his eyes twinkled.
“I guess we won’t have to resort to such drastic measures,” he said, and the boys’ hearts took an upward bound. “But you boys will have to take the responsibility of caring for him and seeing that he doesn’t become a nuisance.”
“We’ll do that,” promised Jimmy, and they all nodded their heads in emphatic assent.
“We’ll take such care of him that you won’t know he’s on the ship,” added Bob.
“All right,” said the captain, and passed on.
“Didn’t you go almost too far, Bob?” suggested Joe. “We can’t take the bark out of the dog.”
“No,” returned Bob, “but we can make him so happy and contented that he won’t be any trouble. We’ll feed him well, for one thing.”