"I'll bet you ten dollars on that!" cried Hatch warmly.
"You'd lose. But be careful; perhaps Señor Merriwell is so very scrupulous that he does not believe in betting. Perhaps he never bets. Ha, ha, ha!"
The laughter of Mendoza was most irritating.
By this time Frank's dislike for the fellow was most pronounced. In Mendoza he saw one of the companions of Arthur Hatch who was bringing to bear a most evil influence on the boy. It was the laughter and ridicule of such fellows as this that Arthur dreaded.
"I do not believe in betting," admitted Merry, at once. "By that I mean that I do not believe in betting for the purpose of making profit, and particularly am I opposed to betting on games of chance."
"I am afraid," said Carlos, with sarcasm, "that you're a trifle too good, Señor Merriwell, for association with the rest of us. Did you never bet?"
"Yes," admitted Frank, "I have done such a thing."
"Ah! Then you have reformed? You've had your fun, and now you think others should not have theirs. Did you never play cards?"
"Yes."
"For money?"