"The game warden!" gasped Mabel.
"The game warden!" gasped Henrietta.
"The game warden!" gasped all the others.
"The penalty," drawled the leisurely officer, "is either imprisonment or a fine—seein' it's you, you'll probably have to pay a fine."
"I will!" exclaimed Mr. Black. "What's that about a limit? I didn't know——"
"New law," explained the man, lazily. "And some of these here trout that your kids have caught are undersized; they ain't seven inches—'nother new law; you'll have to pay for those, too."
"Why, the limit is six inches."
"Used to be, ain't any more," returned the placid person, fumbling in his pocket for a battered copy of the game laws. "See, here's what it says."
"I guess you're right," admitted Mr. Black, scanning the pages.
"I'm real sorry," stated the game warden for the second time. "But you see, Mr. Black, I've got to arrest somebody this week or they'll think I'm not earning my salary. And I guess you can stand it lots better'n some."