“Has he gone for sure?” asked one of the small boys of Jack.
“Yes, and you need not be afraid. Whose dog was it and what brought him up here?”
“H’m, has he gone?” asked the Colonel who had reached the crotch of the tree, fortunately not far from the ground and now turned a very red and sweaty face upon the group below.
“Yes, sir,” said Jack, saluting and at the same time having the greatest difficulty to refrain from smiling or even laughing outright at the comical appearance of the doughty warrior.
“Go and enquire more about the matter, Sheldon,” said the Colonel and Jack went away, smiling broadly now but fortunately holding in his laugh.
“He wants a chance to get down from the tree, adjust his wig and get back his dignity,” whispered Billy, who went off with Jack.
“Yes, but how did he get there?”
“It was one of my jokes and I’ll get a wigging if he finds it out,” chuckled Billy. “There wasn’t any mad dog at first but I made him think there was. You should have seen him climb that tree, Jack. It would’ve delighted your heart. He won’t be scoring us again in a hurry but if there had not been a mad dog I guess I would have caught it.”
“Be careful how you play jokes on the Colonel, Billy,” said Jack, when he heard the whole story and laughed over it. “There are some persons at whom it is not safe to poke fun and Colonel Bull is one.”
“He forgot to put the last letter to his name, that’s all,” laughed Billy, “for he is a bully all right, but your advice is good and I will take it—or at least I will try.”