“But I never said I would,” hesitated Dave.
“Oh, didn’t you.”
“Leastwise I don’t remember——”
“Don’t do it if you don’t want to. Don’t do it if yer afraid, you know. Oh, I wouldn’t like you to come if yer afraid—fact, you’d only be in the road and spile the fun.”
“I ain’t afraid,” cried Dave, indignantly.
No Australian bush boy likes to have his courage called into question.
“Well, if you ain’t afraid, why don’t you come?” demanded Tom with Jesuitical cunning.
“All right,” said Dave, throwing prudence to the winds, “I’ll come.”
“Be there at dark, then,” ordered Tom, “an’ bring yer clothes an’ as much tucker as you can git an’ we’ll fix things.”