"No. A penny show," said Bobby, still chewing the straw. "Of course, it's got to be worth a penny—and then, it'll have to be sort of a joke, too—"
"Whatever are you trying to get at, Bobby Blake?" demanded his chum in wonder.
"Listen here. Now—don't you tell—"
He pulled Fred down beside him and whispered into his ear. The red-haired boy looked puzzled at first. Then he caught the meaning of his chum's plan, and his eyes grew big and he began to grin. Suddenly he flung his cap into the air and seized Bobby round the neck to hug him.
"Scubbity-yow!" he yelled. "That's the greatest thing I've ever heard, Bob! And we can have it right down 'side of my father's store."
Mr. Martin kept a grocery store on Hurley Street, in a one-story building on one side of which was an open lot belonging to the store property. There was a side-door to the store-building opening upon this lot, but not far back from the street.
For the next two or three days Bobby and Fred were very busy indeed at this place and, with some little help, they managed to erect a structure that was made partly of old fence-boards and partly of canvas.
The half-tent, half-shack was about ten feet wide. It had a sloping canvas roof. It ran back from the sidewalk far enough to mask the side-door into Mr. Martin's store.
Mr. Martin was not in the secret of the nature of the boys' proposed "show," but he was a good natured man and made no objection to his son and Bobby utilizing his side door.
"You see, we must have an 'entrance' and an 'exit'," Bobby explained. "Folks can pass out through the store after seeing our show."