This was the last straw and the boys were furious. By a common impulse they sprang out of their seats and went quickly down the aisle to where the fellow was sitting.
“You ought to be ashamed of yourself!” snapped Bobby.
“You’re too mean to live!” blazed out Fred.
“A fellow that’ll torment an old man like that ought to be tarred and feathered,” blurted Mouser.
“And ridden on a rail,” finished Pee Wee.
The fellow looked at them with surprise that was mingled with alarm as he noted their wrathful faces. He jumped up and stood with his back toward the window.
Now that they saw him at closer range, their first impression of him was confirmed. He was strong and muscular, but the strength of his body was belied by the weakness of his face. It was a thoroughly mean face, pallid and unhealthy looking, with a loose mouth and shifty eyes that dropped when you looked straight into them.
“What’s the matter with you boobs?” he demanded, in a voice that he tried to make threatening. “You’d better mind your own business. Who asked you to butt in?”
“We didn’t need any asking,” replied Bobby. “We saw what you did to that old man. You seemed to think it was funny, but we think it’s mean and sneaking.”
“And you’ve got to stop it,” put in Fred.