“I met that French boy as I was coming here.”
“You did?” said Phil, who did not consider this statement of any importance.
“Yes,” continued Phœnix, “and I licked him.”
At these words Phil turned round in utter amazement; Joel stopped his work, and even Jouncer turned his head, as if to listen to what was coming next.
Phœnix was such a very quiet, peaceable boy that no one ever thought of his engaging in a fight. This was certainly something very extraordinary.
“What in the world put you up to that?” cried Phil. “Did he give you any of his impudence?”
“Well,” said Phœnix, slowly, “he did rub my hair up the wrong way.”
“He must have rubbed pretty hard,” said Phil, laughing, “to make you fight him.”
“It wasn’t altogether what he said,” remarked Phœnix; “but from what I had seen of him, and from what you and Chap told me, I considered it a sort of duty to lay him out.”
Joel burst out laughing at this, and went to work with great vigor upon Jouncer, while Phœnix, a little confused, put his hands in his pockets, and said he guessed he’d look round and see if Chap was coming.