"But I wasn't in," insisted Dick, wishing Jimmy was now at hand to aid him.
"Ain't I got eyes in my head?" asked the officer in contempt. "You can't lie out of it that way. Why, you're drippin' wet. You must have gone in with all yer clothes on."
"I didn't go in at all."
"Aw, cut that out an' come along."
Dick did not know what to do. He looked around at the faces of the crowd that had gathered, hoping to see some one to whom he could appeal. But he saw no one. The officer was about to lead him away. All at once a man stepped forth from the throng. He was limping slightly.
"What's he done, officer?" he asked.
The man looked like an influential citizen, and the policeman decided it would be the best policy to answer him.
"Swimmin' in the basin," he said. "Against the law."
"I wasn't in," declared Dick, with tears of mortification in his eyes. "They splashed the water on me. Why, I was standing near you," he went on, for he recognized the man as the fat person, on whose toes he had accidentally stepped.
"Why, bless my soul, so you were!" exclaimed the fleshy gentleman. "Officer, you are making a mistake."