“I fancy not,” replied Miss Williams.
“Then I ain’t afraid any more,” cried Ned. “I’ll tell the truth; yes, I will. I’ve been a mean boy, but Jed Burr made me that. He got me to play all kinds of tricks on the scholars; and say, Miss Williams,” added Ned, with a quick glance at Bob, “Jed stole a spelling list from your desk, and some of his fellows copied it, and Jed got me to put it in Bob Bouncer’s desk, so as to get him into trouble.”
“Oh, Bob!” cried Miss Williams, coming up to him and putting out her hand, “I have wronged you very greatly!”
“Don’t speak of it, Miss Williams,” replied Bob, smiling loyally. “It’s all right now, isn’t it?”
“You are a noble boy, Bob,” said his teacher.
“I think it’s myself that wronged somebody,” said Bob to himself, as he left the schoolhouse. “Here I went and suspected poor Tom Chubb of what he never did. A fine friend I am! I’m going to tell him how mean I’ve been.”
Tom thought Bob quite the best friend he had heard of, when Bob told his story.
“Wouldn’t tell on a friend, would you?” said Tom. “The only mistake was your thinking I was smart enough to get hold of that spelling list.”
“It wasn’t very smart in Jed Burr, the way it has turned out,” said Frank.