"Why not?" Tom asked.
"Because he isn't reasonable. He's the sort of person who needs a master to say 'do' and 'don't.' Reasoning is thrown away on some people."
"But you had good reasons, didn't you, for stopping here instead of going on further?" asked Tom.
"Certainly. There's the Mackey house five miles ahead, and if we'd gone on we must have stopped near it to night?"
"Well, what of that?"
"Jake Elliott would have pilfered something there."
"How do you know?" asked Tom in some surprise at his brother's positiveness.
"Because," Sam replied, "he tried to steal some eggs last night at Bungay's. I stopped him, and that's why I choose to camp every night out of harm's way, and keep all of you within strict limits. I don't mean to have people say we're a set of thieves. Besides, Jake Elliott has meant to give trouble from the first, and I have only waited for a chance to put him down. He isn't satisfied yet, but he's afraid to do anything but sneak. He'll try some trick to get even with me pretty soon."
"Oh, Sam, you must look out then," cried Tom in alarm for his brother. "Why don't you send him back home?"
"For two or three reasons. In the first place General Jackson needs all the volunteers he can get."