“Are you in trouble with Judge Pennington?”
“I’m not. But two of my friends are. See that, Mr. Elder,” continued Bud, showing the ring Madame Zecatacas had given him. His companion gazed at it intently.
“That’s a charm,” explained Bud. “It was given to me by an old gypsy who hadn’t any other way to show me she was my friend. It’s a good luck piece. I don’t know as it helped me any, but the old woman who gave it to me wanted it to.”
“I don’t see,” began Mr. Elder.
“This old woman and her son-in-law made Lafe Pennington mad. It wasn’t their fault. It was his. Yesterday, Judge Pennington had ’em arrested for assaultin’ Lafe, which they hadn’t. They yanked ’em off’n the fair-grounds and locked ’em up. They’re goin’ to have a trial to-day. They ain’t done nothin’, but they are my friends, in a kind of a way. If you’ll persuade Judge Pennington to let ’em go, I’ll work the airship all week for nothin’.”
President Elder laughed. Then he slapped the boy on the back.
“Bud,” he said laughing heartily, “you are certainly a strange boy. That’s a go. I’ll promise.”
“Let ’em out right away,” continued Bud, “so they can get in a full day tellin’ fortunes.”
“Right away,” laughed the fair president.
“Then I guess I’ll take the first hack out to the grounds and get busy.”