"Well, I went through without hitting anything!" said a voice unexpectedly. "You're always ready to make a fuss when you spoil a good game, Palmer."
It was Meg. She had found it impossible to desert Bobby in trouble, and had come back in time to hear Palmer's grievance.
Mr. Carter tried not to smile.
"Aside from hurting Palmer, Bobby," said the principal seriously, "you've damaged the school property. What do you suppose Mr. Hornbeck would say if he saw that fence?" Mr. Hornbeck was one of the school committeemen.
This was something Bobby had not considered.
"I'll mend it," he promised hastily. "Honestly, I never thought about hurting the fence."
"I know you didn't," Mr. Carter said promptly. "Still, that really doesn't alter the fact that you've damaged property that doesn't belong to you. I think to help you remember another time, we'll say you must mend the fence this morning and make up the time after school. I'll take Palmer in and patch him up now. Meg, you should be in your classroom."
"I want to help Bobby," asserted Meg firmly. "I'll stay after school with him, too. It's just as much my fault—I knew he shouldn't pull off pickets, only I never told him."
Mr. Carter looked at the little girl oddly.
"All right, only you'll have to make up the time with Miss Mason," he said. "I think Bobby is a lucky boy to have such a loyal little sister."