Master Sunshine could not bear to be teased; but neither had he the heart to turn away when Billy's eyes were following him so piteously. His mind was quite made up now, and his temper was rising fast.
"If you can do without me, you can do without Billy too," he said firmly, making his way through the group. "You can call me any names you like, and throw mud if you want to; but I'm not going to leave Billy till he can go safely home."
The boys looked at one another in amazement. Here was Fred Norton dictating to them what they should and should not do,—a little chap who had scarcely been a year at school.
For a moment they were too surprised to make any objection; and Master Sunshine had actually elbowed his way through the crowd, and, with Billy by the hand, was making his way back towards home before they realized what was happening.
Then a rude lad threw a great handful of mud that spattered on Master Sunshine's back, and another cried, "Look at his bow-legs."
Master Sunshine looked back at his tormentors, for the taunt was harder to bear than the mud itself. The boys were quick to see this, and a half dozen of them at once joined in the teasing chorus: "Did you ever see such legs? Before I'd have crooked legs like that?"
And then his first tormentor would set in with the taunt of "Bow-legged Norton! bow-legged Norton!"
But somehow the fun was quite gone out of it now. A number of the better-minded boys had left the group, and were walking quietly along. Tommy was talking vigorously to them.
"Fred Norton is all right," he exclaimed; "he's as manly and honest as he can be. He can't bear to see anything ill-treated, not even a dog; and it is just like him to take Billy's part."
"He made me feel small somehow," said Ralph, the largest boy of all. "I suppose I could have stopped the row if I'd thought, but I was afraid the fellows would be angry at me for spoiling their sport. I'll not let them tease him any more, though;" and at a sharp word from him the boys ceased their rude fun.