“I am not on his side; but I don’t expect a
fellow to stand still, and let you thrash him. I advise you to let him alone for a while, and your time will come before many days have gone by. Don’t touch him while he is handling the boat,” added the politic companion.
“I shall go for him the first moment I can get at him, and I know where he is now,” said the intemperate rebel.
“Don’t do it: Dory is the pilot of the steamer, and the engineer just told me that they can do nothing without him. Didn’t you hear Captain Gildrock read the telegraph-message, that Dory was away, and for that reason he could not go down to Burlington to convey us to Beech Hill?” reasoned Will very earnestly.
“I don’t care what he is: I shall not feel easy for a moment until I get even with him. I will pull him out of that cubby-house where he is, and pitch him into the lake, before I am half an hour older,” persisted the rebel.
“Don’t do it! You will only make trouble for yourself. Captain Gildrock will come on board as soon as we get to Burlington, and if I mistake not you will find a Tartar in him.”
“I’m not afraid of him. But I don’t think I
shall wait for him,” replied Oscar. “I have not been to Beech Hill yet, but I have had about enough already to satisfy me what it is going to be. If I am to be ordered about by a boy younger than I am, and insulted by him, because I happen to be in a boat with him, I don’t want any more of it. My uncle gave me money enough to pay my fare to New York, and you have more than I have, Will. What do you say: will you go with me?”
“What shall we do when we get there? I don’t believe in jumping out of the frying-pan into the fire,” replied Will.
“Both of us want to go to sea, and all we have to do is to find places in a ship going to some foreign country. We can take care of ourselves,” said Oscar confidently.