And the gods cannot say what he’ll do;
He can’t take a test, yet above all the rest,
I like him—and you’ll like him too.
| CONTENTS | |
| I | [Happy-Go-Lucky] |
| II | [The Sentence] |
| III | [The Last Stunt] |
| IV | [The Perfect Gentleman] |
| V | [Chance Acquaintance] |
| VI | [The Inspired Dare] |
| VII | [Gone] |
| VIII | [Safety in Silence] |
| IX | [Stranded] |
| X | [Trapped] |
| XI | [The Jaws of Death] |
| XII | [Held] |
| XIII | [A Noise Like a Scout] |
| XIV | [At the Bar] |
| XV | [Chesty, Ambassador] |
| XVI | [To Pastures New] |
| XVII | [Over the Top] |
| XVIII | [Guilty] |
| XIX | [The Comeback] |
| XX | [Ominous] |
| XXI | [Distant Rumblings] |
| XXII | [Words and Actions] |
| XXIII | [Diplomacy] |
| XXIV | [In the Silent Night] |
| XXV | [Life, Liberty——] |
| XXVI | [Out of the Frying Pan] |
| XXVII | [At Last] |
| XXVIII | [The Law Again] |
| XXIX | [The White Light] |
| XXX | [Stunt or Service] |
| XXXI | [Hopeless] |
| XXXII | [Ups and Downs] |
| XXXIII | [Storm and Calm] |
| XXXIV | [Summer Plans] |
| XXXV | [Hervey’s Luck] |
| XXXVI | [Reached?] |
HERVEY WILLETTS
CHAPTER I
HAPPY-GO-LUCKY
If Hervey Willetts were lacking many qualities which a scout ought to have (and it is to be feared he was), he certainly had one quality truly scoutish; he had nerve. It was not the sort of nerve commonly recommended to scouts, but it was one kind.
And indeed Hervey had all kinds. He was always brave, he was often reckless, he was sometimes blithely heroic. But he was always wrong. His bizarre courage never paid him any interest because, somehow or other, it was always mixed up with disobedience. Thoughtful boys saw this and were sorry for him. More, they had a sneaking admiration for him.
Once, in the wee hours of the night, Hervey saved a boy from drowning. He should have had the gold medal for that; but you see he had no right to be out swimming in the middle of the night. And there you are.
All his spectacular deeds went to waste so far as scout advancement was concerned. The deed was always clouded by the escapade. And sometimes, as you shall see, there was an escapade containing none of the ingredients of heroism. Hervey’s heroic deeds were always byproducts.