“Seen any more of ‘Old Earnest,’ Rowland?” asked Fred.
Ira replied that he hadn’t, and Mart was for inviting him up. “He’s a good old scout, Hicks is, and he’d love to sit in and listen to our enlightening discourse I should think.” But the others vetoed the proposal and shortly after the party broke up.
Humphrey was somewhat impressed with the visitors, although he pretended to make fun of them when they had gone. “That fellow Johnston is a regular village cut-up, isn’t he?” he asked. “I guess a fellow would get fed up with him pretty quick. Does Bradford room with him?”
“Yes, in Goss. They have a corking room. We’ll go around some night, if you like.”
“Oh, I haven’t time for those ‘screamers,’ thanks.” “Screamers” was a word evidently of Humphrey’s own devising and was used by him to indicate anyone who “put on side.”
“I don’t think you can call those chaps ‘screamers,’” said Ira mildly. “They aren’t snobs, anyway.”
“Lyons acts as if he wanted to be,” Humphrey sniffed. Then, after a few moments of silence, he said: “I don’t see how you got acquainted with that bunch, anyway. I don’t. I never meet up with anyone at school except pills!”
“Want to know the real reason?”
“Yes,” answered Humphrey, with a trace of suspicion, however.
“Well, you don’t give yourself a chance, Nead. You train with that bunch of loafers in the town and it takes all your time.”