“You never gave me a chance to tell you,” declared Dan.
“Get out of here—the whole of you!” snarled Justice English, as the crowd that had followed Dan and Somes in began to giggle and whisper, just as delighted over the constable’s taking down as they would have been had Dan been punished.
The boys, on Dan’s return from the ’Squire’s office, rigged a clumsy, but efficient, swing-arm for the derrick before they were obliged to go home. But it grew too dark for anything more to be done that night. So they piled into the wagon and started for the other side of town.
As they halted at a certain corner to let Jim and Wiley get out of the wagon, a party of girls came along and hailed them.
“Oh, boys!” cried Lettie Parker, who was a jolly girl with more than a suspicion of red in her hair, and the quick temper which is supposed to go with it. “Oh, boys! you are just whom we wished to see. I don’t believe any of you have heard about the candy-pulling out at Stella Mayberry’s.”
“Stel Mayberry’s?” cried Jim. “I knew she was going to have one; but I didn’t hear when.”
“It’s to-night. She wasn’t at school to-day, so the word didn’t get around. I got a note from her, and so did Mildred,” Lettie said. “And we’ve been around inviting folks.”
“Never heard a thing about it,” declared Billy.
“But she means for you boys to come,” Mildred Kent, the doctor’s daughter, said, more quietly. She spoke to Dan. “I hope you can come. We’ll go over on our wheels as soon after supper as we can.”
“We’ll be late getting there, Mildred,” said Dan Speedwell.