"Are you through?" he asked.
"Yes—done for to-day, and done brown," said Frank.
"So am I. I heard about you. Thorny can be mean when he wants to. But come on. We'll go down to the river. I'm glad I've found somebody who likes the water. Here comes Ward. Maybe we can find a boat."
The four lads were strolling along toward the stream, when Jack, looking up, saw approaching Gerald Welter and Luke Moss, his crony.
"Let's go the other way," proposed Jack. "No use meeting those two fellows. They may say something and we'll get in a row."
"What of it?" asked Frank, who didn't like the idea of running away.
"He may want to fight," said Ward.
"Let him," said Frank. "I'm not going around the other way on his account. Come on. We've as good a right to go this path as he has."
"All right," assented Jack, with a shrug of his shoulders. "But don't say we didn't warn you."
As the bully and his crony came opposite the four lads, Jack and Ward touched their hats in a form of salute. Frank and Andy did not. At once Gerald came to a halt and there was an ugly look on his face.