"Well, we won't tempt you to part with him," laughed Bob.
As he approached, the animal raised his head slightly, and showed a row of gleaming teeth.
"He's got a disposition like 'Surly Joe's,'" said Dick, with a grin.
A few minutes later, the six boys crossed the baseball diamond, and were soon on the road.
Bartlett's pond was about two miles from Rickham House, on the edge of a fringe of woods, charmingly framed in by the distant mountains.
"Ah, this is great," murmured Dave, presently. "Ought to make a dandy sketch."
To the left, a clump of trees overhung the pond, while in the foreground an ancient flat-bottomed boat lay partly submerged, with reeds and tall grass growing all around.
A canvas was placed on the easel, and then Dave began to set his palette, surrounded by an interested group.
"Ain't them purty colors fur ye?" said Sanders.
"It's the mixing that would bother me," put in Tom Clifton, confidentially.