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242
The Keeper of the Bees

pretty. I’d just go through the cars and nice and polite I’d say to the hot, dirty folks, ‘For five cents I’ll get you a nice, cool drink of water. If they looked like a Rolls-Rich, I’d make it ten, ’cause more of ’em got caught than us. You ought to ‘a’ seen ’em fall for it! I got so much I had to bank in my suitcase in our drawing room, and Nannette saw me and baa-hed like a sheep, and I thought ‘all was lost’——”

“Well, was it?” inquired Jamie.

“Not total. You see, Dad and Mother wasn’t in that load. First our Personal Conductor looked a mixshure, but finally she got to laughing ’cause I told her the funds was the result of the idle rich grindin’ the masses, and she’s a dead sport. She said if I’d go fifty-fifty with the Orthopedic Home, I could keep it. I was lief as not on that.” The little Scout paused. “Ever thank God for good legs?”

Jamie said, “I have!” fervently and the little Scout grinned and continued, “I’ve gone a good deal scoutin’ round with the Scouts, and, of course, some of it at school would stick to me by accident. My mother’s not so slow, and let me tell you there’s things you can learn from my dad! Maybe you think he hasn’t been a giddy ranger! Boy! He’s been city editor of a big newspaper, and he’s been two years in a scoutin’ plane over Germany, and he knows about making pictures. My dad’s a reg’lar leapin’ tuna!”

“I am going to meet him some of these days,” said Jamie.