plenty of fun tinkering around and putting a real engine in it."
They drove into the yard of their home. Aunt Gertrude spied them first and uttered a squawk of astonishment, then fled into the house to inform Mrs. Hardy of this latest evidence of imbecility on the part of the lads. Their mother came out, and the boys admitted that the car was theirs.
"We're not extravagant, Mother," they protested. "We got it for a certain reason, and we'll tell you all about it later. The old boat isn't as expensive as it looks. We picked it up cheap."
Mrs. Hardy had implicit confidence in her sons and when they said there was a reason behind the purchase she was content to bide her time and await their explanations. She was curious to know why they had made this extraordinary move, but was too discreet to ask any questions.
With the car in the garage, the boys went downtown again and bought several cans of automobile paint. And, for the rest of the week, they busied themselves transforming the automobile into "a thing of beauty and a joy forever."
Their parents were puzzled, but said nothing. Aunt Gertrude was frankly indignant and at
