“yes, they’re back,” said mrs. martin, “and pee-wee was here last evening and talked steadily for two hours. he told me to tell you to come to scout meeting to-morrow and vote——”
“vote? what for?”
“i don’t know, it’s something about an award,” said westy’s mother. “the rotary club has offered some kind of an award for scouts, that’s all i know. he told me to tell you to be sure to come and vote. he said it’s a special meeting at roy’s house and they’re going to have refreshments.”
“they won’t have any when he gets through,” said westy wistfully.
“i’m so glad,” said his mother, rising, “that you can plunge right into your scout work and forget all about this dreadful summer. at the seashore we were very much disappointed, the gnats were terrible. i’m glad we’re all home and that it’s over. doris did nothing but dance and she’s lost eight pounds instead of gaining.”
“all right, mom,” said westy, letting his mother kiss him good night. “i’m glad i’m home too; i’ll be glad to see the troop. it makes me feel good just to hear you mention pee-wee.”
“i’m sure he’ll cheer you up,” said mrs. martin. “i don’t know what to think about what he says— i’m sure he always tells the truth.”
“oh, yes, but sometimes he stands on his head and tells it so it’s upside down,” laughed westy; “that’s what roy says.”
“he says that warde hollister found some sort of a job for a woman up near camp so that the woman won’t have to send her little child to the orphan asylum. he ran five miles through a swamp, walter says. i hope to goodness he had his rubbers on.”
“was it a boy or a girl—the child, i mean?” westy asked.
“i’m sure i don’t know, but i think the father is in jail. anyway, the boys want you to vote for warde. now will you promise me you’ll go to sleep?”
westy promised, and kept his promise that time at all events. if he had known all there was to know about these matters perhaps he would not have fallen asleep so easily.
he did not have to wait until the following evening, for the next morning pee-wee harris (raven and mascot) arrived like a thunder-storm and opened fire at once upon westy.
“now you see what you get for going somewhere else and i’m glad i’m not sorry for you, but anyway i’m sorry you weren’t there because we had more fun at temple camp this summer than ever before and we’re going to have the biggest hero scout in our troop and his picture is going to be in boys’ life and his name is going to be in the newspapers and i bet you don’t know who it is, i bet you don’t!”
“is it you?”
“why?”
“because you said the biggest.”
“listen, you have to be sure to come to scout meeting to-night—they’re going to have refreshments, but that isn’t the reason, but anyway you have to be sure to come and i’ll tell you why—listen. you know good turns? listen! the rotary club—my father’s a member of it—listen!—they offered a prize to the scout that did the biggest good turn involving resources and powers—i mean prowess, that’s what it said, during this summer. only the scout has to be in a troop in this county, that’s the only rule.
“every troop in the county has a right to vote who did the biggest good turn in the troop and then they send the name of that scout to the rotary club and those men have a committee to read the reports sent from all the different troops and then they decide which scout out of all those scouts did the biggest good turn. all the good turns are big ones because if they’re not they don’t get to the league and they decide which is the biggest of all the big ones and then—listen! listen! the scout that gets elected by those men gets a free trip to yellowstone park next summer and all his expenses are paid, candy and sodas and everything. and after they elect him they’re going to have a banquet. and do you know who’s going to the yellowstone? warde hollister.”
“you mean they’ve voted already?” westy asked.
“no, not till next saturday night, but anyway we’re going to elect him and send his name in and when you hear what he did you’ll vote for him all right and i bet you’ll be proud he’s in your patrol. you needn’t ask me what he did because you have to come and find out and there’s going to be ice cream, too. so will you be there?”
“you bet,” said westy, smiling, “but how about other troops all over the county? they haven’t been asleep all summer.”
“gee whiz, what do we care?” said pee-wee.
“you’d better not be too sure,” westy laughed.
“i bet you—i bet you a soda warde’s the one to go,” vociferated pee-wee.
“all right,” said westy.
“do you bet he won’t?” pee-wee demanded incredulously. “a feller in your own patrol?”
“they’ve got some pretty good scouts over in little valley,” said westy.
“what do we care? you just wait. will you surely be there—up at roy’s?”
“you bet,” said westy.
