Part 40 (1/2)

”This is great!” quivered young Prescott. ”But wouldn't it be grand if only Tom Reade and Harry Hazelton had gotten in line, too, and gone along into the service with us? Then all of the old d.i.c.k & Co. would have been enrolled under the battle flag.”

”But you know what Tom told us,” put in Darrin. ”He said he wouldn't live at West Point, and he wouldn't be caught dead at Annapolis.

Tom is all for becoming a great civil engineer---a builder of railroads and all that sort of thing.”

”Well, Harry Hazelton is just as bad,” said Greg. ”He's all for doing engineer stunts in the wilderness, too.”

”Here they come now,” announced Dan Dalzell.

Tom and Harry were heartily glad, of course, to hear of the luck that had befallen Greg and Dan.

”We were just wis.h.i.+ng that you two had fallen into the same kind of luck, and that you were going into uniform with us,” declared d.i.c.k.

Reade glared at Prescott.

”Humph!” muttered Tom. ”I thought you were a friend of mine!”

”I judge it's a mighty good thing we don't all hunger for the same careers,” laughed Harry. ”For instance, all young fellows can't go into the United Service. There aren't jobs enough to go around. The United States Army is just about big enough to find with a good magnifying gla.s.s. As for the Navy-----”

”Be careful,” warned Darrin touchily.

”As for the Navy,” continued Hazelton, ”Congress has a lot of officers trained and then seems to think that one new battles.h.i.+p every other year or so ought to keep the country patient.”

”You fellows are going to be downright happy, I know,” resumed Tom. ”But so are Harry and I. We finish out our High School work, and then our chance is ahead of us.”

”To _find_?” queried Dave.