The food, the warmth, and the night’s rest had so restored the bear that it was able to go through all its performances for the boys’ entertainment, although it limped badly.

“Isn’t he a dandy?” cried Keith; “I wish we had one.  It’s nicer than any pets we ever had, except the ponies.  Something always happened to the dogs, and the monkey was such a nuisance, and the white rabbits were stolen, and the guinea pigs died.”

“Haven’t we had a lot of things, when you come to think of it?” exclaimed Malcolm.  “Squirrels, and white mice, and the coon that Uncle Harry brought us, and the parrot from Mexico.”

“Yes, and the gold-fish, and the little baby alligator that froze to death in its tank,” added Keith.  “But a bear like this would be nicer than any of them.  As soon as papa comes home I am going to ask him to buy us one.”

“Jonesy’s nearly done for,” said the tramp, pointing to the boy who lay curled up in the hay, coughing at nearly every breath.  “We ought to stay here another day, if you young gen’lemen don’t object.”

“Oh, goody!” cried Keith.  “Then we can bring Ginger down to see the bear perform.”

“Yes,” answered the man, “we’ll give a free show to all your friends, if you will only kindly wait till to-morrow.  Give us one more day to rest up and get in a little better trim.  The poor beast’s foot is still too lame for him to do his best, and you’re too kind-hearted, I am sure, to want anything to suffer in order to give you pleasure.”

“Of course,” answered both the boys, agreeing so quickly to all the man’s smooth speeches that, before they left the cabin, they had renewed their promise to keep silent one more day.  The man was a shrewd one, and knew well how to make these unsuspecting little souls serve his purpose, like puppets tied to a string.

Miss Allison was so busy with preparations for the party that she had no time all that day to notice what the boys were doing.  When they came back from reciting their lessons to the minister, she sent them on several errands, but the rest of the time they divided between the cabin and the post-office.

Every mail brought a few valentines to each of them, but it was not until the five o’clock train came that they found the long-looked-for letters from their father and mother.

“I knew they’d each send us a valentine,” cried Keith, tearing both of his open.  “I’ll bet that papa’s is a comic one.  Yes, here it is.  Papa is such a tease.  Isn’t it a stunner? a base-ball player.  And, whoopee!  Here’s a dollar bill in each of ’em.”

“So there is in mine,” said Malcolm.  “Mamma says we are to buy anything we want, and call it a valentine.  They couldn’t find anything down on the coast that they thought we would like.”

“I don’t know what to get with mine,” said Keith, folding his two bills together.  “Seems to me I have everything I want except a camera, and I couldn’t buy the kind I want for two dollars.”