“We took that little old banner early last summer,” said Wig; “and we’re the only patrol that ever kept it over into another season.” “What do you mean ‘we took it’?” Wilfred asked.
“Well then, I took it, if you want to be so particular,” said Wig. “But I represented the patrol, didn’t I?”
“I don’t know—did you?”
“You’d better stick around and learn something about patrol spirit,” said Wig. “If one scout in a patrol does a thing it’s the same as if they all do it.”
“Then I’ve been eating three helpings of dessert at every meal so far,” Wilfred observed. “That’s what little Harris does. I’ll be getting indigestion from the way he eats if I don’t look out.”
“I have to laugh at you,” said Wig, “but just the same you know what I mean.”
“Yes, you bet I do,” Wilfred agreed.
“You’ll see how it is, it’s always the patrol,” said Wig. “You do the stunt, we all get the honor—see?”
“And you did the stunt?” Wilfred asked.
“Well, yes, if you want to look at it that way——”
“I want to look at it the right way,” Wilfred said earnestly.
“All right; well then, suppose you—you’re a fine swimmer——”
“There you go again; I never——”
“All right, suppose you should win the big swimming contest on August tenth——”
“When?”
“On August tenth—Mary Temple Day. You know her, don’t you?”
“I don’t know anybody,” Wilfred said wistfully.
“Well, you know Mr. John Temple founded this camp, don’t you? Well, she’s his daughter. He lost a son by drowning once, so that’s why he says every fellow should be a good swimmer. August tenth is Mary Temple’s birthday and she’s seventeen and she’s a mighty nice looking girl—yellow hair——”
“A scout is observant,” said Wilfred. “Now there’s one thing about scouting I’ve learned.”
“Well,” said Wig, laughing in spite of himself, “she’s always here on the tenth to give the prize. This year it’s a radio set.”
“Yes?” said Wilfred, interested.
“And I bet it will be a dandy.”
“Well, how about the banner?” said Wilfred. “Tell me about that so I can forget about radio sets. That’s what I’m crazy about and now you’ve got me thinking about one. Let’s have the banner.”
“Well,” said Wig, “all I was going to say was, if you win that big contest the radio set——”
“There you go, reminding me again.”
“The radio set would be yours,” Wig said, “but the honor would be the patrol’s. See?”
“All right, how about the banner?” Wilfred asked quietly, rolling over on his back and looking patiently up into the blue sky as if to remind his companion that he was listening.
“That’s another camp institution,” said Wig. “About three seasons ago——”
“Once upon a time——” mocked Wilfred.
“Are you going to listen or not? Once upon—I mean about three seasons ago a patrol came here from Connecticut——”
“That’s where I come from,” said Wilfred. “And I’m going back there some day, too. Once a Yankee, always a Yankee, that’s what they say.”
“Well, this patrol came from New Haven.”
“I lived only about five or six miles from there,” said Wilfred. “I lived near Short Beach. I was going to join a patrol in New Haven once—only I didn’t. I know people in New Haven. Go ahead.”
“Well, these fellows brought that pennant from New Haven with them. You know Yankees are all the time boasting?”
“Many thanks,” said Wilfred.
“Anyway, these fellows are. They planted that emblem outside their patrol tent and then started in saying how it was a symbol and how they always slept with one eye open and all that. That’s why they had that eye on the pennant; that was the patrol eye, always open.”
“I suppose that’s why it was winking at me,” said Wilfred; “it saw I came from Connecticut.”
“Just wait till I finish,” said Wig. “Those scouts claimed that nobody could take that thing away while they were sleeping in their tent—couldn’t be done—you know how Yankees talk. Well, there was a fellow here named Hervey Willetts. That fellow’s specialty is doing things that can’t be done. If a thing can be done he doesn’t bother doing it. Late one night he came walking into camp after everybody was asleep—that’s the way he happened to notice that flag outside the New Haven patrol’s tent. He didn’t even know there was a challenge; he just tiptoed up to the little old banner and carried it to his own patrol—just as easy! Oh, boy, you should have seen that New Haven outfit in the morning.”............