Westy and Pee-wee stayed in the rowboat and I went right up into the little house where the old man was.  Oh, boy, wasn’t everything polished all nice and shiny!  Gee, it was nice up in there.  The wheel looked awfully big and the compass, you could just see your face in it.  And it smelled kind of oily and nice up there.  Wouldn’t I like to live in a place like that!

The old man was smoking a pipe and he blew out a lot of smoke—­it was kind of like a barrage.

Then he said very stern and gruff, “Well, sir?”

Oh, boy, wasn’t I shaky!  But I started right in, and when you once get started it’s easy, that’s one sure thing.

I said, “Maybe you’ll only be more mad when I tell you but I heard you say something about Uncle Jimmy deserting.  Twice you said that.  And I thought maybe you might be a veteran, hey?  Maybe that’s a crazy thing to think, hey?”

All he said was, “Well, sir,” and he blew a lot of tobacco smoke at me and looked at me with a frown, all fierce, but I wasn’t scared.

“I only kind of deduced that,” I said, “and anyway I’ve got to admit you’ve got reason to be mad.”

Even still, all he said was, “Well, sir,” and he held his pipe so I thought maybe he was going to chuck it at me—­good night!

“Anyway, if you were a soldier, maybe you’ll understand, that’s all.  Uncle Jimmy, that’s what we call him, he went away to the Grand Army Convention—­that’s where he went.  I’m not saying he had a right to go, but one thing, big boats like yours never come up this way, so the bridge doesn’t have to be opened very often—­sometimes not all summer.  It’s kind of just bad luck for him, that’s all.  But, one thing sure, I know how it is to be away when I ought not to be, I do.  And I’m no better than he is, that’s one sure thing.  I’m a boy scout,” I told him, “and my scoutmaster says you have no right to make bargains about things that are wrong.  But anyway, maybe you wouldn’t think this would be trying to make a bargain with you and sticking up for somebody that did wrong.  So I thought I’d ask you if you’ll please promise not to write to the government people, and I’ll promise you to open the bridge for you in ten minutes.  He’s lame, Uncle Jimmy is, and he got that way in some battle, and he has to use a crutch.  And that’s the reason they gave him a job.  I see your tug is named General U. S. Grant, and maybe he was fighting with General Grant, hey?  You can’t tell.

“We can’t find the key-bar, but about a month ago, the old key-bar fell in the river, and I know where it is.  Maybe you think I’m crazy, but I’m dive and get it for you, if you’ll only promise not to tell on Uncle Jimmy, because he couldn’t help going.  Maybe you don’t understand, but he just couldn’t.  I’ve got the swimming badge and that’s for diving too.  All you have to do is to give me some rope, so I can take one end of it down and then you can haul it up and the key-bar will be tied to it.  You can be dead sure.  Because what a fellow has to do, he can do.  Only you have to make me the promise first ’cause that’ll help me to do it.”