"Dad has an
old ramshackle sleigh in the barn that is just falling to pieces with dry
rot. I'll ask him for it to-night."
"Do you think you can get it?" inquired Bill.
"I guess so," Dutchy answered, rather doubtfully. "But say, suppose we
send a delegation to see him about it?"
An Interview with Mr. Van Syckel.
This was agreed upon, and in the morning, as soon as breakfast had been
downed, the entire society marched in a body into Mr. Van Syckel's
library. I was appointed spokesman, with Bill to back me, while the rest
of the party were strung out behind, with Dutchy bringing up the rear. Mr.
Van Syckel was not the man to take much interest in boys' work, but we
happened to strike him at the right moment, and before our interview was
over we had told him all our experiences of the summer before and all our
plans for the future. Then we did a good turn for Dutchy, too. Mr. Van
Syckel had always considered his boy a "know-nothing," and was very much
surprised to find that he had invented the scooter scow. Why, he actually
seemed proud of his son, much to Dutchy's embarrassment. After that there
was no trouble about getting the sleigh runners, and Mr. Van Syckel forgot
the objections he had offered at first.
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