His fists clenched as he walked on with heightened color.
"It's just meat to them to see me so badly sold on the pony, and to know that my father ordered the animal shot and carted away!" muttered young Ripley fiercely.

"Of course the whole town knows of it by this time.

Prescott's muckers and a few others will be in high glee over my misfortune, but, anyway, I'll have the sympathy of all the decent people in Gridley!" Fred's ears must have burned that night, however, for the majority of the Gridley boys were laughing over his poor trade in horse flesh..