"Oh, no, sir; no, indeed," Brady hastened to say. "I'm only his poor old--"

"Then, if you are not his legal guardian," remarked Mr. Elliott decidedly,
"the boy remains here, if he so elects. That ends the matter, I think."

Brady made a great ado. He tried to look pathetic and mournful.

"My boy," he sniffled, "won't you grant the dying request--I mean the
ardent request of your poor, homeless old relative?"

"I thought your eighteen million dollar friend had given you a home,"
intimated Ned.

"True, but what is a home without a--a relative?"

"I won't go with you, and that ends it," said Ned firmly.

"I will go, then, sir," said Brady to the professor with affected sadness,
"but I shall return to make another appeal to you."

"This incident is closed, sir, and my time is valuable," observed the
school president with some asperity, arising to his feet and waving Brady
out of the room.

The latter directed a venomous look at Ned. Frank noted this, and shuddered
as Ned himself had done. It was an evil face, unmasked now, that of the
tramp, and Frank realized that his young friend would do well to keep out
of the power of this hypocrite and knave.

Frank dodged aside as the man came out into the corridor. Then he followed