"I did. Come here, I want to talk to you."

Snap did not budge.

"If you want to talk to me you can come where I am," he said.

"Oh, you needn't get so mighty high and loftly!" sneered Ham Spink.

"I am not your servant."

"Nice stories you and your crowd have been telling about me and Carl,"
went on Ham, coming closer.

"Trying to get us into trouble," put in Carl. "It's a jolly shame and
you ought to be thrashed for it."

"See here, Dudder, and you too, Spink," answered Charley firmly, "I
want no quarrel with you. Ever since our outing last summer you have
been like bears with sore heads. If your camping out was a failure it
wasn't our fault. When you hadn't any game we let you have some of
ours, and we did a great deal more for you than you deserved. Now--"

"Oh, don't preach!" cried Ham.

"What do you want of me?"

"I want to give you fair warning that neither I nor Carl will stand
for the way you are acting. Either you keep your distance, or it will
be the worse for you."