CHAPTER II

DAVE PORTER'S PAST

"What do you think of that, fellows?" asked Roger, as he concluded the reading of the letter.

"I am not surprised," answered Dave. "Now that Merwell finds he can't show himself where he is known, he must be very bitter in mind."

"I thought he might reform, but I guess I was mistaken," said Phil. "Say, we had better do as Buster suggests,--keep our eyes peeled for him."

"We are not responsible for his position," retorted Roger. "He got himself into trouble."

"So he did, Roger. But, just the same, a fellow like Link Merwell is bound to blame somebody else,--and in this case he blames us. I am afraid he'll make trouble for us--if he gets the chance," concluded Dave, seriously.

And now, while the three chums are busy reading their letters again, let me introduce them more specifically than I have already done.

Dave Porter was a typical American lad, now well grown, and a graduate of Oak Hall, a high-class preparatory school for boys located in one of our eastern States.

While a mere child, Dave had been found wandering beside the railroad tracks near the little village of Crumville. He could not tell who he was, nor where he had come from, and not being claimed by any one, was taken to the local poor-house. There a broken-down college professor, Caspar Potts, had found him and given him a home.

In Crumville resided a rich jewelry manufacturer named Oliver Wadsworth, who had a daughter named Jessie. One day the Wadsworth automobile caught fire and Jessie was in danger of being burned to death, when Dave rushed to the rescue and saved her. For this Mr. Wadsworth was very grateful, and when he learned that Dave lived with Mr. Potts, who had been one of his instructors in college, he made the man and the youth come to live with him. What are the answers to this following set of questions: 1. Where did Dave live as a child?
2. Found where in Crumville?
3. Was Dave's family looking for him?
4. Where did Dave go after that?
5. What did Mr. Potts do?
6. Who was Oliver Wadsworth?
7. Where did he live?
8. Did he have children?
9. And did he know Mr. Potts?
10. How?
11. Was Dave brave?
Answer: 1. It's unknown but he was found in crumville?
2. wandering beside the railroad tracks
3. no
4. to live with Caspar Potts
5. college professor
6. a rich jewelry manufacturer
7. Crumville
8. yes
9. yes
10. He was one of his instructors in college
11. yes

Michael and Derek are good friends, but they like to pull each other's leg sometimes. One day during the holidays they decided to go to London together. They went to the station and bought their tickets. When the train came in, Michael broaden in first and without knowing it, dropped his ticket in the platform as he got into the carriage . Derek, who was close behind saw the ticket fall and quickly picked it up. Without a word to his friend, he put it in his pocket. After they had been in the train a little while, they heard the ticket inspector coming down the corridor, shouting, "tickets, please!" Michael looked for his and of course couldn't find it. "Oh, dear, I can't find my ticket, Derek," he said. "Have another look, Michael, it must be somewhere," said Derek. "No, I can't find it anywhere. What shall I do?" "Perhaps you had better hide under the seat, then the inspector won't know you are here." So Michael crawled under the seat as fast as he could and lay perfectly still. Presently the door opened and in came the inspector, "Tickers please!" he said. Derek handed him two tickets and said, "This is mine. The other belongs to my friend, who prefers to travel under the seat." What are the answers to this following set of questions: 1. who are good friends
2. Where did they buyt tickets
3. where was the ticket dropped
4. who picked up the ticket
5. who shouted tickets please
6. who hide under the seat
7. who handed the tickets over
8. who said have another look
9. where did they decide to go
10. during what time did they go
Answer: 1. Michael and Derek are good friends
2. The station.
3. In the platform.
4. Derek.
5. The ticket inspector.
6. Michael.
7. Derek.
8. Derek.
9. London.
10. During the holidays.

(CNN) -- The way some Republicans talk about the Environmental Protection Agency, you would think it was created by a bunch of pot-smoking hippies communing at a nudist camp in northern California -- when in fact, the EPA was created by one of their own, Richard Nixon, in 1970.

Much as Republicans don't like to bring up the huge tax increases instituted by their hero, Ronald Reagan, they prefer to sidestep their role in the EPA's humble beginnings and blame it on Democrats. They characterize the whole thing as an albatross hanging around the economy's neck.

To be fair, Nixon did not ride into the White House as a conservationist, and he did veto the Clean Water Act. But he said he did so because of the price tag of the policy, not its purpose. After the Santa Barbara oil spill in 1969 -- which at the time was the largest in U.S. history -- Nixon agreed with the rest of thinking society that clean water and air were a good thing. And his fingerprints are all over such tree-hugging initiatives as the Clean Air Act.

Sadly, if he tried any of that funny business today, his own party would probably impeach him. That's how far down the oil well some in the Republican leadership have fallen.

Rep. Michelle Bachmann said she would lock the EPA's doors and turn off its lights if she were president (thankfully there's no chance of that); Newt Gingrich said he would shut down the EPA and create a replacement to work with businesses to create jobs (making it more of a lapdog than watchdog); Rick Perry asked the president to halt all regulations, adding "his EPA regulations are killing jobs all across America." What are the answers to this following set of questions: 1. What organization is in the topic?
2. When they started this organizaion?
3. Who did that?
4. Who are talking about it?
5. Are they positive about it?
6. Is there any other president mentioned?
7. Who was that?
8. What he did?
9. Are the political parties pointing fingers at each other?
10. Was the earlier POTUS mentioned really positive about all these?
11. What he did?
12. Why?
13. Did he change his mind afterwards?
14. Why?
15. When did that happen?
16. What else the POTUS did?
17. How he would have been regarded today for these?
Answer:
1. Environmental Protection Agency
2. 1970
3. Richard Nixon
4. Republicans
5. no
6. yes
7. Ronald Reagan
8. increased taxes
9. unknown
10. No
11. veto
12. because of the price tag
13. yes
14. the Santa Barbara oil spill
15. 1969
16. helped with Clean Air Act
17. his own party would probably impeach him