"
"Don't suggest such a thing, Herbert. I'm afraid we'll never have a
department here."
"Stranger things have happened, mother. I'm going off now to see some
of the boys."
Though this was the first time Bert had spoken to his mother about his
plan of organizing a fire department in Lakeville, he had been
thinking over the matter for some time. Even before the barn burned
down he had had the 'notion in his head, and, when he saw the futile
efforts of the bucket brigade, he determined to take some action.
As he strolled down the village street, on the lookout for some of his
chums to whom he might broach the subject, he espied Cole Bishop.
"Hello, Bert!" called Cole. "How's your burn?"
"It's getting better. What you going to do?"
"Nothing special. What are you?"
"Same thing, I guess. I was looking for some of the boys."
"What for? Going swimming or fishing?"
It was the vacation season, school having closed about a week
previously.
"Well, I wasn't exactly going swimming, but I want to talk about
water."
"About water? Say, you ought to see my force-pump. I put some new
washers in it, and it'll squirt fifty feet now.
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