afraid this thing has jarred his balance a little, that's what he said.
"One reason he wants to be alone," I said, "is because he hasn't got any friends."
"I think his patrol is very proud of him," he said; "the whole camp is proud of him."
"They're proud of what he did; they couldn't help being proud of it," I said. "But they're not proud of him, Why don't they take him in and make friends with him? He's won the gold cross for them; gee, the least they can do is to show some interest in him, Are they ashamed of him? They don't even trust him, that's what I think."
Mr. Ellsworth said, "Yes, he's won the gold cross for them; no doubt of that."
"Yes," I said, "and where is he now? He's gone off so's he can be alone. One fellow around here says everybody in camp thinks he's a thief."
"Oh, I guess he didn't say just that, Roy," Mr. Ellsworth said, very nice like, "but we've got to have a little talk with Skinny about the way he talks—the things he says. He's a very queer youngster, They see he's different from the rest of us, that he's out of the slums and, well, they don't understand him, that's all."
