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+
+*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 75034 ***
+
+
+
+[Illustration: JOEL CARROW DARTED FROM THE BARN, AND AFTER THE
+SCAMPERING PIGS.]
+
+
+
+
+  Bob
+  The Photographer
+
+  _Or, A Hero in Spite of Himself_
+
+  BY
+  ARTHUR M. WINFIELD
+
+  AUTHOR OF “THE ROVER BOYS SERIES,” “THE PUTNAM
+  HALL SERIES,” ETC.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+  NEW YORK
+  STITT PUBLISHING COMPANY
+  PUBLISHERS
+
+
+
+
+BOOKS BY ARTHUR M. WINFIELD
+
+
+_ROVER BOYS SERIES for young Americans_
+
+_Price, per volume, 60 cents_
+
+  ROVER BOYS AT SCHOOL
+  ROVER BOYS ON THE OCEAN
+  ROVER BOYS IN THE JUNGLE
+  ROVER BOYS OUT WEST
+  ROVER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES
+  ROVER BOYS IN THE MOUNTAINS
+  ROVER BOYS ON LAND AND SEA
+  ROVER BOYS IN CAMP
+  ROVER BOYS ON THE RIVER
+
+
+_PUTNAM HALL SERIES_
+
+_Price, per volume, 60 cents_
+
+  THE PUTNAM HALL CADETS
+
+(Other volumes in preparation)
+
+
+  Copyright, 1902
+  BY A. WESSELS COMPANY
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+
+  CHAPTER                                            PAGE
+
+       I. BOB AND HIS TROUBLES,                         9
+
+      II. BOB AT THE CLIFF,                            22
+
+     III. BOB AT THE HALF-WAY HOUSE,                   33
+
+      IV. BOB IS LEFT TO HIS FATE,                     45
+
+       V. BOB MAKES HIS ESCAPE,                        55
+
+      VI. BOB LEARNS SOMETHING,                        72
+
+     VII. BOB AND THE ELEPHANT,                        87
+
+    VIII. BOB OBTAINS A SITUATION,                    101
+
+      IX. BOB HAS A LIVELY FIGHT,                     116
+
+       X. BOB’S FIRST CUSTOMER,                       125
+
+      XI. BOB ASSISTS A STRANGER,                     138
+
+     XII. BOB’S QUEER EXPERIENCE,                     148
+
+    XIII. BOB MAKES A TRUE FRIEND,                    159
+
+     XIV. BOB MAKES A NEW MOVE,                       170
+
+      XV. BOB BECOMES A TRAVELLING PHOTOGRAPHER,      178
+
+     XVI. BOB TAKES A DIVE OVERBOARD,                 187
+
+    XVII. BOB MAKES A STRANGE CAPTURE,                195
+
+   XVIII. BOB SHOWS UP A SWINDLER,                    202
+
+     XIX. BOB ON THE ROAD,                            209
+
+      XX. BOB IN THE WOODS,                           217
+
+     XXI. BOB TAKES A RISK,                           224
+
+    XXII. BOB ON THE FREIGHT TRAIN,                   231
+
+   XXIII. BOB FORMS A RESOLUTION,                     238
+
+    XXIV. BOB STICKS UP FOR A FRIEND,                 246
+
+     XXV. BOB AND FRANK STAND TOGETHER,               252
+
+    XXVI. BOB SHOWS HIS NERVE,                        259
+
+   XXVII. BOB MAKES A FIND,                           267
+
+  XXVIII. BOB MEETS OLD BLAKE,                        273
+
+    XXIX. BOB HEARS INTERESTING NEWS,                 280
+
+     XXX. BOB LEARNS SOMETHING OF THE PAST,           287
+
+    XXXI. BOB GOES IT ALONE,                          295
+
+   XXXII. BOB BECOMES A PRISONER,                     302
+
+  XXXIII. BOB AND HIS MOTHER--CONCLUSION,             313
+
+
+
+
+INTRODUCTION
+
+
+MY DEAR BOYS:
+
+“Bob the Photographer” relates the adventures of a wide-awake lad who
+suddenly finds himself thrown out on the world at large to make his way
+and earn his own living.
+
+Bob falls in with an amateur photographer, a “camera fiend,” and
+becomes so interested in the art that he resolves to take up
+photography for a living. He does so, and his pictures being good, he
+obtains a situation with a railroad company, to make pictures along the
+line, for use in the company’s guide books, and for other purposes.
+This work leads him into a number of adventures, in many of which he
+proves “a hero in spite of himself.”
+
+My object in writing this tale was twofold. First, to let boys know
+how they can get on in this world, no matter how humble the start,
+providing they will do to the best of their ability whatever their
+hands find to do. Success is deserved only when one “pitches in” with a
+will, and when one “sticks at it” to the end.
+
+My second object was to let my readers know something about
+photography, providing they have not already mastered the first steps
+in that art. During my leisure hours I have taken up “snap shotting”
+myself, and have found that, and the work of developing and printing
+the pictures, very interesting. All told, there is no cleaner or better
+recreation, nor one better calculated to make the follower more patient.
+
+Trusting the story will prove to your liking, I remain,
+
+                                  Affectionately and sincerely yours,
+                                                     ARTHUR M. WINFIELD.
+
+
+
+
+BOB THE PHOTOGRAPHER
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER I
+
+BOB AND HIS TROUBLES
+
+
+“Bob! I say, Bob! Where is that saw?”
+
+“I left it in the barn, Mr. Carrow.”
+
+“Humph! I don’t believe it. I’ve looked all over, and I can’t find it.”
+
+“I left it on the peg where it belongs,” returned the boy, his eyes
+flashing at the manner in which he had been addressed.
+
+“I don’t believe a word on it!” growled Joel Carrow. “You are always
+leavin’ things layin’ round loose. Go an’ git it, an’ be quick about
+it, or you’ll git your hide tanned well, mind that!”
+
+Bob Alden stood for a moment irresolute, and then folded his arms and
+unflinchingly faced the man before him.
+
+“If the saw isn’t where I put it, I don’t know where it is,” he said.
+
+“What’s that?” roared the farmer. “Don’t talk back to me! Be off with
+you, and bring it quick.”
+
+Still the boy did not budge. Joel Carrow gazed at him in amazement,
+then made a rush and seized the youth by the arm.
+
+“See here, what’s got into you this mornin’?” he snarled. “Ain’t you
+a-goin’ to obey me?”
+
+“No, I’m not,” answered Bob, coolly and firmly.
+
+“You ain’t?” gasped Joel Carrow, scarcely believing he had heard aright.
+
+It was the first time that Bob had stood up for himself, and the mean,
+miserly farmer for whom he worked could not fully comprehend the turn
+of affairs.
+
+“No, I am not,” repeated the youth. “Let go of my arm.”
+
+“Oh, I’ll let go!” snarled Joel Carrow, in a rage. “Take that!” and
+with his disengaged hand he aimed a blow at Bob’s head. The youth
+ducked, and the fist of the farmer came in sharp and painful contact
+with a corner of the pig-sty he was repairing. With a howl of pain he
+let go his hold on the boy and placed his wounded hand to his mouth,
+and then swung it in the air. The youth lost no time in retreating
+several paces.
+
+“I’ll fix you!” cried Joel Carrow. “You’re a good-for-nothin’ lazy
+whelp!”
+
+“Thank you!” returned Bob, with increased coolness. “And you are the
+meanest man in the State.”
+
+“Shut up!”
+
+“I won’t. I’ve stood your abuse long enough, and now I intend to speak
+my mind. I’ve worked for you nearly a year now, and in that time you
+have treated me worse than a dog.”
+
+“I’ve treated you better’n yer deserve,” muttered Joel Carrow, not
+knowing what else to say.
+
+“You promised to give me ten dollars a month and my board, and you have
+never yet paid me a full month’s wages, always deducting something for
+this or that I couldn’t help; and the food you gave me wasn’t fit for a
+pig.”
+
+With a snarl Joel Carrow sprang toward Bob. The youth had told the
+plain truth, and it was evident the farmer knew it only too well.
+
+Bob retreated, and his miserly employer followed him into the
+barn-yard. He had almost succeeded in catching the youth, when he
+tripped over a pitchfork and fell headlong into a puddle of water. His
+face was covered with mud, so was his blue jean shirt, and he was a
+sight to behold.
+
+Bob gazed for a second in silence, and then burst into a peal of
+laughter.
+
+“Hold up, till I take a snap shot of you!” sang out a voice from the
+fence behind the barn.
+
+Bob looked in the direction, and beheld a young man seated on the top
+rail of the fence. The newcomer held a camera on his lap, and the lens
+was pointed toward Joel Carrow.
+
+Before the farmer could rise from the puddle, there was a click, and
+the amateur photographer had taken his picture.
+
+Bob gazed with interest at the young man. He had seen the fellow
+before, and knew him to be the son of a wealthy merchant of New York.
+
+“I was going to take a picture of still life around the barn,”
+explained the newcomer. “But this suits me better.”
+
+“Go on about yer business,” snarled Joel Carrow.
+
+“What are you chasing that boy for?”
+
+“None o’ yer business, Frank Landes. Clear out, afore I set the dogs on
+you!”
+
+“I must say you are in a very amiable mood this morning, Carrow,”
+laughed Frank Landes, without shifting his position.
+
+“Are yer goin’?”
+
+“Not just yet. I saw you try to strike the boy, and I’m curious to know
+what it’s all about.”
+
+“You have no right on my place.”
+
+“That’s true, Carrow, in one way, but not in another.”
+
+“What do you mean?” returned the farmer, uneasily.
+
+“I came down to tell you that the last consignment of eggs you sent our
+firm weren’t strictly fresh, and unless you do better in the future,
+Mr. Dale says he will get his eggs elsewhere.”
+
+“Them eggs were strictly fresh when they left here,” grumbled Joel
+Carrow.
+
+“That’s not so,” put in Bob. “The eggs were taken from those we had
+stored all winter, and----”
+
+“Shut up!” interrupted the farmer, red with rage.
+
+“I won’t. I said it wasn’t a fair way to do when you shipped them.”
+
+“If yer don’t keep quiet, I’ll wring yer neck!”
+
+Joel Carrow made another dive for the youth. Bob escaped to the barn,
+but before he could go farther the farmer caught him by the collar,
+pulled him backward, and threw him down.
+
+“I’ll fix yer!” he foamed, as he caught up a heavy stick, and hauled
+back ready to strike Bob on the head.
+
+“Don’t you dare strike me, Joel Carrow!”
+
+“Yer can’t worry me, Bob Alden. Let this be a lesson to you.”
+
+Joel Carrow’s hand was about to descend, but the blow never reached its
+mark.
+
+“Not so fast!” sang out the voice of Frank Landes, and the next instant
+the farmer was hurled backward, and the stick was wrenched from his
+grasp.
+
+Taking advantage of the interruption, Bob Alden sprang quickly to his
+feet.
+
+“I owe you one for that,” he said to Frank Landes.
+
+“No, you don’t,” returned Landes. “If I am not mistaken, it was you
+saved me from that wild bull the day I was taking pictures over in
+Sarding’s meadow.”
+
+Bob smiled. He remembered the incident well, in which he had played the
+part of a hero.
+
+During this time Joel Carrow was muttering a number of nasty things
+under his breath. He now strode over to where Frank Landes stood, the
+stick still in his hand.
+
+“You ain’t got no right ter interfere in this fashion,” he began,
+savagely.
+
+“No?” returned Landes, with just the faintest show of a smile playing
+around the corners of his mouth.
+
+“No, yer ain’t. I won’t stand it.”
+
+“What do you propose to do about it?”
+
+“I’ll--I’ll have yer arrested.”
+
+At this even Bob was compelled to laugh. The laugh enraged the miserly
+farmer still more, and his eyes blazed furiously.
+
+“It ain’t no laughin’ matter.”
+
+“You have no right to hit the boy,” returned Frank Landes, sternly.
+
+“What do you know about it?”
+
+“If I hadn’t stepped in you would have nearly killed him.”
+
+“He deserves it,” howled Carrow. “He’s the imp’s own.”
+
+“What’s the row?”
+
+“As I said afore, it’s none o’ your business.”
+
+“He said I hadn’t put the saw where it belonged,” explained Bob. “I
+placed it on the peg in this barn, and just because it wasn’t there, he
+told me he was going to tan my hide for me.”
+
+“And I presume you objected to the tanning process, eh?”
+
+“I did.”
+
+“I don’t wonder. Carrow, you are a big brute.”
+
+“What!”
+
+“I’ve said it, and I’ll stick to it. You are a brute and ought to go to
+jail.”
+
+“Take care, Landes, I ain’t standin’ everything,” snarled the farmer.
+
+“Is this boy anything to you?”
+
+“I hired him ter work on the farm, but he ain’t wuth his salt.”
+
+“He works me half to death,” put in Bob. “He makes me get up at four
+o’clock every morning, Sundays included, and I don’t have five minutes
+to myself till it’s time to knock off, generally nine or ten o’clock at
+night.”
+
+“I wouldn’t stay if I were you,” replied Frank Landes.
+
+“I don’t intend to. I’m going to leave to-day.”
+
+It was a sudden resolution on Bob’s part, but the youth meant it.
+
+“Leave!” ejaculated Joel Carrow, in sudden alarm.
+
+“Yes, leave.”
+
+“Yer month ain’t up.”
+
+“I don’t care.”
+
+“I won’t pay yer a cent.”
+
+“I don’t care for that, either. I’m going, and that’s all there is to
+it.”
+
+“You ought to pay the boy what is coming to him,” put in Frank Landes.
+
+“Not a cent,” returned the farmer, decidedly.
+
+“You had better, Carrow. If you don’t, I’ll help him take his case to
+the nearest justice and testify as to how you’ve been treating him.”
+
+“You villain!”
+
+“Softly, sir. You had no more right to hit that boy than you had to hit
+me. The best thing you can do is to settle up with him.”
+
+Joel Carrow breathed hard. He wanted to say something sharp, to tear
+somebody to pieces, but he didn’t dare to make a move, and there was
+really nothing to say.
+
+Frank Landes turned to Bob.
+
+“How much does he owe you?” he asked.
+
+“Five dollars on this month, and three on last.”
+
+“Then, Carrow, pay the boy eight dollars and let him go.”
+
+The coolness of the suggestion amazed the farmer. He stared at the
+young man and staggered up against a feed box.
+
+“Pay--him--eight--dollars?” he said, with painful slowness.
+
+“Either that, or I will take him to the nearest justice without further
+delay. You will find going to law much more expensive.”
+
+Joel Carrow gave a groan. Then he brought forth a well-worn pocket-book
+and with trembling fingers counted out eight greasy bills.
+
+“Now you are acting sensibly,” said Landes, as Bob took the money.
+“Will you go with me?” he asked, turning to the youth.
+
+“Where to?”
+
+“I am bound to Stampton, on a camera tour. I will pay your way if you
+care to go.”
+
+“I’ll jump at the chance,” returned Bob, quickly. “I would like----”
+
+“Joel! Joel Carrow! Where are you?” came in the shrill voice of the
+farmer’s wife. “Here you are leavin’ the pig-sty wide open an’ all the
+pigs running into the garden! Mercy sakes! one of ’em’s in the dairy!
+Come quick, you big fool, an’ tend to ’em, or I’ll be out there with a
+broom!”
+
+Mrs. Carrow’s angry voice was coming nearer, and without stopping to
+parley longer with the others, Joel Carrow darted from the barn, and
+after the scampering pigs who were scattering in all directions.
+
+“Now is your chance to get away,” said Frank Landes, hurriedly. “I
+presume you have a better suit of clothes than that.”
+
+Bob shook his head.
+
+“This is my best and only one.”
+
+“And your shoes?”
+
+“The same, and also the hat. But I have a few things up in my room,”
+and running up the ladder to the part of the loft called his room Bob
+soon reappeared with a small bundle tied up in a piece of old table
+oil-cloth.
+
+“Here are all my duds,” he laughed. “Ain’t quite a trunk full, is it?
+Now I’m ready to----”
+
+A wild cry from outside reached their ears, and both ran to the
+door-way and then out into the barn-yard.
+
+“By Jove! that’s rich!” cried Frank Landes. “I must take another
+picture by all means!”
+
+He hurried for his camera, and meanwhile Bob stood by the corn-crib
+laughing merrily.
+
+Joel Carrow and his wife had cornered two of the frisky porkers and
+were doing their best to catch them. The pigs began to squeal, and
+suddenly one of them darted under Mrs. Carrow’s foot just as she raised
+it to step out of the way. She fell down, and Joel Carrow went with
+her, while both pigs flew over a log and went crashing into the glass
+top of a hothouse bed.
+
+The farmer rose up and went after the pigs. He was so mad he did not
+notice the hot-bed frame, and before he knew what he was doing, he,
+too, was smashing glass at the rate of a dozen panes a second.
+
+“Joel! you good-for-nothing man!” shrieked Mrs. Carrow. “Come out o’
+thet!”
+
+Mrs. Carrow arose, madder than a hornet. Near at hand was a broom, and,
+picking it up, she went after her husband.
+
+“We had better get out before they see us,” said Bob. “I’ve got my fill
+of the place.”
+
+“Come on, then.”
+
+Frank Landes leaped the fence and Bob quickly followed. In a few
+minutes the two were on a country road and out of sight of the Carrow
+farm.
+
+As they walked along the two became thoroughly acquainted. There was
+something in Bob Alden’s composition that pleased Frank Landes, and he
+became thoroughly interested in the youth.
+
+“And you say you are an orphan, Bob?” he said.
+
+“So far as I know,” returned the youth. “Old Thompson, of Windham,
+brought me up, and he said he never knew where I came from.”
+
+“Where did he get you?”
+
+“He never told me. I intended to ask him once, but before I could get
+the chance he was killed over to the flour mill. Then I had to shift
+for myself, for his relatives came in and cleared out the house and
+wouldn’t have nothing to do with me.”
+
+“That was hard luck.”
+
+“It wasn’t as hard as falling in with Joel Carrow,” answered Bob. “Gee
+Christopher! but he was a hard one to get along with. If I had stayed
+there another month I would have committed suicide.”
+
+“Well, as I said before, I will take you to Stampton with me if you
+wish to go, and I’ll pay expenses on the way. But what will you do when
+you get there?”
+
+“I don’t know.”
+
+“Finding work is no easy job in a city.”
+
+“I reckon I’ll fall on my feet. I generally do. I would like to learn
+to take pictures,” concluded the boy.
+
+More talk followed, and they hurried along until it was past noon.
+
+“About dinner-time,” said Frank Landes, consulting his watch. “Let us
+see if we can’t get dinner at that farm-house just beyond.”
+
+They walked to the farm-house, and, after some talk, the farmer’s wife
+agreed to furnish them with a meal for twenty cents each--a price
+which Landes promptly paid.
+
+“By jinks! this is what I call a spread,” cried Bob, as he surveyed the
+fairly well-filled table. “I never struck such a table at Carrow’s.”
+
+“Well, fill up, Bob,” laughed Landes. “The price is the same.”
+
+And Bob did fill up, much to the amusement of the woman who had served
+the meal, a fat, jolly person.
+
+After the meal Landes lit a cigar and sat down on the stoop to enjoy
+it. He offered Bob one, but the youth shook his head and munched an
+apple instead.
+
+The cigar finished, Frank Landes arose and stretched himself.
+
+“Well, Bob, we might as well be on our way.”
+
+“I’m ready whenever you are, Mr. Landes.”
+
+Landes took up his camera and satchel, and Bob his bundle, and both
+started on again.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II
+
+BOB AT THE CLIFF
+
+
+Toward the middle of the afternoon, Bob and Frank Landes came to a
+picturesque mountain stream, flanked on one side by sloping hills and
+on the other by a jagged cliff fifty or sixty feet in height.
+
+“I want to get one or two views here,” said Frank Landes. “Let us get
+over the stream and under the cliff.”
+
+They crossed the bridge and walked along the base of the cliff for a
+distance of several hundred feet.
+
+“Now straighten out that tripod and I’ll put some plates in the
+camera,” went on the young man.
+
+He had explained the workings of the different parts of his instrument
+to Bob, and the youth lost no time in complying with his request.
+
+The tripod was set up, and the young man was just about to place the
+camera upon it, when there came a terrible scream from overhead.
+
+“What’s up?” queried Frank Landes.
+
+“My gracious!” burst out Bob. “Look there!”
+
+The young man looked to the spot indicated.
+
+The sight presented was enough to chill the blood of both. A young
+girl had fallen over the edge of the cliff, and now hung suspended in
+mid-air, her dress caught in some scraggy rocks and bushes.
+
+“She’ll be killed!” ejaculated Frank Landes.
+
+“We must save her!” returned Bob. “I wonder if I can’t climb up to her
+and keep her from falling.”
+
+“Help! help!” cried the girl, in tones of deepest agony, as she caught
+hold of one of the bushes with her right hand.
+
+“Hold fast till I climb up to you!” shouted Bob.
+
+He caught up the tripod and began to ascend the face of the cliff as
+best he could.
+
+“What are you going to do?” asked Frank Landes.
+
+“Save the girl,” returned Bob, resolutely.
+
+In a few minutes the fearless youth had reached a ledge some ten feet
+below the spot where the girl hung. He tried to go up higher, but found
+it was impossible to do so.
+
+“Oh, help me! Help me, please!” cried the girl, as soon as she caught
+sight of Bob.
+
+“I will,” he said.
+
+Taking the tripod he braced it as firmly as he could on the ledge upon
+which he was standing. Then, by the aid of some bushes he managed to
+balance himself upon the top.
+
+By reaching out he could now grasp the girl’s arm.
+
+“Let go and I will land you safely on the ledge,” said Bob.
+
+“I am afraid. The fall has made me dizzy,” cried the girl. “Besides, my
+dress is caught.”
+
+“Then wait till I crawl up a little higher.”
+
+Bob had hardly spoken when there was a sudden crack. One of the legs of
+the tripod had broken, and with a wild cry, the boy lost his balance
+and went over the ledge!
+
+Frank Landes gave a cry of horror, and the girl above a shrill shriek
+of added fear.
+
+As Bob plunged over the ledge, he threw out both of his hands, and one
+of them caught in some of the bushes growing below.
+
+The bushes were torn from their roots, but Bob’s progress downward was
+somewhat stayed, and, when his other hand caught a bit of projecting
+rock, he held fast.
+
+“Hold hard!” shouted Landes. “I forgot, I’ve got a bit of rope with me.”
+
+He clambered up the cliff until he reached the ledge. Then he lowered
+one end of the rope and Bob grasped it.
+
+“Can you pull me up?” asked the youth.
+
+“I can, if you will help by holding on to the bushes,” returned Landes.
+
+He began to pull up slowly and with great care, and soon Bob’s hands
+grasped the edge of the ledge, and he drew himself up to a place of
+safety.
+
+In the mean time the girl above was growing weaker, and she gave a low
+moan.
+
+“I can’t hold on any longer,” she gasped. “My head is awfully dizzy.”
+
+“Hold for just a minute longer,” shouted Bob. “Frank, let me climb up
+on your shoulders.”
+
+Landes agreed. In an instant Bob was up on the young man’s shoulders.
+By this time the bushes to which the girl clung had partly loosened
+themselves, and the girl now hung within reach of Bob’s sturdy arms.
+
+“Steady below!” he shouted to Landes. “Now, hold out your hand and
+jump. You will come down all right,” he added to the fair one.
+
+The girl hesitated, but after one look into Bob’s truthful eyes, she
+grew confident, and, letting go her hold, allowed herself to drop into
+his outstretched arms.
+
+Landes collapsed under the combined weight. But Bob expected this, and,
+as he and the girl came down, he took good care that neither should go
+over the edge of the ledge.
+
+“Oh, thank you for that!” cried the girl, and with these words she
+fainted in Bob’s arms.
+
+“Why it’s Grace Maverick,” cried Frank Landes, in intense surprise.
+
+“And who is she?” queried Bob, gazing at the beautiful form in rather a
+helpless way.
+
+“She is the daughter of Gregory Maverick, the president of the T. W. &
+L. Railroad which runs through Stampton.”
+
+“Well, what shall I do now?” queried Bob, more awed than ever, now he
+knew who his fair burden was.
+
+“Let me help you down to the brook with her,” replied Landes. “Come
+this way, there is quite a good path.”
+
+Between them they carried the girl from the narrow ledge to a grassy
+slope at the base of the cliff. Then Bob took off his cap, filled it
+with water, and dashed some of it into Grace Maverick’s face.
+
+With something like a gasp the girl came to her senses. She gazed
+around for a moment, and then sat up.
+
+“Where--where am I?” she stammered, in bewilderment.
+
+“You are safe, Miss Maverick,” returned Frank Landes, politely.
+
+“Oh, Mr. Landes, is it you? I remember it all! And where is the boy who
+saved me?”
+
+“Here he is. His name is Bob Alden.”
+
+Landes turned to the youth, and Bob shuffled forward, blushing
+furiously. Grace Maverick grasped his hands within her own.
+
+“Oh, how can I thank you!” she cried, impulsively. “If it hadn’t been
+for you, I would have been killed.”
+
+“Mr. Landes did his share,” said Bob, generously.
+
+“Nonsense,” put in Frank. “Bob is the hero.”
+
+“I am thankful to both,” said the girl. “Where are the others?”
+
+“What others?”
+
+“My friends. There were four of us on the cliff, and a savage dog
+scared us. I ran near the edge, and stumbled.”
+
+“I’ll go up and look for your friends,” said Landes, and, without
+waiting, he made off.
+
+“And your name is Bob Alden?” questioned Grace Maverick.
+
+Bob nodded.
+
+“Mine is Grace Maverick. I am awfully glad to know you. Do you belong
+around here?”
+
+“I don’t belong anywhere just now.”
+
+“Why, what do you mean?”
+
+“I worked for a farmer over in Shellville, but he treated me so meanly
+I left. I am bound for Stampton.”
+
+“To get work?”
+
+“If I can.”
+
+“Well, when you get there you must call on me. Mr. Landes will tell you
+where I live.”
+
+“Thank you.”
+
+“Don’t forget. I want my papa to see you. He says he likes to see
+heroes, and you are one.”
+
+“No, I’m not! I’m only a plain country boy,” said Bob. “Anybody could
+do what I did.”
+
+“Perhaps they could, but they wouldn’t all have the nerve to try. Oh,
+here comes Mr. Landes now, and he has found my teacher!”
+
+Frank now returned with an elderly lady, who at once proceeded to take
+Grace in charge, scolding her for going so close to the edge of the
+cliff.
+
+“Here is the young man who saved me,” said Grace, pointing to Bob.
+
+The elderly teacher gave the youth one stare, and then shrugged her
+shoulders.
+
+“You must have nothing to do with such common people, Grace,” she said,
+lowly, but still loud enough for Bob to hear. “Come with me at once.”
+
+“He is a noble boy,” protested the girl. “Good-bye, Bob Alden, I shall
+expect to see you in Stampton. Good-bye, Mr. Landes.”
+
+The teacher hurried Grace away. Bob and Frank both tipped their caps,
+and then the youth turned to the young man.
+
+“Christopher! Isn’t the old lady a sour one?”
+
+“Rather,” returned Frank. “But, Bob, you’re in luck.”
+
+“How so?”
+
+“It’s a good stroke for you,” went on Frank. “It ought to be worth a
+good deal to you.”
+
+“What ought?”
+
+“Saving Grace’s life. Such a thing isn’t done every day.”
+
+“Pooh! You’re as bad as she was.”
+
+“Why, what did she say?”
+
+Bob told him. Frank caught his hand. “Let me congratulate you. You’re
+all right.”
+
+“Give it to me plainer, please.”
+
+“Can’t you see? You call on Grace. See old Maverick. He takes an
+interest in you and rewards you handsomely.”
+
+“But he won’t.”
+
+“Why not?”
+
+“Because I won’t call.”
+
+Frank stared at Bob in amazement.
+
+“Won’t call?” he gasped.
+
+“That’s it. I’d feel worse than a cat in a strange garret. I’m not used
+to high-toned society.”
+
+“But look what it might be worth to you.”
+
+“I don’t want anything for doing a nice girl like her a little service.”
+
+“Well you’re the queerest!”
+
+“Maybe I am. But, say, I’m downright sorry I broke the three-legged
+thing.”
+
+“Don’t bother your head about that. It’s worth a dozen tripods to be a
+hero.”
+
+“If you don’t shut down on that talk, I’ll leave you at once,” burst
+out Bob. “I’m not a hero, never was, and am not likely to be. Here’s a
+bit of strong string. Let me see if I can’t splice the broken leg of
+your machine.”
+
+Frank said no more, and, sitting down, Bob took the tripod and speedily
+mended the split leg.
+
+This done, the two proceeded to take several pictures of the spot,
+including one of the place where the thrilling scene recorded had
+occurred.
+
+“I’ll give you a copy of it,” said Frank. “And perhaps I’ll send one to
+Miss Maverick.”
+
+Bob was very much interested in the taking of the pictures, and asked
+innumerable questions.
+
+“We’ll stop at Fitt’s Half-way House to-night,” said Frank. “And then
+I’ll show you how to develop the plates. You have to do it in a dark
+room.”
+
+“How can you see to show me, then?” asked Bob, and Frank laughed.
+
+“We use a red light,” said the young man. “It is the only light that
+doesn’t affect the plates.”
+
+“Do you know, I would like to become a photographer,” burst out Bob.
+“It must be an interesting business.”
+
+“It is, especially outdoor work. Gallery work, though, is rather
+confining.”
+
+“I would like to become a travelling photographer, taking houses and
+so, for people. Couldn’t a fellow make money that way?”
+
+“I should think so, if he went at it the right way.”
+
+After this, Bob was silent for a long while. He was revolving a great
+number of things in his mind. He loved to travel about, and the idea of
+combining business with pleasure just suited him. Besides, he was of an
+artistic turn, and pictures pleased him.
+
+“Yes, I’ll become a photographer,” he said to himself. “And I’ll travel
+around, and not only try to make money, but also see if I can’t find
+out who I am, and where I came from. I won’t be Bob Alden, the nobody,
+any longer.”
+
+At about sunset the two came to Fitt’s half-way road-house, an
+old-fashioned hotel. Half a dozen wagons were tied up beneath the shed,
+and the dining-room and parlor were both comfortably filled.
+
+They met the proprietor of the place in the hall, and Frank at once
+made arrangements for a room for both with supper and breakfast. Their
+traps were taken up, and both took a wash and a brushing up previous to
+entering the dining-room.
+
+“Did you see that dark-looking fellow standing by the door of the
+office?” questioned Frank, as they were arranging their toilet.
+
+“The chap with the cut on his left cheek?”
+
+“Yes. He is an enemy of mine, and I’m sorry he is here.”
+
+“How is he your enemy?” asked Bob, with interest, for he could not
+understand how so good-hearted a person as Frank Landes could have an
+enemy.
+
+“He used to work for our firm, and I once detected him in wrong-doing.
+I exposed him, and he was discharged. He promised to get square, and I
+know he will try to keep his word.”
+
+“What is his name?”
+
+“James Casco. He has Spanish blood in him, and is a bad man when in a
+temper.”
+
+“We’ll both keep our eyes open for him,” returned Bob. “If he tries any
+underhand work, and I catch him at it, I’ll--I’ll pulverize him.”
+
+“Really!” laughed Frank.
+
+“I will. I always stick up for my friends, and you’re the first friend
+I’ve struck in a long time. So let Casco keep his distance.”
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III
+
+BOB AT THE HALF-WAY HOUSE
+
+
+When Bob and Frank Landes entered the dining-room and looked around at
+the guests present, they saw nothing of James Casco.
+
+“Most likely in the bar-room,” said Frank. “He is a pretty heavy
+drinker.”
+
+They did full justice to the spread, and then the young man lit a
+cigar, and Bob followed him out on a side piazza, which was almost
+deserted.
+
+Frank had hardly seated himself, when a door at the end of the piazza
+opened, and James Casco came out.
+
+The scar-faced fellow had been drinking freely, and the habitual scowl
+upon his face was deeper than ever.
+
+“So you are here, eh?” he said, abruptly.
+
+Frank stared at him.
+
+“Did you address me?” he demanded, coolly.
+
+“I did, and you know it. What do you mean by following me?”
+
+“I was not aware I was following you.”
+
+“It’s false!” cried Casco. “You’ve been following me all the way from
+New York.”
+
+The young man jumped to his feet.
+
+“See here, Casco, I want you to shut up. I have not been following you,
+and I am not in the habit of being addressed as you have addressed me.
+The quicker you get out of here the better.”
+
+“Humph! So you fancy you can bluff me?” sneered the scar-faced man.
+
+“It’s no bluff, I want you to take back what you said.”
+
+“Take back nothing, Landes. You are a sneak--and worse, and----”
+
+Casco did not finish. Drawing back, Frank left out with his right hand
+and Casco received a slap on the cheek that sent him staggering.
+
+“The next time you address a gentleman be careful what you say.”
+
+With a howl of pain and rage, Casco gathered himself together.
+
+Bob looked on with keen interest. Frank seemed to be well able to take
+his own part, and so the youth saw no reason to interfere.
+
+Muttering something under his breath, Casco now sprang to the edge
+of the piazza and looked around. No one appeared in sight. Bob was
+standing in a deep shadow, and in his rage the scar-faced man did not
+notice him.
+
+Suddenly Casco put his hand into his pocket and drew forth a short
+club. It made Bob start.
+
+“I’ll see how you like that, Landes,” cried Casco. “Here you are!”
+
+Jumping forward, Casco attempted to hit Frank Landes on the head, but
+before the club could descend, Bob rushed forward and hauled Casco back.
+
+“Better call the landlord,” he said to Frank. “This man ought to be
+arrested.”
+
+“Never!” muttered Casco. “Let me go, or I will strike you!”
+
+Casco began to struggle, and Frank Landes jumped in to help Bob. They
+had just succeeded in disarming the scar-faced man, when Casco uttered
+a peculiar whistle.
+
+“What does that mean?” queried Bob.
+
+“I don’t know,” muttered his companion. “Get up,” he said to their
+prisoner.
+
+Casco had hardly arisen, when two men rushed around the corner of the
+hotel. Each wore a slouch hat, and in the darkness nothing could be
+seen of their faces.
+
+“Help me!” cried Casco. “We must get away from here.”
+
+“But the plan, Jim, that----” began one of the men.
+
+“It’s all up,” muttered Casco. “Quick, help me.”
+
+Both of the new arrivals at once fell upon Bob and Frank. The youth
+and the young man fought well, but they could not overcome the other
+three, and by the time the landlord and a number of his guests arrived
+the two had Casco free, and then the three assailants made off in the
+darkness, Casco carrying his short club with him.
+
+“What’s the trouble?” demanded Fitt, the keeper of the road-house.
+
+Frank and Bob related their story. All crowded around, and listened
+with deep interest.
+
+“I thought that chap was up to no good,” said Fitt. “I took him to be a
+gambler.”
+
+“He does play cards,” said Frank. “Do you know those other men?”
+
+Fitt shook his head.
+
+“The three of them landed here this afternoon,” he said. “They hired a
+front room, but brought no baggage. I told ’em they would have to pay
+in advance, and this Casco pulled out a fat roll of bills and settled
+on the spot. The roll of bills and his general way made me suspicious
+of him.”
+
+“I wonder where he got the money?” mused the young man. “When he was
+discharged from our house, he was compelled to make up a deficiency in
+his accounts, and he then claimed he was without a dollar.”
+
+“Maybe he didn’t give it all back, or else stole some since,” ventured
+Bob. “He looks thoroughly bad.”
+
+“You may be right.”
+
+“Shall we go after the rascals?” asked Fitt. “All three ought to be in
+the lock-up.”
+
+“I don’t know which way they went,” returned Frank. “Do you, Bob?”
+
+“I thought they cut around the back. Is there a road in that direction?”
+
+“Yes, Martin’s lane comes through, and meets the road alongside the
+railroad track,” answered the hotel-keeper.
+
+“Then perhaps they took that road,” suggested Bob. “If you say the
+word, Frank, we’ll go after them.”
+
+“Couldn’t find ’em in the dark,” said Fitt, who was too scared to
+venture on such a quest.
+
+“I’ve got pretty good eyes,” laughed the youth.
+
+A hurried consultation was held, and Frank and Bob started off alone,
+Bob carrying a revolver Fitt had loaned him, Frank being supplied with
+a weapon of his own.
+
+On the two went until Bob came to a sudden halt, and plucked Frank by
+the sleeve.
+
+“Hush!” whispered the youth.
+
+“What did you see?” came in a low tone.
+
+“Do you see that stack of hay over yonder?”
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“I’m pretty sure I just saw a man dodge behind it.”
+
+“Only one?”
+
+“Yes. But the whole three may be there. Wait here for a few minutes.”
+
+“What do you intend to do?”
+
+“Go back a short distance and jump the fence. There is a ditch there,
+and I think I can crawl along and get on the other side of that
+hay-stack.”
+
+“Hadn’t I better go along?”
+
+“No; you watch out on the road. They may make a dash, and then you will
+have to go after them. My idea is to see if they are there without
+letting them discover me.”
+
+“And if they are?”
+
+“Then I’ll give you a signal--a whip-poor-will cry--and you can hurry
+off for help, and we can capture them. Understand?”
+
+“Yes, but the danger----” protested Frank.
+
+“I don’t mind it. Now, I’ll be off. Watch the hay-stack, and listen for
+the whip-poor-will cry.”
+
+And with these words, Bob slipped into the shadow of some near-by
+bushes, leaving Frank standing by a tree in the lane, alone.
+
+Frank stood perfectly still for several minutes and then moved silently
+toward a stone near the fence, intending to rest until he should hear
+from Bob in one way or another.
+
+Having seated himself the young man drew out his pistol, and examined
+it to make sure that it was in proper condition for use.
+
+It was then that he made a discovery which caused him to utter a low
+cry of dismay.
+
+The weapon was empty.
+
+“That’s a fine state of affairs,” he muttered to himself. “And the
+cartridge box in my satchel, too. I ought to be kicked for not looking
+at the pistol before we left the hotel.”
+
+Frank was thoroughly put out, but this did no good, and, with something
+of a sigh, he restored the useless fire-arm to his pocket.
+
+“I ought to have something,” he went on. “I wonder if I couldn’t cut a
+stick somewhere in the bushes.”
+
+He arose once more, and getting out his pocket-knife proceeded to cut
+a sapling, which he quickly reduced to quite a respectable club having
+several hard knobs at one end.
+
+“There, I reckon if a fellow got that on the head it would make him see
+stars,” thought Frank. “It isn’t as good as a loaded pistol, but it’s
+better than nothing.”
+
+Quarter of an hour passed, and still he heard or saw nothing of Bob.
+
+“He’s making slow work of it,” soliloquized the young man. “I presume
+he wants to make sure and not walk into any trap. Dear me, but this is
+lonely, and I half wish I was back at the hotel.”
+
+Another quarter of an hour passed, and Frank arose to walk to a spot
+several yards away, and thus obtain a different view of the hay-stack,
+which was all of two hundred feet back in the meadow lot.
+
+Scarcely had he walked a rod when a shadow crossed his shoulder.
+
+He wheeled about to see what was there, but no one was in sight.
+
+What did it mean? Had a night bird swept near, or had he merely
+imagined the shadow there?
+
+He grasped the club a little tighter, and listened with strained ears.
+A faint crackling sound reached him, coming from a distance but a few
+feet away.
+
+Again he swung around. A form leaped directly before him, the form of
+James Casco.
+
+“Casco!”
+
+“You are right, Landes. So you are following me again.”
+
+“I am following this time, yes. Stop where you are.”
+
+“What do you mean?”
+
+“Move another step, and you will be sorry for it.”
+
+And Frank drew his empty pistol, and pointed it.
+
+Casco was somewhat dismayed, but only for a second. Then he rushed at
+Frank.
+
+At the same instant came a whip-poor-will cry. In the excitement,
+however, the young man did not notice it.
+
+Casco rushed in, and knocked up Frank’s weapon, at the same time
+uttering the same whistle he had used on the hotel piazza.
+
+Knowing that this was a call for help, Frank tried to run away. Casco
+promptly tripped him up and then came down on the young man.
+
+“Do you give in?” he demanded.
+
+“No,” returned Frank, firmly.
+
+Without ado the scar-faced man brought down his club upon Frank’s head.
+It was a vicious blow, well directed, and with a groan the young man
+fell back insensible.
+
+“He’ll not worry me again, I reckon,” muttered Casco, as he surveyed
+the inanimate form before him. “I suppose I might as well go through
+him now I have the chance. By Jove, this is starting on the new career
+for certain! No backing out after this.”
+
+Casco bent over Frank’s form, and began a rapid search of his victim’s
+pockets. He brought to light a roll of bills amounting to seventy
+dollars, a number of letters and documents, and several things of less
+importance.
+
+“A pretty good haul,” muttered the thief.
+
+Just then the bushes parted, and one of the men wearing a slouch hat
+came over the fence.
+
+“Where are you, Casco?”
+
+“Here, Barker, I’ve knocked him out.”
+
+“Him? Who?”
+
+“The fellow I had a row with at the hotel. I felt certain he must be
+somewhere around here.”
+
+“Humph! You seem to have a grudge against him.”
+
+“I have. It was he exposed me in New York. I might have had that snap
+yet if it hadn’t been for him.”
+
+The man called Barker chuckled, as if what he had been told was a joke.
+
+“What was his pockets worth?”
+
+“Not much. A handful of change and these letters.”
+
+“What will you do with him?”
+
+“Throw him in the ditch, behind the bushes. They won’t find him so
+easily.”
+
+“All right.”
+
+The two caught up the limp body, and, taking it to the ditch, threw it
+in.
+
+In the mean time Bob had crawled along the ditch to a point almost
+directly behind the hay-stack. It was so dark here that he could see
+but little, but his ears were on the alert and, by listening intently,
+he made out the faint murmur of voices.
+
+He could not make out what was said, and, after waiting for several
+minutes, he ventured a couple of yards closer.
+
+Then he beheld the two men in slouch hats in low but earnest
+conversation. Casco was nowhere to be seen.
+
+Making sure that he was not discovered, Bob drew still closer to learn,
+if possible, what had become of the scar-faced man.
+
+“Well, Grogan, what do you think of Casco’s plan?” he heard one of the
+men say.
+
+“Sure, an’ Oi think it purty bould, Barker,” replied Grogan, who
+was undoubtedly an Irishman. “’Tis a foine way to make money widout
+workin’.”
+
+“It’s not so fine if you get caught,” replied Barker. “To my mind it’s
+rather risky.”
+
+“Sure, an’ how could it be? If Casco gits in wid the----”
+
+“Hush! What’s that?”
+
+Barker sprang up from his bed on the hay.
+
+“Phat did yez hear?” demanded Grogan, in alarm.
+
+“I heard some kind of a noise.”
+
+“Perhaps ’tis Casco comin’ back.”
+
+Barker looked around, and Bob did his best to keep out of sight. His
+foot had struck a dry stick, which had snapped in two, making quite a
+loud report.
+
+The two men went on talking, but Bob caught only a few words to the
+effect that inside of a week Casco would have some plan ready in all
+its details.
+
+“They are up to no good,” thought Bob. “I think their talk means
+robbery on a large scale and nothing else.”
+
+Presently from the road came a sharp whistle. Barker again jumped up.
+
+“It’s a signal from Casco,” he said. “Something is wrong. Look around
+here, while I go and see what it is.”
+
+He hurried off. Grogan sprang up a moment later, and almost immediately
+sighted Bob lying in the long grass.
+
+“Who be yez?” he demanded, pouncing upon the youth.
+
+Bob at once gave his whip-poor-will signal to warn Frank.
+
+“Stand where you are, you rascal,” he said to Grogan.
+
+“Bad cess to yez!” cried the Irishman. “Do yez think Oi’m to be
+overpowered by a b’y? Indade not.”
+
+He rushed at Bob, and a desperate struggle ensued.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV
+
+BOB IS LEFT TO HIS FATE
+
+
+Bob was strong for his age, but his strength was nothing compared with
+that of Mike Grogan, who now faced the intrepid youth.
+
+The Irishman was every inch of six feet in height, and, as he towered
+in front of Bob, it looked as if he would crush the boy.
+
+As he closed in he struck out at Bob several times, but the youth
+ducked and dodged and not a blow took effect.
+
+Then the Irishman tried new tactics. He pretended to run, and, when Bob
+followed, he turned swiftly and caught the youth by the waist.
+
+“Now I have yez!” cried Grogan. “How do ye loike that, me b’y?”
+
+He threw Bob on the ground, and kicked him heavily in the side. The
+youth attempted to scramble up, but the Irishman kicked him again, and
+then Bob was glad enough to lie still.
+
+“’Tis the same b’y we met at Fitt’s hotel,” muttered Grogan, as he
+looked closer at Bob. “Phat brought yez here?” he demanded.
+
+“That’s my business,” returned Bob, with a gasp. Besides bruising him
+severely, the kicks had taken all the wind out of him.
+
+“Is it?” said Grogan, sarcastically. “Mebbe Oi’ll make it moine, too.
+Lie where yez are, onless yez would rather be kicked to death.”
+
+“What do you propose to do with me?” demanded Bob.
+
+“Yez will see when the toime comes.”
+
+“You have no right to keep me here.”
+
+Grogan gave a chuckle.
+
+“’Tis not the loikes of you to be tellin’ me phat Oi kin do, moind
+that. Phat’s yer name?”
+
+“Bob Alden. Does that make you feel any better?”
+
+“Do yez belong up to the hotel?”
+
+“No.”
+
+“Yez got yerself into a foine pickle whin yez put up against me an’ the
+others.”
+
+“You had no right to attack my friend,” returned Bob, warmly. “It’s a
+pity we didn’t capture you then and there.”
+
+“Shut up! Oi want no more from ye.”
+
+Grogan began to get angry, and, seeing he could gain nothing by keeping
+up the conversation, Bob became silent.
+
+The youth wondered what had become of Frank Landes. Had he fallen into
+the hands of Casco or Barker?
+
+“It looks like it,” thought Bob. “I wish I could get away from this
+chap, and find out for certain.”
+
+He looked up at Grogan, who still stood over him, smoking a short clay
+pipe and glaring down at him. The Irishman seemed to read his thought.
+
+“Yez can’t git away, and yez had better not troy,” he said, savagely.
+
+“Go for him, Bill!” exclaimed Bob, to an imaginary person behind Grogan.
+
+The ruse worked well. Mike Grogan turned, with a startled air, to
+confront the person he supposed was about to attack him. On the instant
+Bob jumped to his feet. His side felt fearfully sore, but to this he
+paid no attention.
+
+“Shtop!” roared Grogan, as soon as he realized that he had been imposed
+upon.
+
+But instead of stopping, Bob dashed for the fence which lined the lane.
+Grogan came after him at the top of his speed. But the boy was the
+better runner of the two, and he reached the fence fully twenty feet
+ahead of the Irishman.
+
+Bob vaulted over with a single bound. His intention was to run up the
+lane and join Frank, if possible.
+
+But as he went over the fence his hopes were crushed before his feet
+touched the ground on the other side. He fell plump into the hands of
+Casco and Barker, who were just returning from casting Landes into the
+ditch some distance away.
+
+“Ha! who’s this?” cried Casco. “That boy, as I live!”
+
+“What boy?” asked Barker.
+
+“Landes’ friend. Catch him!”
+
+Barker caught Bob by one arm, and, running up, the scar-faced man
+caught him by the other. Bob tried to break away, but found it useless.
+
+“Hold him tight, Barker. I’ll bind his hands behind him.”
+
+“What for?”
+
+“I have reasons. Hold him. That’s it.”
+
+Casco produced a bit of strong cord, and with it bound Bob’s hands
+together tightly.
+
+“Now come along, and don’t make any noise,” he said to the youth.
+
+“Where to?”
+
+“To that hay-stack over there.”
+
+“I won’t go. What have you been doing out here on the road?”
+
+“Nothing,” returned Casco, in pretended surprise, and he pinched
+Barker’s arm to make his companion keep silent.
+
+Bob was about to question them concerning Frank. But he thought it
+possible Landes had gotten away, and such questions might spoil any
+chance of rescue as well as the capture of the trio.
+
+Seeing he could not help himself, Bob at last went over the fence,
+and with Casco on one side and Barker on the other marched to the
+hay-stack, Grogan bringing up the rear, with a club in hand, ready to
+strike at the first sign of rebellion.
+
+“Now we will sift this matter to the bottom,” said Casco, as he came to
+a halt. “You are Frank Landes’ friend, are you not?”
+
+“I am,” returned Bob.
+
+“What has become of Landes?”
+
+And Casco poked Barker in the ribs on the sly.
+
+“I don’t know.”
+
+“Was he with you?”
+
+“That is my affair.”
+
+“Answer me.”
+
+Bob remained silent. Casco pretended to get very angry, but at last
+simmered down.
+
+“He sez his name is Bob Alden,” put in Grogan.
+
+“What’s that!” demanded Barker, in intense surprise.
+
+Bob looked at him, and saw that the man was very pale, and evidently
+under strong excitement.
+
+“Is your name Bob Alden?” he demanded, facing the youth.
+
+“It is.”
+
+“Did you use to live with old Thompson?”
+
+“I did. But I don’t remember you,” returned Bob, growing interested.
+
+“I suppose not. Where have you been since Thompson died?”
+
+“I lived with a farmer named Joel Carrow.”
+
+“What are you doing now?”
+
+“Answering questions,” returned the youth, with a faint smile.
+
+“I want none of your jokes,” growled Barker. “Do you work for a living?”
+
+“I expect to, just as soon as I can get a job.”
+
+“Are you on the road?”
+
+“I’m walking to Stampton, if that’s what you mean.”
+
+“Humph!”
+
+“How did you fall in with Landes?” put in James Casco.
+
+“He took my part when Carrow wanted to whip me, and I’m helping him
+take pictures in return for my board on the road.”
+
+The men ceased asking questions, and Casco and Barker walked a short
+distance away, leaving Grogan on guard.
+
+“It’s a surprise, and no mistake,” said Barker, in a low tone. “I was
+sure the boy had gone West. Thompson’s relatives said so.”
+
+“Is the old matter settled up?” questioned the scar-faced man.
+
+“Almost. But there might be more money in it,” mused Barker. “Say, I
+have a plan.”
+
+“What is it?”
+
+“I wonder if we could get the boy to join us?”
+
+“Not likely.”
+
+“Why not? The promise of big money might fetch him.”
+
+“He looks too honest. Still, you might sound him. Only if he refuses,
+what then? You won’t dare to let him go.”
+
+“I won’t give him much information till I am sure of him,” rejoined
+Barker.
+
+Bob could not make out what the two men said, but from their actions he
+felt certain they were conversing about him.
+
+“Say, boy!” demanded Barker, coming up. “Have you any offer of work at
+Stampton when you reach there?”
+
+“No.”
+
+“You’ll find it mighty hard getting a job.”
+
+“Perhaps I will. But that’s none of your affair.”
+
+“Don’t get saucy. I thought, perhaps, you might like to leave Landes
+and join us.”
+
+“What at?”
+
+“A little private business we’re working.”
+
+“Does it pay?”
+
+“You bet it does.”
+
+“Do you work hard?”
+
+“Not at all.”
+
+“Then I’m afraid it wouldn’t suit me. I’ve been used to hard work,
+and, if I knocked off, it might hurt me.”
+
+Barker was enraged at this cool reply, and he would have struck Bob in
+the head had not Casco held him back.
+
+“I told you how it would be,” said the scar-faced man. “He is too
+particular for this crowd.”
+
+“Maybe not,” said Bob, who was anxious to learn what were the plans of
+the gang. “Tell me the work, and I may join.”
+
+“Can you keep your mouth shut?” asked Casco.
+
+“I can when I have to.”
+
+“We are going to get rich by a bold move,” said Barker. “We intend to
+make twenty thousand dollars in one night, and----”
+
+“Barker, don’t be a fool!” cried Casco, angrily.
+
+“’Tis bad to tell the b’y that,” grumbled Grogan.
+
+“I know what I’m doing,” returned Barker. “Will you help us make it?”
+
+“You intend to rob somebody, eh?” said Bob, with flashing eyes.
+
+“We intend to get twenty thousand dollars. Will you join us, and take
+your share?”
+
+“No. I am not a thief.”
+
+“That may be. But your father would have jumped at the chance,”
+returned Barker, coolly.
+
+“My father? Did you know my father?” cried Bob, in astonishment.
+
+“I did. He and I were old friends.”
+
+“Tell me about him. Where is he?”
+
+“Dead, long ago.”
+
+“And my mother?”
+
+“Dead also.”
+
+Bob took a long breath. Was this man telling the truth?
+
+“And you say my father would have jumped at a chance like this?” he
+said, slowly.
+
+“Yes. He and I worked many a little game together, and never got
+caught, either. You had better join us, and I will show you all the
+ropes. It beats working hard all to bits.”
+
+“You are an infernal scamp!” burst out Bob. “Tell me my father was a
+thief? If I were loose I would--would--pulverize you. If you knew my
+father at all, it must have been at some time when he found you out and
+exposed you.”
+
+Barker drew back as if shot. Evidently Bob’s last remark had struck
+home. He breathed hard, and glared at the youth.
+
+“You don’t know when you’re well off,” he cried. “I offer you the best
+possible chance to make money, and you refuse.”
+
+“I never trained with thieves,” returned Bob, stoutly.
+
+“Oi’ll fix yez fer that!” cried Grogan. “B’ys, Oi have a plan!” he said
+to the others.
+
+“Shove him into the hay-stack,” cried Barker. “He’s as stubborn as his
+father was,” he added, in a lower tone. “I’ll fix him later.”
+
+The three caught up the youth, and shoved him into an opening on one
+side of the stack.
+
+“Come on,” Barker cried to the others. “We have just about time to do
+that other work, and get away before morning.”
+
+The three villains hurried from the scene, leaving Bob to his fate.
+
+They had gone but a few minutes, when the boy smelt smoke. He looked
+around. Grogan had knocked out his pipe, and the burning tobacco had
+set fire to the hay directly behind him!
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V
+
+BOB MAKES HIS ESCAPE
+
+
+For the moment Bob could not realize his awful peril, but when he saw
+the tiny flame feeding on the loose hay, and creeping steadily toward
+him, he gave a cry of horror.
+
+The flame became stronger each instant, and as it grew it advanced with
+increased rapidity.
+
+“I will be burned alive!” groaned the youth.
+
+He tried to roll from the place in which he had been shoved, but Barker
+had tied him to a pole in the centre of the hay-stack, and he found it
+impossible to free himself.
+
+“Help! help!” he cried.
+
+No answer came back to his appeal. The spot was out of sight of any
+house, and it was more than likely that the fire would be well under
+way before being discovered by any outsider.
+
+“If only Frank would come,” thought Bob. “He ought to be somewhere
+about.”
+
+Little did the youth dream that his friend was at that moment lying at
+the bottom of the ditch. The blow upon Frank’s head had been a severe
+one, and when Barker and Casco left him they expected he would not
+very soon recover.
+
+The flames near the stack were now mounting higher, and suddenly a puff
+of wind carried them directly toward Bob, and the youth was almost
+immediately surrounded by fire.
+
+“I’m a goner now!” moaned Bob.
+
+The fire ate its way swiftly toward the youth’s back--it touched his
+hands--and he shrieked with pain.
+
+The smoke was thick, and it not only blinded him, but choked him as
+well.
+
+Bob was almost overcome when the wind shifted and carried the flames
+another way.
+
+He began another desperate struggle, and at last succeeded in freeing
+one hand, although in so doing he tore a large portion of the skin from
+his wrist.
+
+“Now or never,” he muttered, desperately. “I must get free before the
+wind shifts back, or I’ll be a goner.”
+
+He tugged at his other hand, but the cord held and the knot refused to
+budge.
+
+“Help! help!” he cried again, at the top of his lungs.
+
+He had hardly uttered the words before the wind swerved around, and
+once more the flames and smoke surrounded him.
+
+“Hullo there!” came faintly from the darkness beyond.
+
+“Help!” cried Bob again.
+
+His throat was almost choked, and his mouth was parched.
+
+“Where are you?”
+
+“In the hay-stack. Save me, I am tied fast!”
+
+“By Jove! I’m coming!”
+
+An instant passed and then through the smoke appeared a swaying form
+that seemed every moment to be on the verge of collapsing.
+
+“Bob!”
+
+“Frank! Save me, quick!”
+
+“What’s the trouble?”
+
+“I am tied to this pole,” moaned Bob. “Quick, cut the cord, or I’ll be
+burnt up!”
+
+Frank drew out his knife, and opened it. Two slashes, and Bob was free.
+With one mad leap he jumped from the burning stack to the open space
+beyond. Frank followed, and both were safe, while a sudden puff caught
+the flames and sent them upward with a roar.
+
+“In the nick of time,” burst out Bob. “Just look at that wrist, and I
+know my neck is blistered.”
+
+“I am glad I arrived when I did,” returned Frank. “I suppose the same
+rascals tied you----”
+
+He stopped short. Bob saw him reel, and, springing forward, he caught
+the young man in his arms.
+
+“Fainted, by jinks!” exclaimed the youth. “And his neck is covered
+with blood. They must have attacked him, too.”
+
+Bob laid Frank flat on his back, and began to fan him with his cap.
+While he was doing this, two men, evidently father and son, rushed up.
+
+“Here, what be yeou a-doin’ here?” demanded the elder, savagely.
+
+“We didn’t set the stack on fire,” returned Bob.
+
+“Thet’s well enough fer yeou to say,” went on the younger. “Git up
+there,” this to Frank.
+
+“He can’t get up,” replied Bob.
+
+“Why not?”
+
+“He has fainted.”
+
+“What were yeou doin’ in the stack?” demanded the elder.
+
+“Nothing. I was tied there by three men, and one set the stack on fire
+from his pipe.”
+
+“By gum!” ejaculated the younger.
+
+“Thet’s a likely story. Guess we can’t save it, Ruel, anyhow.”
+
+“’Tain’t likely, dad. Thet hay is lost, sure.”
+
+“It’s these fellers’ faults,” grumbled the father. “They most likely
+went to sleep smokin’ in it, an’ thet’s how it caught.” He grabbed Bob
+by the arm. “Yeou cum along o’ me.”
+
+“It’s not my fault. Let go,” returned Bob. “Look at that wrist! And my
+friend has been struck in the back of the head. You had better help me
+carry him to some house and get a doctor. He is no tramp, but a guest
+over to Fitt’s hotel.”
+
+At these words the farmer let go his hold and scratched his head.
+
+“Wall, I dunno. Who be yeou?”
+
+“Never mind that. This young man is Frank Landes. Perhaps you have
+heard of him. He comes around here occasionally.”
+
+“Frank Landes! By gum, so it is! He’s with a New York commission house.
+Wall, thet’s different, o’ course it is. But who sot the hay afire?”
+
+“Three men named Casco, Barker, and Grogan.”
+
+“I don’t know ’em.”
+
+“They are a bad set. But come, help me with Frank. You can’t do
+anything with that hay. It’s all smoked through, and the cattle won’t
+touch it.”
+
+“Thet’s so. Where shall we take him?”
+
+“How far is your house?”
+
+“Jess tudder side o’ thet hill.”
+
+“Then we might as well take him there,” said Bob.
+
+The three raised up the limp body, and carried it to the farmer’s
+house. Half a dozen neighbors, who had been attracted by the blaze,
+came up and followed.
+
+Ruel Dalmer--that was the son’s name--set off for the nearest doctor
+on his buckboard, and it was not long before a physician arrived.
+
+Just before he entered, Bob, who was standing over Frank, doing all in
+his power to make the young man comfortable, had the satisfaction of
+seeing the blood-shot eyes open and heard a faint gasp.
+
+“Thank fortune, he’s coming around,” murmured the youth. “His injuries
+are much worse than mine.”
+
+The physician at once went to work. He sewed up the cut in the back of
+Frank’s head, and gave the young man a strengthening potion.
+
+“All he needs now is plenty of rest,” said the physician. “It is an
+ugly wound, but by no means a serious one. Nevertheless, had it come an
+inch farther up the young man would have been killed.”
+
+“He can’t be moved, can he?” asked Bob.
+
+“Not for a day or two.”
+
+“He can stay here a week,” said the elder Dalmer. “I did not know it
+was Landes at first, or I wouldn’t have been so rough.”
+
+They left Frank lying on a bed in the spare room, and then Bob followed
+the others below, and there told his story, starting with the meeting
+between Frank and Casco at the hotel.
+
+“I heard about that affair only an hour ago,” said the doctor. “And so
+those are the men who attacked you both?”
+
+“They are.”
+
+“They oughter be in jail!” cried old Dalmer. “Sech rascals ain’t fit to
+be loose.”
+
+The doctor was about to leave, when a wagon dashed up to the house. It
+contained two men, one of whom jumped down and rapped sharply on the
+door.
+
+“What’s up, John?” demanded Dalmer, opening the door at once.
+
+“Our house has been robbed, and we want help to catch the robbers,” was
+the startling reply.
+
+Of course, every one was astonished. Bob sprang to his feet.
+
+“I’ll wager anything it was Casco, Barker, and Grogan did it,” he
+exclaimed.
+
+“Wot makes yeou think thet?” questioned the elder Dalmer.
+
+“Because they spoke of having just time enough to accomplish something.
+They robbed the house, and are now getting away as fast as they can.”
+
+“I’m going after them, and I’ll catch ’em, too, just as sure as my
+name is John Wright,” exclaimed the man who had made the announcement.
+“Who’ll go along?”
+
+“I can’t go,” said the man who had driven up with Wright.
+
+“I’ll go after them,” said Bob. “I owe those fellows one.”
+
+“An’ I’ll go, too,” put in Ruel Dalmer. “They’ll find out they can’t
+fire our hay-stack fer nuthin’, by gosh!”
+
+So a party of three was hastily formed, and they drove off in John
+Wright’s wagon at a breakneck speed.
+
+“Have you any idea what direction the robbers took?” questioned Bob, on
+the way.
+
+“I reckon they cut toward Stampton,” said Wright. “We’ll see if they
+have learned anything new up to the house.”
+
+When they reached Wright’s home, they found everything in confusion.
+
+An entrance had been effected through a dining-room window, and the
+entire lower floor ransacked.
+
+In one closet Mrs. Wright had had a quantity of silverware. This was
+gone, and with it a table spread in which the robbers had most likely
+tied up this part of their booty.
+
+An old desk stood in a corner of the sitting-room. This desk held
+Wright’s private papers and also his strong box. It had been skilfully
+unlocked, and both the box and many of the documents were gone.
+
+“And the box contained eighteen hundred dollars in cash,” said John
+Wright. “Plague take the luck! I ought to hev took that money to the
+Stampton bank.”
+
+Bob began to look around carefully. Presently he stopped and picked up
+something lying on the floor near the looted desk. It was a short clay
+pipe.
+
+“That settles it,” he said, holding up the article. “That is the same
+pipe Grogan was smoking.”
+
+“You are sure?” questioned Wright.
+
+“Yes. We had better get after them without delay.”
+
+“But which way?”
+
+“Ye-as, we can’t go after ’em unless we know thet,” put in Ruel Dalmer.
+
+“I suppose they went out the way they came,” said Bob. “Let us see if
+we cannot trace them from the dining-room window.”
+
+An extra lamp was procured by Mrs. Wright, who was shedding copious
+tears over her loss, and a minute examination of the ground outside of
+the window took place.
+
+“The steps lead off in that direction,” said Bob, pointing toward a
+road which ran to the south of the house. “Come on!”
+
+By the aid of a lantern they followed the foot-prints to the road.
+
+“And from here they went straight to Stampton,” said Wright. “I wonder
+if they had a horse and wagon.”
+
+“No, they didn’t!” shouted Bob, from the other side of the road. “They
+crossed to here and struck out for the woods.”
+
+Wright and Dalmer came over, and both agreed that the youth was right.
+The foot-prints could be seen plainly.
+
+“We’ll have no difficulty in following them,” said Bob. “I suppose you
+are both armed?”
+
+Wright said he had a pistol. Ruel Dalmer had a stout club, and declared
+he wanted no better weapon.
+
+“Jess give me a whack at ’em with this, an’ I’ll knock the daylights
+clean outer ’em,” he observed, as he grasped the club more firmly than
+ever.
+
+“They are desperate men,” said Bob. “They would not hesitate to shoot,
+if cornered. I intend to take no chances.”
+
+“It’s a pity it ain’t day instead o’ night,” observed Wright. “I reckon
+it’s pitch dark in the woods.”
+
+“The moon is coming up,” said Bob. “That will soon help us. Let us go
+forward and make as little noise as possible.”
+
+Without further words, the three left the road and entered the belt of
+timber beyond. Here the ground was soft, and the tracks made by the
+robbers were plainly visible for a distance of several hundred feet.
+
+“Maybe they crossed to the Shanover turnpike,” suggested Wright. “They
+might do that, and throw us off the track.”
+
+“We’ll soon find out,” returned Bob.
+
+Deeper and deeper they went into the timber, until at length they came
+to a small stream, both sides of which were covered with rocks.
+
+Here, of course, the tracks made by the robbers could not be followed,
+and the searchers came to a halt.
+
+“Stuck,” said Dalmer, laconically. “Wot’s ter do now?”
+
+“We had better separate,” said Bob. “Supposing one of you go up the
+brook, one down, and I will cross and see if I can’t hit the trail in
+the wood beyond.”
+
+“All right, that’s a good plan,” said Wright. “I’ll be the one to go
+down stream.”
+
+He turned in the direction. Ruel Dalmer started in the opposite
+direction, and Bob was left alone.
+
+The moon had now risen, and a faint light stole through the timber,
+broken here and there by heavy shadows. A boy less brave than Bob might
+have shivered at the uncanny situation, but Bob did not know what fear
+was. He had seen too much of the seamy side of life for that.
+
+Jumping from one rock to another, he crossed the stream and plunged
+boldly ahead. He had a fair idea of the direction of the Shanover
+turnpike, and thought he could do no better than make directly for it.
+
+“For that is what those chaps did, if they were bound this way,” he
+reasoned.
+
+Less than half an hour later Bob came to a large mass of rocks, covered
+with trailing vines and moss. He paused for a second, and as he did so
+a peculiar sound came to his ears.
+
+“What was that?” the youth asked himself. “It sounded like a man’s foot
+slipping on a wet stone.”
+
+Bob listened intently, but the sound was not repeated, and after
+waiting a full minute the youth began to move forward again.
+
+He passed to the end of the rocks, and struck out for the turnpike,
+which he knew was now not five minutes’ walk ahead.
+
+Suddenly a dark object seemed to loom up directly in his path. It was
+the form of a man. In a moment more the boy made out the figure of John
+Wright.
+
+“Do you know where the robbers went?” asked Wright.
+
+“No.”
+
+“I sent word over to Stampton and to Shanover, and the police are now
+on the villains’ tracks.”
+
+“Hope they catch them,” muttered Bob. “They are the toughest crowd I
+ever heard of.”
+
+“That’s so. But the chief of police of Stampton assured me they
+couldn’t escape. I suppose he knows how to run ’em down first clip.”
+
+Bob had his doubts about the matter, but he did not express them. Yet
+he hoped Wright spoke the truth.
+
+He was anxious to interview Barker. What did the man know about him and
+about his father?
+
+“I’ll make him tell,” muttered Bob to himself. “And I’ll make him prove
+what he says, too. I don’t intend to be a nobody any longer.”
+
+Bob followed John Wright to his home. Here he was invited to partake of
+breakfast, which he did willingly, for the events of the past hours had
+sharpened his appetite.
+
+Having finished the meal, Bob started back toward the Dalmer house,
+to see how Frank Landes was progressing. He sincerely hoped his
+newly-found friend would speedily recover from the injuries he had
+received.
+
+About half-way down the road he espied a rickety turn-out approaching.
+He thought he knew the rig, and he was not mistaken.
+
+It was Joel Carrow’s turn-out, and on the seat sat the miserly farmer,
+looking meaner than ever.
+
+“I wonder what he’ll do when he sees me?” thought Bob.
+
+Joel Carrow’s horse approached on a slow trot, and the farmer was not
+long in espying the youth.
+
+Bob eyed him sharply, as he stepped aside to let the wagon pass. He
+was about to speak, but changed his mind.
+
+“What are yer doin’ here, yer young whelp?” was Carrow’s salutation, as
+he pulled up.
+
+“Are you speaking to me?” asked Bob, coolly.
+
+“Who else would I be speaking to, you rat!”
+
+“Thanks for your kind expressions. What I am doing is none of your
+business.”
+
+“I hear Wright’s house was robbed last night,” went on Carrow,
+meaningly.
+
+“Well?”
+
+“I was goin’ ter ride over an’ see. It’s more’n like you hed sumthin’
+ter do with it.”
+
+Bob laughed at this.
+
+“You’re crazy, Mr. Carrow,” he said. “Just because you and I can’t
+hitch, I suppose you think I’m the worst boy in the State.”
+
+“So yer be! So yer be! An’ don’t yer call me crazy!” shouted Carrow,
+getting angry.
+
+“Then keep your opinions to yourself. Nobody asked you for them, and
+they are not wanted.”
+
+“Don’t give me any o’ yer sass!”
+
+“Then don’t call me hard names.”
+
+“I’ll do as I please. I ain’t ter be talked to by no boy!” howled
+Carrow.
+
+“Did you catch the pigs?” questioned Bob, in a teasing manner.
+
+“I’ll pig you!”
+
+“How about that hot-bed? It must have cost a nice penny to put all that
+glass back.”
+
+“Shut up!”
+
+Carrow was in a fearful rage. He could not stand being chaffed.
+
+“Say another word, an’ I’ll skin yer alive!” he roared.
+
+“Another word,” returned Bob promptly, “You are on too good terms with
+yourself. Leave me alone, and I’ll leave you alone.”
+
+“I’ll leave you alone,” snarled the farmer. “How do yer like thet, you
+scamp!”
+
+He pulled his whip from the socket, swung the end in the air, and
+brought the lash down on Bob’s back.
+
+The blow was a heavy one, and it hurt. Bob sprang back, his eyes
+blazing like stars.
+
+“What did you do that for?” he demanded.
+
+“Ter teach you a lesson.”
+
+“Come down off of that seat.”
+
+“What fer?”
+
+“Come down and I’ll show you.”
+
+“I reckon I won’t accommodate ye!” returned Carrow, pulling up on his
+reins. “Let thet be a lesson to yer!”
+
+“If you don’t come down, I’ll throw this at you,” cried Bob.
+
+He stooped as he spoke, and picked up a large, round stone.
+
+“Don’t yer dare!” cried the farmer, in alarm.
+
+“Then come down. You had no right to hit me with the whip, and I want
+to settle with you.”
+
+Carrow looked at the determined youth, and grew just a bit nervous. He
+knew Bob was a good shot with a stone, and he did not fancy getting
+such a missile in the head.
+
+“Do you want me to give you more of the whip?” he asked, but in a
+milder tone.
+
+“Never mind. Come down.”
+
+Instead of complying, Carrow spoke to his horse. The animal took a step
+forward, but Bob promptly stopped him.
+
+“Let go the hoss!” cried the farmer.
+
+“I won’t, and, what is more, I want you to come down. I’ll give you
+just half a minute to do it in.”
+
+Carrow hesitated and then jumped to the ground, wondering what would
+come next.
+
+He still held the whip in one hand. Rushing up, Bob wrenched it from
+his grasp.
+
+“Turn about is fair play,” cried Bob. “How do you like that?”
+
+He hauled off and swish! the lash swept across Carrow’s face, leaving a
+deep red stripe behind.
+
+“Ough!” shrieked the farmer, dancing around with pain. “I’ll have you
+arrested for that!”
+
+“I am not afraid of you,” returned the youth, as coolly as he could. “I
+hope this teaches you a lesson.”
+
+Carrow grew white with rage. That boy had dared to hit him with a whip,
+and in the face, too! It was shameful!
+
+He looked around for some means of getting the best of Bob. Suddenly
+his eye caught sight of a pitchfork which lay in the back of the wagon.
+He made a dash, and secured the pitchfork. Then, handling it as if it
+were a bayonet, he rushed upon the youth.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI
+
+BOB LEARNS SOMETHING
+
+
+As a matter of course, Bob retreated. He had no desire to be punctured
+with the points of the pitchfork--those tines looked altogether too
+ugly.
+
+Joel Carrow rushed after Bob, making several lunges, whenever he
+thought he saw a chance of reaching the youth.
+
+“Stop it!” cried Bob, when he had retreated a hundred feet or more.
+“Stop it, or you will be sorry.”
+
+“So yer afraid, are you?” snarled Carrow.
+
+He made another lunge, and had not Bob jumped to one side, the tines
+would have entered his body. The youth watched his chance, and doubled
+on the farmer. The wagon was a good bit up the road, and, running to
+it, he jumped in.
+
+“Hi! Stop there!” cried Carrow, in alarm.
+
+“Good-by, old freckles!” returned Bob.
+
+He turned the horse’s head, and before the farmer could reach him
+started off at a lively gait, leaving Carrow standing in the middle of
+the road, shaking his fist in impotent rage.
+
+Bob fully understood the horse he was driving, and he made good time
+to Dalmer’s place.
+
+Jumping off here, he tied the reins to the dash-board and started the
+horse off, feeling certain that the animal would go straight home.
+
+Entering the house, he found Frank Landes sitting up in an easy-chair.
+
+“Hullo, Bob! so you’ve come back! Mr. Dalmer thought you had followed
+those rascals to Stampton, or some other place.”
+
+Such was Frank’s salutation, and Bob saw at a glance that the young man
+was much better.
+
+“I wish I had been able to follow them,” returned the youth, and,
+sitting down, he related the particulars of the useless search.
+
+Frank shook his head slowly.
+
+“That’s the end of them, mark my word.”
+
+“I’m afraid you’re right,” returned Bob. “They are sly as well as bad.
+How do you feel?”
+
+“Much better. I think I can start out again by to-morrow morning. How
+is your wrist and back?”
+
+“Mighty sore, but I reckon I’ll pull through,” and Bob grinned. “I’m
+tough, you know.”
+
+Bob remained with Frank for an hour. During this time he saw Joel
+Carrow tramp past, pitchfork in hand, and looking the picture of
+sourness. He laughed, and told his companion of the incident on the
+road.
+
+“He ought to be dressed down,” said Frank. “But, Bob.”
+
+“Well?”
+
+“I wish you would go over to the hotel and get our traps. I haven’t a
+cent with me. Luckily I left some money in the satchel. Settle with the
+landlord, and tell him we intend to stay here to-night. Mrs. Dalmer
+says she will accommodate us.”
+
+“All right, Frank. But----” and Bob hesitated.
+
+“But what?”
+
+“It’s asking too much of you to keep me a whole day for nothing, and
+those fellows cleaned me out when they caught me at the hay-stack----”
+
+“That’s all right. You are to stay with me until we reach Stampton,
+even if we don’t get there until six weeks, and I’m to settle the
+bills. Don’t say no, or I’ll get angry.”
+
+“Thanks! I wouldn’t make you mad for the world,” and Bob made off
+without further words.
+
+It did not take the youth long to reach the half-way house. He secured
+all of Frank’s effects as well as his own bundle, and remained for a
+while talking to Fitt about the robbers.
+
+“It’s a pity they weren’t caught,” said the hotel-keeper. “I believe
+they are a regularly organized gang and nothing less.”
+
+“Perhaps they are. You haven’t seen any trace of them around here, have
+you?”
+
+“I had a sort of an idea I saw one of them sneaking around early this
+morning, but I guess I must have been mistaken,” answered the landlord.
+
+Before leaving the hotel, Bob had occasion to go up-stairs, wishing to
+make sure that nothing belonging to Frank had been left behind.
+
+As he passed through the main corridor, he saw a tall, slim man pass
+hurriedly to one side and slip into a room the youth knew was vacant.
+
+The actions of the fellow were so peculiar that Bob could not help
+noticing them, and the more he thought over the matter, the more he
+became convinced that the slim man was up to no good.
+
+“I’ll watch him for a few minutes and make sure,” said Bob to himself.
+
+He entered the room Frank and he had occupied, and from a crack of the
+door looked out into the vacant corridor.
+
+A minute passed. Then he saw the slim man emerge from the apartment in
+which he had sought shelter, and cross to a room opposite.
+
+The door of the room was locked, but the man inserted something, which
+Bob thought was a wire, into the key-hole, and at once passed inside.
+
+“That’s queer,” said the youth to himself. “I think I’ll investigate a
+bit further.”
+
+Leaving his room, he tiptoed his way down the corridor until he came to
+the room which the man had just entered. The door had been closed from
+the inside, and, by turning the handle gently, Bob discovered that it
+had also been fastened.
+
+The catch had been turned so that the key-hole was still clear. Bending
+down, Bob peered through this small aperture.
+
+He could not see a great deal, but he saw enough to convince him that
+the man was rummaging through a bureau. He had all the drawers open,
+and was going through them with a dexterity that showed he was no
+novice at this work.
+
+“A hotel sneak-thief,” thought Bob. “Gracious! what a lot of robbing
+there is going on!”
+
+He scanned the face of the man carefully. The fellow was a stranger and
+where he had come from the youth could not conjecture.
+
+Bob concluded that the best thing he could do would be to call up the
+landlord, and place the case in his charge. Yet he was afraid to leave
+the corridor for fear the man would get away before he could return.
+
+At that moment the man left the bureau, and walked to one of the
+windows.
+
+“Hullo! she is coming back,” Bob heard him mutter.
+
+Then, stuffing a number of articles into his coat-pockets, the man
+rushed to the door and flung it open.
+
+He was astonished to come face to face with Bob.
+
+“Who--what--” he stammered, and tried to pass the youth. But Bob
+blocked his way.
+
+“What were you doing in that room?” demanded the youth.
+
+“What’s that?” came from the man.
+
+“You heard what I said.”
+
+“That room is mine, sir.”
+
+“Really! I thought it belonged to a lady.”
+
+“You mean my wife.”
+
+The sneak-thief spoke so coolly that for the instant Bob was taken
+aback.
+
+“Is she your wife?”
+
+“Certainly. Let me pass,” and again the man attempted to push Bob aside.
+
+“What makes you in such a hurry?” and Bob placed his hand on the slim
+man’s arm.
+
+“You are tremendously impudent!” cried the sneak-thief, putting on an
+air of importance.
+
+“Thank you. Just you come down to the office with me.”
+
+“I’ll do nothing of the kind. The idea of a boy, a mere boy, speaking
+to me in this fashion! Get out of my way, before I knock you down.”
+
+And he drew back as if to attack Bob.
+
+“Help! thief! help!” cried Bob, at the top of his voice.
+
+“Stop that racket, you fool!” muttered the slim man.
+
+He tried to catch Bob by the throat, but, failing in this, made a dash
+to get away.
+
+Near the head of the stairs stood the traps belonging to Frank and Bob.
+The corridor was but dimly lighted, and the fellow did not see them.
+
+“Stop the thief!” went on Bob.
+
+There was a commotion below. The man heard it, and ran harder than ever.
+
+At the top of the stairs he tripped over the camera, tripod, and
+satchel, and sneak-thief and photographic outfit rolled to the bottom
+together. Then came a greater commotion than ever.
+
+“What’s the row?”
+
+“Mercy! the house must be coming down!”
+
+“Stop that man!” yelled Bob. “He is a thief!”
+
+At this there was a shriek from several women.
+
+Fitt and another man rushed forward and grabbed the slim man by the
+arms just as he was rising to his feet.
+
+“Let me go!” cried the sneak-thief. “That boy is crazy.”
+
+“No, I’m not. He’s been ransacking one of the bureaus in Room 14,”
+returned Bob.
+
+“My room!” cried an elderly lady. “And I left my jewels in the middle
+drawer. Oh, the rascal! Hold him tight!”
+
+By this time Bob had reached the lower landing. Quite a crowd began to
+collect. The youth picked up the camera, and stood it out of the way
+of further harm, and then faced the sneak-thief, who looked decidedly
+uncomfortable.
+
+“This is all a mistake, gentlemen,” he said. “That boy is the thief.”
+
+“What?”
+
+“Yes. I caught him with these jewels in his pocket. He tried hard to
+escape, and when he found he could not, he raised the cry you heard.”
+
+The crowd looked from the slim man to Bob.
+
+“That’s not true!” cried Bob. “I saw this man acting rather strangely
+and I watched him. He picked the lock of the door, and----”
+
+“Tut, tut!” put in the sneak-thief. “Why, boy, do you know who I am?”
+
+“I don’t care if you are the President. You stole those jewels, and you
+know it.”
+
+“I am Senator Briscoe from the West, looking up my interest in the
+T. W. & L. Railroad. To say I am a sneak-thief is preposterous. I am
+afraid,” went on the pretended senator, with a wave of his hand, “that
+this youth is not quite right in his mind. Landlord, do you know him?”
+
+“Yes, I do,” returned Fitt. “And I don’t know you,” he added,
+suspiciously.
+
+“I can refer you to President Maverick of the railroad. You are making
+a sad mistake, and I must request you to let go of me.”
+
+Fitt was rather a nervous man, and of a weak turn of mind. At these
+smooth words he let go his hold, and so did the other man.
+
+“I wouldn’t trust him,” said Bob, bluntly. “He may be a Senator, but he
+is a thief, just the same, and--stop him!”
+
+For without warning the slim man had made a dash through the crowd. He
+reached the piazza, and, jumping into the road, made off as fast as his
+long legs would carry him.
+
+“After him!” shrieked the elderly woman. “He has my jewels still.”
+
+She was right. Fitt had not taken the box the sneak-thief had produced,
+and they were still in the slim man’s possession. Bob rushed after the
+fellow. The others followed, but the youth was the better runner of the
+two.
+
+He caught up to the sneak-thief just as the latter was about to mount a
+horse which stood a short distance from the hotel.
+
+“Give me those jewels!” he cried.
+
+The slim man paid no attention. He probably thought Bob was only a boy
+and could do nothing.
+
+Just as the man mounted the horse, Bob caught him by the side pocket
+of his sack coat. The pocket was torn away, and out on the road tumbled
+the jewel case.
+
+Bob snatched it up. Seeing what had happened the slim man thought first
+to dismount and try to recover the case, but Fitt and several others
+were not far off, and he reconsidered the matter and galloped off at
+top speed.
+
+“Have you it?” gasped the landlord, anxiously.
+
+“Yes,” and Bob held up the case. “I’ll return it to its owner,” he
+added, as Fitt held out his hand for it.
+
+The elderly woman soon appeared on the scene. She was overjoyed to
+recover her valuables.
+
+“Better see if they are all there,” suggested one of the crowd.
+
+The woman opened the case, and made a hasty examination.
+
+“All here but a small diamond and ruby cross,” she said, “and that, I
+think, was not inside the case, but on a cushion in the top drawer.”
+
+“Then that’s most likely a goner,” said Bob.
+
+He accompanied the elderly woman to her room. Nothing was learned
+concerning the cross, and she agreed with Bob that the sneak-thief must
+have gotten away with it.
+
+“But it was of small value in comparison to the contents of the case,”
+added Mrs. Varley, for such was her name. “The jewels in the case are
+worth five hundred dollars.”
+
+“Then it’s a good thing that chap didn’t get away with them,” said Bob
+with a smile.
+
+“I must reward you for your service to me.”
+
+“Don’t want any reward.”
+
+“But you have earned it. I would have to pay a detective well to
+recover them had that fellow gotten away with them. Here, take this,
+with my sincere thanks.”
+
+She handed Bob a bill. He glanced at it. It was for fifty dollars.
+
+“You--you’ve made a mistake,” he said, with something like a gasp.
+
+“How so?”
+
+“This is a fifty-dollar bill.”
+
+“Well?” smiled Mrs. Varley.
+
+“You didn’t mean to give me that much, did you?”
+
+She nodded.
+
+“But it ain’t worth it--not by half. I didn’t do much.”
+
+“Let me be the judge of that. Keep it, and I only hope it gives you as
+much pleasure to receive it as it does me to give it.”
+
+“Gee Christopher!” murmured Bob, surveying the crisp bill. “Fifty
+dollars! Why, I never had so much money in my life before.”
+
+Mrs. Varley laughed outright.
+
+“Well, let us hope you’ll have a great deal more than that before you
+are much older. What is your name?”
+
+Bob told her, and quite a conversation ensued, broken by the entrance
+of Fitt, who was still highly excited.
+
+It was nearly half an hour later before Bob left the half-way house.
+Mrs. Varley shook hands with him, and wished him luck, and he said he
+hoped she would get back her diamond and ruby cross.
+
+“If I ever meet that man again I’ll get it for you, or know the reason
+why,” he added.
+
+Frank Landes was surprised to learn what had kept Bob at the hotel so
+long.
+
+He listened attentively to the youth’s story.
+
+“Did that slim man have a slight limp when he ran?” he asked.
+
+“I imagine he did. Went this way,” and Bob illustrated as best he could
+across the room floor.
+
+“That’s it. He is known as Slippery Paul Bidwell in New York.”
+
+“He was slippery, that’s a fact.”
+
+“He is a professional crook, and lives altogether by his wits. It’s
+greatly to your credit that you got the jewel case away from him.”
+
+“It’s fifty dollars to my credit,” laughed Bob. “Say, do you know what
+I’m going to do with that money?”
+
+“I haven’t the slightest idea.”
+
+“I’m going to ask you to buy a camera and outfit for me. I’ve been
+thinking it over, and I don’t see why I can’t go around the country
+taking pictures of houses and so on, and make some money.”
+
+“You can if you learn the business,” returned Frank.
+
+“Will you teach me?”
+
+“I said I would show you all I know. But you ought to get some points
+from a regular photographer.”
+
+“I will,” returned Bob, with a sudden determination.
+
+That evening Frank felt much stronger. He opened his outfit, got out
+his trays and chemicals, and, by the aid of a ruby light, proceeded to
+develop the pictures he had taken since Bob had been with him.
+
+The youth was greatly interested, and watched every part of the process
+closely. Both had a hearty laugh over the picture of Carrow plunging
+into the hot-bed after the pigs.
+
+“It’s awfully interesting,” declared Bob. “The glass seems to have
+nothing on it, and the picture comes out as if by magic when you pour
+the developing fluid on it.”
+
+“Here is a first-class book on photography,” replied Frank. “You can’t
+do better than study it closely. I will make you a present of it.”
+
+Bob was delighted. He read a great part of the book before going
+to bed, and it was astonishing how quick he caught the right idea
+concerning the art he intended to make his own.
+
+“I imagine you must have been born a photographer,” said Frank on the
+following day, when the two were taking pictures. “You have learned
+more in two days about the matter than I learned in a week.”
+
+Frank was still very weak, so the taking of the pictures depended to a
+great extent on Bob, and the youth rose fully equal to the occasion.
+
+Before night came they took over a dozen views, and these they
+developed at the farm-house at which they put up. One of the pictures
+had not been exposed long enough, and Bob took his first lesson in
+correcting this mistake.
+
+“As soon as we get to Stampton, I’ll give you a practical lesson in
+printing,” said Frank.
+
+Early on the following morning they came upon a circus which was moving
+from one city to the next. First came the wagons and chariots--the
+latter covered over with canvas to protect the gold leaf from exposure
+to the weather--and then followed a herd of elephants and another of
+camels.
+
+“By Jove! we must get pictures of these beasts!” cried Frank. “Quick,
+Bob, get the camera into shape. They are stopping.”
+
+Something was the matter with one of the wagons ahead, and a temporary
+stoppage all along the line ensued.
+
+Bob at once unslung the tripod and set it up. Then the camera was
+placed on top, and both hastily sighted the instrument at the camels,
+who were standing in a picturesque group.
+
+In half a second the picture was taken.
+
+“Now for the elephants,” said Frank. “Let us catch that big fellow in
+front. He is looking directly toward us.”
+
+“And he looks as if he didn’t like it,” added Bob. “See him swaying
+from side to side.”
+
+“By Jove! I believe you’re right,” cried the young man. “Gracious! he
+is coming this way.”
+
+Frank was right. Unobserved by his keeper, the huge beast was striding
+toward them, his trunk high in the air.
+
+“Look out!” yelled Bob. “Something is wrong.”
+
+He had hardly uttered the warning, when the elephant let out a terrific
+roar.
+
+The next instant the camera was knocked over and smashed under foot.
+
+And then with another roar the elephant made for Bob and Frank.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII
+
+BOB AND THE ELEPHANT
+
+
+For the moment it looked as if Bob and Frank would be crushed under the
+ponderous feet of the elephant. The beast was thoroughly enraged over
+the way in which the smashed camera had been pointed at him. Possibly
+he had never had his picture taken, and he did not understand it.
+Perhaps he took the instrument for some new machine of destruction.
+
+He trumpeted loudly as he came near to the two, and this noise
+attracted the attention of the keepers, who had gone ahead to see what
+had caused the delay on the road.
+
+“Ho, ho!” shouted one of the men. “Ho, there, Jonco!”
+
+But Jonco would not listen. He had now reached the spot where Bob and
+Frank had stood, and was continuing after the two, who were scurrying
+across the open field, which was close at hand.
+
+The keepers at once started after the elephant, only one remaining
+behind to keep the remainder of the herd in check.
+
+“By Jove! I believe he means business!” gasped Frank.
+
+“The best thing we can do is to get out of the way,” returned Bob.
+
+They soon reached the end of the open field. Beyond were a mass of
+brush and a number of small trees.
+
+Frank dived into the brush and disappeared from sight. Bob was not so
+fortunate, and the elephant continued after the youth, as if bent upon
+venting his rage before giving up the chase.
+
+At length Bob came to a clump of small trees, and darted among them.
+They were so close together that he knew the beast could not get
+between them, and for the moment he thought himself safe, although the
+position was far from a pleasant one.
+
+But when the elephant reached the trees, he at once threw his weight
+against the foremost, and they went down with a crash, as if they had
+been so many pipe-stems.
+
+One of the falling trees struck Bob, and he was knocked flat on his
+back. Before he could rise the elephant was upon him.
+
+Bob did his best to scramble out of the way, but before he could do so
+the beast caught him by the coat and hoisted the youth in the air.
+
+By this time the keepers were close at hand. Each was armed with a
+sharp steel, and they began to prod the elephant whenever they got the
+chance.
+
+He trumpeted at a great rate, but did not let go his hold upon Bob,
+until the youth, under a sudden inspiration, hit him in the eye with
+his fist.
+
+This blow surprised the elephant more than it hurt him. But his
+surprise made him uncurl his trunk and loosen his grip, and Bob lost no
+time in leaping to a safe distance.
+
+Then the keepers surrounded the beast, and swiftly and skilfully
+chained his two right feet together and otherwise bound him; and the
+danger was over.
+
+Frank rushed from the brush to where Bob stood, pale as a sheet.
+
+“Are you hurt?” he demanded, anxiously.
+
+“No; but I don’t want to go through any such experience again,”
+returned Bob. “That’s the first and last time I shall try to photograph
+an elephant.”
+
+“The camera is teetotally smashed,” went on Frank.
+
+“Serves you right,” growled the head keeper. “If you hadn’t pointed the
+thing at Jonco he would have been as quiet as a kitten. He don’t take
+to strange things.”
+
+Frank was about to say something concerning the damages, and who was to
+stand them, but he changed his mind, for he knew the keeper was more
+than half right.
+
+It was not long before the circus moved on again. Jonco still acted
+somewhat wildly, but the keepers kept him well in hand.
+
+“This ends the camera trip,” said Frank, as the last of the equipage
+passed out of sight around a bend in the road. “The camera is good for
+kindling wood, and nothing else.”
+
+“It is partly my fault,” said Bob. “What was the machine worth?”
+
+“It cost me seventy dollars. But it was not your fault, Bob, so don’t
+worry. I have another at home, even better than this.”
+
+“Perhaps the lens isn’t injured.”
+
+They made a hunt, and found the lens crushed in the soft dirt. There
+was a tiny scratch upon it, but this, Frank thought, could be remedied.
+
+Without further delay they struck out for Stampton, which they expected
+to reach by the middle of the afternoon.
+
+At twelve o’clock they found themselves near a moss-covered cottage, in
+the door-way of which an old man sat smoking. Frank hailed him.
+
+“What are the chances of our getting dinner here, friend, if we pay for
+it?”
+
+“The chances is mighty good,” returned the old man. “Mary!”
+
+A middle-aged woman came to the door.
+
+“What is it, pop?”
+
+[Illustration: AND THEN WITH ANOTHER ROAR THE ELEPHANT MADE FOR BOB AND
+FRANK.]
+
+“These yere young men want dinner.”
+
+“Oh!”
+
+“Cost both of ye twenty cents apiece,” went on the old man.
+
+“That’s fair enough,” said Frank. “Can we have it soon?”
+
+“I will have it ready in quarter of an hour,” said the woman.
+
+“That is time enough.”
+
+The woman disappeared, and Frank and Bob sat down on a bench to rest.
+They entered into conversation with the old man, and it was not long
+before the talk drifted around to the Wright robbery, of which the old
+man had just heard.
+
+“They ain’t cotch them fellers yet, I hear,” he said. “It’s great pity.”
+
+“That’s true. But perhaps they’ll be caught soon,” said Frank.
+
+“Do yeou know I have an idee I saw them chaps?”
+
+“Tell us of it,” put in Bob, eagerly.
+
+“It wuz last night. I have rheumatics, an’ can’t sleep very well. I got
+up about eleven o’clock ter rub some liniment on my leg, when I heard
+talking goin’ on back by the barn. I listened fer a minit, an’ then
+hollered out to fin’ out who wuz there.”
+
+“Well, did you see them?”
+
+“Yes. They didn’t answer nuthin’, but made tracks fer the road, and
+got out o’ sight jess ez quick ez they could.”
+
+“Did you look at the place where they had been?”
+
+“Yes, but I couldn’t see nuthin’.”
+
+“Have you any objections to our looking?”
+
+“O’ course not. Go ahead--or, hold up, I’ll show ye where I seed them.”
+
+The old man led the way to the spot. A carriage shed hid it from the
+house.
+
+Both of the boys looked around carefully, striving to find some clew
+which might prove that the men had been the robbers.
+
+While they were looking the old man plied them with questions. He was
+surprised to learn of the part Bob had played in the first chase.
+
+“I shouldn’t think yeou would want ter meet ’em again,” he laughed.
+
+“That’s just where you are mistaken. I shall not be satisfied until
+those rascals are run down.”
+
+“I have an idee they went to Stampton,” said the old man.
+
+Bob shook his head.
+
+“No; the police are watching out for them there. They have passed
+around Stampton and gone to some other place.”
+
+“What place?”
+
+“There is no telling. They might go to Dartinville or Burnham’s Ridge,
+or else strike out directly for the river.”
+
+“Most likely they struck out for the river,” said Frank. “That is if
+the men were really the robbers. They might have been tramps.”
+
+“I don’t think so,” said the old man. “Tramps don’t move away so
+lively-like ez these fellers did.”
+
+All laughed at this point, the old man loudest of all.
+
+Presently, before Bob had completed his search, the woman came out
+to announce dinner. She looked at Bob sharply a number of times, and
+seemed on the point of asking some question, but changed her mind and
+remained silent.
+
+“Well, there doesn’t seem to be any use in searching farther,” said
+Frank. “Perhaps they only stopped here to talk over their plans.”
+
+“But what did they do with their booty?” questioned Bob. “They either
+have it with them, or else they hid it somewhere.”
+
+“It isn’t likely they would hide it around here.”
+
+“Thet’s so,” said the old man.
+
+“Did you see if any of them carried a bundle?” asked Bob.
+
+“I dunno but what one of ’em did. But it wuz too dark to be certain on
+it.”
+
+There was a second of silence, broken by the woman.
+
+“I am afraid dinner will be spoiled, if you wait any longer,” she said.
+
+“Well, we’ll give it up,” said Frank, as he turned toward the house.
+
+“No, we won’t,” shouted Bob. “Look here!”
+
+He had picked up something from among the straw and dirt.
+
+“What’s that?” cried Frank.
+
+“A spoon, and it’s one of Mrs. Wright’s.”
+
+“How do you know?”
+
+“Because it’s just like the one she showed me. It has the same letter D
+on it.”
+
+“Yes, she was a Dalmer afore she got married,” put in the old man.
+
+“Perhaps there are more of them,” put in the woman.
+
+All began a stricter search than ever. But although they went over
+every inch of the ground nothing more was found.
+
+“I have an idea they merely looked over their booty,” said Bob. “They
+were anxious to find out what they had got and couldn’t wait any
+longer.”
+
+“Or else they had a row among themselves, and started to divide up,”
+suggested Frank.
+
+“Well, one thing is certain,” concluded Bob. “The men were Casco,
+Barker, and Grogan.”
+
+They were soon inside the house, and making away with the well-cooked
+food the woman had prepared for them. The meal over, they were on the
+point of leaving when the woman touched Bob on the arm.
+
+“Haven’t I seen you before?” she said.
+
+“Perhaps. I used to work for Joel Carrow.”
+
+“I don’t know the man. I must be mistaken, but I fancied I had met you
+some years ago, when you were a small boy.”
+
+“I used to live with old Peter Thompson before I went to work for
+Carrow.”
+
+“Then that is where we met. I used to work for Thompson.”
+
+“You did? How long?”
+
+“From the time his wife died until you were about seven or eight years
+old.”
+
+Bob was immediately interested. Here was somebody who might know
+something concerning the past. He motioned to the woman, and the two
+walked to one side, Frank refraining from following, knowing Bob would
+rather be alone.
+
+“May I ask your name?” went on Bob.
+
+“Mary Ridley.”
+
+“Were you related to Thompson?”
+
+“Very distantly, yes.”
+
+“Do you remember when he brought me to the place?”
+
+“He did not bring you.”
+
+“No?”
+
+“No; a man in a carriage brought you.”
+
+“Who was that man?”
+
+Mary Ridley shook her head.
+
+“You did not know?”
+
+“No. I asked Peter, but he would not say, and evaded the question.”
+
+“Did you ever hear where I came from?” and Bob’s heart beat quickly at
+this direct question.
+
+“I can’t answer that truthfully. Once Peter said you came from a
+Brooklyn orphan asylum, then he said you were the son of an old friend
+who had lived in Batavia, and another time he got angry and said he had
+a good mind to send you back to Buffalo, where you belonged.”
+
+Bob mused for a moment. It was more than likely that the man had spoken
+the truth when angry, and that Buffalo was the place from which he had
+been brought.
+
+“Did you hear the name of the man who brought me to Thompson’s?”
+
+“I heard Peter call him Bill.”
+
+Bob started. Could the man have been Bill Barker, the robber?
+
+Such would not be very strange. Barker had said he knew something
+concerning Bob’s early history. Of course, he must have told an untruth
+about the boy’s father being a thief, but still Bob was inclined to
+believe that Barker knew a good deal.
+
+“Did this Bill ever come back?”
+
+“Oh, yes, he used to come about every three months at first. But
+during the last year he came only once. Then Peter and him had a big
+row, and that ended it.”
+
+“What was the row about?”
+
+“Something about money. I didn’t make it out. But I heard Peter say
+that if it wasn’t that he had become attached to you, he would have
+sent you back.”
+
+“Back where?”
+
+“I don’t know. Haven’t you ever learned anything about yourself?”
+
+“Not a word.” Bob swallowed a curious lump that had come up in his
+throat. “But I am trying hard to get on the track. I know one thing,
+and since you have told me so much I’ll tell you it. The Bill Barker,
+who is one of the robbers we are after, was, to my way of thinking, the
+man who brought me to Peter Thompson’s house.”
+
+“Gracious! How did you learn that?”
+
+“By certain things I heard him say. That is why I am anxious these
+robbers should be caught.”
+
+“I see.”
+
+“You don’t know anything further, do you?”
+
+“No. I left Peter’s, you know, and then mother and my only sister died,
+and I was all upset. But I thought I knew your face. Let me hear from
+you, if you ever learn anything.”
+
+“I certainly shall. By the way, do you think you would remember this
+Bill, if you should ever see him again?”
+
+“I can’t say. He always came at night, and was pretty well muffled up.”
+
+“Evidently he didn’t wish to be seen,” mused Bob. “That shows his work
+was underhanded.”
+
+A little later Bob and Frank left. The young man noticed that the youth
+was unusually silent on the road, but he asked no questions until the
+outskirts of Stampton were reached, and then he did not touch the
+subject nearest to Bob’s heart.
+
+“What do you intend to do in Stampton, now we have arrived?”
+
+“I hardly know,” said Bob. “I must find some boarding-place I suppose,
+and then I’ll hunt for a job among the photographers.”
+
+“Don’t you think we had better report to the police about that spoon
+first?”
+
+“Of course.”
+
+They soon met a policeman, who directed them to the station-house. They
+found the chief in charge, and quickly related what they had learned.
+
+“Certainly an important clew,” said the chief. “I will send a man to
+follow it up without delay.”
+
+“And I’ll leave the spoon with you to be returned to Mrs. Wright,” said
+Bob.
+
+Bob and Frank then separated, as the young man had to send a telegram
+to the firm for which he worked. He was having a vacation, but had to
+keep in communication in case his services were needed.
+
+Bob had but slight difficulty in finding a suitable boarding-house,
+where he obtained a neatly-furnished attic room and good board for
+four dollars and a half a week, washing thrown in. He had the landlady
+change the fifty-dollar bill, and paid for a week in advance.
+
+“That breaks the fifty,” thought the youth. “But I think I had better
+learn more about the photographing business before I buy that camera.”
+
+It was now too late to look for a situation, and Bob started out to
+hunt up Frank, who said he would stop at the American Hotel.
+
+Bob had not been to a large city for some time, and the many sights to
+be seen pleased him greatly. He often hesitated to gaze into a shop
+window, and, when he reached a photographic outfit establishment, he
+stopped for a long time.
+
+“Very fine views, Maverick,” he heard one gentleman say to another, as
+both emerged from the door-way.
+
+“That’s true, Fallon. I wish we had as good a lot. It would help our
+excursion tours wonderfully.”
+
+The two men passed down the street. Bob gazed after them.
+
+“One of them must be Grace Maverick’s father,” he said to himself. “I
+wonder where they live? I would like to take a look around, even if I
+didn’t go in.”
+
+For Bob thought a country boy like himself had no business in one of
+those fine brownstone mansions, even if he had been invited to call.
+
+Bob continued to look at the things displayed in the show window until
+he had noted them all. He made up his mind that there was more to the
+art of photography than he had dreamed.
+
+“But I’ll master it, see if I don’t,” he muttered, as he turned away
+and resumed his walk. “I won’t be a nobody any longer.”
+
+Bob had scarcely gone a dozen steps when he saw a familiar-looking
+figure approaching. The man was Slippery Paul Bidwell, the sneak-thief.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII
+
+BOB OBTAINS A SITUATION
+
+
+For the moment the sneak-thief did not recognize Bob.
+
+“Not so fast, my friend,” cried the boy.
+
+Bidwell started back.
+
+“What, you!” he exclaimed.
+
+“Exactly, Bidwell, and I want you.”
+
+Bidwell turned and darted across the street. Bob lost no time in
+following.
+
+Reaching the other side of the thoroughfare, the sneak-thief made off
+as fast as his long legs would permit.
+
+He was a good runner, and would no doubt have gotten away had not a
+fortunate accident occurred.
+
+Turning a corner Bidwell ran full-tilt into a stout man who was walking
+leisurely along, carrying a basket on his arm.
+
+Down went the stout man, with Bidwell on top of him, while the basket
+with its contents flew in all directions.
+
+“Who--what?” the stout man spluttered.
+
+“Beg pardon,” returned Bidwell, glibly. “It’s a case of life or
+death--man seriously injured.”
+
+He attempted to rise, but before he could do so Bob had him by the arm.
+
+“Stay where you are!” ordered the youth, determinedly.
+
+“Let go of me, boy!” cried Bidwell, angrily.
+
+“Not much! Police, police!”
+
+The stout man arose slowly to his feet, and stared at Bob.
+
+“What does this mean, young man?” he questioned.
+
+“This man is a thief, and is trying to get away.”
+
+“It’s not so,” put in Bidwell. “A man is dying, and I am running for a
+doctor.”
+
+“He’s a thief I say,” went on Bob. “Will you call a policeman?”
+
+“I will,” returned the stout individual. He was angry at Bidwell for
+the rough treatment he had received.
+
+A policeman was not far away, and the man hurried off to get his
+assistance.
+
+Bidwell tried to wrench himself loose. But Bob’s grip was a good one,
+and he held on like grim death.
+
+“What’s the row here?” demanded the policeman, as he hurried up,
+followed by the stout man.
+
+“I want this boy arrested,” said Bidwell, hurriedly. “He has just
+escaped from the asylum.”
+
+“Crazy, eh?”
+
+“As crazy as a bedbug. He’s been following me around for over an hour.”
+
+“That’s not so,” put in Bob. “This man is a sneak-thief, and----”
+
+“He’s crazy on the subject of thieves,” said Bidwell. “He was once
+scared by a midnight burglar, and it affected his brain. He belongs up
+at the Cloverdale Asylum.”
+
+“Well, what were you running for?” asked the stout man, suspiciously.
+
+“A man was hurt. I was running to get a doctor.”
+
+“Who are you?”
+
+“I am Albert E. Whistler, the hardware manufacturer of Troy. I came to
+Stampton this morning on business.”
+
+“He tells it good,” said Bob. “Shall I tell you who he really is?”
+
+“Don’t believe him, he is crazy.”
+
+“His right name is Bidwell, and he is known as Slippery Paul, the
+crook.”
+
+At this declaration the policeman opened his eyes.
+
+“You are sure about that?”
+
+“Positive. If you don’t believe me, take us both to the station-house.”
+
+“That’s fair,” said the stout individual. “I’ll pick up my basket and
+set it in one of these stores and go along. I’m anxious to see the
+matter out.”
+
+This arrangement did not suit Bidwell, but he put on a pleasant face.
+
+“All right, I’ll go along,” he said. “But keep a sharp lookout on that
+boy.”
+
+“And I’ll ask you to handcuff him,” said Bob. “He may try to slip away.”
+
+At this Bidwell muttered something under his breath. He looked as if he
+wanted to kill Bob, and the policeman saw that the shot had told.
+
+“You’ll bear watching, I’m thinking,” he said. “So I’ll--hullo!”
+
+Once more Bidwell had taken to his heels. But the officer was a fine
+runner, and he soon overtook the sneak-thief.
+
+“That settles it. Hold out your hands!”
+
+“What for?”
+
+“Never mind, hold them out!”
+
+Bidwell did so, and he was quickly handcuffed. Then the whole party
+marched to police headquarters.
+
+Bidwell was quickly recognized by the captain of the police, and his
+capture was considered an important one, especially when Bob related
+the particulars of the jewel robbery. A pawn-ticket was found in the
+sneak-thief’s pocket, and this afterward proved to be for money loaned
+on the diamond and ruby cross, which was returned to Mrs. Varley.
+
+The stout man who had been knocked down, became quite interested
+in Bob, and after the hearing was ended, and Bidwell locked up, he
+followed the youth to the street.
+
+“Good for you,” he said, clapping Bob on the back. “I admire your
+pluck. It is not every young man would have braved it out as you did.”
+
+“I knew I was right, and had nothing to fear, sir.”
+
+“Did you say your name was Robert Alden?”
+
+“Yes, sir.”
+
+“Do you belong in Stampton?”
+
+“Not exactly. I came from Shellville. I am here looking for a job.”
+
+“Oh! At any particular trade?”
+
+“I wish, if possible, to learn the art of photography. I know a little
+about it, and I am anxious to learn more.”
+
+The stout man smiled.
+
+“Do you know me?” he asked.
+
+“No, sir.”
+
+“My name is Edgar Starleigh, and I am a photographer.”
+
+“Edgar Starleigh? I read the name on a sign.”
+
+“So you would like to learn photography?”
+
+“That is my ambition, sir.”
+
+“Rather a difficult art, my boy.”
+
+“And it will take quite a while to learn, too, I suppose, sir.”
+
+“That’s true, although some learn quicker than others.”
+
+“Even so, I would like to take it up.”
+
+“Might give you a trial,” mused Mr. Starleigh.
+
+“Eh? What did you say?” asked Bob, quickly.
+
+“You might come to my studio in the morning.”
+
+“Employment so quickly just suits me,” laughed Bob.
+
+“Rather a lucky encounter, after all,” said the photographer, joining
+in the laugh.
+
+“And what time shall I come?” asked Bob.
+
+“Unless you have other matters to arrange, come in at six o’clock.”
+
+“That’s rather early, isn’t it, for photographing? Not but what I’ll be
+on hand.”
+
+“Hardly, when one has a lot of sunlight printing to do.”
+
+“Oh, I see!”
+
+“Real good printing needs good sunlight, and to get that one has to
+be alert the moment the sun comes up. Of course I do a good deal of
+printing by gaslight, too.”
+
+The conversation then drifted around to the subject of wages, and Bob
+was hired at six dollars a week, to be advanced as soon as he was worth
+more.
+
+On the following morning the youth presented himself at Mr.
+Starleigh’s studio. He found the place somewhat shabby in appearance.
+But the man was an excellent photographer, and his business was brisk.
+
+Starleigh was well pleased at the manner in which Bob took hold, and
+predicted that if the youth continued to apply himself he would soon be
+able to take any kind of a picture.
+
+During the noon hour Bob met Frank, and told him of the situation he
+had secured, and also of Bidwell’s capture.
+
+“Good for you. Starleigh is said to be a first-class man, and you had
+better stick to him for a while. But I must bid you good-by for the
+present.”
+
+“Why, what’s up?”
+
+“I must go back to work. One of our men has been taken sick, and I’ve
+got to take his trip throughout the western part of the State next
+month.”
+
+“Then I won’t see you for a while?”
+
+“No; but I’ll write, and I’ll expect you to do the same.”
+
+And so the two parted firm friends.
+
+Several days went by and Bob stuck diligently to his work, much to Mr.
+Starleigh’s satisfaction. He saw nothing of Grace Maverick, and in a
+roundabout way learned that the young lady was away on a brief trip to
+the seashore.
+
+The building in which the photographic studio was situated was a large
+one, containing over two dozen offices. A hall ran through the middle
+as far as the top floor, and there was also a rear hall on the second
+and third stories.
+
+On the evening of the fourth day Bob was left to lock up alone, Mr.
+Starleigh having gone away on business, and the other assistant being
+sick. Bob remained behind a little later than usual, being anxious to
+finish mounting a set of landscapes, which were to be called for the
+next day.
+
+It was dark when Bob finished and stepped out into the hall-way.
+Locking up securely, he started to go below.
+
+Presently he heard the murmur of voices on the floor below. He looked
+down, and saw three men coming up the second flight of stairs.
+
+The hall-way was too dark to distinguish faces. But as the three men
+turned and entered an office near the landing just below Bob, the youth
+recognized the voices.
+
+The men were Casco, Barker, and Grogan.
+
+What had brought them to the place, and at this hour in the evening?
+
+“Perhaps they are up to one of their old tricks,” said Bob to himself.
+“I ought to notify the police and have them bagged without delay.”
+
+He heard the men still talking, and, anxious to make out what was being
+said, he tiptoed his way to the door and listened.
+
+“You are sure Lawrence is nowhere about?” he heard Barker say.
+
+“Positive,” returned Casco. “He got a letter calling him to Middletown,
+and he left on the four-fifteen train.”
+
+“Then we have the whole office to ourselves.”
+
+“We have.”
+
+“Then lock the door and come to business.”
+
+“Yis, it’s hoigh toime we did that same,” growled Grogan. “’Tis a lot
+ov toime we’ve been afther wastin’.”
+
+“Slow but sure, Mike,” laughed Casco. “You mustn’t forget that the
+police are on our heels.”
+
+“I doubt if they know we are in Stampton,” put in Barker. “The old Nick
+take that boy! If it hadn’t been for him they wouldn’t know who stole
+the stuff.”
+
+“Say, Bill, you seem to be down on him more than any of us,” came from
+Casco.
+
+“So I am.”
+
+“What’s the reason?”
+
+“That’s my affair.”
+
+“Oh, if you’re going to be so close-mouthed about it----” began Casco,
+coldly.
+
+“That boy’s father did me an injury once, and I haven’t forgotten it,”
+returned Barker.
+
+“Who was his father?”
+
+“Never mind that. He had me jugged, and that’s enough.”
+
+“And now the old man’s dead, you are going to take it out of the boy,
+eh?”
+
+“And so would you, if you had been treated as I have been. I am not one
+of the forgiving or forgetting kind.”
+
+“Sure an’ we both know that same!” laughed Grogan. “Yer a gintlemon in
+yer shtoyle, Barker, but yer a terror whin it comes to timper.”
+
+“But say, Bill, didn’t you have something to do with the boy when he
+was younger?” went on Casco, curiously.
+
+“Who told you I had?”
+
+“Nobody exactly, but I fancied----”
+
+“You fancy too much, Jim. That matter hasn’t got anything to do with
+the work on hand.”
+
+Bob listened with bated breath to all that was said. He was sorry
+Barker had cut the others short. What might he not have learned had the
+man chosen to continue the conversation!
+
+Bob was in a quandary. Should he summon the police, or should he stay
+and hear whatever might be said?
+
+“If I go out, they may leave during my absence,” he said to himself. “I
+think I had better stay with them until somebody comes this way.”
+
+He heard the men seat themselves around a table, and then Barker and
+Casco lit cigars, while Grogan got out a pipe.
+
+“Now to come to business,” said Barker.
+
+“That’s the talk,” said Grogan.
+
+“Well, Rosenbaum says he will give four hundred dollars for the stuff,”
+began Casco.
+
+“That’s mighty little.”
+
+“He says all the stuff is not solid silver.”
+
+Barker’s face fell and so did Grogan’s.
+
+“I know it’s a disappointment,” went on Casco. “I thought the haul
+would pay much better myself, but still four hundred dollars is better
+than nothing, not to say anything of the cash.”
+
+“Ye can’t make that Jew come up in the proice?” ventured Grogan,
+puffing away vigorously.
+
+“No. He only wanted to give three-fifty first.”
+
+“Well, we might as well let it go,” said Barker. “The sooner we get the
+stuff off our hands the better.”
+
+“That’s so,” returned Casco. “It will leave us free for that other
+deal.”
+
+“Thrue fer you,” added Grogan. “’Tis meself that is itchin’ to get to
+worruk upon that.”
+
+“Plenty of time,” said Barker. “By the way, I wonder if there is
+anything in this place worth taking along?”
+
+“Nothing like making a search,” returned Casco, coolly.
+
+He and the others arose, and Bob heard them moving about the office.
+Presently he heard the slide of a roller-top desk shoved back, and
+then a conversation, too low for him to hear clearly, reached his ears.
+
+“If I only knew how long they intended to remain,” thought the youth.
+“If I go for the police now they may leave at any instant, and then
+I’ll miss them sure.”
+
+Suddenly he heard Barker utter a cry.
+
+“Just the thing!”
+
+“That’s so. It will help us wonderfully.”
+
+“Phat is it?” questioned Grogan.
+
+“Never mind, Mike; you’ll know before you are much older.”
+
+“Yis, but----”
+
+Bob caught no more. There was a quick step on the stairs, and the
+janitor of the building appeared, broom in hand, to sweep out the place.
+
+“Hullo! what are you doing at that door?” he asked, loudly.
+
+Bob motioned him to be silent, and then tiptoed his way to where the
+man stood, mouth wide open in expectation.
+
+“There are three well-known robbers in Mr. Lawrence’s office,”
+whispered the youth.
+
+“Robbers!” cried the man, louder than ever. “Just wait till I get after
+them!”
+
+“Better summon the police,” urged Bob. “They are all strong men, and
+you cannot capture them alone.”
+
+“We’ll see if I can’t,” cried the janitor, who was a very
+self-important individual. “Run for the police yourself, if you want
+to.”
+
+He took a key from his pocket and unlocked the office door.
+
+Rushing into the apartment he gazed around.
+
+“What’s the matter with you?” he cried, turning to Bob, angrily.
+
+“Nothing! Catch them!”
+
+“There is nobody here.”
+
+“What?” gasped Bob.
+
+He brushed past the man. Sure enough, the room appeared deserted.
+
+“They were here a moment ago,” went on the youth. “Look in the closets.”
+
+“This is some trick of yours,” grumbled the janitor.
+
+Nevertheless he opened the two closets which the office contained.
+Neither held a single human form.
+
+During this time Bob had entered a private office located in the rear
+of the main one. Here there was a window opening upon a narrow alley.
+
+The window-sash was raised, and looking out Bob saw that the opening
+readily connected with a fire-escape.
+
+“That settles it; they have gotten away,” thought the youth.
+
+“Well?” queried the janitor.
+
+“You just missed them,” said Bob. “They got out on the fire-escape.
+I’m going to run them down if I can.”
+
+“You must be mistaken,” said the janitor. “There don’t seem to be
+anything disturbed.”
+
+But Bob did not hear him. He was already on his way down-stairs, three
+steps at a time.
+
+Reaching the sidewalk he hurried around to the alley-way. It appeared
+to be deserted.
+
+Bob looked around. On the curbstone sat a bootblack eating a banana.
+
+“Shine, boss?”
+
+“No. Did you see three men come out of the alley a moment ago?”
+
+“I did.”
+
+“Which way did they go?”
+
+The bootblack pointed his dirty finger down the street.
+
+“Straight down?”
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“Thanks.”
+
+Away went Bob at the top of his speed. At the first corner he paused.
+Had the three robbers gone straight ahead, or turned down the side
+street?
+
+“I’ll take my chances that they made a turn. The question is which way,
+to the left or the right?” he asked himself.
+
+Bob looked up and down the side street. He saw that to the left the
+street came to an end but a block off.
+
+“They must have gone to the right,” he muttered. “I’ll try that,
+anyway.”
+
+Turning to his right he dashed down the cross street.
+
+He had gone less than five hundred feet when he saw the figure of a man
+emerge from behind a bill-board and scale a near-by fence.
+
+The man was Bill Barker.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX
+
+BOB HAS A LIVELY FIGHT
+
+
+Barker was alone, and no sooner had he disappeared over the high board
+fence, than Bob made up his mind to follow him.
+
+It was quite dark by this time, and perched on the top of the fence Bob
+could see little or nothing. He listened intently, but nothing save the
+hissing of escaping steam reached his ears.
+
+The yard was one attached to a planing mill and box factory. It was
+filled with boards and packing cases, and affording a number of
+excellent hiding-places.
+
+Bob dropped inside the yard and stole cautiously forward until he
+reached a sort of driveway which divided the yard into two parts.
+
+Nothing was yet to be seen of Barker, and Bob was puzzled to know what
+had become of the robber.
+
+Stepping to a nook near a high pile of lumber, Bob stopped once more to
+listen.
+
+Was he mistaken, or had he heard the faint creaking of a board to his
+left?
+
+He bent in the direction and waited. No; he was not mistaken; there was
+the noise again.
+
+Feeling around, Bob found a billet of wood. It was two feet long, and
+more than an inch thick, and would answer very well as a club.
+
+With the stick in his hand, he made his way cautiously to the spot
+whence the sound had proceeded.
+
+Suddenly something brushed past him, and a second later he found
+himself confronted by Barker, who caught him by the arm.
+
+“What are you following me for?” demanded the man.
+
+Instead of replying Bob raised the stick and struck the fellow on the
+head.
+
+“Stand where you are, Barker!” he cried.
+
+“What, Bob Pe----” began Barker, and stopped short.
+
+“You know me, I reckon,” returned the youth. “Stand where you are,
+unless you want another taste of this stick.”
+
+“Was it you in the hall-way of that building?” demanded Barker, in
+astonishment.
+
+“It was. Where are Casco and Grogan?”
+
+“Skipped the town,” returned the robber. “Are you alone?” he went on,
+anxiously, as he tried to pierce the darkness behind Bob.
+
+“Never mind about that,” returned the youth.
+
+“You come along with me.”
+
+“Where to?”
+
+“I’ll soon show you.”
+
+“I don’t think I will be such a fool.”
+
+“If you don’t come along, I’ll knock you over with this stick,”
+returned Bob, decidedly. “I don’t propose to stand any more fooling.”
+
+“You talk mighty big for a boy,” sneered Barker.
+
+“Perhaps I do, but I mean what I say. Come, move along.”
+
+Instead of complying, Barker made a spring for the youth.
+
+Bob retreated, and the next instant the stick descended on the robber’s
+head with such force that the man was knocked flat on his back.
+
+“Now will you mind?” demanded the youth, standing over him with the
+stick upraised.
+
+“The old Nick take you!” cried Barker, in a rage. “Let up there!”
+
+“Will you promise to go along if I do?”
+
+Barker hesitated. His head ached from the blow Bob had administered,
+and he did not wish such a dose repeated.
+
+“Answer me.”
+
+“Yes, I’ll go. But, Bob, you are making a great mistake.”
+
+“I don’t think so.”
+
+“You are. Do you know me?”
+
+“I know you are the man who said my father was a thief,” was the bitter
+answer.
+
+“I was only fooling, Bob.”
+
+“I knew you wasn’t telling the truth.”
+
+“I thought I could get you to join in our little plan to make money.”
+
+“And you found out I wasn’t built that way, Barker.”
+
+“That’s so. But you are making a big mistake by handing me over to the
+police.”
+
+“I think it will be a first-class job done.”
+
+“You want to learn something about yourself, don’t you?” went on
+Barker, significantly.
+
+Bob breathed hard. Barker had touched the subject dearest to his heart.
+
+“It’s natural that I should, isn’t it?” was the slow response.
+
+“Well, you will never learn anything by having me locked up.”
+
+“Don’t be too sure about that.”
+
+“I am dead positive, for nobody knows anything about that matter but
+me.”
+
+“You are mistaken, Barker.”
+
+“No, I am not.”
+
+“There is a woman knows about it.”
+
+Barker started.
+
+“What, has Sarah Blake dared to tell you----” he began, and stopped
+short.
+
+Bob caught the name and remembered it. Little did he dream of the
+peculiar circumstances under which he would meet Sarah Blake.
+
+“Never mind, Barker. I am not so much in the dark as you think.”
+
+“Sarah doesn’t know it all,” grumbled Barker. “I am the only one that
+has all the facts.”
+
+“And you won’t tell if I have you arrested?”
+
+“That’s the size of it.”
+
+“And if I let you go, what will you tell me?”
+
+“A good deal that will be to your interest.”
+
+Bob looked at the man and smiled grimly.
+
+“I wouldn’t trust you, Barker. I would rather hear what you had to say
+after you were behind the bars.”
+
+“I won’t tell you a word, then. You can live and die the poor,
+miserable nobody that you now are.”
+
+“We’ll see. Let me tell you something. Even if I could trust you to
+tell the whole truth, I wouldn’t let you go. You are a criminal, and
+your place is in prison.”
+
+“You’ll never put me there,” cried Barker.
+
+“Yes, I will. Now march along.”
+
+“Where to?”
+
+“Over to that gate.”
+
+Barker moved on as indicated. He wanted to run for it, but Bob kept the
+club raised, and he did not dare.
+
+Just as they neared the gate footsteps were heard, and a man appeared
+with a lantern.
+
+“Vot’s der madder here?” he demanded, in broken English.
+
+“This man is a robber,” said Bob. “I want him arrested.”
+
+“By chimminy, vos dot so?”
+
+“Yes. Are you the watchman around here?”
+
+“Yah. I dinks me I vos hear somepotty by der yard.”
+
+“Will you call a policeman?”
+
+“Sure, I vill.”
+
+The watchman hurried off, and presently returned with an officer. In a
+few words Bob told the policeman that Barker was one of the men who had
+robbed John Wright’s house.
+
+The officer at once took the robber in charge, and Bob accompanied both.
+
+The station was some distance from the lumber-yard, and Barker proposed
+that they take a horse-car, stating that he had slipped on a log in the
+factory yard and sprained his ankle.
+
+To this the policeman consented, and smilingly added that if his ankle
+was sprained perhaps he wouldn’t feel much like trying to get away.
+
+“No, confound the luck,” returned the robber.
+
+The car was crowded, and all three were compelled to stand on the back
+platform.
+
+They had scarcely gone a block, when the car stopped at rather a dark
+spot to take on a couple of passengers. There was squeezing on all
+sides, and for a moment Bob lost sight of both Barker and the policeman.
+
+Then when the car started again Bob looked around with a cry of
+dismay. The officer and the robber had disappeared.
+
+Bob forced his way inside of the car, thinking that the pair might have
+entered to get out of the crush outside.
+
+But a thorough search failed to reveal either of the persons in whom
+the youth was interested.
+
+“Gone!” ejaculated Bob, with a sinking heart.
+
+“What’s that?” asked a bystander.
+
+“Nothing. Did you see anything of that policeman and his prisoner?”
+
+“They got off at the last stop.”
+
+“Thank you.”
+
+Bob lost no time in leaving the car and hurrying back to the place. All
+was dark, and nobody appeared in sight.
+
+“Hullo there, officer!” he called out.
+
+He repeated the call several times, and finally the policeman came
+running toward him, club in hand.
+
+“Where is the man?” asked Bob, breathlessly.
+
+“That’s what I want to know,” returned the officer.
+
+“Did he get off with you?”
+
+“No; he jumped off, and I followed.”
+
+“Well, that’s a fine piece of business!” exclaimed Bob.
+
+“I’m not to blame,” returned the officer, alarmed over the thought that
+he had in some way neglected to do his duty.
+
+“Really?” asked Bob, sarcastically. He was angry.
+
+“No. Why didn’t you watch him?”
+
+“It wasn’t my business after I had delivered him to you.”
+
+“Yes, it was.”
+
+“It was not. You’re a fine officer to take charge of a man.”
+
+“Come, don’t talk to me that way,” cried the policeman.
+
+“You didn’t attend to your business.”
+
+“Say another word and I’ll run you in for loafing,” cried the
+policeman, catching Bob by the arm.
+
+“Let go of me!”
+
+“Then don’t say it was my fault. I had nothing to do with it. It was
+your duty to keep watch of the man until you made a charge against him.”
+
+The policeman thought he could hoodwink Bob by saying this, but the
+youth’s common sense told him better.
+
+“It was all your fault,” said Bob, breaking away. “I have your number,
+and perhaps I’ll report you. Now, I am going to hunt for the man again.”
+
+And before the officer could stop him, Bob made off, while the
+policeman went back to his beat, there to concoct some excuse for his
+failure to do his duty.
+
+Bob hurried down the street, looking in all directions for Barker, but
+the robber was nowhere to be seen.
+
+At the end of an hour the youth was discouraged, and slowly and
+thoughtfully he made his way to his boarding-house.
+
+How much had been missed by the escape of Barker! Not only the chance
+of recovering the stolen goods, but also that of interviewing the
+robber concerning the shrouded past.
+
+“But I’ll meet him again some day, and then I won’t trust him to any
+fool of a policeman,” said Bob to himself.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X
+
+BOB’S FIRST CUSTOMER
+
+
+Mr. Starleigh was much interested in the story Bob had to tell him on
+the following morning.
+
+“Lawrence has got back, and his desk was robbed of a hundred and five
+dollars, so he says.”
+
+“Those chaps are bad ones,” said the boy. “They steal wherever they
+happen to be.”
+
+The old photographer advised Bob to make a complaint against the
+officer who had allowed Barker to slip away, but Bob shook his head.
+
+“What’s the use? He would find some excuse, and I would only get into
+trouble. No; after all, I’ll simply do what I can alone, and let the
+rest go.”
+
+A week passed, and Bob made rapid strides in the art he was following,
+for photography now interested him more than ever before.
+
+One day he was left alone at noon, and in rushed a young man.
+
+“I’ve got fifteen minutes to spare,” he said. “Can you give me a
+sitting in that time?”
+
+“I am sorry, but Mr. Starleigh is out, and so is his assistant,” said
+Bob.
+
+“Too bad! If I had a sitting to-day when could I have the photos?”
+
+“All of them?”
+
+“The first one.”
+
+“In a few hours. The others, if you want a dozen, would be done a
+couple of days later.”
+
+“I wanted one to-morrow night sure. My brother is going to South
+America day after to-morrow, and I promised him my picture to take
+along.” The young man scratched his head. “Can’t you give me a sitting?”
+
+“I would rather you would wait,” replied Bob, fearing Mr. Starleigh
+would not like such a proceeding.
+
+“I can’t wait. Go ahead, if you know anything about the work.”
+
+The young man insisted, and at last Bob consented to give him a sitting.
+
+With great care Bob adjusted his focus, and gave his customer what he
+considered an artistic pose. In a minute more two plates were taken.
+
+“How about proofs?” asked the youth, as the young man pulled out his
+watch and then a roll of bills.
+
+“I haven’t time to come for them. How much will the dozen be?”
+
+“Four dollars and a half.”
+
+“Here’s your money. Send that picture to my home on Mountain Avenue.
+My name is Ralph Maverick.”
+
+And before Bob could say a word, the young man was gone.
+
+“Ralph Maverick,” murmured Bob to himself. “I wonder if he is any
+relation to Grace? The two look a little alike. Perhaps they are sister
+and brother.”
+
+When Mr. Starleigh returned, Bob related what he had done. The old
+photographer lost no time in looking at the plates and developing them.
+
+“One is no good, but the other is excellent,” he said. “You gave him
+a first-rate pose, Bob. Get a frame and some paper, and we will print
+a couple at once. You’ll soon be a full-fledged photographer, and I’m
+glad of it, for Sidler drinks so much I’ll have to discharge him.”
+
+While Bob was getting the paper, he asked Mr. Starleigh if he knew the
+young man.
+
+“Oh, yes; he is a son of Gregory Maverick, the president of the T. W.
+& L. Railroad. You can take the picture to his house as soon as it is
+done.”
+
+This pleased Bob. He wished to see Grace Maverick once again, if
+possible, but he did not care to make a call unless he had business,
+being afraid she might think he had come to be rewarded for his bravery
+in helping her down the cliff.
+
+Bob left the photographing establishment at six o’clock with four of
+the pictures in his pocket. He had worked hard during the day, and he
+felt both tired and dirty.
+
+“I think I’ll go home first and wash, dress, and get supper before I
+deliver the picture,” he said to himself. “If I called at the house
+looking like this, Grace Maverick might take me for a tramp.”
+
+Which showed that Bob placed a high value on the beautiful young girl’s
+opinion.
+
+Bob hurried to his boarding-house, and after a good scrubbing dressed
+himself in a new suit he had just purchased. Then he hastily swallowed
+his supper, and set out for Mountain Avenue.
+
+The way lay past the studio, and as Bob drew near to the place where he
+was employed, he noticed a crowd rushing along.
+
+“What’s up?” he asked of a man who was running.
+
+“Fire up the street.”
+
+The man had hardly answered, when with a shrill tooting an engine came
+tearing along, followed by a hose-cart and a hook and ladder company.
+
+Bob was instantly interested. He had never witnessed a fire in the
+city, and he was anxious to see how the thing was managed.
+
+He followed the crowd. What was his astonishment to see the engine
+stop directly in front of the building in which the studio was situated.
+
+“Back there!” cried a policeman to the crowd, while the firemen began
+to run a hose into the hall-way.
+
+“Why, where is the fire?” cried Bob, in alarm.
+
+“Upstairs,” returned a bystander.
+
+“They say it started in a photographic place,” said another man.
+
+Bob turned pale. They must mean Mr. Starleigh’s studio. He wondered if
+his employer was around.
+
+Bob had a key to the studio. Breaking through the crowd, he dashed past
+the policeman on duty.
+
+“Here--what?” demanded the officer.
+
+“I want to save our things if I can,” returned Bob.
+
+He dashed up the first flight of stairs and then the second. The
+hall-way was filling with smoke, but no fire was to be seen.
+
+But on the third landing he paused. The smoke was thicker than ever,
+and he could hear the faint crackling of flames. Would it be safe to
+venture farther?
+
+He hesitated for only a second.
+
+“I’ll save what I can,” he murmured, and up he dashed.
+
+He was about to insert the key in the lock, when he noticed that the
+door was already unfastened. He pushed it open, and rushed in.
+
+The thick smoke rolled directly into his face, almost choking him.
+
+“I can’t stand this very long,” was his thought.
+
+Suddenly a puff of flame rolled overhead, lighting up the apartment.
+
+Guided by this, Bob made a rush for the operating-room, bent on saving
+the valuable lenses, if nothing more.
+
+He had just reached the curtain to this apartment, when there came
+another puff of flame, followed by a shower of sparks.
+
+Some of the sparks alighted on a table in the corner filled with
+chemicals.
+
+There was an explosion almost immediately, and poor Bob was hurled
+backward, while the chemicals flew all around him.
+
+The smoke was thick, and, completely bewildered, the lad could not tell
+which way to turn to reach the door.
+
+Once he started, crawling on his hands and knees, and brought up
+directly opposite to where he wanted to go.
+
+The smoke was every moment getting thicker, and it looked as if the
+brave youth was to die like a rat in a trap.
+
+“I must get out somehow,” he muttered, desperately. “Why can’t I find
+the door?”
+
+He turned, and, rising, made a dash forward.
+
+“Help, help!”
+
+The cry startled him. It came from the developing closet, and Bob
+recognized the voice as that of Mr. Starleigh.
+
+“Mr. Starleigh!” he called out.
+
+“Oh, Bob, is that you? Help me, in Heaven’s name!”
+
+“I will.”
+
+Guided by the voice, Bob rushed through the operating-room, and threw
+open the door of the dark closet.
+
+A red light burned on a stand, and by it Bob saw his employer lying on
+the floor, one hand grasping a box of plates.
+
+“Help me, Bob!”
+
+“I will if I can, sir. Can’t you get up?”
+
+“Yes, but I can’t walk. I tried to save all those new plates, and two
+of the boxes fell on my ankle.”
+
+“Take my hand.”
+
+The old photographer did so, and got up, although the movement caused
+him great pain.
+
+“I’m afraid we can’t get out through the main room,” said Bob. “The
+flames are breaking through everywhere.”
+
+“I see, and--your coat is on fire. Let me put it out.”
+
+Mr. Starleigh caught the burnt portion in his hand, and crushed it.
+
+“That must have caught when the chemicals exploded. Tell me, what is
+beyond this closet?”
+
+“The hall-way, I believe.”
+
+“There is no door out?”
+
+“There was, in that corner, but I nailed it up.”
+
+“We must get it open somehow. Stand over there, out of the way.”
+
+Mr. Starleigh followed directions. Bob pulled away the stand which
+stood before the closed door.
+
+“If I only had an axe,” he said.
+
+“There is a hammer in the next room on the shelf.”
+
+“I’ll get it.”
+
+Leaving Mr. Starleigh leaning against a table, Bob rushed out into the
+operating-room. He found the hammer, and also brought with him the
+valuable lenses, which he knew his employer greatly prized.
+
+With all his force he began to batter on the door. At first it resisted
+his efforts, but finally with a crash one of the panels gave way.
+
+Then another panel was knocked out, and, with savage energy, Bob
+attacked the middle strip.
+
+His blows fell thick and fast. At last came a crash, and the top of the
+door was smashed into several parts.
+
+“Just in time,” cried Mr. Starleigh. “See, the whole operating-room is
+in flames!”
+
+The hall-way seemed to be now quite free from smoke. Bob leaped through
+the opening he had made, and helped his employer to follow.
+
+“Hullo! what’s up here?”
+
+It was a fireman who asked the question.
+
+“We’ve just escaped,” said Mr. Starleigh. “Help us to get down-stairs.”
+
+“He can’t walk,” said Bob. “If you will get on one side of him I will
+get on the other.”
+
+The fireman willingly complied, and it was not long before they reached
+the sidewalk, where a denser crowd than ever was now congregated.
+
+Mr. Starleigh was assisted to a near-by drug-store, and a doctor at
+once gave his injured ankle proper attention.
+
+“I wish I had saved my lenses,” he sighed. “The rest of the stuff in
+the place was not of so much account.”
+
+“Here are the lenses,” returned Bob, producing them.
+
+“What! Did you really get them?”
+
+“Yes. I trust they are not scratched,” went on the youth, with
+considerable concern.
+
+“They do not appear to be. Bob, I shall not forget you for this work,
+nor for saving my life, also.”
+
+“Pooh! I didn’t save your life,” replied Bob, and he returned to the
+fire.
+
+By this time several other engines had arrived, and half a dozen
+streams of water were being poured on the flames. The firemen had a
+hard fight of it, but in less than an hour the fire was under control,
+although they continued on guard and would allow no one within the fire
+lines.
+
+Bob stood around for a while longer, and then he suddenly remembered
+the photographs in his pocket. He pulled them out, and found they were
+uninjured, which was strange, considering the rough usage they had seen.
+
+“I might as well deliver these, and get it off my hands,” he said to
+himself. “I wonder if Mr. Starleigh saved the plate, so that we can
+print the others.”
+
+Bob returned to the drug-store. He found a fellow-photographer talking
+to Mr. Starleigh. A number of plates had been saved, among them the one
+containing Ralph Maverick’s picture, and these the other photographer
+said he would finish for Mr. Starleigh.
+
+At the drug-store Bob brushed up as best he could. His new coat had
+several small holes burnt in it, but this could not be helped.
+
+Arriving at the Maverick mansion, he rang the bell and asked for Mr.
+Ralph Maverick.
+
+“Yes, he is in.”
+
+“Please tell him I come from Mr. Starleigh’s studio.”
+
+The servant who had answered the summons retired, and presently Ralph
+Maverick appeared.
+
+He was well satisfied with the picture.
+
+“I don’t see how Mr. Starleigh could have done any better,” he said.
+
+Bob told the young man of the fire, but added, that the pictures would,
+nevertheless, be ready in the course of a few days.
+
+“Well, it’s too bad you were burned out,” said Ralph Maverick. “Will
+you start up again?”
+
+“I suppose so.”
+
+A little more talk followed, and then Bob turned to go. He was keenly
+disappointed at not seeing Grace.
+
+But his disappointment was of short duration. Presently, while the two
+stood in the hall-way, there was a rush of feet on the stairs and Grace
+Maverick ran up.
+
+“There! I was afraid you would never call!” she cried, catching Bob by
+the hand, and giving him a squeeze that made him blush.
+
+“Why, Grace, do you know him?” questioned Ralph Maverick, in surprise.
+
+“Indeed I do,” returned the beautiful girl, warmly. “He is the young
+gentleman who saved my life when I fell over the cliff.”
+
+“You don’t say! I must shake hands with him myself. Why didn’t you
+introduce yourself?”
+
+“Oh, I--I----”
+
+“He brought my picture. He didn’t say anything about knowing you,” went
+on Ralph.
+
+“Then you didn’t come to see me?” asked Grace, pouting slightly.
+
+“Well, I’m glad I did see you,” stammered Bob. “But I have to attend to
+business, you see,” he went on, lamely. “I work for a photographer, and
+we are fearfully busy.”
+
+“I’ve been looking for you ever since I got back from the seashore.”
+
+“Yes, I heard you had gone,” said Bob.
+
+“Come into the parlor, I want to talk to you. I thought sure you and
+Mr. Landes would call together.”
+
+“He had to go on a trip for the house he represents. Otherwise, I
+imagine he would have been glad to come,” explained Bob.
+
+He was taken into an elegant parlor, where he felt a good deal like a
+fish out of water. But Grace and her brother did all they could to make
+him feel at ease, and, before he left, he was quite at home.
+
+“Papa wants to see you very much,” said Grace, during the course of
+conversation. “He is not at home to-night, but he will be to-morrow
+evening. Will you call, then?”
+
+“I will, if I can.”
+
+“Oh, that won’t do! You come sure, and I will make papa stay home, even
+if he has got another engagement.”
+
+“He might not care to do that,” suggested Bob.
+
+“Oh, he cares to do whatever I want him to,” returned the young lady.
+
+When Bob left, he felt in particularly high spirits; why, he could not
+exactly state.
+
+He returned to his boarding-house by way of a short cut through a
+number of back streets.
+
+It was quite dark when he reached the steps of the boarding-house. As
+he was about to ascend, latch-key in hand, he noticed a man sitting on
+the curbstone, his head resting on his hands.
+
+Approaching the man, Bob shook him by the shoulder.
+
+“What’s the matter with you?” he asked.
+
+The man stared at him vacantly.
+
+“What’s that?” he asked.
+
+“I asked what was the matter with you?” repeated Bob.
+
+Instead of replying the man sprang to his feet, and caught Bob by the
+throat.
+
+“I’ll show you,” he mumbled, with a hiccough. “Give me back my money,
+Jim Casco, d’ye hear?”
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI
+
+BOB ASSISTS A STRANGER
+
+
+Bob was surprised at the stranger’s words. He shook off the hold the
+man had on his throat, and then grasped him by both arms.
+
+“What did you say?” he demanded.
+
+“I said I wanted my money back,” growled the stranger, wildly. “You
+drugged me, and I know it, Jim Casco.”
+
+Again the man stared at Bob, and then to both sides.
+
+“I must be off,” he hiccoughed. “I thought I was still in Cabot’s
+place.”
+
+“Is Cabot’s a saloon?”
+
+“It’s a saloon and a thieves’ den,” growled the man. “Gosh! how my head
+spins.”
+
+“And you think you were drugged?”
+
+“Of course I was. Ordinary liquor wouldn’t knock me out like this.”
+
+“You said something about a Jim Casco.”
+
+“That’s the man--heard the barkeeper call him by the name, but he got
+hushed up pretty quick.”
+
+“Where did you meet this Casco?”
+
+[Illustration: THERE WAS AN EXPLOSION AND BOB WAS HURLED BACKWARD.]
+
+The drugged man gave a deep sigh. He was gradually coming to his
+right senses. Bob got some water and bathed his head, after which the
+victim felt better.
+
+“Let me think. Oh, yes, I met this Casco down by the river. There was
+an Irishman with him----”
+
+“What was his name?”
+
+“This Casco called him Mike. But, say, who are you?”
+
+“I know those rascals, and I am willing to be your friend,” returned
+Bob.
+
+“Good for you. And your handle?”
+
+“Bob Alden.”
+
+“Mine is Walter Anderson. I came to Stampton from Buffalo a month ago,
+and I’ve been making pretty much of a fool of myself ever since. But I
+wish I had my money back.”
+
+“How much did you have with you?”
+
+“About thirty dollars.”
+
+“And it’s gone?”
+
+“Every cent of it, hang the luck!”
+
+Bob thought for a moment.
+
+“Would you mind showing me the way to Cabot’s place?”
+
+“Certainly not. Come on. I’m feeling better than I did a while ago.”
+
+Walter Anderson led the way down the street, and into a dirty square
+fronting the river.
+
+“See that fancy light over on the corner?”
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“That’s it. Cabot calls it the Rivermen’s Rest. It is nothing but a
+thieves’ den.”
+
+“Now listen to me,” said Bob, earnestly. “If I go in, will you stay
+here till I come out?”
+
+“Yes, but----”
+
+“I will see if this Casco and Mike are inside. If they are, I will let
+you know, and you can summon assistance, and we can have them arrested.”
+
+“Good enough.”
+
+Anderson took a seat on a stepping stone near the curb. Pulling his
+hat far down over his eyes, and turning up his collar in true “tough”
+style, Bob made his way toward the Rivermen’s Rest.
+
+Nothing could be seen from the outside but the lights, as the screens
+were tightly drawn over windows and doors.
+
+Bob hesitated only a moment, then he opened one of the doors and
+entered.
+
+A cloud of thick and rank tobacco smoke greeted him, mingled with the
+smell of stale liquors.
+
+“Phew! enough to make a decent man sick!” was the youth’s mental
+comment. “How anybody can love to come to such a place is past my
+comprehension.”
+
+The place was a long and narrow one. In the rear was a sort of
+restaurant, and, seeing a vacant table, Bob walked over to it, and
+dropped into a seat.
+
+“A sandwich and a cup of coffee,” he said to the dirty waiter who came
+to take his order.
+
+While the waiter was filling the order Bob gazed around him, and his
+keen eyes took in every detail of the place.
+
+Not far behind him was a door leading to a side room. This door stood
+partly ajar, and by pushing his chair back a little distance from the
+table, Bob was enabled to see into this apartment.
+
+At a table in the middle of the small room were seated an old man and
+a middle-aged woman. The old man, it was plain to see, was little
+better than a sot. His clothes were worn out and dirty, and his general
+appearance showed that he had long since lost all pride.
+
+The woman was quite lady-like in appearance and well dressed. She
+seemed to be expostulating with the old man.
+
+“Why don’t you leave them, father, and turn over a new leaf?” Bob heard
+her say.
+
+“That’s all right enough to say,” growled the old man, in return. “I
+can’t leave ’em.”
+
+“Yes, you can.”
+
+“If I did, how would I get along?”
+
+“I will help you.”
+
+“Bosh! Your help wouldn’t amount to enough. It costs money to live.”
+
+“It costs money to drink,” she cried. “Otherwise----”
+
+Bob did not catch any more of the conversation. Presently, just as the
+waiter came with the youth’s order, the lady arose and left by a side
+door.
+
+“She looked out of place here,” thought Bob. “If that is her father, I
+pity her.”
+
+In vain Bob scanned the faces of those already in the place, and those
+who came in. Nothing was to be seen of Casco and Grogan.
+
+“They must have left before I got here,” thought Bob. “I wonder if I
+can find out where they went.”
+
+He ate his sandwich slowly, but even when he had finished he was still
+in doubt as to how to proceed.
+
+But just as he was about to arise, some one came through a hall-way in
+the back, and entered the little side room.
+
+“Well, Blake, did you think I wouldn’t get back?” asked the newcomer of
+the old man.
+
+“You’ve been a long time,” mumbled the old man.
+
+“I couldn’t help it. Where is the girl?”
+
+“Gone.”
+
+“Good! I don’t want to run against her any more.”
+
+“Sarah ain’t like she used to be,” was the reply.
+
+Bob listened with great interest to this talk. The old man’s name was
+Blake, and the woman was spoken of as Sarah. Could she be the Sarah
+Blake Barker had mentioned?
+
+“If she is, I must meet her and talk to her by all means,” said Bob to
+himself. “She must know something about the past.”
+
+Bob wondered who the newcomer was, but he was not kept in doubt long.
+The voice sounded slightly familiar from the start, and presently the
+speaker spoke up louder, and the youth made the astonishing discovery
+that the man was James Casco in disguise.
+
+The scar-faced man wore a heavy beard and mustache, and was dressed in
+the garb of a waterman.
+
+“I have located him at last,” thought Bob. “Now to see that he does not
+escape me.”
+
+Casco and the old man entered into a low conversation, of which Bob
+heard but little, although he tried his best to make out what was being
+said.
+
+Presently the two arose, and slipped out of a door into the back hall.
+
+“They are going up-stairs,” was Bob’s conclusion. “I wonder if I dare
+follow them?”
+
+Arising, he walked to the desk, and settled for what he had had. Then
+he pretended to be interested in a number of pictures hanging on the
+walls.
+
+Gradually he drifted back toward the side room, and, watching his
+chance to see that he was not observed, he slipped into the apartment,
+and swiftly but silently made his way to the hall.
+
+Here only a smoky lamp, hanging from the ceiling, lit up the place,
+leaving all in semi-darkness.
+
+No one appeared to be in the hall, and, listening intently so as not to
+be caught napping, Bob ascended the stairs.
+
+“I suppose if they found me here, and knew what I was after, it would
+go hard with me,” he thought. “Well, I am in this game to win, and I’ll
+prove to them yet that I am not a nobody.”
+
+Arriving at the upper hall, Bob paused and peered around. All was dark
+save for a thin ray of light that shone from under the door to one of
+the middle rooms.
+
+Approaching this door Bob listened for several minutes. At first he
+could hear nothing, but gradually there came to his ears the voices of
+four men in earnest conversation.
+
+The four men appeared to be in a room beyond the one opening upon the
+hall. Should Bob enter the first room?
+
+“I’ll go the length of the string,” he said, bravely. “It is the only
+way to capture them. I wonder if that Walter Anderson is still on
+guard?”
+
+He tried the door, and, finding it unlocked, pushed it open.
+
+The room appeared to be a sort of lodge-room, with half a dozen benches
+scattered around, and a desk and chair at one end.
+
+A lamp stood on the desk, which was piled high with papers.
+
+Opposite the desk was the door leading to the room in which were the
+four men. This door stood on a crack, and tiptoeing his way forward,
+Bob peered in and beheld Casco and Blake on one side of a table with
+Barker and Mike Grogan on the other.
+
+“All of them,” he muttered to himself. “What a haul it would make if
+the police were only here at this moment.”
+
+He was about to leave and summon help, when he heard Barker mention his
+name.
+
+“Yes, I had a hard time of it getting away,” went on the man. “I tell
+you that boy is smart.”
+
+“He comes from a smart family,” put in old Blake. “His father----”
+
+“Hush!” cried Barker, hastily. “None of that here.”
+
+“Well, just as you say, Bill,” returned the old man. “But I reckon you
+will have a job with Sarah----”
+
+Barker put up his hand, and the old man broke off at once.
+
+“Well, how about that money?” demanded Grogan. “Sure, an’ we have
+waited long enough fer it, so we have.”
+
+“And we’ll have to wait a while longer.”
+
+“Phat fer?”
+
+“The Jew has got into trouble.”
+
+“How?”
+
+“Over some stolen goods a jeweller’s clerk sold him. We have got to
+take the stuff to somebody else.”
+
+“Sure, an’ ’tis a shame,” growled Grogan. “We’ve had more throuble
+about that swag than enny Oi ever seen befure.”
+
+“That’s true,” said Casco. “But the whole thing will be settled by next
+week, and then we’ll be off for the big haul.”
+
+“And I’m to be in that?” put in old Blake, eagerly.
+
+“You are,” said Barker.
+
+Suddenly Casco jumped to his feet.
+
+“I forgot to ask Cabot about something,” he cried. “Just wait till I
+come back.”
+
+He made for the door. Bob tried to retreat, but he was too late. Out in
+the hall Casco overtook him, and caught him by the shoulder.
+
+“Who are you?” he demanded.
+
+“Let me go!” cried Bob.
+
+He tried to break away, but the scar-faced man held him fast.
+
+“Hullo, it’s that Bob Alden! How did you get in here?”
+
+“Walked in. Let me go!”
+
+“Oh, I’ll let you go!” returned Casco, sarcastically. “Hi, there, boys,
+here’s a spy!”
+
+“Sure, an’ who is it?”
+
+Barker ran out, and aided Casco in dragging Bob into the lodge-room.
+
+Then before they released him the door was closed and locked.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XII
+
+BOB’S QUEER EXPERIENCE
+
+
+“Now, I imagine we have you safe,” said Casco, after the door was
+locked. “Sit down on that bench.”
+
+“Well, if you insist, I will,” returned the youth, trying to make the
+best of the situation.
+
+He was terribly chagrined at the turn affairs had taken, but he
+resolved to brave it out as best he could.
+
+“Now tell us how you came to follow us here,” said Barker.
+
+“I discovered Casco was stopping here.”
+
+“How did you discover that?”
+
+“He robbed a friend of mine.”
+
+“Humph! he must mean the jay who was drugged,” muttered Casco. “I
+didn’t know he was a friend of yours.”
+
+While Casco was talking, Barker opened a closet and brought forth a
+rope.
+
+With this Bob was bound hands and feet.
+
+“Now, if you make the least outcry, we will gag you,” he said.
+
+“What do you intend to do with me this time?” questioned the youth.
+
+“One thing is certain, you won’t escape us,” returned Barker, with an
+evil smile.
+
+“Betther see if he has any money wid him,” suggested Grogan.
+
+Bob was at once searched, and the three dollars in his pocket taken
+from him.
+
+“Every little counts,” said the Irishman. “Blake, suppose ye go down
+an’ git a bottle fer all hands.”
+
+Old Blake at once left the lodge-room.
+
+In less than two minutes he returned all out of breath.
+
+“Get the boy out of sight,” he cried.
+
+“What’s up?” asked the others, in concert.
+
+“Cabot says the police are watching the place. He just saw an officer
+walk past with that fellow who was drugged.”
+
+“The old Nick you say!” muttered Casco. “I thought he had been fixed
+for all night. Catch hold, Barker.”
+
+“Where to?”
+
+“The garret, quick!”
+
+Barker caught hold of Bob on one side, and Casco on the other, and
+between them they carried the youth up two flights of narrow stairs,
+and into a sloping room under the roof.
+
+Grogan followed with a lamp which was placed on the floor.
+
+“Let me see!” said Casco, looking around. “Ah! here is a cross-beam!
+Let us lash him to that!”
+
+This was quickly done in such a manner that Bob could move but little.
+
+“We must make it impossible for him to escape,” said Barker.
+
+In spite of his stout heart, Bob was compelled to shiver at being tied
+up.
+
+“We had better gag him,” went on Barker.
+
+“Of course. Here is a bit of rag will do for that purpose.”
+
+A strip of an old dress was brought forth, and after tying a large
+knot in the middle the strip was placed over Bob’s mouth with the knot
+inside and made fast.
+
+“That settles him for the present,” said the scar-faced man. “Now we
+had better put out the light.”
+
+“Yis, douse the glim be all manes,” said Grogan. “Thin Oi’ll look out
+the front winder, an’ see if thim men is still hangin’ around.”
+
+The light was extinguished, and the Irishman opened the small window
+in the front end of the garret. The fresh air that came in was very
+welcome to Bob, who could hardly breathe.
+
+“Oi can’t see anybody,” said Grogan, after a long look down into the
+street. “Perhaps Cabot was mistaken.”
+
+“I’ll go down and see,” replied Barker. “If anybody comes up here and
+tries to nose around bluff him off.”
+
+“We will,” said Casco. “But keep watch, and give us plenty of warning.”
+
+This was agreed to, and Barker left the garret immediately.
+
+The others grew silent, Casco standing by the stairs with ears on the
+alert.
+
+Five minutes passed. They dragged slowly to Bob, who was wondering what
+would happen next, and if he would ever get out of his predicament with
+a whole skin.
+
+Suddenly two pistol-shots rang out. They were followed by a whistle
+outside, and then another on the second floor below. The raid by the
+police had begun.
+
+As it was dark in the garret, Bob could not make out the movements of
+his captors.
+
+He heard Casco say something to Grogan, and then the two went off,
+leaving old Blake in sole charge. The latter remained near the stairs,
+listening intently for the first sign of any one trying to come up.
+
+Presently there was another cry, and then Blake hurried to Bob’s side.
+
+“Listen to me,” he said. “Don’t you dare to make a move or a sound till
+I come back. If you do, I’ll fix you.”
+
+Then Bob heard him descend the stairs, and heard the opening and
+closing of the door.
+
+Bob at once set to work freeing himself. He did not care for the threat
+which had been made. Probably Blake had become frightened, and would
+not return at all.
+
+Close to where Bob was bound was a large blue chest, with iron-bound
+corners. When he had been brought to the spot the youth had noticed
+that one of the iron corners was broken, leaving a sharp edge sticking
+from the top.
+
+Bob could just reach the chest with his feet, and, by rubbing the rope
+around his ankles over the rough edge of the iron, he managed after
+considerable trouble to wear the rope in two, thus freeing his feet.
+
+But his hands were still tied behind him and to a small bit of joist
+between two upright beams.
+
+Planting his feet firmly on the floor Bob tugged at the joist with all
+his strength, and was at last overjoyed to find he had loosened one end.
+
+To loosen the other was a comparatively easy job, and then Bob stood a
+free boy, but with his hands still fastened to the bit of wood. Bending
+over the chest, he again began his rubbing process, and soon the wood
+fell to the floor, and Bob’s hands were once again ready for use.
+
+He lost no time in tearing the dirty gag from his mouth. While he was
+doing this, he heard the door at the foot of the stairs unlocked, and
+Grogan came up.
+
+Bob knew the Irishman’s tread too well to be mistaken. He turned to
+flee, then, not knowing where to go, he stopped short and faced his
+enemy.
+
+Grogan carried a lantern on one arm. He cast the rays over to where Bob
+had been tied, and uttered an exclamation of dismay.
+
+Then he caught sight of Bob. At the same time the youth snatched up the
+piece of joist.
+
+“Make a sound, Grogan, and I will strike!” cried Bob, determinedly.
+
+“How did you git loose?” demanded the Irishman.
+
+“That is my affair. Stand where you are.”
+
+Instead of complying, Grogan made a dash forward. As he did so, Bob
+struck out at him.
+
+The joist struck the lantern, shivering it to pieces and leaving the
+pair in darkness.
+
+Bob struck out again, and this time Grogan was knocked over.
+
+Finding his enemy did not offer to move, Bob spoke to him. Grogan made
+no reply. Growing alarmed, Bob struck a match and lit the wick of the
+lantern which lay close at hand.
+
+“Knocked out that trip,” muttered Bob to himself. “Well, it serves him
+right. I reckon I had better go below.”
+
+He was about to carry out this idea, when he heard the door at the foot
+of the stairs open.
+
+“Hurry up, Barker,” he heard, in the voice of Casco, and then the steps
+came closer.
+
+What was to be done? It would be fool-hardy to face the two men, both
+of whom he felt sure were armed. He must escape by some other means.
+
+The window in the front end of the garret was still open, and toward
+this Bob rushed and looked out. The sidewalk was fully forty feet
+below, and there was no way to reach it save by a jump, and this would
+have meant instant death.
+
+Bob looked up. Overhead, the roof of the building was but a few feet
+away. He sprang upon the window-sill, and without hesitation pulled
+himself out and upon the sloping roof beyond.
+
+It was a dangerous situation, but Bob’s nerves were up to a high
+tension, and he did not falter.
+
+The electric lights on the street beyond threw considerable light on
+the roof, and by this means the youth was enabled to crawl down to the
+gutter. Then he walked along to the rear, and finding here a projection
+one story lower, dropped upon it.
+
+All had become quiet in the saloon and restaurant below, and Bob
+wondered what the police had done, and if they had really gone.
+
+The youth looked around for some means of reaching the ground. There
+was the water spout, but that seemed too frail to bear his weight.
+
+Leaning over the edge of the roof, he saw not far below a pulley-line
+used for drying clothes. The other end of the line was fastened to a
+house on the opposite side of the yard, and, by pulling upon the line,
+Bob found it moved through the pulley easily.
+
+Taking his pocket-knife the youth quickly severed one of the lines and
+hauled in on the other. The consequence was that he soon found himself
+in possession of about a hundred feet of good strong wash-line.
+
+Twisting the line double, Bob fastened one end to a chimney, and,
+grasping the other, he started to lower himself down over the edge of
+the roof.
+
+Bob came down the last ten feet with a great rush, thereby tearing some
+of the skin from his hands.
+
+But he shut his teeth hard, and though the pain was great, he made no
+sound.
+
+Darting across the yard, he entered the back door of the house on the
+next street. The door led to a dark and narrow hall-way. Once inside,
+Bob closed the door, and finding a bolt on it, quickly slipped the
+fastening into place.
+
+By feeling around the youth found that there was no way out of the
+hall-way, except by going up the stairs or down into the cellar.
+He followed the former course, and soon found himself on an upper
+landing, where a broad staircase led to a large and well-lighted front
+hall.
+
+He lost no time in descending the stair, doing so almost silently, as
+the steps were heavily carpeted.
+
+But below the hall-way was of polished wood, and his footsteps rang out
+clearly as he passed to the door.
+
+This was locked and bolted, and the youth had considerable difficulty
+in opening it.
+
+“Hullo, young man, what are you doing here?” suddenly demanded a sharp
+voice, and a side door opened from a store, and a heavy-set man rushed
+out.
+
+“I was trying to escape from the house on the next street,” explained
+Bob. “Some men weren’t treating me right.”
+
+“That’s fine enough to say, but I don’t believe you. Just you wait
+until I call an officer.”
+
+Bob was so taken aback that for the moment he did not know what to say.
+
+“An officer!” he gasped.
+
+“That’s what I said. We have suffered from your kind several times, and
+now I intend to put a stop to it.”
+
+The man spoke very decidedly, and, as he faced Bob, he looked fiercely
+at the youth.
+
+“I am not a thief. You can search me, if you wish.”
+
+“Perhaps you didn’t have the chance to get anything,” sneered the
+heavy-set man. “But you are in the hall of my house, and that’s enough.”
+
+The man saw to it that the front door was locked, and placed the key in
+his pocket.
+
+Then he walked to the side door.
+
+“Jimmy,” he called loudly.
+
+“What’s up, pop?” came in a boyish voice.
+
+“Go and get a policeman. I’ve caught one of those confounded
+sneak-thieves at last.”
+
+“Is that so, pop! Good for you!”
+
+A freckle-faced boy with red hair came out into the hall, and looked
+wonderingly at Bob.
+
+“So you’re a sneak-thief, hey?” he said.
+
+“No, I am not,” replied Bob.
+
+“Don’t stand there all night, Jimmy; but do as I told you,” cried the
+parent.
+
+Jimmy at once disappeared. The heavy-set man stood close to Bob,
+wearing upon his face a look of great importance.
+
+“You are making a great mistake, sir,” said Bob. “I just came from
+Cabot’s place, and all I did was to attempt to pass through your
+hall-way.”
+
+“And pick up anything you could find on the way, I suppose,” was the
+cold reply.
+
+“No, sir.”
+
+“Well, I won’t waste words with you. The police will give your case
+all the attention it deserves.”
+
+Bob heaved a sigh. If arrested, how could he prove his innocence? The
+fact that he had been in Cabot’s at the time of the raid would not
+stand to his credit. Perhaps his story of being a prisoner would not be
+believed, especially if Casco, Barker, and the others escaped.
+
+Bob meditated a dash for liberty, but before he could put it into
+execution the boy came back with a policeman.
+
+“Caught one of ’em, have you, Mr. Olney?” said the officer, as he took
+Bob in charge.
+
+“I have.”
+
+In vain Bob tried to explain matters. The policeman would not listen,
+and the youth was hurried off to the station-house and thrust into a
+cell, to await a hearing in the morning.
+
+He wondered what had been done at Cabot’s place, and if any of his
+enemies had been captured.
+
+“If not, this will give them a good chance to clear out,” he said to
+himself, bitterly.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIII
+
+BOB MAKES A TRUE FRIEND
+
+
+The cell in which Bob was confined was provided with a rough
+sleeping-bench, but though the youth lay down he did not slumber, but
+lay awake thinking over his troubles.
+
+At last morning came, and at nine o’clock Bob was brought out into the
+little court-room attached to the station. Here sat a stern-faced judge
+who eyed him sharply, as the charge against him was made.
+
+“What have you to say to this?” Bob was asked.
+
+Bob, of course, put in a plea of not guilty. Then he was asked a number
+of questions, and he related his whole story.
+
+“You look as if you were telling the truth, but the facts in the case
+don’t bear you out,” said the judge. “You had no right under any
+circumstances to enter Mr. Olney’s house.”
+
+At that moment a man brushed forward. It was Mr. Starleigh.
+
+“May it please your honor, may I ask why this young man was brought
+here?” he asked.
+
+The judge happened to know the old photographer, and he related the
+case.
+
+“He is not guilty, you may be sure of that,” said Mr. Starleigh. “I am
+positive he is perfectly honest.”
+
+“You know him, then?”
+
+“He works for me. He is the person who helped to capture Bidwell, the
+thief.”
+
+“Oh, then, that is a different matter. But still----”
+
+While the judge was talking, Mr. Starleigh turned to Olney.
+
+“John, you are making a sad mistake. This young man is not a
+sneak-thief.”
+
+“It looks mighty suspicious,” returned Olney. He was a dealer in
+photographic supplies, and Starleigh was a good customer.
+
+“I feel certain you are mistaken.”
+
+“Did you say he works for you?”
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“Then I’ll withdraw the charge,” Olney said, not wishing to displease a
+valued customer. He turned to the judge. “Your honor, will you allow me
+to withdraw the charge?”
+
+“Well, under the circumstances, you may,” returned the judge. “The
+young man having such a person as Mr. Starleigh to vouch for his
+honesty, makes a difference. Robert Alden, you may go.”
+
+Bob lost no time in stepping down. Olney stopped to talk to Mr.
+Starleigh for several minutes. When he was gone, the youth grasped the
+old photographer by the hand.
+
+“Oh, how can I thank you!” he exclaimed, warmly.
+
+“That’s all right,” returned Mr. Starleigh. “I haven’t forgotten what
+you did for me, Bob.”
+
+“It was fortunate you came here.”
+
+“I was summoned to testify against a fellow who set the building on
+fire,” returned the old photographer. “He had a grudge against one of
+the tenants. But the case has been postponed for a couple of days, so I
+am not needed.”
+
+“What do you want me to do?”
+
+“If you will, I wish you would go over to Martin’s studio. He will give
+us facilities for printing from the plates we saved. This afternoon the
+fire insurance agents are going to adjust my claim and then I will open
+somewhere else just as soon as I can.”
+
+“Before I leave I would like to know what the police did at Cabot’s,”
+said Bob.
+
+“We will ask Captain Downes. I know him quite well.”
+
+The official mentioned was found close at hand. He said two rivermen
+had gotten into a dispute in the saloon, and both had discharged their
+pistols, but without damage. Two policemen had been summoned, and the
+rivermen were now in jail.
+
+Bob then told of Casco, Barker, and Grogan.
+
+“I heard about that through the fellow who was drugged,” said Captain
+Downes. “And two detectives are already on the way. But no doubt those
+men have lost no time in getting away, and Cabot will deny they were
+ever there. They are a set of shrewd and slippery criminals.”
+
+“Can you tell me anything about this Blake?”
+
+The captain shook his head.
+
+“Never heard of him.”
+
+“And Sarah Blake?”
+
+“Never heard of her, either. They are probably newcomers to Stampton.”
+
+The conversation continued for several minutes, and then Bob left to
+make his way to Martin’s studio, while Mr. Starleigh hurried off to
+rent new quarters in place of the ones burnt out.
+
+Bob found Martin a very nice man. The youth worked hard, and by evening
+he had printed and mounted an unusually large number of photographs.
+
+“You have the knack of it, I see,” said Martin. “If you are ever out of
+a job, come over and see me.”
+
+“Thank you, perhaps I will,” replied Bob.
+
+He had not forgotten the promise he had made to Grace Maverick, and,
+after supper that evening, he brushed up and again visited the mansion
+on Mountain avenue.
+
+The girl met him at the door, and at once conducted him to the
+library, where sat Mr. Gregory Maverick, the president of the T. W. &
+L. Railroad.
+
+Mr. Maverick was a short, round-faced man, with rather a pleasant cast
+of countenance. He sat in an easy-chair, his slippered feet resting on
+a cushion.
+
+“Papa, this is Mr. Robert Alden,” said Grace, presenting the youth.
+
+Mr. Maverick at once jumped up, and caught Bob by the hand.
+
+“So you are the young man who rescued Grace, are you?” he said. “I am
+very happy to meet you. I have been wanting to thank you for a long
+time for that brave act.”
+
+“Oh, it wasn’t much!” stammered Bob.
+
+“I think it a good deal,” laughed the railroad president. “Sit down.
+Grace tells me you are a stranger to Stampton.”
+
+“Yes, sir. I came here looking for work.”
+
+“And have you succeeded?”
+
+“Yes, sir.”
+
+And Bob started to tell how he had run across Mr. Starleigh through the
+sneak-thief’s effort to get away.
+
+“I’ve heard of that fellow,” said Mr. Maverick. “But go on with your
+story. I am quite interested.”
+
+“And so am I,” added Grace, who had taken a seat at her father’s feet.
+
+Bob did as requested. Both Mr. Maverick and his daughter asked a great
+number of questions, and before the youth was aware he had related his
+entire history, and the clock had long since struck ten.
+
+“Really I must be making you tired,” said the youth, as he glanced at
+the time-piece.
+
+“On the contrary, I have been deeply interested,” said the railroad
+president. “I like to see a young man show pluck and determination.
+That is the only way to succeed in life. So your ambition is to become
+a first-class photographer?”
+
+“Yes, sir. I don’t care so much for studio work, but I would like to
+use the art on the road. I love travelling from place to place.”
+
+Mr. Maverick stroked his chin reflectively. A sudden idea had flashed
+through his mind.
+
+“You like to do work outdoors, eh?”
+
+“Yes, sir.”
+
+“How long will it take you to learn that branch of the work?”
+
+“Oh, I can take that sort of a picture now. Faces are the hardest
+things to photograph.”
+
+“I see.” Mr. Maverick mused for a moment. “Will you do me the favor to
+call here to-morrow evening? I may have a proposition to make to you.”
+
+“I will come, sir.”
+
+Then the conversation became general, and a quarter of an hour later
+Bob left, Grace Maverick seeing him to the door.
+
+Bob could not help but wonder what proposition the railroad president
+would have to make. Of course, it would be in return for the assistance
+he had given Grace.
+
+Perhaps Mr. Maverick would offer him a place on the road. Well, if it
+paid, Bob would accept it, even though it was not in exact line with
+his desires. He would do a good deal to be where he might occasionally
+come in contact with Grace.
+
+On the following morning Mr. Starleigh announced that he had purchased
+the title and interest in a photographic establishment close to the one
+which had been burned out. The plates which had been saved, as well as
+the lenses, were at once transferred to the newly-acquired studio, and
+by dinner-time they were once more ready for business.
+
+The assistant who drank had been discharged, and when Mr. Starleigh
+went off to purchase some supplies which would soon be needed, Bob was
+left in sole charge of the studio.
+
+The man who had owned the establishment before Mr. Starleigh had
+purchased it had been a wild sort of a fellow, and had paid but scant
+attention to business. Consequently trade was all run down, and as Mr.
+Starleigh’s former patrons had not yet heard of the change, business
+during the afternoon was exceedingly dull.
+
+But Bob worked hard at printing and mounting photographs, and to him
+the time passed quickly enough.
+
+At length, about five o’clock, there came a series of loud knocks on
+the glass door which led to the hall.
+
+“Come in!” called out Bob, and in response there stalked in a very
+tall, lean man, with hollow cheeks and sunken eyes.
+
+The man stared vacantly around the studio, and then dropped into a
+chair.
+
+“You take photos here, I understand?” he said, in a deep bass voice.
+
+“Yes, sir,” returned Bob, politely.
+
+“Photos of all the Presidents, I understand?”
+
+“Hardly,” laughed Bob. He thought the man was joking. “Sometimes we
+take a bank president, or something like that.”
+
+“Never took a President of the United States?” demanded the man,
+sharply.
+
+“I think not, sir.”
+
+“I understood differently, understand, I understood differently,” cried
+the man, raising his voice and jumping to his feet. “I am not to be
+imposed upon, either,” he added.
+
+“I am not imposing on you,” returned Bob, gently. He realized at once
+that the man was not right in his mind. “We would willingly take a
+President, if he would grant us a sitting.”
+
+“Ah! so I thought. That’s the reason I came here. Do you know who I am?”
+
+“I do not, sir.”
+
+“I am the President of the Sandwich Islands--appointed by act of
+Congress last month. Take off your hat.”
+
+As Bob had no hat on, he could not comply with this demand. His failure
+to do as bidden seemed to anger the man, who was nothing more or less
+than crazy.
+
+“Did you hear me, sir?”
+
+“I did; but I haven’t any hat on.”
+
+“Ah! that’s different. I am short-sighted--lost my sight in the Mexican
+war--a shell passed in front of me--I dodged--and though I escaped, it
+carried the best part of my eyesight with it.”
+
+To this Bob made no reply. He was meditating on how best to get rid of
+his unwelcome visitor.
+
+Suddenly the man stole over to where he stood.
+
+“Get the machine ready,” he cried.
+
+“What for?”
+
+“For my picture. I want you to take the largest ever taken, regardless
+of expense.”
+
+“I can’t do that, sir.”
+
+“Why not?”
+
+“I am only a helper here--the proprietor is out. You had better call
+again.”
+
+“Ha! I would, but I haven’t time, understand, I haven’t time. Every
+moment of a President’s life is important. I have three ministers to
+appoint before I go to sleep, and the people harass me to death with
+their applications.”
+
+“Well, I can’t take the picture.”
+
+“Then I will take it myself.”
+
+The man rushed toward the camera, and caught hold of the tube.
+
+“Stop!” cried Bob, in alarm. “You may break something.”
+
+Bob grasped the crazy man by the arm and tried to make him let go his
+hold on the camera.
+
+“You will only break it,” he went on. “Please come in to-morrow.”
+
+“Now or never! I have promised all my friends a picture of my skeleton,
+and I do not intend to disappoint them. Where are the plates? The
+best in the house, mind, regardless of expense. The President has his
+picture taken at the public expense, ha, ha! That’s a joke.”
+
+Seeing he could do nothing with the crazy fellow, Bob moved toward the
+door, intending to summon assistance and have him removed.
+
+But now a knowing look came into the lunatic’s eyes. He left the
+camera, and leaped toward the youth.
+
+“No, I’m not going back, and you can’t make me. They all say I’m crazy,
+but they are jealous, that’s all. But when the picture is taken it will
+be all right. Stay here till I press the button, and don’t dare to
+move, or I will have you banished to utter darkness forever.”
+
+And, catching up a folded tripod, the crazy man stood guard, so that
+Bob might not escape from the studio.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIV
+
+BOB MAKES A NEW MOVE
+
+
+Bob was alarmed when the crazy man strode forward, tripod in hand, as
+if to brain him should he attempt to leave the studio.
+
+He had not had much to do with people of unsound mind, but he was well
+aware that his present position was both a delicate and a dangerous one.
+
+If the lunatic attacked him, he would have a hard struggle to keep
+himself from harm, for, despite his hollow eyes and shrunken form, the
+man looked strong.
+
+“I’m not going to leave,” said Bob. “Put down the tripod, and sit in
+the chair if you want the picture of your skeleton taken.”
+
+He left the vicinity of the door, and seeing this the crazy man at once
+dropped the folded tripod and sank into a chair.
+
+“Will you take the picture?” he demanded.
+
+“I will if you will promise to go away right afterward,” returned the
+youth.
+
+“That goes. Take me this way, and be quick. I must catch the next ocean
+steamer for the Sandwich Islands.”
+
+The man sprawled out on the chair, put one hand to his chin and the
+other to his breast and put on a sober, earnest look.
+
+Bob at once placed a prepared tin plate in the camera, put on the
+proper lens, and in a few minutes had a tintype of the crazy man.
+
+“There you are,” he said, as he trimmed it up. “Now you will have to
+hurry to catch that steamer.”
+
+The lunatic glared at the picture for a second. Then he burst out into
+a wild fit of laughter.
+
+“Is that me? Really, where is the skeleton? Oh, this is a fraud! Take a
+thousand more, and be sure and add the skeleton, if you want your pay.”
+
+Bob’s heart sank within him. He had made a great effort to get rid of
+the lunatic, and failed. What was to be done now?
+
+He decided to use strong measures. Picking up the folded tripod, he
+advanced toward the lunatic.
+
+“Get out of here at once,” he said, sternly. “I am too busy to be
+fooled with. Go!”
+
+The crazy man’s face fell, and with a slow step he moved toward the
+door.
+
+“Excuse me,” he said, softly. “I didn’t know you were busy. I’ll come
+in some time to-morrow.”
+
+He made a profound bow, and started as if to go.
+
+“Thank fortune I am rid of him!” thought Bob.
+
+But the youth was mistaken. Reaching the door, the lunatic suddenly
+turned, and, before Bob was aware, sprang straight for the youth’s
+throat.
+
+The attack was so unexpected that Bob was borne over backward, the
+crazy man landing on his breast.
+
+“Let up!” gasped Bob, desperately.
+
+The crazy man did not reply, but tightened his grip on Bob’s throat, so
+that he was nearly choked to death.
+
+In vain Bob struggled. He could not loosen that nervous hold the
+lunatic had taken, and now his head began to swim, and strange lights
+began to flicker before his eyes.
+
+He tried to kick, but could not reach his opponent. Half a minute more
+passed, and poor Bob was on the point of giving himself up as lost.
+
+Then the door of the studio opened, and Mr. Starleigh hurried in,
+followed by Mr. Martin.
+
+“Hullo! what’s this?” cried the old photographer, surveying the strange
+scene in astonishment.
+
+“It’s Crazy Sam Bartlett,” ejaculated Mr. Martin.
+
+“He is choking the boy to death,” went on Mr. Starleigh. “Here, let him
+be!”
+
+He caught the lunatic by the shoulder, and hauled him backward.
+
+The man set up a howl, and ceased tormenting Bob. He gave one look at
+Mr. Martin and his face fell.
+
+“Sam, what does this mean?” demanded the photographer.
+
+“Haven’t time to explain,” returned Bartlett, hurriedly.
+
+“When did they let you out?”
+
+“I ran away--they think I am crazy--but I’m the President of the
+Sandwich Islands. Here we go!”
+
+Bartlett made a dash for the door. Mr. Martin tried to stop him, but he
+was too late.
+
+A second later they heard a crash. Bartlett had leaped down the entire
+flight of stairs. All three went after him, and found him lying at the
+bottom, his left leg broken.
+
+The police were at once summoned, and a close coach was procured, in
+which he was taken to the lunatic asylum from which he had escaped.
+
+Then Mr. Starleigh had Bob tell his story. Both the old photographer
+and Mr. Martin listened with great interest.
+
+“And I never want another such experience as long as I live,” concluded
+Bob.
+
+“I shouldn’t think you would,” said Mr. Starleigh. “Cranks are bad
+enough, but a real crazy man is ten times worse. It is lucky we came
+in when we did.”
+
+Bob went to work again, but his nerves were all unstrung, and before
+long the old photographer told him he might as well stop for the day,
+as there was no need for further hurry.
+
+When Bob reached his boarding-house, he found a long letter from Frank
+Landes awaiting him. In the epistle Frank said he intended to take a
+trip to Stampton before long, and then go on a business tour along the
+T. W. & L. Railroad.
+
+“I would like to go with him,” thought Bob. “Maybe I’ll see Frank, if
+Mr. Maverick offers me a place on the road.”
+
+That evening found Bob again at the railroad president’s mansion,
+according to agreement. Grace was present, and a long talk occurred.
+
+“I want to do something for you, Bob,” said Mr. Maverick. “I think I
+owe it to you, after what you did for Grace. But I will not offer you
+money for that service, for such acts are not to be paid for in cash.”
+
+Mr. Maverick paused. Bob bowed, but did not reply. He was wondering
+what was coming.
+
+“You said you loved the art of photography, and would like nothing
+better than a chance to travel about taking pictures. To help you along
+in this direction, I have purchased for you a complete travelling
+outfit, including a horse and a wagon----”
+
+“Mr. Maverick!” burst out the youth. “Do you really mean that?”
+
+“Yes, Bob,” smiled the railroad president. “Come with me!”
+
+Grace jumped up, and led the way out of the house and down to the barn.
+
+There stood a fine horse and a regular photographer’s turn-out. The
+lantern was lit inside of the wagon, and Bob saw it contained several
+cameras, some lenses, a great number of plates, besides a cabinet of
+chemicals and other things needed for taking pictures.
+
+“This is Grace’s gift to you,” said Mr. Maverick. “How does it strike
+you?”
+
+“It--it strikes me all of a heap,” gasped Bob. “Do you really mean to
+say this whole outfit is for me?”
+
+“Certainly,” said Grace. “And I hope you will make money out of it.”
+
+“But--but it’s too much!” went on the youth, who could as yet hardly
+realize his good fortune.
+
+“No, it isn’t,” returned the girl, warmly. “You deserve every bit of
+it.”
+
+“There is a money drawer under the seat,” went on Mr. Maverick. “In it
+you will find some cash, which you will need.”
+
+Bob shook his head. There was too much of a lump in his throat to say
+anything. Good fortune seemed to have come all in a heap.
+
+“Does it suit you?” asked Grace, watching him curiously.
+
+“It more than suits,” burst out Bob. “Why I--I can’t thank you enough.
+You have made me the happiest chap in Stampton.”
+
+“I have not finished yet,” said Mr. Maverick. “Now you have the outfit,
+I believe you are almost capable of doing the work I wish done.”
+
+“I will do whatever I can for you,” returned Bob, quickly. “And I won’t
+charge you a cent.”
+
+“In that case you can’t do anything. But this work is for the railroad.”
+
+“And what is it?”
+
+“We intend before long to get up a new guide book of the route, and
+our superintendent thinks we ought to get out a fine illustrated work
+similar to those put out by some of the larger roads. For that purpose
+we will have to send out a man to take at least thirty or forty of the
+finest views obtainable for photo-engravings. I have spoken to Mr.
+Starleigh--met him just before I returned home--and he thinks with a
+little coaching you could do this work very well.”
+
+“I would do my best,” returned Bob, with sparkling eyes.
+
+“I advise that you remain with Mr. Starleigh for several weeks yet, and
+then we will start you out. You may take your own time in getting over
+the ground, and whenever you need money you can send to the paymaster
+for it. When you have finished, the bill will be promptly paid, and I
+trust by that time you will have other work, sufficient to keep you
+going. Do you accept?”
+
+Bob did, without hesitation.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XV
+
+BOB BECOMES A TRAVELLING PHOTOGRAPHER
+
+
+Bob did not know if he was walking on stone or the air when he left the
+Maverick mansion. To him it seemed as if the vista of good fortune had
+opened to its very widest limit.
+
+“I must be dreaming,” he murmured. “Bet a cent I wake up in the loft of
+old Carrow’s barn and find it all a dream.”
+
+And the youth actually pinched himself to make sure that he was not
+asleep.
+
+It was past eleven o’clock, but though Bob might have taken a horse-car
+to his boarding-house, he preferred to walk, knowing full well that
+even when he came to lie down, he would not be able to sleep for
+speculating over all that had happened.
+
+The night was a gloomy one, and presently, without hardly any warning,
+it began to rain. At first the drops were few and far between, but
+before the youth had gone a block farther the shower turned into a
+deluge, and Bob scampered for shelter.
+
+Not far away was a shed over the front of a butcher shop. Under this
+shed ran Bob, and huddled close to the building to avoid the rain
+which the rising wind drove in.
+
+Bob had been under the shed probably three minutes when a man and a
+woman came out of the hall-way beside the butcher shop, and stood
+watching the rain.
+
+“We will get all wet, Paul, if we try to leave in this storm,” Bob
+heard the woman say.
+
+“It may break away in a few minutes, Sarah,” returned the man. “It is
+only a shower.”
+
+“Showers sometimes last a long time,” was the reply.
+
+The sound of the woman’s voice was somewhat familiar to Bob, and he
+moved forward a bit to get a look at her face. She was the same he had
+seen in Cabot’s establishment, the one he rightly supposed was Sarah
+Blake.
+
+Instantly he was all attention, and, pulling his hat still farther over
+his eyes, he edged close to the open door-way.
+
+“You saw the old man?” went on the man called Paul, after a short pause.
+
+“I did.”
+
+“And you could do nothing with him?”
+
+“No. He loves drink, and will do almost anything to obtain it. The case
+is hopeless.”
+
+“You offered him money, I suppose?”
+
+“I offered him what I could. But it was not enough. He said he would
+take care of himself, and told me to leave him.”
+
+“That crowd evidently have him well in hand.”
+
+“I am afraid so, Paul.”
+
+“Well, the best thing you can do is to let the whole matter drop. You
+have done your duty.”
+
+“I know, but----”
+
+“Remember, he is only your stepfather, and if you insist on following
+him up, you may get into trouble.”
+
+“But, Paul, I feel that he has not done right. He was mixed up in some
+crooked work, and I am afraid every day that I will hear of his arrest.”
+
+“You take too much on your shoulders, Sarah,” returned the man,
+earnestly. “You had better come back home with me and let the matter
+drop. This travelling around under an assumed name and stopping in such
+a boarding-house as this----”
+
+Bob heard no more. A violent gust of wind shut the door with a bang,
+and all became dark and dreary once more.
+
+Bob hesitated, not knowing what to do. Should he knock on the door and
+ask the woman for an interview?
+
+While he was deliberating, the door opened again, and the man came out.
+He hurried up to the corner, where stood a cab, and got in.
+
+Was he going to leave the woman behind? It certainly looked so.
+
+But an instant later the woman came out and with all speed she ran
+toward the cab.
+
+Bob dashed forward, but before he could stop the woman she had entered
+the cab beside the man, and the driver whipped up the horses.
+
+Away went the cab at a high rate of speed.
+
+Bob tried to catch on behind, to signal the driver to stop, but he
+failed in both. He slipped on the wet stones, and went down on one
+knee, and by the time he arose the cab had disappeared in the darkness.
+
+Bob was much chagrined. He felt almost certain that the woman could
+have told him something concerning the past.
+
+“And that’s not the worst of it,” grumbled Bob to himself. “It’s bad
+enough to let them slip, but they are most likely going out of town,
+and goodness only knows when I’ll see her again.”
+
+He turned back under the shed again, and dashing the water from his
+hat, and wiping off one of his hands, which had become covered with
+dirt, he rang the hall bell.
+
+A moment of utter silence passed, and then a tall, sour-faced woman,
+evidently an old maid, appeared.
+
+“Good-evening,” said Bob, politely. “I called to find out if you could
+tell me where that lady and gentleman who just left had gone to.”
+
+“No, I can’t,” snapped the woman. “What do you want to know for?”
+
+“I wish to see the lady.”
+
+“So did several men. But she’s gone, and I’m glad of it.”
+
+“Will you please tell me her name?”
+
+“I don’t know it. She said it was Brown, but perhaps it isn’t. I didn’t
+like her, and I’m glad the man came and took her away.”
+
+“Do you know where she came from?”
+
+“No. She paid in advance, and I needed the money, so I took her in. But
+she was too sly for me. Is that all you wanted to know?”
+
+“Yes, ma’am.”
+
+Without another word, the woman shut the door in Bob’s face and locked
+it. Bob could not help but smile to himself.
+
+“Something didn’t suit,” he murmured to himself. “Rain or no rain, I’m
+going to try to follow that cab.”
+
+He started off at once in the direction the cab had taken, running as
+fast as the slippery pavement would allow.
+
+But though he traversed several blocks, no vehicle of any kind outside
+of a horse-car appeared in sight, and finally he was forced to abandon
+the chase.
+
+On the following day Bob and Mr. Starleigh had a long talk in regard
+to the youth’s future. The upshot of this talk was that Bob agreed to
+work for nothing for two weeks, providing the old photographer would
+teach him as much of the business as possible in that length of time.
+
+Bob was slightly worried over the question of what to do with his horse
+and wagon during that time, but Mr. Maverick solved it by telling Bob
+to leave the turn-out in charge of the stable-hand until he started
+away from Stampton.
+
+The two weeks passed rapidly, and Bob spent every hour of the time in
+devouring every item of information which might prove useful to him
+while taking pictures on the road.
+
+During that time Grace Maverick came to the studio to have her picture
+taken. Mr. Starleigh allowed Bob to do the work, which proved highly
+satisfactory. When Bob printed and mounted the pictures, he made an
+extra one, but this did not go among the studio samples.
+
+“I’ll keep that for my own,” said Bob to himself.
+
+At length the day came for Bob to quit the studio. Mr. Starleigh shook
+him warmly by the hand.
+
+“I am sorry to lose you, Bob,” he said. “But I am glad you are going to
+start on your own account with such bright prospects. I have taught you
+all in my power, and you ought to be able to get along very well.”
+
+“Thanks, Mr. Starleigh, and I won’t forget what you’ve done for me,”
+returned Bob.
+
+Bob had received full instructions from the railroad superintendent as
+to what sort of pictures were desired. He was to go along the entire
+length of the road, and the original order for thirty pictures had been
+increased to fifty, to include sections of the roadbed, bridges, and
+views of the scenery on the route and in the vicinity.
+
+“And do your best, Bob,” said Grace Maverick.
+
+“You can take my word I will,” replied the youth. “And if you will
+allow me, I will occasionally send you a few private pictures, taken by
+the way.”
+
+“Oh, that will be delightful!”
+
+He shook her hand. The extra squeeze he gave it was returned, and both
+blushed. Then he turned to Mr. Maverick, bade him good-by, and drove
+off.
+
+Bob the Photographer had started on his first travelling tour. Little
+did he dream of the many adventures and perils he was to encounter
+before he returned to Stampton.
+
+The horse that had been presented to him was a good one, and he started
+off at a lively gait. The wagon moved along easily, and Bob, seated up
+in front, whip in hand, felt in the best of spirits.
+
+His first stop was to be at a place called Dartinville, a small town,
+situated on the mountain side. It was a great place for summer
+boarders, all of whom had to come by way of the T. W. & L. Railroad.
+
+The road to Dartinville ran along the side of a narrow but deep creek.
+It was rather a rough road, with the mountains directly back of it.
+
+As Bob drove along, he began to whistle, but presently the whistle died
+on his lips, as he heard the rush of wheels directly behind him.
+
+He looked back, and saw a horse tearing toward him at a breakneck speed.
+
+Behind the horse was a sulky, and clinging to the seat of this was a
+bareheaded man, who seemed to be paralyzed with fright.
+
+Bob’s heart jumped into his throat. What was to be done?
+
+“Steer out!” he yelled to the man, as the horse and turn-out came
+nearer.
+
+“I can’t! Stop the horse!” yelled the occupant of the sulky, in terror.
+
+“I can’t stop him. Steer out or there will be a smash-up,” went on Bob.
+
+The man paid no attention. He had dropped the lines, which were
+trailing on the horse’s heels, and he did not have courage enough to
+risk letting go his hold in an endeavor to pick them up.
+
+Bob saw that something must be done, and at once. He caught up his own
+reins, and at the risk of upsetting his wagon turned in toward the
+mountain slope.
+
+“Steer out, I tell you!” he cried again. “If you run into me, you’ll be
+killed.”
+
+“Stop the horse!” was the man’s only reply.
+
+With a bound, Bob was on the ground. He ran back of his own wagon as
+fast as his legs would carry him.
+
+By this time the runaway was but a few feet away. Seeing Bob in the
+road, the horse sheered in and darted past the youth.
+
+Bob gave a groan. The runaway was now less than five yards from his own
+turn-out, and it looked as if he would dash headlong into it and thus
+smash it into a thousand bits.
+
+“Whoa!” yelled Bob, in one mighty, final effort to attract the mad
+steed’s attention.
+
+The horse heard the command, gave a snort, and shook his head. Then he
+swerved outward, and flew past Bob’s turn-out, just grazing one of the
+rear wheels.
+
+Bob rushed forward, but before he could catch the mad animal the horse
+swerved still more, made a leap, and plunged into the water, dragging
+the sulky, with the man on it, after him.
+
+[Illustration: THE HORSE PLUNGED INTO THE WATER, DRAGGING THE SULKY,
+WITH THE MAN ON IT, AFTER HIM.]
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVI
+
+BOB TAKES A DIVE OVERBOARD
+
+
+Bob was alarmed when he saw the horse go overboard, dragging the sulky
+with the man clinging to it after him.
+
+He saw the horse go down out of sight. The rear end of the sulky
+remained above water, but the man dropped over the front, and he, too,
+disappeared.
+
+Bob waited for a moment in breathless suspense. Then he saw the horse
+come up and begin to struggle wildly.
+
+Where was the man? Second after second passed, and still he failed to
+appear.
+
+“Perhaps he’s caught in the sulky and can’t rise,” thought Bob. “He’ll
+be drowned if he stays under much longer.”
+
+Suddenly the youth saw something which filled him with horror.
+
+It was one foot of the man, which stuck up through the left sulky wheel.
+
+“He’s caught sure,” burst out the youth. “Unless I help him he’ll be
+drowned.”
+
+The horse was still struggling madly, and the water all around was
+churned into foam.
+
+Bob approached the brink of the creek and watched eagerly to see if the
+man would show any sign of life.
+
+Presently he saw the foot give a spasmodic movement, and then on the
+other side of the wheel appeared the man’s head.
+
+“Save me!” were the first words he uttered, as he expelled a lot of
+water from his mouth.
+
+“Can’t you get clear of the wheel?” cried Bob.
+
+“No; my leg is caught in the reins, which are all twisted up.”
+
+Bob listened to no more. He pulled out his clasp-knife and opened
+it. Then watching for a favorable opportunity, he dived to the man’s
+assistance.
+
+Under the surface he went, but quickly came up close to where the man
+was situated.
+
+“It’s my left leg,” cried the man. “Confound the horse, why can’t he
+keep still?”
+
+“Because he wants to be saved, too,” replied Bob, and under he went.
+
+Bob was used to the water. Indeed the only recreation he had had while
+living with old Peter Thompson was to go swimming in the river behind
+the house, and gunning in the woods.
+
+Consequently the youth felt perfectly at home. With eyes wide open,
+he quickly took in the situation, and two slashes of the clasp-knife
+released the tangled-up limb, and the man was free.
+
+Without a word the man made for the bank, and, catching hold of some
+overhanging bushes, pulled himself up.
+
+“Don’t you want to save your horse?” called out Bob, taking care that
+the animal should not kick him.
+
+“I do, but I don’t know how.”
+
+“Get the rope tied under my wagon.”
+
+The man ran off, and in less than fifteen seconds returned with a long
+rope which the young photographer carried for a case of emergency.
+
+“Throw one end down,” went on Bob, and this was promptly done.
+
+Catching the floating end, Bob made a noose in it. Then he swam close
+to the struggling horse and threw the noose over the animal’s head.
+
+“Now pull him down the stream to that shallow place,” cried Bob. “Hurry
+up, or he’ll be a goner.”
+
+Pulling on the rope the man started down the stream. It was hard work,
+and long before he reached the shallow spot Bob was up on the bank
+beside him.
+
+As soon as the horse struck the shallow part of the creek he ceased
+to struggle, and they had but little difficulty in leading him to dry
+ground.
+
+Here, however, he began to tremble, and finally sank down on his side.
+
+“He’s chilled more than anything,” said Bob. “The best we can do will
+be to rub him. I don’t believe he has swallowed much water.”
+
+“He don’t look so. But he was fearfully heated from running away. I
+reckon that rubbing will warm us up, too.”
+
+Bob ran back to his wagon and got a blanket and several other articles.
+When he came back, he found the man had already gone to work, and he
+set to helping.
+
+Once thoroughly rubbed down and blanketed, the horse appeared to be
+better.
+
+“Leave him in the strong sunshine for a while, and he’ll be all right,”
+said Bob. “As soon as he makes a move to stand up make him do so and
+walk him around.”
+
+“I see you are used to handling horses.”
+
+“A little. What was the trouble, did he run away?”
+
+“Yes, got the bit and that settled it. I am glad we saved him.”
+
+“He looks like a valuable animal.”
+
+“I believe he is. He is not mine. He belongs to a friend, who asked me
+to take him out and exercise him.”
+
+“Your friend will be surprised when he learns of what has happened.”
+
+“I suppose so. But who are you, if I may ask?”
+
+Bob told him.
+
+“I am Edgar Willett, of Dartinville. I owe you something, Alden, for
+your generous help.”
+
+“That’s all right.”
+
+“So you are taking pictures for the railroad company?”
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“Intend to stop at Dartinville?”
+
+“Such was the calculation.”
+
+“Then while you remain you must make my home your own. My house is the
+first beyond the blacksmith shop. I have lots of stable room for your
+horse and wagon.”
+
+“Thank you.”
+
+“Oh, no thanks. You saved the horse, and that is worth a good deal to
+me.”
+
+While they were waiting for the horse to recover, Bob entered his
+own turn-out and changed his clothes. He gave Willett a like chance,
+offering him a suit that almost fitted him, and the man gladly made the
+transfer.
+
+A couple of hours later they started for Dartinville. Willett led the
+way to his own house, and Bob tied up in the stable. Mrs. Willett was
+told of what had happened, and she at once prepared a hot dinner for
+the two.
+
+Bob was hungry, and he ate heartily. Then Willett started to return the
+horse and the sulky, and the young photographer went off to take his
+first picture for the railroad company.
+
+There was a bridge at Dartinville which the railroad company had built
+over the creek. It was a picturesque place, and Bob had every reason to
+believe that it would make a fine view.
+
+With his camera in one hand and his tripod and satchel slung over his
+shoulder, Bob made his way to the spot.
+
+In order to get the proper view the young photographer was compelled
+to climb through a mass of thick brush and stubble. This was not very
+agreeable, but Bob bore it philosophically, remembering that all work
+is not play.
+
+At last Bob reached a spot he thought a good one and without delay he
+set up his tripod. He had just adjusted his camera and was putting in a
+plate when a noise close at hand made him pause.
+
+The noise came from the depth of the brush, and for the moment Bob
+could not make out what it was.
+
+“Maybe somebody is following me,” he thought.
+
+A minute later the sound ceased. Bob listened for it quite a while, but
+at last turned again to his work. It was no easy matter to get a good
+picture, as the sun shone almost directly toward him.
+
+“If I am not careful, I’ll have a ghost on the plate,” he said to
+himself, thereby meaning that the sun would cause the picture to be
+white spotted.
+
+To make sure of getting a perfect plate Bob took two pictures, one
+while the sun was out full and the other when that luminary was
+slightly clouded.
+
+The pictures taken, Bob placed them away so that no light might reach
+them, and prepared to leave the spot.
+
+“That makes picture number one,” he thought. “And I sincerely hope that
+it proves a success.”
+
+He resolved to develop both plates as soon as he reached the wagon, and
+if one was not perfect in every way to return and try again.
+
+Bob had just started to close up his camera when the strange noise he
+had heard before reached his ears.
+
+This time it came closer, and the young photographer made up his mind
+it was some animal roaming in the brush.
+
+“Perhaps a stray cow,” he said to himself.
+
+“Here, cush! cush! cush!” he called out.
+
+For reply the crashing through the brush came even closer.
+
+Presently the brush was thrust aside by a pair of horns and the head of
+a large and angry-looking bull appeared.
+
+“Hello, this is interesting,” thought Bob, springing back.
+
+The bull gave a look around and then fixed his glaring eyes on the
+young photographer in a most threatening manner.
+
+“Gee haw!” shouted Bob, trying by this means to make the bull leave.
+
+Instead of turning, the bull gave a fierce snort.
+
+“He means mischief,” thought Bob, looking around for something with
+which to defend himself.
+
+Then the bull lowered his head and with another snort rushed toward
+Bob.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVII
+
+BOB MAKES A STRANGE CAPTURE
+
+
+Bob sprang to one side, catching up the camera as he did so.
+
+The bull charged forward, and had the youth been in the spot where he
+had just stood he would have been gored to death.
+
+The bull had a ring in his nose, and Bob now saw that he was of the
+wildest sort, and evidently used to being chained.
+
+“If I had an axe, I would knock him on the head,” said Bob, as he again
+dodged. “There goes the satchel. I’ll bet he smashed every bottle in
+it.”
+
+For the bull had planted his foot on the travelling bag, and Bob had
+heard the crash of glass.
+
+Again the wild animal made for Bob, his eyes glaring like two balls of
+red fire.
+
+“He has escaped from somebody,” thought Bob. “I wonder what I had best
+do?”
+
+While Bob continued to dodge around among the brush he heard the sounds
+of voices.
+
+“Hullo there, help!” he cried out.
+
+“Is that bull there?” came back almost immediately.
+
+“He is, horns and all,” returned Bob. “And the sooner you capture him
+the better I will like it.”
+
+“Drat the luck!” returned another voice. “Hi, hi!”
+
+Presently two farmers came in sight, opposite to where Bob stood. One
+carried a gad and the other a chain and clasp.
+
+“It’s him, sure enough,” said one of the farmers. “Look out, if you
+don’t want to be killed!” he yelled.
+
+“I am looking out,” said Bob. “By jinks!”
+
+The bull had made another charge, and the young photographer had to
+step lively to get out of reach.
+
+“If he was mine, I’d knock him on the head with an axe,” said Bob.
+“He’s too dangerous to leave running around.”
+
+“He broke away this morning,” replied one of the farmers. “He belongs
+up to the county fair. They had a high old time before he got out of
+the back gate.”
+
+“And you’ll have a high old time before you get him back, I’m
+thinking,” laughed Bob, who was now beginning to relish the scene.
+
+“I guess you’re right. What’s that thing?”
+
+“My satchel. He just smashed it.”
+
+“Humph! It’s good luck he didn’t smash you instead of the bag.”
+
+“That’s so, too. How do you propose to catch him?”
+
+“Bless me if I know.”
+
+“I want ter git the chain on to him if I kin,” put in the other farmer.
+
+“That’s easier said than done. Hold up, give me that chain.”
+
+Bob snatched the chain from the man’s hand.
+
+The bull was at that moment standing under a tree, the lower branches
+of which were just over his back.
+
+Bob ran up behind the animal and in a twinkle was up the tree.
+
+Then he crawled out on the branches until he was near the bull’s head.
+
+At that instant the bull looked up. Quick as a flash Bob bent down and
+hooked the chain in to the ring in the animal’s nose.
+
+The bull gave a loud snort and tried to lower his head.
+
+But before he could do so Bob had the chain wound around the branch
+several times, and he held fast with all his might.
+
+The bull pulled hard, but though the branch bent pretty low, it did not
+break.
+
+“Well, I swan!” cried one of the farmers. “If that ain’t the cutest
+trick I ever see.”
+
+“Don’t yer tumble on to him, or he’ll gore yer ter jelly!” yelled the
+other farmer.
+
+Bob fastened the end of the chain so that it could not slip, and then
+slid down on the opposite side of the tree.
+
+By this time pulling on the chain had begun to hurt the bull’s nose,
+and he quieted down, although his eyes rolled as fiercely as ever.
+
+“He’s safe there for the present,” said Bob. “The best thing you can do
+is to get another chain and hobble him.”
+
+“We’ll get his regular keeper,” returned one of the farmers. “By gosh,
+but ain’t he a regular picter with his nose stuck up in the air!”
+
+This remark gave Bob a sudden idea. He ran back for his camera, and
+setting it up, hastily took a picture of the captured beast.
+
+“I’ll send it to Frank,” he said to himself. “It will remind him of the
+time we tried to photograph that elephant.”
+
+While Bob was taking the picture and looking over the wreck of his
+satchel, one of the farmers made off to notify the keeper of the prize
+bull of what had occurred. He returned in a short while, having met the
+keeper on the road.
+
+A number of ropes and chains were procured, and before long the bull
+was under complete control. The keeper spoke kindly to him, and
+gradually the fierce light in the bull’s eyes died out utterly, and he
+became as gentle as an ordinary animal.
+
+“A woman teased him with a red parasol,” explained the man to Bob.
+“Otherwise he would never have acted in this fashion. I will be able
+to lead him back without further trouble, mark my word.”
+
+And when he started, the bull went along just as if nothing out of the
+ordinary had happened.
+
+As there were no more pictures to be taken that day, Bob followed the
+keeper and the two farmers to the county fair, which was being held
+on the outskirts of Dartinville. He was allowed in without buying a
+ticket, and when he met the owner of the bull, that individual promptly
+offered to pay for all damages done.
+
+“Well, the chemicals in the bag were worth about six dollars,” said Bob.
+
+“And the satchel?”
+
+“I don’t know. It was a gift.”
+
+“Will a ten-dollar bill cover it?”
+
+“I think so.”
+
+“Then here is a twenty--ten for your loss and ten for your ingenuity in
+helping us capture the bull.”
+
+Bob pocketed the cash with thanks. The adventure had been rather a
+perilous one, but on the whole he had enjoyed it.
+
+Buying himself a pocketful of peanuts, Bob strolled around the
+grounds. He was not much interested in the display of prize fruit and
+vegetables, having seen too much of this stuff while working on the
+farm.
+
+But the side-shows attracted his attention. They had big paintings hung
+outside, and Bob had seen very little of anything like it before.
+
+“Walk up, ladies and gentlemen, and see the most marvellous exhibition
+on the face of the globe!” cried out one of the side-show spouters.
+“The bearded lady from Georgia, the four-legged man from California,
+and the celebrated glass-eater, Mazzati, from the Island of Borneo.
+Admission but a dime, and if you are not satisfied we will refund you
+your money.”
+
+Bob listened for a while, and during the time he was doing so he saw
+a tall figure walk up to the stand, buy a ticket, and enter the dirty
+tent.
+
+It was Joel Carrow.
+
+“Gracious, he must be treating himself,” thought Bob. “A whole ten
+cents spent at one time, not to say anything about the price of
+admission to the fair grounds. I have half a mind to follow him in and
+see what he has to say when we meet.”
+
+Bob thought over the matter for a moment. Then he dropped a dime into
+the doorkeeper’s hand and passed inside the show-tent.
+
+As he expected, the show--if it may be designated by that name--was the
+worst kind of a swindle. The bearded lady’s beard was a false one--the
+four-legged man had two artificial limbs, and the glass-eater ate
+nothing more brittle than a peculiar kind of rock candy.
+
+Only half a dozen visitors were inside the tent, and they stared
+stupidly around, first at the so-called curiosities and then at one
+another.
+
+Bob looked for Joel Carrow, who had inspected the “curiosities,”
+and was now making his way to a corner of the tent where stood a
+flashily-dressed man, having before him a small show-case and a box
+filled with envelopes.
+
+The show-case was laden with articles of jewelry, each bearing a
+certain number.
+
+“Here’s your chance to make money,” said the flashily-dressed man.
+“Each of the envelopes in this box contains a number, and that number
+can be found on some articles of jewelry in the case. The price of an
+envelope is only twenty-five cents, and there are no blanks. Try your
+luck and win the gold watch or the diamond scarf-pin, either of which
+is worth fifty dollars.”
+
+Joel Carrow was interested. He did not know that none of the envelopes
+contained the number corresponding to the articles of any value in the
+case. It was true there were no blanks, but it was also true there were
+no prizes of a greater cash value than five cents.
+
+“I’ll try my luck,” said Carrow, after some hesitation, and he passed
+over twenty-five cents.
+
+“I think I’ll watch this,” thought Bob. “That man will try to swindle
+Carrow all he can.”
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVIII
+
+BOB SHOWS UP A SWINDLER
+
+
+Bob had no great feeling of love for the miserly farmer who had so
+misused him, yet he did not intend to stand calmly by and see Joel
+Carrow done out of his money.
+
+He had heard of this prize-package swindle while in Stampton, and he
+knew exactly how it was worked.
+
+The flashily-dressed man took in Carrow at a glance, and also noted
+that the farmer carried a well-filled pocket-book.
+
+He thought Carrow would prove well worth plucking, and smiled broadly.
+
+“One package? We sell five for a dollar. You had better try it. You may
+win all large prizes.”
+
+“I’ll try one first,” replied Carrow, cautiously.
+
+The man handed out the box. One of the envelopes projected slightly
+beyond the rest, and this Carrow took.
+
+“Number 37,” he said, reading from a slip. “What’s that good fer?”
+
+“Number 37 takes this elegant ruby scarf-pin, worth eight dollars,”
+replied the swindler, handing over a pin that was nothing but a bit of
+colored glass and brass. “You’re in luck.”
+
+“Is the pin worth eight dollars?” questioned Carrow, doubtfully.
+
+“Certainly. Would you rather have five dollars in cash? That is what
+they cost direct from the manufacturers. Many jewellers sell them for
+double the money.”
+
+It will be noticed that the swindler did not say he would give five
+dollars for the pin, although he led Carrow to believe he would.
+
+This remark made the old farmer feel good.
+
+“N-no; I’ll keep the pin.”
+
+“Very well. Try again? Remember, only one dollar for five.”
+
+“Well, I dun no,” and Carrow scratched his head.
+
+“Let me show you something.” The swindler pretended to shake up the box
+of envelopes. “How is this?”
+
+He drew out an envelope. The number inside was fifty, and this called
+for the watch said to be worth fifty dollars.
+
+“Gosh!” murmured Carrow, in admiration. “I wish I had drew it.”
+
+“Nothing easier. See here, I will place the number back into the
+envelope and put the envelope back into the box. There it goes. Now
+remember, you know as well as I it has got the number entitling you to
+the fifty-dollar watch. You most likely know just where it is. Try it
+for fun.”
+
+Carrow did so. Sure enough, his sharp eyes had followed the right
+envelope and the number was within it.
+
+“Now I’ll try it again. There it goes, just as before. If you want
+to win, I’ll give you the chance. For ten dollars you may draw three
+envelopes. You are bound to strike the right one in one out of three.”
+
+Carrow’s eyes sparkled. He was sure he had his eye on the right
+envelope.
+
+He drew out his pocket-book to get out his ten dollars.
+
+At this instant Bob brushed up to him. The young photographer had
+watched proceedings closely, and he knew exactly what had occurred.
+
+“Don’t try it, or you will lose,” he whispered.
+
+Carrow started back as if shot.
+
+“What, Bob Alden!” he cried.
+
+“Yes, Carrow. Did you hear me?”
+
+“Where did you come from, you scamp?”
+
+“I’m not a scamp, Carrow.”
+
+“You--you----” blustered the farmer, hardly knowing what to say.
+
+“I want no words with you,” replied Bob. “I merely meant to warn you.
+This is a swindle.”
+
+“A swindle!” gasped Carrow.
+
+“What’s that?” put in the sharper, roughly.
+
+“I am talking to this man,” returned the young photographer.
+
+“He says it’s a swindle,” put in Carrow.
+
+“You had better mind your own business, young man. What right have you
+to interfere here?”
+
+“The right of anybody to show you up,” returned Bob, bravely. “You
+sha’n’t swindle this man out of ten dollars if I can help it.”
+
+“How do yer know it’s a swindle?” asked Carrow, faintly.
+
+“Because he didn’t put the number in the envelope.”
+
+“Are yer sure o’ thet?”
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“Nonsense!” cried the swindler. “This is a perfectly honest game of
+chance.”
+
+“He had two numbers in his hand. The first time he placed one of them
+in the envelope, but this time he placed the other, and you can be sure
+it wasn’t the fifty.”
+
+“See here, you get out of here!” cried the swindler, in a rage. “I have
+a good mind to have you arrested for interfering with my business.”
+
+“You may have me arrested if you wish,” replied the young photographer,
+coolly.
+
+The swindler rushed from behind his stand and caught Bob by the arm.
+
+“Let go!”
+
+“You get right out of here.”
+
+Bob pulled himself away. The row had attracted the attention of several
+in the tent and they now interfered.
+
+“Leave the boy alone!”
+
+“He told the truth; that game is always a swindle!”
+
+“The whole show is a swindle!”
+
+“That’s so, too.”
+
+The crowd shoved forward, and the swindler move back to his stand.
+
+As he brushed past Bob he muttered into the youth’s ear:
+
+“I’ll get square with you some time for this!”
+
+“Perhaps I won’t give you the chance,” replied Bob, aloud.
+
+In the disturbance Joel Carrow slipped away without even thanking Bob
+for the service which had been rendered to him.
+
+“But that’s just like him,” thought Bob. “He wouldn’t thank me even if
+I saved his life.”
+
+He left the tent with several others, the swindler shaking his fist
+after the youth.
+
+By this time the fair was about over for the day, and after a short
+walk among the exhibits in the main building, Bob left the grounds.
+
+He had accepted Willett’s invitation to remain at the latter’s house
+all night, and when he reached the place he found supper awaiting him.
+
+The family were all seated out on the porch, and they made such a
+fine group that Bob took a tintype of them, while it was still light,
+he having brought along an outfit for such pictures. The tintype he
+presented to Mrs. Willett, much to that lady’s pleasure.
+
+“I should think it would be fun taking pictures,” said she.
+
+“And worth money, too,” added her husband.
+
+“It is both, and it is also perilous,” returned Bob, and he told of the
+adventure with the prize bull.
+
+“My! it’s lucky you weren’t killed!” cried the woman. “Weren’t you
+scared?”
+
+“I was at first. But I am having so many adventures I am getting used
+to them.”
+
+Bob learned that the horse which had plunged into the creek was
+doing nicely, and would in all likelihood recover entirely from his
+involuntary bath.
+
+Bob had never been in Dartinville before, and after supper, and while
+it was still light, he took a stroll though the town. He stopped at the
+drug-store and there purchased such chemicals as had been lost in the
+smashed satchel.
+
+“Now if one of those plates turn out all right, I’ll be ready to start
+off first thing in the morning,” he thought.
+
+Bob did not know that his entrance into the drug-store had been noted,
+yet such was a fact.
+
+The man who had tried to swindle Joel Carrow was stopping at the hotel
+opposite the place of business, and he was now seated on the piazza,
+smoking a cigar.
+
+“There’s the boy who caused me so much trouble this afternoon,”
+muttered the swindler. “I promised to get square with him, and I will.”
+
+Throwing away his cigar, he ran down the piazza steps and took up a
+place behind a tree.
+
+He had not long to wait. With the chemicals in a small package in his
+left hand, Bob came out of the drug-store and walked toward the Willett
+home.
+
+It was getting dark now, and the young photographer wished to develop
+the pictures he had taken before retiring.
+
+With a look of intense hatred in his face, the swindler followed Bob
+until they came to a dark spot in the road and caught the youth by the
+collar.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIX
+
+BOB ON THE ROAD
+
+
+For the instant Bob could not make out who had caught hold of him. The
+road was dark, and the fair-ground swindler had come up in his rear.
+
+He thought he must be the victim of some footpad, and, dropping his
+bundle of chemicals, he strove to break away.
+
+“Let go of me!” he cried.
+
+“I will when I have you where I want you,” returned the swindler.
+
+Bob fancied he recognized the voice, but he was not sure. He renewed
+his struggle and had almost succeeded in breaking away when the
+swindler hit him a blow in the neck that dazed him.
+
+“Now we’ll see who’s ahead,” hissed the man. “I’ll teach you to
+interfere with Joe Horning’s business.”
+
+“I’ll give you away to the police the next time,” returned Bob,
+although rather faintly. “Let go your hold!”
+
+“Not much! See here, you served me a mean trick, and I promised to get
+square. I don’t intend to lose ten dollars for nothing. How much have
+you got in your pockets?”
+
+“More than you’ll ever get,” cried Bob, growing desperate. “Will you
+let go?”
+
+“I told you before I would not.”
+
+“Then take that!”
+
+Bob had by this time somewhat recovered from the blow in the neck.
+He now hauled off with his right fist and let the swindler have it
+straight in the mouth.
+
+Bob threw all his muscle in the blow. It caught Joe Horning in the
+upper lip, and not only drew the blood, but also loosened two of the
+swindler’s front teeth.
+
+The swindler began to splutter, and he put up one of his hands to his
+mouth.
+
+Thus partially released, Bob twisted himself free from the other hand,
+rolled over and sprang up.
+
+Joe Horning had not anticipated such resentment on Bob’s part, and he
+was surprised in addition to being hurt. He stepped back into the road,
+and made a movement as if to draw a pistol.
+
+“I’ll fix you!” he muttered, after spitting out a mouthful of blood.
+
+Whether the swindler had a pistol or not, Bob did not know. But he
+was determined to take no risk with so desperate a character, and,
+springing forward, he closed in on Horning.
+
+The two rolled over into the dirt of the road, and for a while it was a
+question as to which would come out on top. Horning was at first under,
+but he was a strong man, and he now put forth every effort to get the
+best of the young photographer.
+
+“You think you’re mighty fly, but I’ll show you,” he puffed.
+
+To this Bob made no reply. He saw he had a hard task before him, but he
+did not intend to waste breath.
+
+Horning tried to roll over several times, but Bob held him down, until,
+when he could do nothing else, the swindler bit the young photographer
+in the finger.
+
+It was not a hard bite, but it was so painful and unexpected that Bob
+was for the moment taken off his guard.
+
+In that moment Horning pushed the youth aside and sprang on top.
+
+“This is my innings. Pass over that ten dollars that is coming to me.”
+
+“I won’t do it.”
+
+“I say you shall. Come, be quick!”
+
+Horning tried to get one of his hands into Bob’s vest pocket. That
+pocket contained seventeen dollars in bills, and Bob struggled
+vigorously to save his money.
+
+Just then there came the sounds of carriage wheels on the road. Bob,
+lying on his back, heard them first and brightened up. Perhaps help
+was close at hand.
+
+At last the swindler succeeded in getting his fingers into the pocket.
+The tips came in contact with the roll of bills, and he renewed his
+efforts to gain possession of the money.
+
+He had just succeeded in getting the bills in his grasp, when he
+noticed the approaching carriage. He tried to spring away, but Bob held
+him fast.
+
+“Help, help!” cried the young photographer.
+
+The carriage came to a sudden stop. A man sat on the front seat, whip
+in hand.
+
+“What’s up?” he cried, curiously.
+
+“This fellow is robbing me. Help!”
+
+The man made a leap to the road. Horning saw him coming, and he tried
+his best to wrench himself away.
+
+But Bob’s hold was a good one, and although the swindler kicked him
+several times, he did not relinquish it until the new arrival had
+Horning by the collar.
+
+Then Bob jumped up, and caught the fellow by the arm.
+
+“Don’t let him escape,” he cried to the man from the carriage.
+
+“I’ve got him fast enough,” returned the stranger. “So he was trying to
+rob you, eh?”
+
+“Yes. He has a roll of bills he took from my vest pocket.”
+
+“That’s not so!” cried Horning. “I have nothing but some loose change
+in my possession.”
+
+“Then he threw the roll away when you came up,” said Bob. “He took it
+from my vest pocket only a second ago.”
+
+“Strike a match and take a look around,” suggested the stranger. “He
+may have flung it away as you say.”
+
+Bob quickly lit a match, and then several more. In a few minutes he
+found the bills, lying to one side in the dust.
+
+“I have them,” he cried.
+
+“What will you do with this fellow?” asked the stranger. “If you say
+so, we can take him to my uncle, who is the squire.”
+
+“I think that would be best,” said Bob. “He attacked me because
+I exposed his swindling methods in a side-show at the fair this
+afternoon.”
+
+“Oh, I heard about that! So you are the chap, and this is the swindler.”
+
+“Yes,” returned Bob. “Shall we walk him there, or can you take him in
+your carriage?”
+
+“Take him in the carriage.”
+
+“Is it far?”
+
+“About five minutes’ drive.”
+
+“All right. Come, get in the carriage!” went on Bob, turning to Horning.
+
+“See here, gents, this is rather rough,” returned the swindler. All
+the bluster and bravery seemed to have died out of him.
+
+“It’s not any worse than you deserve,” said Bob.
+
+“No, I ain’t that kind. I sometimes go in for a bit of fun, but----”
+
+“You can do your talking when you are locked up,” said the stranger.
+“Now get in at once.”
+
+He assisted Horning up on the front seat, still retaining his hold on
+the fellow’s collar.
+
+“Now you had better take a seat in the rear,” said he to Bob. “You will
+find a heavy stick under the seat. Don’t hesitate to use it if he tries
+to escape.”
+
+Bob was about to enter the carriage, when suddenly Horning sprang up
+and hit the stranger on the breast. The blow was so unexpected that the
+carriage owner reeled backward. He would have struck on his head had
+not Bob caught him.
+
+“Get up!” cried Horning to the horse, and the animal moved forward.
+
+The swindler caught up the reins, and away went the carriage, leaving
+Bob in the middle of the road supporting the carriage owner, who had
+not yet recovered.
+
+“Whoa!” cried the youth to the horse, but the animal paid no attention,
+and soon swindler and turn-out had disappeared in the darkness.
+
+“Well, that’s a fine mess!” cried the carriage owner as he recovered
+himself. “He got the best of Jack Hicks that time, and no mistake.”
+
+“What is best to be done?” questioned Bob.
+
+“I must go after him,” replied Hicks.
+
+“You can’t do it on foot.”
+
+“I’ll borrow a rig from Edgar Willett.”
+
+“Do you know him? I am stopping at his house.”
+
+“Oh, yes, he is an old friend of mine.”
+
+The two hurried off, and soon reached the Willett homestead. Willett
+had gone to bed, but he quickly dressed and got out a horse and light
+spring wagon.
+
+He wished to accompany Hicks, but his wife persuaded him to remain at
+home.
+
+“I suppose I can go?” said Bob.
+
+“Certainly. Jump in.”
+
+Bob placed his chemicals in a safe place, and a minute later the spring
+wagon was on the road, spinning along in the direction Horning had
+taken.
+
+“Are there any side roads near here?” asked the young photographer,
+after a drive of several minutes in silence.
+
+“Not for fully a mile from here.”
+
+“We ought to try to catch him before he has a chance of branching off.”
+
+“That’s what I am thinking. The trouble is my horse is a pretty fast
+stepper, although he is rather tired just now.”
+
+On and on they went through the darkness.
+
+Presently Hicks drew up rather suddenly, and pointed to one side of the
+road.
+
+“There is a cow-path in here,” he said. “He might have gone this way.”
+
+“And he did,” said Bob.
+
+“How do you know?”
+
+“There is your horse and carriage standing in the bushes.”
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XX
+
+BOB IN THE WOODS
+
+
+The young photographer was right. There, scarcely ten yards away, were
+the horse and the wagon.
+
+Hicks at once jumped down and strode over to the turn-out. Bob followed.
+
+“Is it O. K.?” queried Bob.
+
+“Seems to be. He drove the horse for all he knew how,” responded Hicks.
+
+“Which way do you think he went?”
+
+“Can’t say. It’s so infernally dark it will be impossible to follow him
+up.”
+
+“Well, I’m glad you got your rig back.”
+
+“So am I. Yes, it’s all right, too.”
+
+“Let me have the lantern a moment.”
+
+“What for?”
+
+“I’ll see if he left any trace behind.”
+
+Bob took the lantern and made a close search. But though there were
+foot-marks, there were too many to trace out those made by the swindler.
+
+“What is beyond here?” asked the young photographer as he returned the
+lantern to the spring wagon.
+
+“This cow-path leads to Gus Freeman’s barn-yard.”
+
+“Is it far?”
+
+“Quite a walk. There is a short cut over the fields.”
+
+“Then supposing we take a walk up that way? We may head the fellow off.”
+
+“That’s so. Wait till I tie both horses and we’ll go.”
+
+To a person not accustomed to outdoor life, walking over the rough
+fields would have been no easy task, but Bob was used to it, and he
+easily kept up with Hicks’s long strides.
+
+When they reached the barn-yard of which Hicks had spoken, they found
+it dark and silent. The house stood some distance away, but there,
+also, was no sign of life.
+
+“He must have branched off,” said Hicks, as they came to a halt near
+the stile.
+
+“Perhaps, but--hist! what was that?”
+
+Bob pointed to the rear of the cow-shed as he spoke. A movement of some
+kind had attracted his attention.
+
+“I didn’t see anything.”
+
+“It looked to me like a man moving about.”
+
+“Perhaps it was Freeman’s colt. He leaves him out here over night.”
+
+But Bob shook his head. He was certain that what he had seen was not a
+horse.
+
+“I’m going up and find out,” he said. “You stay here and watch for a
+move from below.”
+
+“All right. If you see him, whistle.”
+
+Bob moved away through the semi-darkness. Passing along the rail fence
+to the end of the barn he hopped over, and, without making a sound,
+crossed to the cow-shed.
+
+As he did so, a form sprang away from the shed and darted around the
+corner of the barn. Bob was sure it was the form of Joe Horning.
+
+He gave a whistle to notify Hicks, and then ran after the man, who by
+this time had passed the barn and was making for a corn-field situated
+some distance to the right.
+
+As we know, Bob was a good runner, and now he put forth his best
+effort, hoping to catch Horning before he entered the field.
+
+But in this he was unsuccessful. The swindler gained the field, and in
+a moment vanished among the tall rows of corn.
+
+Now, any one who has been in a field of tall corn knows full well how
+difficult it is to see in any direction over a distance of ten feet.
+
+Bob ran after Horning, but once in the field he depended altogether on
+his ears to guide him toward the fellow.
+
+He heard Horning making his way down the slope toward the creek, and he
+concluded that the swindler knew nothing of the “lay of the land.”
+
+Presently Bob heard a splash, and he knew the man had reached the
+creek. He rushed straight ahead, and was just in time to see Horning
+wading knee-deep across to the stony field beyond.
+
+“He means to escape, if the thing can be done,” thought Bob. “I wonder
+if I can’t jump over and thus save myself a wetting?”
+
+He gave a loud whistle for Hicks’s benefit, and then, drawing back
+several paces, took the leap.
+
+Bob was a good jumper, and he cleared the creek with nearly a foot to
+spare.
+
+Horning by this time was making up the rocky slope which led to a patch
+of timber land, rather sparingly overgrown. He looked behind, and,
+seeing that Bob was still following, redoubled his speed.
+
+But Bob was more used to such travelling than the swindler from the
+city, and he kept gaining on Horning, until, when the other side of the
+timber was reached, he was not more than a hundred feet behind.
+
+Again he whistled to Hicks, but whether he was answered or not he was
+unable to tell.
+
+“I’ll have to fight it out alone,” thought Bob, grimly. “Well, I won’t
+give him the ghost of a chance this trip. He’ll find he can’t nip my
+finger for nothing.”
+
+“You might as well stop, Horning!” he called out.
+
+“I believe I will,” returned the man, and he turned about and waited
+for Bob to come up.
+
+“Do you give in?”
+
+“Certainly not. I am no fool.”
+
+“We are two to one.”
+
+Horning started. He had supposed Bob alone.
+
+“Who is with you?”
+
+“Never mind, you’ll soon see.”
+
+Bob gave another whistle, but to his dismay he received no answer.
+
+He did not know that Hicks was slightly hard of hearing, and had only
+heard the signal when Bob was comparatively close by.
+
+In perplexity over the non-appearance of Hicks, Bob looked around for a
+stick. He soon found one, and, picking it up, he brandished it in the
+air.
+
+“Now, we’ll see who is the best man. Do you see that light over in the
+cottage yonder?”
+
+“Not being blind, I do,” returned Horning, sarcastically.
+
+“Well, you’ll walk straight for it.”
+
+“I won’t, and you can’t make me.”
+
+As Horning spoke, he sprang at Bob. The young photographer took a step
+back, and then brought down the stick with all force.
+
+The blow caught Horning in the arm, and he uttered a shrill cry of pain.
+
+“You have broken my arm!”
+
+“Not quite as bad as that I hope,” said Bob. “Do you intend to mind
+now?”
+
+“No.”
+
+Again the swindler made a dash for Bob.
+
+Once more the stick descended, but this time Horning dodged, and,
+putting out his foot, he tripped Bob up.
+
+When the young photographer arose, Horning was again running as fast
+as his long legs would permit. But Bob was equal to the emergency. He
+picked up a stone, and, with unerring aim, flung it at the retreating
+form.
+
+The missile caught Horning in the back of the head. He staggered, tried
+to recover, and then fell forward.
+
+He was partly stunned, and before he recovered Bob was on top of him.
+In his pocket the young photographer had a strong cord, and with this
+he bound Horning’s hands behind him.
+
+“You have broken my skull!” moaned Horning, completely subdued when he
+saw how helpless he now was.
+
+“No more broken than is your arm,” returned Bob. “Will you go along
+now?”
+
+“No.”
+
+“Want another dose of that stick, eh?”
+
+“Hold up! I’ll go. Oh, my head!”
+
+“We’ll have your head attended to as soon as I have you in a safe
+place. Come on!”
+
+Bob caught Horning by the arm, and both walked toward the cottage, from
+the window of which a light was streaming.
+
+Bob had no idea who occupied the place, but he thought it would be
+likely he would find somebody to give him assistance.
+
+Arriving at the cottage, he knocked on the door. There was at once a
+commotion inside, and Bob fancied that the light was lowered.
+
+“Who’s there?” came in rather a rough voice.
+
+“I want help,” said Bob.
+
+The door was opened cautiously, and the next moment Bob was nearly
+dumfounded to find himself confronted by Mike Grogan.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXI
+
+BOB TAKES A RISK
+
+
+If the young photographer was astonished, so was the Irishman.
+
+“Phat, you?” he gasped.
+
+“Mike Grogan!” ejaculated Bob.
+
+He darted a swift glance around the interior of the room, and was even
+more taken back than before by beholding Casco and Barker seated at the
+table, a bottle between them.
+
+“It’s that Alden boy,” cried Casco.
+
+“Alden!” exclaimed Barker, jumping up. “How did he find out we were
+here?”
+
+“I don’t know.”
+
+“Is he alone?”
+
+“No; there is a man with him, and hang me if it isn’t Joe Horning.”
+
+“What, Joe Horning the circus fakir?”
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“What does he want?”
+
+“Give it up.”
+
+Barker moved toward the door, which Grogan still held open.
+
+Bob was trying to think. What should he do? Confronting the villainous
+trio had completely upset his calculations.
+
+He had half a mind to run away. It was certain the trio would help
+Horning and not himself when they understood the situation.
+
+But Casco seemed to realize what was passing through the young
+photographer’s mind, for with a quick movement he sprang past Grogan
+and caught Bob by the arm.
+
+“Come in here!” he said, sharply.
+
+Bob marched into the place. Horning followed, and then the door was
+locked, and the Irishman placed the key in his pocket.
+
+Bob glanced around curiously. He saw that the cottage contained nothing
+but a rude table, and several boxes for seats, and rightly conjectured
+that the trio had found it deserted and made of it a temporary
+rendezvous.
+
+“Now tell me what brings you here?” demanded Barker, facing Bob,
+savagely.
+
+“I came to get help,” returned the youth, as coolly as he could.
+
+“Help! What for?”
+
+“To take this man to the lock-up.”
+
+“What! Horning?”
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“That’s rich.”
+
+And both Barker and Casco laughed.
+
+“Shake,” said Casco to the fakir.
+
+“I can’t, my hands are tied,” returned Horning, rather sheepishly.
+
+“Blame me if they ain’t. So the boy had you a prisoner, Joe.”
+
+“Yes,” growled the swindler. “He hit me in the head with a rock first
+and knocked me silly.” He did not fancy having the others think he had
+been overpowered by a boy.
+
+“Why was he after you?”
+
+“We had a row up to the fair grounds.”
+
+“I was after him because he tried to steal my money and then stole a
+horse and carriage,” returned Bob.
+
+There was a general laugh, but at whose expense it was hard to say.
+
+Casco cut the cord which bound Horning. The first thing the swindler
+did when released was to confront Bob.
+
+“I’ve a good mind to fix you for that crack in the head,” he cried.
+
+“Hold up, Joe, he’s our game,” interrupted Casco.
+
+“He is,” added Barker.
+
+“An’ don’t worrhy but phat we’ll git square wid him,” said Grogan.
+
+“You seem to know him pretty well,” remarked Horning.
+
+“We do,” said Casco. He turned to Bob. “See here, how long have you
+been following us since you escaped from Cabot’s place?”
+
+“I haven’t been following you at all.”
+
+“I don’t believe you.”
+
+“Well, if you know better, what do you ask me for?”
+
+“Don’t get impudent. Do you know that you are in our power?”
+
+“Seems to me I was in your power before,” and Bob grinned.
+
+“Sure, an’ he’s a terror,” remarked Grogan.
+
+“He is that,” said Horning. “But I say, what are you three fellows
+doing out here? I thought you were in New York.”
+
+Barker winked at him. The wink was not intended to reach Bob, but,
+nevertheless, the youth caught it.
+
+“They are up to no good, that’s certain,” he thought. “If they were
+merely hiding from the authorities, they would choose some more
+congenial spot than this.”
+
+Barker now produced a rope, and was about to tie Bob up when Grogan
+came forward.
+
+“Phat’s the good o’ that?” he asked. “Sure, an’ the b’y kin git out o’
+it loike a snake.”
+
+“You’re right,” said Casco. “He’s the imp’s own. Put him in one of the
+back rooms and place Mike to watch him. I want to talk to Joe.”
+
+Grogan’s face fell a little, but when Casco said he could take the
+bottle along for company the Irishman was reconciled.
+
+Barker conducted Bob to a room separate from that now occupied. Here
+the young photographer was tied to a support under a heavy shelf and
+left in care of Grogan.
+
+Grogan at once settled himself on a box, and, filling his pipe, lit it.
+
+“As yez don’t drink, Oi’ll take a sup fer yez,” he said, and took a
+deep potion.
+
+“What are you fellows doing up here, Grogan?” asked Bob, as cheerfully
+as he could.
+
+“Ax me no questions,” muttered Grogan. “If ye want ter think o’
+somethin’ cheerful, think o’ how we will trate ye in the marnin’.”
+
+Bob was compelled to shiver, and he became silent. Once more was he in
+the power of this lawless set of men.
+
+Quarter of an hour dragged by. Grogan sat calmly smoking, with his
+small eyes fastened on the young photographer. He did not intend to
+give the youth the first chance to escape.
+
+Bob heard the murmur of voices, and he knew Casco, Barker, and Horning
+were talking over some matter of importance.
+
+While the time slipped slowly by, Bob heard a distant rumble which came
+closer and then died away utterly.
+
+“It must have been a train. I did not know we were so close to the
+tracks,” thought the youth.
+
+Presently Grogan took another drink, and again lit his pipe. But now
+Bob noticed that the Irishman did not puff so vigorously as before. Was
+he growing drowsy?
+
+Fervidly the youth hoped so. He watched Grogan as a cat watches a
+mouse, and he was filled with hope when he saw the man’s pipe fall and
+the Irishman make no effort to restore it to his mouth.
+
+“Now is my chance!” said Bob to himself, and he set swiftly to work to
+free himself.
+
+As Grogan was to watch the prisoner, Barker had been rather careless in
+tying Bob up. The bonds were soon slipped off, and then raising one of
+the windows Bob leaped out.
+
+Just as he did so, Grogan started up. Seeing the youth disappear
+through the opening, he gave a loud cry, which soon brought the others
+to the scene.
+
+“Where is he, Mike?”
+
+“After him, boys!”
+
+“Yes; he must not get away this time!”
+
+Meanwhile Bob was running away as fast as his feet could move. When
+about a hundred yards from the cottage, he looked back and saw that all
+four men were in pursuit.
+
+On he dashed until striking a stone with his toe he went down flat on
+the ground.
+
+He arose as quickly as possible, but the time lost had enabled his
+pursuers almost to close the distance between them.
+
+Bob was now but fifty feet from the railroad tracks, which were
+situated on a small embankment. As he ran up toward the tracks, he saw
+a slow freight approaching.
+
+Should he board one of the cars? It might afford an excellent means of
+escape.
+
+With a glare of the head-light the train came along. Bob ran to meet
+it, with the four men not far behind him. A moment later Bob was on the
+train.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXII
+
+BOB ON THE FREIGHT TRAIN
+
+
+The young photographer did not have the chance to look back at his
+pursuers. He had one foot on the iron step of the car, and, though the
+train was going at a slow rate of speed, he found it no easy task to
+draw himself up on the narrow platform.
+
+“Come back!” he heard Barker cry.
+
+He paid no attention to the order, satisfied that anything would be
+preferable to falling again into the hands of the villainous crowd who
+were pursuing him.
+
+At last, with a mighty effort, the youth drew himself up. The ladder
+leading to the top of the car was close at hand and to this he clung
+while the train swung around a curve and out of sight of those left on
+the embankment.
+
+“By jinks! but that was a narrow escape!” muttered Bob to himself as he
+drew a long breath.
+
+Bob remained where he was for five minutes or more, trying to regain
+his breath and collect his thoughts at the same time.
+
+“I would like to know what those men are doing out here,” he
+soliloquized. “Maybe they are planning to rob a house in the vicinity.
+They are certainly up to no good.”
+
+The freight train made a strong rumble as it moved along, but presently
+Bob fancied he heard footsteps on the top of the car behind him.
+
+He was not mistaken, for in a moment the form of a man appeared
+overhead. The man looked down, as if searching for something.
+
+“One of the train-hands most likely,” thought Bob. “Maybe he saw what
+took place, and wants to know what it is all about.”
+
+Bob was about to call out, when he made a discovery that filled him
+with surprise.
+
+The man above was James Casco.
+
+Casco had jumped aboard the sixth car behind the one boarded by the
+young photographer.
+
+That he was bent on searching out Bob the youth felt certain, and
+he crouched low as the man bent down to get a better view in the
+semi-darkness.
+
+“Must be the next platform,” Bob heard Casco mutter. “Although I was
+almost certain it was this one.”
+
+He was about to pass on, when just then the train rolled past a
+farm-house, from the upper windows of which streamed a strong light.
+
+The light fell directly upon Bob, and Casco caught a full view of him.
+
+“So I have found you, eh?” muttered the scar-faced man, with a gleam of
+satisfaction in his eyes.
+
+“What do you want here?” demanded Bob.
+
+“You know well enough, Alden.”
+
+“I must confess I do not.”
+
+“You think, now you have discovered our plans, you will inform the
+authorities and have us all bagged.”
+
+“What makes you think that?” asked Bob, with interest, for he did not
+know the men had any plans.
+
+“I can put two and two together. You were in that neighborhood tracking
+us.”
+
+“You seem to know all about it.”
+
+“I have watched you on the sly. Do you deny that you also called on
+Gregory Maverick?”
+
+“What has that got to do with it?”
+
+“You know as well as I, Alden. But it won’t do you any good. You might
+as well give up trying to hunt down this crowd. It can’t be done.”
+
+Bob was much mystified by this speech. Evidently Casco took it for
+granted that he knew much more than was a fact.
+
+“Perhaps I can do more than you think, Casco,” he said, on a venture.
+
+“You can, if I allow you to get away, maybe, but I don’t intend any
+such thing shall happen.”
+
+“What do you mean?”
+
+“Simply this: You imagine you can ride through to Stampton on this
+train, don’t you?”
+
+“Perhaps so.”
+
+“And when you arrive there, you will call on Maverick and the chief of
+police and send word all along the line to search for us. You will do
+nothing of the sort.”
+
+“Who will prevent me?” questioned Bob, as calmly as he could, even
+though he knew what to expect by way of an answer.
+
+“Who will prevent you? I will.”
+
+“I don’t see how.”
+
+“I’ll show you. Do you see this?”
+
+As Casco spoke, he shoved the muzzle of a pistol down in the
+neighborhood of the young photographer’s head.
+
+“Do you intend to kill me in cold blood?”
+
+“I intend to make you mind me, Alden. When I give the command, you will
+jump from the train.”
+
+Bob shrank back in horror. The freight train was now moving at the rate
+of twenty miles an hour, and a jump would be full of peril.
+
+He looked around for some means by which to protect himself. But the
+narrow platform was bare, and he was without weapon of any kind.
+
+“What if I do some firing on my own account?” Bob asked, more to gain
+time than anything else.
+
+“Have you a pistol?”
+
+Instead of replying, Bob made a leap upward, and before Casco could
+draw back the youth had hold of the pistol and had wrenched it from his
+hand.
+
+“Stop!” cried the scar-faced man. “Give me that pistol!”
+
+“I’ll give you one of the bullets. Stay where you are.”
+
+With the pistol in one hand, Bob turned and ran up the iron ladder to
+the top of the adjoining car.
+
+As he did this, Casco, instead of complying with Bob’s command, arose
+and hurried along the top plank of the freight car.
+
+“Stop!” cried Bob, jumping across the opening and making after the
+rascal.
+
+But it was too dark to see the planking clearly, and afraid of missing
+his footing, the young photographer was compelled to go slow.
+
+Casco, on the other hand, had once been a brakeman, and he ran over the
+planking of several cars at a lively rate, and then disappeared from
+view.
+
+With the pistol ready for use, Bob made his way along, until he came
+face to face with one of the train-hands.
+
+“Hullo, Jack, is that you?” called out the man.
+
+“No,” replied Bob, and added: “I am after a thief who is aboard this
+train. Did he just pass you?”
+
+“Nobody passed me. You are sure he is on board?”
+
+“He was a minute ago.”
+
+And, as briefly as possible, Bob related what had occurred.
+
+“He must be a desperate fellow,” said the train-hand, with a shake of
+his head.
+
+“He is, and I want to catch him the worst way.”
+
+“Humph! Well, let us take a look with the lantern. We don’t want any
+such fellows on this train.”
+
+The man got his lantern from the caboose, and the two began a rapid
+search around each car.
+
+“He might have dropped down on one of the platforms and swung himself
+into one of the empty cars,” suggested the train-hand. “Or he might
+have jumped off.”
+
+“I don’t think he jumped off,” replied Bob. “Let us look into those
+cars just ahead.”
+
+The train-hand went ahead, and not without difficulty swung himself
+into one of the empty cars.
+
+Seeing how the thing was done, Bob started to do the same upon the car
+ahead.
+
+He reached the guide upon which the door hung, and was making his way
+along it toward the opening when Casco’s head suddenly appeared from
+out of the empty car.
+
+“Now I have you!” cried the scar-faced man. He reached out, and,
+catching Bob by the arm, attempted to throw the young photographer from
+the train.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIII
+
+BOB FORMS A RESOLUTION
+
+
+The attack was so sudden and unexpected that Bob had all he could do to
+hold on with the remaining hand.
+
+“Let up!” he cried.
+
+“Not much! Off you go, Alden!”
+
+“Help! help!” cried Bob.
+
+He attempted to draw back on the platform, but Casco held him fast by
+the arm, while at the same time trying to push him away from his hold.
+
+“What’s up?” cried the train-hand from the other car.
+
+“Here he is! Help me!” returned Bob.
+
+“I will.”
+
+Casco’s face fell when he heard that Bob had help close at hand. He
+made another effort to push the young photographer off, and had almost
+succeeded when the train-hand appeared.
+
+“By hookey!” cried the man. “Stop that, you villain!”
+
+Just then Casco succeeded in making Bob let go his hold. But now the
+train-hand caught the youth by the arm, and drew him back in safety to
+the platform.
+
+“There you are. It was a narrow escape.”
+
+“Thank you!” gasped Bob. “Indeed it was.”
+
+“So he’s safe in that car.”
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“Just wait till I call Jack, and we’ll bag him.”
+
+“All right. But be careful.”
+
+The train-hand ran off over the cars, while Bob, pistol in hand, sat
+down to watch for any movement Casco might make.
+
+It was a novel situation, but it cannot be said that Bob enjoyed it.
+
+Five minutes passed. Bob wondered how long the train-hand expected to
+be gone. Every second seemed ten to the young photographer.
+
+Suddenly with a shriek of the whistle the freight train slowed up, and
+came very nearly to a stop. The train-hand appeared, but, instead of
+helping Bob, began to put on brakes as fast as possible.
+
+“Better watch your man,” he cried. “I’ve got to obey the whistle.”
+
+Bob did watch, and almost instantly saw Casco spring from the open car
+into a patch of brushwood. The scar-faced man tumbled over, but at once
+arose, and ran off through the darkness.
+
+The young photographer’s first impulse was to follow. But then he
+reasoned that the darkness was against him, and the district was one
+entirely unknown to him.
+
+“He’s gone,” he said to the train-hand as the whistle came to loosen
+brakes again.
+
+“Skipped, did he?”
+
+“Yes. What neighborhood is this?”
+
+“We are just coming into Kentown. Here is the station.”
+
+As the man spoke, they rolled into a long, narrow milk depot. Without
+waiting to see if the train would come to a stop, Bob called out a
+good-night and sprang off.
+
+He met but three men at the depot, and all of these were so busy
+handling milk-cans that they could spare no time to hear what he might
+have to say.
+
+Finally the young photographer asked if there was a constable in town,
+and he was directed to one Aaron Dimler, who lived but a few rods from
+the depot.
+
+Bob had a hard time arousing Dimler, but once aroused the constable was
+eager to join the youth in a search for the scar-faced man.
+
+“We had better walk up the track to where he jumped off the freight,”
+said the constable. “Then I’ll be better able to judge of the direction
+he took.”
+
+So the two half-walked, half-ran up the track until Bob called a halt.
+
+“Is this the spot?” asked the constable.
+
+“As near as I can judge it is,” returned Bob.
+
+“There’s a hat. Was that his?”
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“Then you’re right about the spot. Did he start off in that direction?”
+
+“I believe he did.”
+
+“Then the place he would be likely to strike would be Raymond’s
+cross-road hotel.”
+
+“How far is that from here?”
+
+“Not over five minutes’ walk. If he’s reached that place, you might as
+well give up the hunt.”
+
+“Why?”
+
+“You will never learn anything from Raymond. He is a bad one, and has
+been in court half a dozen times.”
+
+“I would like to know if Casco knows him?” mused Bob.
+
+“Even if he didn’t, Raymond would befriend him, if he knew the sort of
+chap the man you are after was. He has sheltered more criminals than I
+can mention.”
+
+“I am quite interested,” said Bob. “Come on!”
+
+But the constable held back. The fact of the matter was that Raymond
+was down on him, and had threatened to make matters warm if he found
+Dimler around his hotel.
+
+“We can go in the morning,” said the constable, by way of excuse.
+
+“Casco may be gone by that time, if he is there.”
+
+“I have no papers to search Raymond’s place. I don’t want to get into
+trouble.”
+
+“I believe you are afraid,” cried Bob, somewhat angrily. “I will go
+alone.”
+
+He turned on his heel at once. Dimler’s brow contracted.
+
+“Well, go on, if you’re so headstrong,” he said, and, as Bob passed out
+of hearing, he added: “He’ll have a fine time if he riles Raymond up,
+see if he don’t.”
+
+The road was a perfectly straight one, and Bob had but little
+difficulty in finding the cross-road hotel Dimler had mentioned.
+
+On the way the young photographer kept his eyes wide open for Casco,
+but saw nothing of the scar-faced man. Arriving at Raymond’s hotel,
+he found the place to consist of a long, two-story building, with an
+addition in the rear running down to the edge of a brook. A dim lamp,
+swinging from a post by the stepping-block, lit up the exterior of the
+hotel. A light also shone from the bar-room, and sounds of boisterous
+laughing reached the youth’s ears.
+
+“They must keep the place wide open all night,” thought Bob. “I think I
+will take a look around before I go in.”
+
+Having inspected the front part of the hotel, Bob passed around one
+side and then to the back.
+
+Here was situated the kitchen, and, coming closer, Bob heard two
+persons conversing in low tones.
+
+One was a man, evidently a stable-hand, and the other a woman-of-all-work.
+
+“What kept you so long, Ike?” asked the woman of the man, who had
+evidently just come in.
+
+“The boss wanted me to look out for the billiard-room for a while.”
+
+“Why, where is Dick?”
+
+“Tendin’ bar. He had to do it cos the boss had a visitor just now, an’
+he had to show the feller a room.”
+
+“A visitor this time of night? Who was it, any of the old ones?”
+
+“That fellow was here a couple of times last week. He came in a
+tremendous hurry, he did.”
+
+“Say, there is something up between the boss an’ that feller,”
+commented the woman, as she lit a hand-lamp and moved toward a door.
+
+“What makes you think that, Sadie?”
+
+“Cos he an’ the boss did a pile of whisperin’ the other night, an’ when
+the boss does that why----” and the woman finished with a low laugh.
+
+“Well, it ain’t none of our affairs, Sadie.”
+
+“That’s so, so long as we git our wages. But come on to bed.”
+
+“I’m ready. This bein’ up half the night makes me dead tired.”
+
+The woman passed through the door, and, after extinguishing the large
+lamp which hung from a bracket, the man followed her.
+
+Bob had listened with keen interest to the conversation between the
+pair. One thing was settled. Jim Casco was in the house.
+
+Now what was best to do? Bob knew of no officer whom he could summon
+save Dimler, and after the way that individual had acted, the young
+photographer did not feel disposed to ask anything further at his hands.
+
+Bob passed back as far as the brook, and here sat down to think matters
+over. Several things were quite clear to him.
+
+One was that Casco, Barker, and Grogan were in the vicinity for no good
+purpose.
+
+The second was that Casco was acquainted with Raymond, and that he had
+called there before. This would tend to the idea that Raymond’s place
+was to be a sort of headquarters for the crowd of evildoers.
+
+“I’ll shadow them, and find out what they are up to,” was Bob’s resolve.
+
+And, when Bob made a resolution, he always stuck to it.
+
+Presently, as Bob sat thinking, he saw a light flash from one of the
+upper windows of the hotel. Then a curtain was drawn down, and for a
+second a profile stood out on the white surface.
+
+The profile was perfect, so perfect, in fact, that the young
+photographer had no difficulty in guessing its original.
+
+The profile was that of Casco.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIV
+
+BOB STICKS UP FOR A FRIEND
+
+
+Bob jumped up, and watched the profile eagerly.
+
+Then he saw it disappear, as the light was moved to one side.
+
+“That was Casco, sure,” he said to himself. “And, hello! there’s
+somebody else. I wonder who it is?”
+
+Bob saw that the window of the room was directly over the one story
+addition in the rear. He wondered if he could not get up to it and find
+out what was going on within.
+
+Looking around, he espied a short ladder resting against an apple tree.
+Catching up the ladder, he placed it against the addition, and found it
+just reached the roof above.
+
+Making sure that he was not being observed, Bob mounted the ladder
+silently, and then made his way over the roof to where the window was
+located.
+
+As it was a warm night in the summer, both the upper and the lower
+sashes were placed to admit the air, and, by putting his ear close to
+the lower opening, Bob was able to make out all that was being said
+within the room.
+
+“You are certain the boy didn’t follow you?” he heard, in a rough voice.
+
+“No, I’m not sure, Raymond,” came the reply, in the tones of Casco.
+“But though I looked back I didn’t see him.”
+
+“Humph! He might even this minute be somewhere about this place. Maybe
+it would be better to take a look around.”
+
+“I took a good look before I came in. He has either gone on to Kentown
+or farther, I’m satisfied.”
+
+“Well, it’s your fry, not mine,” laughed Raymond. “You must have had a
+hard time with him.”
+
+“I did. That boy is a wizard for being able to slip away when you least
+expect it.”
+
+“Do you suppose the others will follow you here?”
+
+“I yelled at them to do so, when I sprang on the freight train. They
+will, if they heard me.”
+
+“It’s about time that deal went through.”
+
+“I agree with you, Raymond; but the trouble has been that we could not
+strike the right man to help us.”
+
+“Won’t Watson do?”
+
+“No. I sounded him, but he is too honest, even for big money.”
+
+At that moment the wind flapped the curtain, and Bob could not hear the
+immediate conversation which followed.
+
+“What!” he heard Casco exclaim a minute later. “You are sure it is he?”
+
+“Certainly. He signed the register.”
+
+“And he is in the house now?”
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“I would like to get square with him!” muttered the scar-faced man,
+savagely. “He is the chief cause of all my troubles.”
+
+“We don’t want any trouble here,” replied Raymond. “Unless----”
+
+“Unless what, Raymond?”
+
+“Unless there is money in it.”
+
+“He must have some money.”
+
+“He said he had been on a collecting tour.”
+
+“Then you may depend on it he has boodle. This district used to pan out
+several thousands of dollars.”
+
+“But how will you do the job?”
+
+“You have a key to his room, I suppose?”
+
+“Of course. It is No. 12.”
+
+“I have here a bottle of chloroform. I will put some on a handkerchief,
+and steal in and chloroform him. Then we can make up our minds what to
+do next.”
+
+The two men left the room, closing the door after them.
+
+Bob drew a long breath. He had actually overheard a plot against one of
+the guests of the hotel, and the young photographer was compelled to
+shiver at the thought.
+
+His duty was plain. No matter what the risk, he must warn the intended
+victim of the plot against him.
+
+Bob wondered who the person could be. Evidently it was somebody with
+whom Casco was well acquainted.
+
+Without hesitation Bob pushed aside the curtain and sprang through the
+window.
+
+The light was still burning, and at a glance the young photographer saw
+the apartment was an unoccupied bedroom.
+
+Listening at the door to make sure that the two had really gone below,
+Bob, a second later, glided into the semi-dark hall-way.
+
+The room in which the conversation had been held was numbered 47.
+Following this came No. 45, and the youth had no trouble in tracing the
+numbers until he came to No. 13, opposite to which was No. 12.
+
+Bob listened at the door, and fancied he heard the breathing of a
+sleeper within.
+
+He tapped lightly, and then a little harder.
+
+“Who’s there?” came in a hurried voice, accompanied by the creaking of
+a bed.
+
+“Open the door, quick!” cried Bob, through the key-hole.
+
+“What’s the matter--house afire?” exclaimed the occupant of the room,
+as he bounced up and unlocked the door.
+
+“No, but I--Frank Landes!”
+
+“What, Bob! is that really you?”
+
+And the young man held out his hand.
+
+“My, but ain’t I glad I overheard that talk!” burst out Bob, fervidly.
+
+“What talk?”
+
+“Lock the door, and I’ll tell you. But you must speak in a whisper.”
+
+Frank locked the door and also bolted it.
+
+“Now, in the first place,” began Bob, “have you a pistol?”
+
+“I have; but what under the canopy does it all mean?”
+
+“Casco is in this house.”
+
+“By Jove! is that true?”
+
+“And he and Raymond, the proprietor, have just hatched out a plot to
+chloroform and rob you.”
+
+“You are joking!”
+
+“No, it’s the truth. Raymond thinks you have money with you.”
+
+“So I have. I’ve been collecting for the firm, and that roll under my
+pillow has eighteen hundred dollars in it.”
+
+“They would do a good deal for it. You had better--hist--here they come
+now.”
+
+Bob caught Frank by the arm, and both grew silent.
+
+Soft footsteps came up to the door, and then something scraped in the
+lock.
+
+“I can’t open it,” came at length, in the voice of Raymond. “I know a
+better way.”
+
+“What is it?”
+
+“We can jump out on the roof of the extension and crawl through the
+window. Come on.”
+
+The footsteps moved away. Frank walked to the bed and brought forth his
+pistol which was lying beside the roll of money.
+
+“If they come in here, I’ll give them a warm reception,” he said,
+significantly.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXV
+
+BOB AND FRANK STAND TOGETHER
+
+
+By Frank Landes’ manner Bob knew that the young man meant what he said.
+
+“They ought to receive a warm reception,” returned the young
+photographer. “But do you think it will pay to stay here and fight
+them?”
+
+“What else is there to do?”
+
+Bob pointed to the door leading to the hall-way.
+
+“We can run away while they are trying to get in at the window,” he
+suggested.
+
+“But I am not dressed.”
+
+“Slip on your clothes. I’ll shut the window and lock it, so they will
+find themselves foiled, and have to come back to the door.”
+
+As Bob spoke, he rushed over to the window and tried to close it.
+
+But for some reason the lower sash refused to budge, even though in his
+excitement he struck it several times along the edging.
+
+“I had the same trouble when I opened it,” said Frank, who was hurrying
+into his clothing as rapidly as possible.
+
+“The confounded thing won’t come down, and that settles it,” cried Bob,
+hopelessly.
+
+“Never mind, let it go. I am ready to start.”
+
+Frank moved swiftly toward the door and unlocked it. As he did so, the
+face of Raymond appeared at the window.
+
+“Quick!” whispered the young man, and he flung open the door for Bob to
+pass through.
+
+The hotel-keeper saw at a glance that something was wrong. He whispered
+a few words to his companion, and Casco at once leaped into the chamber.
+
+“There are two of them!” cried the scar-faced man. “You didn’t say he
+had a roommate.”
+
+“He didn’t have. Stop them!”
+
+Frank and Bob had passed into the hall-way. Casco made after them as
+noiselessly as possible.
+
+In moving toward the stairs the two had to pass close to a
+dimly-burning lamp. As they did so, Casco uttered a cry of amazement.
+
+“That is Bob Alden with him! How did he get in?”
+
+“The boy from the freight train?” queried Raymond.
+
+“Yes. We must catch them. They have most likely overheard what was
+said. Come on!”
+
+Down the stairs went Frank and Bob, two steps at a time, with Casco and
+Raymond in close pursuit. The scar-faced man began to yell, but the
+hotel proprietor stopped him.
+
+“Remember, the hotel is half full of guests,” he said. “We must
+overcome them without too much noise.”
+
+Once in the lower hall, Bob and Frank turned toward the front door. It
+was locked, but the key was handy, and they had it open in a trice.
+
+“Now which way?” questioned the young man when they were outside.
+
+“It doesn’t make any difference. Come on!”
+
+Away dashed Bob, with Frank directly behind him.
+
+The way was dark, and the young photographer had scarcely proceeded a
+dozen steps when he tripped over some stones and went down.
+
+Frank came down on top of Bob, and before either could rise, Casco and
+Raymond were upon them.
+
+“We have them,” said Raymond.
+
+“Don’t you dare to move!” cried the scar-faced man.
+
+The darkness was unfavorable to any kind of fair fighting, and every
+one went in as best pleased him. Casco was a powerful man, but Bob was
+thoroughly aroused, and he fought so skilfully that the scar-faced man
+was soon retreating.
+
+The young photographer followed him up, thus becoming separated from
+Frank and Raymond.
+
+At length Casco turned and fled toward the brook, and jumping over,
+disappeared in the brush and darkness beyond.
+
+Bob knew it would be folly just at present to attempt to follow the
+man, and after a moment’s hesitation he returned to the spot where he
+had left Frank and Raymond.
+
+The two had disappeared!
+
+“Hullo, Frank!” called out the young photographer. “Where are you?”
+
+No answer came back to the cry save the baying of a couple of hounds in
+the barn, and Bob at once became more alarmed.
+
+“What’s the row?” asked a voice from the hotel piazza.
+
+The scuffle had attracted the attention of several of the men who were
+making a night of it in the bar-room.
+
+“Have you seen anything of Raymond?” asked Bob.
+
+He knew it would be worse than useless to ask any of those men for
+assistance.
+
+“He’s up-stairs,” returned another of the men.
+
+“You are sure he is up-stairs?” went on Bob, ignoring the question.
+
+“He went up there a while ago. I haven’t seen him since.”
+
+Bob was perplexed. It was more than likely that the man spoke the
+truth, and this being so, what had become of Raymond and Frank?
+
+Fearful of being questioned further, Bob moved toward the back of the
+hotel again, while the men, muttering something he could not catch,
+re-entered the bar-room.
+
+As Bob walked toward the brook, he fancied he heard a low cry coming
+from behind the barn, which was built close to the water’s edge.
+
+He hurried in the direction, and caught a faint glimpse of two forms
+struggling behind a number of bushes.
+
+Coming closer, he saw that Raymond had Frank by the throat and was
+forcing him over into the water.
+
+As Bob dashed forward, there was a splash, and Frank went over, while
+Raymond caught up a club to hit him should he attempt to rise.
+
+“Don’t you dare to strike, Raymond!”
+
+At the sound of Bob’s voice the hotel-keeper turned quickly.
+
+“What do you want?”
+
+“Let my friend up.”
+
+“Hit him, Bob,” exclaimed Frank, faintly.
+
+“Where is Casco?” asked Raymond as he began to retreat.
+
+“Never mind,” returned the young photographer.
+
+By this time Frank had managed to crawl from the brook. His head was
+bleeding from a severe gash over the forehead.
+
+“Look out for him, Bob,” he cried.
+
+“I am looking out. Are you badly hurt?”
+
+“My head feels rather queer.”
+
+“What shall we do with this fellow?”
+
+“He ought to be locked up.”
+
+“Neither of you can do it,” sneered Raymond. “You don’t know me.”
+
+“Yes, I do,” said Bob. “You are the toughest road-house keeper in the
+country.”
+
+“Thanks for the compliment.” Raymond mused for a moment. “I will make
+a bargain with you. Quit the place at once and we’ll drop the whole
+matter.”
+
+“We sha’n’t leave you until you are safe in jail,” burst out Bob.
+
+At these words Raymond burst into a laugh.
+
+“You don’t know what you are talking about. You, a mere boy, expect to
+do what no officer around has been able to accomplish. Get out of here
+before I set my blood-hounds on you!”
+
+As Raymond spoke, he darted around the corner of the barn before Bob
+had time to stop him.
+
+Then they heard him utter a cry that was immediately followed by the
+deep baying of a hound.
+
+“We had better get out of here!” cried Frank. “He has two of the
+ugliest blood-hounds you ever saw.”
+
+“I’ll give you one minute to get away in,” sang out Raymond. “After
+that I’ll leave both my dogs loose.”
+
+Raymond muttered something under his breath. Then there was a rattling
+of chains, and the next minute two ferocious blood-hounds bounded out
+into the yard.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVI
+
+BOB SHOWS HIS NERVE
+
+
+The blood-hounds stood still for a second on catching sight of Bob and
+Frank.
+
+Then, as if scenting the blood on Frank’s face, both made a dash for
+the young man.
+
+“Help me!” cried Frank. For the time being he seemed to be fairly
+paralyzed with terror.
+
+“Jump into the tree!” returned Bob, quickly.
+
+The tree he mentioned stood but a few feet away. The lower limbs were
+not far from eight feet from the ground and almost directly over
+Frank’s head.
+
+With a desperate spring the young man caught one of the limbs and drew
+himself up just as one of the blood-hounds reached the spot where he
+had been standing.
+
+Baffled, the hound let out a deep growl and then stood up on his hind
+legs, followed by his mate.
+
+Then Bob thought of the pistol he carried and produced it.
+
+Crack! Bob pulled the trigger of the pistol and one of the blood-hounds
+fell back, shot through the heart.
+
+“Here, stop that!” roared Raymond, from the door-way of the barn.
+
+“I told you to keep them chained,” returned the youth as coolly as he
+could. “Better call the other one in.”
+
+The second hound turned at the shot, and backed several paces. Then he
+looked at his mate as though surprised at what had happened.
+
+“Good for you!” cried Frank. “Wait till I finish the other.”
+
+He drew his own pistol and fired, but his aim was poor, and the bullet
+merely grazed the blood-hound’s back.
+
+With a howl of rage the hound sprang away from the tree. Then with set
+teeth and gleaming eyes, he turned to attack Bob.
+
+“Go for him, Leo!” cried Raymond.
+
+He was in a rage and would have liked nothing better than to see the
+hound tear Bob to pieces.
+
+Bob again took aim and pulled the trigger. But for some reason the
+weapon failed to go off.
+
+The next instant the young photographer was knocked flat on his back by
+the blood-hound.
+
+Seeing this, Frank leaped down from the tree and rushed forward.
+
+“Get back there!” he yelled at the hound, and fired his pistol at the
+same time.
+
+But the beast paid no attention to the command. He snapped at Bob, and
+it was only by a quick movement to one side that the young photographer
+kept himself from having his arm torn to shreds.
+
+“Go for him!” cried Raymond.
+
+Lying on his back, Bob made another attempt to shoot the blood-hound.
+He pulled the trigger again, and this time the pistol went off, and
+with a shrill yelp the beast keeled over and lay on his side with a
+bullet through his head.
+
+“I’ll fix you for that!” screamed Raymond.
+
+He gave a shrill whistle, but already half a dozen men came running
+from the bar-room of the hotel, anxious to know what the firing was
+about.
+
+“Is that you, Raymond?”
+
+“What’s up?”
+
+“These fellows are prowling about the place,” returned Raymond.
+
+“That so?”
+
+“They are up to no good. This one just shot both my dogs.”
+
+“Don’t say! Why, those dogs were worth a hundred dollars.”
+
+“Every cent of it. Boys, will you help me capture them?”
+
+“Certainly we will. Hi! stop there!”
+
+“Come on,” whispered Frank to Bob. “We can’t stand up against such a
+crowd. The best we can do is to run away and summon the authorities.”
+
+“The constable don’t amount to a hill of beans,” returned the young
+photographer. “Yet if you say go, we’ll skip. I was principally after
+Casco.”
+
+“Come ahead this way.”
+
+“Lead ahead.”
+
+The young man turned to a lane which ran to the south of the barn, and
+Bob came close behind. It was then that one of the men yelled for them
+to stop, but he was not heeded.
+
+“Where is Casco?” asked Frank, as they scurried along.
+
+“Got away across the brook. I wonder if any of those fellows will
+follow us.”
+
+“It’s not likely, after they see the way you treated the hounds,”
+laughed Frank. “By Jove! Bob, you are a crack shot.”
+
+“I used to go hunting with old Peter Thompson’s gun when I wasn’t any
+higher than a rail fence,” returned the young photographer. “Which way
+now?”
+
+“There is a customer of mine lives up a side road not far from here. We
+might go to his house. I can’t go much farther with this head of mine.”
+
+“Does it hurt very bad?”
+
+“It aches fearfully.”
+
+“Let me tie it up with a wet handkerchief.”
+
+Bob got out his handkerchief and, wetting it in the brook, tied it over
+the wound. Frank, declared this relieved him considerably, and the two
+continued on their way at a more rapid pace than ever.
+
+“I don’t believe they are following,” said Bob, as, after five minutes
+of running, they paused to listen. “I believe that was only a bluff to
+get us off.”
+
+“Raymond is fearfully mad over the loss of those blood-hounds. He set
+great store by them. That is one reason the authorities never cared to
+go there to serve him with papers.”
+
+“It was a pity to kill them, but it couldn’t be helped. I am glad the
+shots were such lucky ones.”
+
+“So am I. Here we are at Larchmond’s place. I suppose he will think it
+awfully queer to be roused up at this time of the night.”
+
+They now entered a neat garden, and walking up a gravel path ascended
+to the porch. There was no bell, but a brass knocker instead, and this
+Frank used vigorously.
+
+A minute of dead silence followed. Then an upper window was shoved open
+and a head covered with a night-cap appeared.
+
+“What do you want?”
+
+“Is that you, Mr. Larchmond?”
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“I am Frank Landes, the collector and agent.”
+
+“Gracious! What business do you want this time of night? I sent that
+consignment of eggs off----”
+
+“The eggs are all right, Mr. Larchmond. I have other business of a more
+serious nature----”
+
+“Gracious, you don’t mean it!” and the old man’s voice actually
+quivered.
+
+“Shet the winder, you’ll catch yeour deth o’ cold, Thomas!” came in a
+shrill female voice.
+
+“I’ll be down in a minit,” said Larchmond, and bang, down came the
+window.
+
+Several minutes passed. Then a light appeared in the hall, and they
+heard the old man nervously unlock and unbolt the door.
+
+“Come in an’ tell me the trouble,” he said. “Why, who’s this?” he
+added, looking at Bob.
+
+“This is my friend, Bob Alden. We have just come away from Raymond’s
+Hotel----”
+
+“Is somebody killed there?” put in Larchmond, quickly. “I always
+allowed as how some day they would have a fight and----”
+
+“No one is killed but Raymond’s two blood-hounds,” laughed Frank.
+
+“Do tell!”
+
+“My friend Bob shot them. But we have had serious trouble, and we want
+your advice as to what is best to do.”
+
+“Come into the sittin’-room. It’s all right, Mirandy!” called Larchmond
+up the stairs.
+
+“I’m comin’ down!” returned Mrs. Larchmond, and presently she appeared,
+fully dressed.
+
+The story of the happenings at Raymond’s Hotel was soon told. Old
+Larchmond and his wife listened with interest, the old man shaking
+his head repeatedly, and the old lady putting in a “do tell” at every
+opportunity.
+
+“And now we want to know what is the best to do,” said Frank after all
+the facts had been related.
+
+“Yeou can’t do nuthin’,” replied Mrs. Larchmond, promptly.
+
+“We can’t?” cried Bob.
+
+“No, yeou can’t.”
+
+“Why not?”
+
+“Well, it’s this way,” said the old man, by way of explanation.
+“Raymond is the wust feller in the whole deestrict. The law can’t tech
+him, nohow. I tried to sue him onct, but the constable couldn’t serve
+the papers, nohow.”
+
+“Did you have Dilmer?”
+
+“Yes, I had Dilmer, an’ I had Vincent, too; but it wuz no ust--them
+dogs kept ’em at a safe distance.”
+
+“But the hounds are now dead.”
+
+“It don’t make no difference. Raymond can’t be teched, nohow. Anybody
+in Kentown will tell you the same thing.”
+
+“That’s a nice state of affairs,” cried Frank. “A man like that to
+terrorize the whole neighborhood!”
+
+“Well, you see, Raymond has lots of relations around here, an’ they
+all stick up for him. If it wasn’t for that, somethin’ might be did,
+although I doubt it, bless me if I don’t.”
+
+“Thomas is right,” put in Mrs. Larchmond. “If your money is safe, you
+better go about your affairs and say nuthin’.”
+
+“Oh, the money is safe enough,” returned Frank. “I grabbed that up and
+put it in my pocket the first thing.”
+
+As the young man spoke, he put his hand into his coat pocket to make
+sure that the eighteen hundred dollars were still there. Then he turned
+pale.
+
+“It’s gone!” he gasped.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVII
+
+BOB MAKES A FIND
+
+
+Every one in the sitting-room was astonished. Bob sprang to his feet.
+
+“You are sure it is gone?” he demanded.
+
+Frank continued his search, each moment growing paler.
+
+“Yes, it’s gone!” he groaned. “Eighteen hundred dollars! What will the
+firm say?”
+
+“When did you feel to see if it was safe last?” asked the young
+photographer.
+
+“When I jumped up into the tree to get out of the way of the
+blood-hounds.”
+
+“And you are sure you had it then?”
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“Then you must have dropped it while running here. Perhaps it jounced
+out of your pocket.”
+
+“Maybe it did. My head hurt so before you tied it up I didn’t give the
+money a thought.”
+
+“Well, the best thing to do is to go back for it,” said Bob, promptly.
+“The quicker the better.”
+
+“What, go back to Raymond’s?” screamed Mrs. Larchmond. “He will kill
+you.”
+
+“It’s tremendous risky,” said the old man, with a shake of his head.
+
+“Never mind, it’s got to be done,” said Bob. “Eighteen hundred dollars
+is a lot of money.”
+
+“Yes, I must go back,” said Frank. “What would the firm say if the
+money was lost? They would most likely discharge me, and maybe say I
+gambled it away, or something like that.”
+
+“Will you lend us a lantern?” asked Bob, turning to Larchmond.
+
+“Certainly.”
+
+“You need not go, Bob. I can go alone.”
+
+“No, indeed, Frank; we stick together to the end.”
+
+The old farmer left the sitting-room and presently returned with a
+lantern and a blunder-buss.
+
+“You might as well take the buss along, too,” he said. “It’s a putty
+good shootin’ piece.”
+
+“Thank you, but I think our pistols will do, if you have any cartridges
+around.”
+
+“Timothy had cartridges for his pistol,” put in Mrs. Larchmond. “They
+are up in his closet. I’ll get ’em.”
+
+She soon returned with the cartridges, which, luckily, just fitted the
+pistol Bob carried. It took but a moment to load, and then the boys
+were ready to start back.
+
+“I’d go, only my rheumatism is wuss,” said old Larchmond,
+apologetically.
+
+“Indeed you wouldn’t!” put in his wife. “I wouldn’t let you go for
+twice eighteen hundred dollars; there, now!”
+
+The boys were soon on the road. The lantern shone brightly, lighting up
+every foot of the way.
+
+“I trust we find it before we get anywhere near Raymond’s,” said Frank.
+“I have no desire to get into another tussle with him.”
+
+“Neither have I,” returned Bob. “But, Frank, keep your pistol ready for
+use. We don’t want to waste words with such a desperate character as
+that hotel-keeper.”
+
+“I agree with you. Here is my pistol right in my coat pocket.”
+
+“And I’ll carry mine in my hand. You take that side of the road, while
+I take this, and carry the lantern as low as possible.”
+
+In this fashion the two moved slowly along, searching every foot of the
+hard and dusty road.
+
+“I would like to know where Casco went,” said Bob, presently. “For all
+we know, he might have watched that fight with the blood-hounds and
+followed us.”
+
+“Hardly. If he escaped across the brook, he most likely set out to join
+Barker and Grogan. He would leave Raymond to settle the row here.”
+
+“I wish they were all in jail,” sighed Bob. “Then perhaps I could make
+Barker reveal something of the past, and make a somebody of myself.”
+
+“You’ll make a somebody of yourself, anyway, Bob,” returned Frank,
+encouragingly. “You’ve got too much grit to fail.”
+
+But Bob shook his head, as if the idea of never finding out the secret
+of his life did not please him.
+
+Quarter of an hour later they came to a halt. They had reached the
+boundary line of Raymond’s place, and still the money had not been
+found.
+
+“If we keep the lantern lit, they will surely see us,” said Bob. “You
+had better put it out.”
+
+“But how are we going to find the money in the dark?”
+
+“By feeling for it. I know exactly the way we came, and I will lead on.”
+
+Frank, after some hesitation, put out the lantern. The first streaks
+of the early dawn were now appearing, and it was not so dark as he had
+anticipated.
+
+Bob was several yards ahead, moving along slowly, with his eyes bent on
+the ground. Suddenly he gave a low cry.
+
+“Here it is!”
+
+“You have it?” inquired Frank, running up.
+
+“Isn’t this the roll?”
+
+“Yes.” The young man’s face took on a look of relief. “Oh, how thankful
+I am!”
+
+“Better examine it and make sure,” suggested Bob.
+
+“Oh, it must be all right.”
+
+Nevertheless, Frank hastily undid the paper and elastics which were
+placed about the roll of money, and began to count the bills.
+
+So absorbed did both he and Bob become that they did not notice the
+approach of a tall form from a mass of shrubbery which grew close to
+the road.
+
+The newcomer was Jim Casco, who was on his return to Raymond’s Hotel,
+satisfied that for the present, at least, it was safe to do so.
+
+Casco was astonished to come upon the pair, and still more taken aback
+to behold them at work counting a big roll of bills.
+
+“What does this mean?” he muttered to himself. “They can’t have been so
+near all this while.”
+
+He drew closer, and nervously clutched the heavy stick he held in his
+right hand.
+
+“It’s right,” said Frank finishing the counting.
+
+“You have every dollar of the eighteen hundred there?” asked Bob.
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“Good enough. Now we might as well go back without delay. I am dead
+tired.”
+
+“I should think you would be, not having any sleep since last night.
+Perhaps Mr. Larchmond will give us a shake down.”
+
+“I hope so.”
+
+“Where is that wonderful photographic outfit you wrote me about?”
+
+“Over in Dartinville. I will have to go for it as soon as we finish up
+with Raymond.”
+
+“We will see if we can’t have him arrested,” said Frank, decidedly.
+
+“That’s it. And when--what was that?”
+
+Bob broke off short. A dark object loomed up over his back and a
+stinging blow went singing through his head.
+
+“Stop!” he heard Frank cry. “Give me that money!”
+
+Both Bob and Frank were sprawling in the road, while across the fields
+ran Casco, with the roll of bills in his hand.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVIII
+
+BOB MEETS OLD BLAKE
+
+
+As quickly as he could, Bob sprang to his feet.
+
+“Save the money!” gasped Frank.
+
+He had received another crack over the head and the old wound was
+bleeding afresh.
+
+“Which way did that fellow go?”
+
+“That way.”
+
+“Who was it? Raymond?”
+
+“No; Casco.”
+
+“By jinks! So he had the cheek to come back. Stay here till I go after
+him.” With his head still stinging from the blow the scar-faced man
+had dealt him, the young photographer sprang over the bushes which
+lined the roadway and made after Casco, who was running across the open
+fields at top speed.
+
+“I’ll either get Frank’s money or finish that wretch,” was the youth’s
+somewhat savage resolve.
+
+When about a hundred yards away, Casco looked back to see if either of
+his victims had recovered from the attack.
+
+He was astonished to see Bob in pursuit.
+
+“Humph! The young rascal means business,” he muttered to himself. “I
+must reach shelter as soon as I can.”
+
+Not very far beyond was a small lake, the edge of which was lined with
+willows. Toward this Casco directed his steps.
+
+Bob saw the scar-faced man disappear behind the fringe of willow trees.
+He did not come to a halt, but kept on at a slower gait, fearful that
+Casco might be setting a trap for him.
+
+Day was now breaking, and every moment the eastern sky grew lighter.
+
+When Bob reached the edge of the lake, nothing was to be seen of the
+scar-faced man.
+
+Bob looked up and down the shore in perplexity, and then began an
+examination for foot-prints.
+
+They were plainly visible, leading to a little cove a hundred feet
+southward.
+
+When Bob reached the cove, he found close at hand a stake with a bit of
+rope attached to it. The rope had been newly cut.
+
+“Stole a boat, I’ll bet,” muttered the young photographer to himself.
+“By jinks, what a fool I am! There he is!”
+
+Bob looked out on the water, and there, a goodly distance from the
+shore, was Casco in a boat, rowing away as fast as he could.
+
+The scar-faced man was too far off to make a shot effective, and in
+deep chagrin Bob saw him disappear around a cluster of islands in the
+centre of the lake.
+
+As fast as he could, Bob ran along the shore until he reached a spot
+where he could see the other side of the island.
+
+The boat had disappeared.
+
+At first the young photographer could scarcely believe his senses. What
+had become of Casco and the craft?
+
+“Perhaps she filled with water and sunk,” thought Bob. “In that case he
+would have to take to the islands. I wish I could keep him there till I
+could get assistance.”
+
+But Bob knew better than to leave the spot at once. Casco was a wily
+villain, and not one of the kind to be caught like a rat in a trap.
+
+“As soon as I disappear, he’ll think I’ve gone to summon assistance,
+and then he’ll come ashore,” was the way Bob reasoned. “I think I’ll
+play a watching game.”
+
+Bob sat down on a rock, out of the sight of the islands, and waited.
+Ten minutes passed and he saw nothing to command his attention.
+
+“He is certainly taking his time,” thought the youth. “Hullo, what’s
+that?”
+
+Bob’s attention was attracted to a small boat which had suddenly shot
+out from the opposite shore.
+
+The craft contained a single occupant, an old man, who worked away at
+the oars in a feeble way.
+
+“He must be going to the islands, too,” thought the young photographer.
+“This begins to look interesting.”
+
+Bob watched the old man with keen interest. In less than ten minutes
+the islands were reached, and the second boat disappeared as the first
+had done.
+
+“Who can that old chap be?” was Bob’s mental question. “Can he know
+Casco?”
+
+Five minutes more passed, and then the youth heard a well-known
+whistle, to which he at once responded.
+
+In a fraction of time Frank was at his side.
+
+“I couldn’t stay any longer,” said the young man. “Where is Casco?”
+
+“On one of those islands.”
+
+“You don’t say! How did he get over?”
+
+“On a boat; and just now another man went over on a second boat.”
+
+“This is Catfish Lake, and they say the islands are haunted.”
+
+“I don’t believe in ghosts,” declared Bob.
+
+“Neither do I.”
+
+“How is your head?”
+
+“It feels thick, but it doesn’t ache, so I think I can stand it. What
+do you propose to do?”
+
+“Get back your eighteen hundred dollars!”
+
+“Are you going to stay here until Casco leaves the islands?”
+
+“Either that or pay the islands a visit. I wonder if there is another
+boat anywhere?”
+
+“I don’t know. There ought to be.”
+
+“If you’ll watch the islands, I’ll take a look around.”
+
+“I will. Sitting still just suits me.”
+
+“Then maybe we had better watch all day.”
+
+But to this Frank demurred. He was too anxious to get back the stolen
+money.
+
+Bob at once began his search for another boat. It was by no means an
+easy task, as the shore was rocky and lined with a thick sedge.
+
+Presently he came to the rear of a large farm, and here he found a boat
+moored to a fallen tree.
+
+By the looks of the craft the young photographer felt sure that it had
+not been used for a long time. But it did not leak, so he did not care
+how dilapidated it was in appearance.
+
+Untying the boat, he towed her around to where Frank sat.
+
+“I’ve found one,” he said. “But there are no oars.”
+
+“I suppose they haven’t used it, fearing the ghosts from the islands
+might catch them,” laughed the young man. “Well, I reckon you can get
+along without oars on a pinch.”
+
+“How?”
+
+“The water is so shallow a couple of poles is all we will need to push
+ourselves over. But, Bob, there is another thing.”
+
+“What is that?”
+
+“By going over to the islands you will run a big risk.”
+
+“So will you. But if you are afraid----”
+
+“I am not afraid for myself. But it’s asking too much of you----”
+
+“Oh, stow that, Frank. I haven’t lost any money, but I’m just as
+anxious to bring Casco to justice as you are.”
+
+“And you want to make the trial in broad daylight?”
+
+“If you say so, yes. We are both armed, and we ought to have as good a
+show to come out on top as Casco.”
+
+“That’s true.”
+
+“If he begins to fire at us, we can come back and wait.”
+
+A few minutes after they got aboard the boat. Bob had cut two
+fair-sized poles, and also several bushes, which he stood up in the bow
+of the craft.
+
+“That will destroy his aim if he pulls on us,” said the youth.
+
+It was hard work poling the boat along, as the bottom of the lake was
+for the most part rocky, and the poles slipped. Once Frank nearly went
+overboard, but Bob caught him by the arm in time to save him.
+
+They had now come within a hundred feet of the islands, and still
+nobody made his appearance, nor did they see a single sign of
+hostilities.
+
+“Maybe he’s skipped,” said Frank.
+
+“I don’t see how he could. Come on, we will run in this inlet and jump
+ashore. Got your pistol handy?”
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“Hold on till I take a good look ahead.”
+
+Bob stood up in the bow and parted the bushes. At the moment that he
+did so there reached them a most agonizing scream.
+
+“Help me! Oh, save me!”
+
+The cry came from behind a grove of willow trees, close to the shore.
+
+“That isn’t Casco’s voice!” exclaimed Frank. “What can it mean?”
+
+“It may be that old man I saw,” replied Bob. “Or it may be nothing but
+a trap.”
+
+“That’s no trap,” said Frank, as the scream again reached them.
+
+“Don’t sound so, surely. Come on!”
+
+Standing on the bow of the boat, Bob made a leap and reached the rocky
+shore. In a minute he had dashed through the willows to the open glade
+beyond.
+
+A sight met his gaze that filled him with horror. There, lying flat on
+his back, with his face covered with blood, was old man Blake!
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIX
+
+BOB HEARS INTERESTING NEWS
+
+
+The old man had been struck in the head with a heavy stick which lay
+close at hand.
+
+“Hullo, who did this?” cried Bob, as he leaned over the old man.
+
+“Casco, the villain!” gasped old Blake.
+
+“Too bad!” returned the young photographer, kindly. “Let me examine the
+wound.”
+
+“Catch the rascal first; he has stolen the papers,” cried the old man.
+“He must not get away with them.”
+
+“Where is he?”
+
+“He went off in that direction.”
+
+Old Blake pointed with his long, bony finger toward one of the other
+islands. Then he tried to rise, but fell back in a faint in Bob’s arms.
+By this time Frank had arrived on the scene. He did not know Blake, but
+he surmised that the old man had been another of Casco’s victims.
+
+“Tend to him, Frank, while I go after Casco,” said Bob. “I’ll whistle
+if I want you.”
+
+Pistol in hand, the young photographer made his way through the willows
+and over the rocks until, jumping a shallow spot in the water, he
+landed on one of the other islands.
+
+A noise ahead told him that Casco was not far off. But as Bob plunged
+on the sounds suddenly ceased, and all became profoundly silent.
+
+“I’ll bet a hat he has taken to the water again,” said Bob to himself.
+
+Reaching the edge of the second island the young photographer found his
+surmise correct. There, half-way to the north shore, was Casco in his
+boat, pulling with all his strength. A minute later Casco reached shore
+and disappeared from view.
+
+“Gone!” groaned Bob. “And with Frank’s eighteen hundred dollars, too!”
+
+The youth felt almost as bad as if the loss had been his own.
+
+Frank Landes was his dearest friend, and, although the young man was
+rich, Bob knew the loss of the money would be a sore trial to him.
+
+When the young photographer returned to where he had left Frank and old
+Blake, he found that his friend had bound up the old man’s forehead
+with a wet rag torn from his coat sleeve. Blake was as pale as death,
+and could scarcely move.
+
+Yet he opened his eyes anxiously when Bob approached.
+
+“Did you get ’em?” he asked feebly.
+
+“No.”
+
+“Didn’t you see Casco?” asked Frank.
+
+“Yes. He escaped to the shore.”
+
+Frank’s face fell, and Blake gave a groan.
+
+“The papers, gone!” muttered the old man. “Gone, and Barker promised me
+five hundred dollars for them!”
+
+“What’s that?” asked Bob, with sudden interest.
+
+“Nothin’,” mumbled Blake, but he eyed the youth in a dreamy,
+speculative way for a long while after.
+
+Bob and Frank now held a consultation. It was obvious that they could
+not leave Blake alone. The old man might die if left without somebody
+to nurse him.
+
+“If you will remain, I will go after Casco,” said Frank. “As soon as I
+reach shore, I will get somebody to drive me over to Dartinville, and
+from there I will telegraph to the city for a couple of detectives.
+This chase has lasted long enough. I will pay a couple of hundred
+dollars out of my own pocket to run down Casco and his gang.”
+
+Bob agreed to remain behind, and in a minute more Frank was off, poling
+for the shore as hard as his tired arms would permit.
+
+“Are you in the habit of coming to this island?” asked Bob of Blake,
+when the old man was able to sit up.
+
+“Sometimes,” was the slow response.
+
+“Is there any sort of shelter here?”
+
+Blake was silent for a moment.
+
+“Why do you ask?” he questioned at length.
+
+“Because if there was I might take you to it and make you comfortable.
+You are not very comfortable out here on these damp rocks.”
+
+“There is a cave-hut just back of here. Take me to that, please.”
+
+As Blake spoke, a dizziness seemed to come over him, and he closed his
+eyes. Bob waited until the spell was over, and then half carried, half
+dragged the old man to the place he had mentioned.
+
+The young photographer found that a large hollow under a shelving rock
+had been converted into a dwelling-place by having a front of logs
+built up against it.
+
+There were a door and a window, and, entering the former, Bob
+discovered a cot, a table, and a couple of chairs, while a number of
+pans and dishes lay heaped up in a corner.
+
+The youth placed Blake on the cot and made him as comfortable as the
+conveniences of the cave-hut permitted. Blake pointed to a flask
+resting on a shelf, and when the youth handed it to him the old man
+took a deep draught of the liquor it contained.
+
+It appeared to brace him up. The color came back into his face, and
+presently he sat up.
+
+“So you say Casco got away with those papers?” he said slowly.
+
+“He got away. I know nothing of any papers.”
+
+“He ought to let me have ’em back.”
+
+“What did the papers contain?”
+
+“Never mind.”
+
+“They ought to be pretty valuable if Barker offered you five hundred
+dollars for them.”
+
+“Who said he did?”
+
+“You did.”
+
+“I was only foolin’. They ain’t worth anything to anybody but me.”
+
+“How long have you known Barker?” went on Bob, seating himself beside
+the old man.
+
+“Longer than I care to remember.”
+
+“Did you ever know Peter Thompson?”
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“What do you know about my past history?”
+
+The young photographer asked the question boldly, watching Blake
+intently as he did so.
+
+He saw the old man start up and then fall back.
+
+“Who said I knew anything about your history?” he said, sharply.
+
+“I say so, Blake. Come, you had better tell me all. I am willing to
+nurse you and see you through, but I want the truth from you, and
+unless I get it you shall go to prison.”
+
+“No! no!”
+
+“I say yes.”
+
+“But Sarah----”
+
+“You mean your daughter?”
+
+“Do you know her?”
+
+“I know of her.”
+
+“What will Sarah say?”
+
+“I believe she has been at you to turn over a new leaf, Blake.”
+
+“So she has,” and the old man sighed.
+
+“Then why don’t you do it?”
+
+For a long time Blake was silent. Bob could see that he was undergoing
+a severe mental struggle. At last he heaved a long sigh.
+
+“I will tell you all I know,” he said; “but you must promise to protect
+me against Barker.”
+
+“I will do that.”
+
+“If he found I had exposed him, he might kill me.”
+
+“It will not be long before Barker is in prison, and the others with
+him.”
+
+“That’s where they ought to be.”
+
+“But tell me what you know,” went on Bob, impatiently.
+
+“I first met Barker about ten or twelve years ago,” began old Blake.
+
+“Where?”
+
+“At the house of Robert Perry, your uncle, in Buffalo.”
+
+“Robert Perry; is he still alive?”
+
+“No; he died shortly after Barker came there.”
+
+“Who is my father?”
+
+“He was Thomas Perry, Robert’s brother. He was a captain in the United
+States Army, and he was killed in an Indian raid in the Black Hills.”
+
+“And my mother?”
+
+“I don’t know anything of her. Your father met her out West and
+married. When he was killed, you, a mere baby, was sent to your uncle’s
+home. The report was that your mother was also killed by the Indians;
+but your uncle could never learn the exact truth of that statement.”
+
+“Then she may be alive?”
+
+“Yes. I believe Barker knows for certain.”
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXX
+
+BOB LEARNS SOMETHING OF THE PAST
+
+
+Never had Bob listened to words that interested him more. Here, at
+last, was news concerning his identity. His real name was Bob Perry,
+and he was the son of an officer. It was not known for certain whether
+his mother was dead or not. Supposing she was alive? A lump arose in
+Bob’s throat at the mere thought.
+
+“You say you think Barker knows?” he said, quickly.
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“Then I’ll make Barker speak,” was the young photographer’s
+determination.
+
+Blake took another pull at his flask and then continued:
+
+“Barker pretends that he is the son of a sister of your father and
+Robert Perry--a sister who emigrated to Montana with a man named
+Barker.”
+
+“He pretends?”
+
+“Yes, pretends; for Casco found out that old Barker had no children
+when he died. That gave him a hold on Barker.”
+
+“I see. Go on.”
+
+“Grogan knew Barker before he turned up at your uncle’s place. He once
+told me, when he was full of liquor, that Barker’s real name was Bill
+Dix, and that he was a Virginia outlaw, wanted for shooting a man in
+Petersburg.”
+
+“And that gave Grogan his hold on Barker?”
+
+“It did. But all three are hard customers, and will do anything to get
+money.”
+
+“I’ve found that out. But why did Barker pretend to be my uncle’s
+nephew?”
+
+“Because your uncle was a bachelor, very old, and worth a pile of
+money. He thought if he could get you out of the way he would come in
+for part if not all of the fortune.”
+
+“And how did he get me out of the way?”
+
+“In rather a roundabout fashion. I was working for your uncle at the
+time, and Sarah, my daughter, who is married to a young man named Paul
+Marks, was working for a woman named Rose.
+
+“This Mrs. Rose had a child sick with scarlet fever, and just at that
+time you were similarly stricken. My daughter was told by the doctor
+that Mrs. Rose’s child could not live. Barker heard of this, and one
+day, when your uncle had to go to New York on important business, he
+had the two children changed, paying Mrs. Rose quite some money for the
+transaction.”
+
+“Did your daughter know of the exchange?”
+
+“She never knew, but she suspected something was wrong, and often
+asked me. The day Mrs. Rose’s child was taken to your uncle’s house
+it died, and as every one was afraid of scarlet fever, no one came in
+from the neighborhood, and the little one was buried the next day, the
+doctor making out a certificate without viewing the corpse.”
+
+“And I was taken to Mrs. Rose’s house?”
+
+“Yes. My daughter wanted to nurse you, but Mrs. Rose pretended to want
+to do the nursing herself, and would not let my daughter in the room.
+I believe the plan was to poison you, but you got well rapidly, and
+Mrs. Rose did not have the heart to poison you, but sent you off to an
+orphan asylum instead.”
+
+“But how did I get to old Thompson’s?”
+
+“Barker and Mrs. Rose quarrelled about a month later, and that very
+day you were taken from the orphan asylum by somebody, and then I lost
+track of you.”
+
+“No doubt it was Barker’s work,” said Bob, remembering what Mary
+Ridley, who had worked for Peter Thompson, had told him. “What became
+of Mrs. Rose?”
+
+“She died of heart failure brought on by the excitement of the quarrel.
+At least that is what they said. Perhaps Barker poisoned her, he is
+such a wretch.”
+
+“And did he get possession of my uncle’s property?”
+
+“He got possession of only a small part of it. The rest remains
+somewhere tied up in the courts. Barker could not produce satisfactory
+evidence in regard to his identity, and besides, he did not have those
+papers I spoke about.”
+
+“What papers are they?”
+
+“They pretend to prove that your mother was killed as well as your
+father. The package also has a number of letters from Barker to Mrs.
+Rose relating to the changing of the children. I was holding them to
+get money, but that is all over now.”
+
+“How did you learn of all this?”
+
+“By prying around and following Barker, whom I did not like from the
+start. Then I got to drinking, and Barker and Casco made me their tool.
+I tried to reform several times, because Sarah wanted me to, but the
+appetite for liquor was too strong. But now I am done with it forever!”
+
+As Blake finished, he caught up the flask, which was still half full
+of liquor, and hurled it with all his strength against the rocky back
+wall of the hut. It was smashed into a hundred pieces, and the liquor
+splashed in all directions.
+
+“I swear that from now on I’m going to lead a different life,” went on
+the old man. “And if you will help me, I’ll do what I can to bring that
+gang to justice and assist you in getting your inheritance.”
+
+“And in finding my mother, if she be alive,” added Bob. “Blake, give me
+your hand. From now on we are firm friends.”
+
+The two shook hands. More conversation followed, and then Bob started
+up a fire, for the air about the hut was damp, and finding some coffee,
+made a couple of hot cupfuls, both of which were relished.
+
+The young photographer asked Blake how he had come to locate on the
+islands, and was told that the old man at times grew utterly disgusted
+with himself and the world, and had found on such occasion a haven of
+rest there.
+
+“Do you think you can stand it if I row you to the main land?” asked
+Bob, when it was nearly noon.
+
+“I reckon so, but you’ll have to put me to bed somewhere after that.”
+
+“I’ll take good care of you, Blake.”
+
+“You’ll find my boat over in a hollow back of these rocks.”
+
+Bob procured the craft, and then, exerting all of his strength, carried
+Blake to it and sat him down in the stern.
+
+Quarter of an hour later they drew up to the spot where Bob had found
+the other boat. Here a fat farmer was looking around in perplexity for
+his craft.
+
+“Say, does you vos see mine poats?” he asked.
+
+“Yes, I borrowed it,” said Bob. “I will pay you for its use.”
+
+“Oh, dot’s all right den. I vos dinkin’ it vos drifted avay, ain’t it?”
+
+“It’s over to the other shore. But, tell me, do you live here?”
+
+“Sure, right ofer dere,” and the German jerked his thumb over his
+shoulder.
+
+“This man has been hurt in the head. If you will take him in and send
+for a doctor, I will be very thankful and settle all bills.”
+
+“Sure, I took him in. Carl!”
+
+At this call a boy, even fatter than his father, appeared.
+
+“Run an’ tole your mudder a chentleman vos got hurt an’ to gits a ped
+reaty kvick.”
+
+“Yah, fadder.”
+
+The boy went off, and Bob, assisted by the German farmer, lifted old
+Blake out of the boat, and carried him up to the farm-house.
+
+Here the old man was placed on a soft feather bed, and Carl was sent
+off for the nearest doctor.
+
+Bob left a twenty-dollar bill behind to pay all immediate charges, and
+then bidding Blake keep a stout heart, he hired a horse and buggy from
+the German farmer and set off for Dartinville.
+
+It was a good hour’s drive, but Bob did not mind that, being busy
+thinking over all Blake had told him.
+
+“I must corner Barker and make him tell me the whole truth,” was his
+one conclusion. “If mother is alive, I want to know it. I’m not going
+to be a nobody any longer.”
+
+Half-way to Dartinville Bob met Frank driving a bay horse at a furious
+rate.
+
+“I have telegraphed for the detectives,” said the young man. “They will
+be on hand this evening.”
+
+“Then what is your awful hurry?”
+
+“I have a clew as to the whereabouts of Barker, Grogan, and that
+fair-ground swindler. Come along, and I will tell you how I caught it.”
+
+Bob eagerly assented, and the two turned off into a side road, leading
+to a hilly district, rather hard to travel.
+
+On the way Frank explained how he had got on the track. While
+telegraphing at Dartinville a stranger had sent a message to Stampton.
+He had written out the message twice, throwing the first sheet away.
+
+“The stranger’s manner excited my curiosity,” Frank went on, “and I
+picked up the slip. It read: ‘Meeting at the red house on Rayville
+Road. B., G. and C. there. To-morrow sure.’ I knew it meant Barker,
+Grogan, and Casco.”
+
+“They have some big plan on hand,” returned Bob, “and we must stop
+their evil work. Let us drive as fast as we can.”
+
+On and on they went, Bob on the way relating to Frank what old Blake
+had confessed.
+
+“They are indeed a set of villains,” returned the young man. “And
+it--hold up!”
+
+He drew rein, and Bob followed suit. They had just passed a cross-road,
+and looking down it they discovered a crowd coming toward them composed
+of Barker, Grogan, Raymond, and Casco!
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXI
+
+BOB GOES IT ALONE
+
+
+Before the two could draw out of sight they were discovered by Barker,
+who was slightly ahead of his companions.
+
+“Hullo, there!” he sang out. “There they are, boys!”
+
+“It’s so, for a fact,” said Casco. “Are they alone?”
+
+“Sure, an’ they are,” put in Grogan.
+
+“A good chance to capture them,” suggested Raymond.
+
+“What good will it do?” asked Barker. “The new plan will work all right
+anyway.”
+
+“Better bag them until the thing is over.”
+
+“That’s so,” said Casco. “Come on, we are four to two.”
+
+He ran ahead, and the others quickly followed.
+
+Frank saw them coming, and he whipped up his horse.
+
+“We must drive for it, Bob!” he cried. “They are too many for us.”
+
+“I would rather stand and fight it out,” returned the young
+photographer.
+
+But Frank urged him to follow, and to please his companion Bob did so.
+As Barker and his companions were on foot they soon outdistanced the
+crowd, and then Bob called Frank to hold up.
+
+“What’s best to do now?” questioned the young man.
+
+“I have a plan,” said Bob. “You go back to Dartinville and wait for the
+detectives while I keep my eyes on this crowd.”
+
+“That’s asking too much of you, Bob.”
+
+“No, it isn’t. I will follow them wherever they go, and I will leave a
+paper trail behind me so that you and your men can follow me up. That
+will be the easiest way of tracking them down.”
+
+“A paper trail?”
+
+“Yes. I have a couple of newspapers I will tear into strips.”
+
+“Well, here is another, if you insist.”
+
+“If you find the trail ends suddenly, look for a message on the last
+slip.”
+
+“I will.”
+
+“And take this horse and buggy, I will go after them on foot.”
+
+For five minutes more the two discussed the plan, and then Frank drove
+off with Bob’s buggy tied fast in the rear.
+
+Once on the ground, Bob lost no time in making his way back to the spot
+where they had discovered Barker and the others.
+
+The young photographer was careful to keep out of sight, and now leaped
+the rail fence on the side of the road and pushed forward through the
+bushes.
+
+To any one unaccustomed to this method of advancement it would have
+proved slow and laborious, but Bob knew how to go ahead, and he was too
+much interested to mind the fatigue entailed.
+
+When Bob reached the spot, he found the enemy had moved on up the road,
+but he soon drew close enough to make out their conversation, which
+they carried on carelessly, as they continued up a narrow path leading
+to the red house on the Rayville road, mentioned in the message.
+
+“What do you suppose they will do?” asked Raymond.
+
+“Not much,” returned Casco. “I reckon they have got tired of chasing
+me.”
+
+“It’s a wonder they don’t come down on your place, Raymond,” put in
+Barker.
+
+“If they do, they’ll find out I skipped for California,” chuckled the
+hotel-keeper.
+
+“But they just saw you.”
+
+“It don’t make any difference. I’ve skipped, and the property belongs
+to my wife, so what can they do about it?”
+
+There was a general laugh, and then Casco and Barker dropped slightly
+behind and began to converse in lower tones.
+
+Bob could not hear what was said, but when he came to a break in the
+brush he peered out and saw Casco hand Barker a thick packet, done up
+in a large envelope.
+
+“The papers and letters stolen from Blake,” muttered the young
+photographer to himself. “I must get them without fail.”
+
+A short while later the crowd reached the red house, a low structure,
+built of bricks, many of which were cracked and crumbled.
+
+All entered the house, and Bob saw the door closed, and heard no more.
+
+The youth had been dropping slips of paper all the way. He now took a
+larger slip and wrote this message upon it:
+
+  “All in the red house. I am going in to listen. If I am all right, I
+  will come back for this slip.”
+
+Bob had just finished writing the slip when a low rumble of thunder
+reached his ears. He glanced up and saw that a shower was coming up
+from the west.
+
+“Good!” he muttered. “The darkness and the wind may help me.”
+
+Two sides of the red house were surrounded by trees and bushes, and
+darting among them the youth had no difficulty in reaching a side door,
+which stood partly open.
+
+Listening intently, the young photographer heard a murmur of voices
+in the front, showing that the crowd had entered what had once been a
+sitting-room.
+
+Throwing a number of strips of paper just outside of the door, Bob
+pushed his way inside.
+
+All was full of dirt and cobwebs, but to this the youth paid no
+attention. He had a mission, and he felt in duty bound to fulfil it,
+despite either dirt or danger.
+
+From the side entry Bob passed into the rear room, which was separated
+from the sitting-room by a stairway leading to the second story.
+
+Under these stairs were a door leading to the sitting-room and also a
+deep closet.
+
+Peeping through the key-hole of the door, Bob saw the entire crowd
+seated around a table in the centre of the room, smoking and drinking.
+
+“It’s almost time Mavelt was here,” observed Barker. “He is taking all
+day to send that message.”
+
+“Perhaps he is waiting for an answer,” suggested Casco. “Did you tell
+him not to wait?”
+
+“No.”
+
+“Then that is what he is doing.”
+
+“Where is Horning?”
+
+“He said he would be here later.”
+
+“We want this thing fully understood,” put in Raymond. “I admit it’s a
+big scheme, but if it don’t work, we’ll all be sent up for ten years
+or more.”
+
+“We’ll be sint up for loife,” remarked Grogan. “’Tis no small wurruk to
+throw a train off the track.”
+
+“We won’t throw her off unless it’s necessary,” said Barker. “Rankin
+will set the signal if all is safe and----”
+
+Bob could not catch what followed, for a burst of thunder drowned out
+all other sound.
+
+Yet he had heard enough. The evildoers were plotting to throw a certain
+train off the track, unless matters were all right. What was meant by
+all right? Casco’s words shortly afterward solved the question.
+
+“The express car will carry over forty thousand dollars on her trip,
+and Rankin will be in charge,” he said. “If he gets no chance to throw
+it off, he will pull the bell-rope, jump off and join us. Then, when
+the train starts, we will throw over that loose rail, and over goes the
+train.”
+
+“And what then?” put in Raymond.
+
+“I have a key to the safe, which has an ordinary lock, not a
+combination. You men can overpower the agent in charge while pretending
+to help the passengers, while I open the safe. We can carry axes to
+clear away such of the wreck as is necessary, and Grogan can be on the
+wagon.”
+
+“An’ it’s a good tame of horses Oi have for the occasion,” said the
+Irishman.
+
+“With the boodle in our possession we can make off at top speed,” went
+on Casco. “Then we will meet here, divide up equally, and separate.”
+
+“Yes, but if Rankin says it’s all right----”
+
+Another burst of thunder followed. Then came heavy drops of rain,
+followed by a perfect deluge.
+
+The conversation continued, but Bob could only catch an occasional
+word, and leaving the door he walked back to the entry.
+
+“They are a nice gang of rascals and no mistake,” thought the youth.
+“For the sake of gaining money they would derail a train, and perhaps
+kill many passengers. Frank can’t get here with those detectives any
+too soon.”
+
+Bob looked outside. The rain was coming down in a perfect sheet, while
+the murky air seemed to be filled with lightning.
+
+“If it wasn’t such a fearful storm, I would walk back to Dartinville,
+or up to Rayville, and summon help,” he muttered to himself. “But I
+couldn’t make any progress in such a storm as this. Phew! how the wind
+blows!”
+
+A sharp streak of lightning followed which made everything as bright as
+though the sun were shining.
+
+Somewhat blinded, Bob shrank back. As he did so, a hand was placed on
+his collar, and he was jerked rudely backward.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXII
+
+BOB BECOMES A PRISONER
+
+
+“That’s the time I caught you, you little sneak!”
+
+It was Casco who uttered the words, and it was he who had stepped up
+behind Bob and pulled him partly into the room.
+
+Without replying the young photographer straightened up and let out
+with his right arm.
+
+The scar-faced man went backward in such a hurry that he hit the wall
+opposite with considerable force.
+
+“Help!” he yelled.
+
+After the blow, so well delivered, Bob turned to flee, knowing full
+well the danger of remaining an instant longer.
+
+Alarmed by the sound of the row, Barker rushed out into the entry,
+followed by Grogan and Raymond.
+
+“Who is it?”
+
+“Bob Alden! Catch him!”
+
+“That imp! Which way did he go?”
+
+“Out of the door.”
+
+As he spoke, Casco managed to regain his equilibrium, and he followed
+Barker and the others outside.
+
+“There he goes!”
+
+Barker and Grogan came after Bob, but the youth would have escaped by
+outdistancing them had not just then something unexpected occurred.
+
+Bob was making for the roadway when suddenly he ran plump into a man
+who was making tracks toward the red house.
+
+The force of the meeting was such that both went sprawling in the
+mud, and before Bob could arise Barker was on top of him, and Grogan
+followed.
+
+“Here, what does this mean?” gasped the fellow Bob had knocked down.
+
+“Good for you, Horning!” laughed Barker. “We wanted him stopped, and
+you have done it.”
+
+“Hang me if it isn’t that young fellow who tried to down me,” cried
+Horning, as he sprang up and began to wipe the mud from his face.
+
+“March back to the house,” ordered Barker to Bob. “No more escapes are
+in order, understand.”
+
+With something of a sinking heart Bob turned about and, with Barker on
+one side of him and Grogan on the other, walked back and entered the
+sitting-room, Horning following.
+
+“It’s beastly weather,” muttered the latter. “I would never have
+started out if I had known it was going to pour down like this.”
+
+“Did you see anything of Mavelt?”
+
+“Yes. He is waiting for an answer to his message. Rankin may change the
+plan.”
+
+“Pshaw! It wasn’t necessary.”
+
+Once in the red house the whole crowd surrounded poor Bob, who was
+disarmed and then bound.
+
+“Yez sha’n’t escape me again,” said Grogan. “Oi’ll not go to slape
+watchin’ yez this toime.”
+
+“No, Mike, for the simple reason that I intend to do the watching this
+trip,” laughed Barker. “You mean well enough, but you are not always to
+be trusted.”
+
+“I will take him up-stairs,” said Barker. “I want to have a talk with
+him. Then I will come down, and we can decide on what we intend to do.”
+
+As he spoke, he winked at Casco, and the scar-faced man nodded.
+
+“Don’t be long,” said Raymond. “I want you to fix up that matter for
+me.”
+
+“All right.”
+
+Bob was compelled to march up to the second story of the house and into
+the front room.
+
+“Now, sit down, Bob,” said Barker, as he closed the door. “I want you
+to tell me something.”
+
+Bob took a seat. He saw that Barker’s face was unusually cruel. The man
+looked capable of killing him then and there.
+
+“You followed Casco this morning, didn’t you?” began the man.
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“And you met Blake.”
+
+“I did. I arrived just in time to save him from being murdered.”
+
+“So Casco told me. Now, I want to know what Blake told you.”
+
+“Told me about what?”
+
+“About----” Barker hesitated an instant. “About me.”
+
+“Supposing I don’t care to talk about that matter?”
+
+“I want you to answer me!”
+
+Bob remained silent. Stepping over to the defenceless youth, Barker
+raised his hand and struck him in the face.
+
+“Now will you answer me?”
+
+“No.”
+
+“You are mighty brave, I must say. But your bravery counts for nothing
+with me.”
+
+“And your bluster counts less with me.”
+
+“I have you in my power.”
+
+“I have been there before.”
+
+“And you think you can escape again. But you will not, mark my word.”
+
+“Maybe I will.”
+
+Barker strode up and down the room a moment and glared at Bob.
+
+“Did Blake tell you anything about yourself?” he asked, coming to a
+halt.
+
+“I told you I wouldn’t answer any questions. You may ask me if it is
+going to stop raining soon, and I’ll have nothing to say.”
+
+Barker grated his teeth.
+
+“May break him, but never bend him,” he muttered to himself. “I never
+saw his equal for pure spunk.”
+
+“What did you hear down-stairs?” went on the man, shifting his tactics.
+
+Instead of replying, Bob gazed up to the ceiling, and began to whistle.
+
+Again Barker raised his hand.
+
+“Stop that.”
+
+“Does it annoy you?” asked Bob, coolly.
+
+“You don’t seem to realize your situation.”
+
+“Don’t want to if it’s going to scare me to death.”
+
+But Bob did realize matters very plainly, and his chaff was only
+uttered to keep up his courage.
+
+“Look here, I’ll----” began Barker, when a crash of thunder drowned out
+his voice and made him shrink back in awe.
+
+“How long are you going to be up there?” called Casco, from the foot of
+the stairs.
+
+“I’ll be down in a little while,” replied Barker. “Why?”
+
+“Mavelt is here.”
+
+“What news does he bring?”
+
+“The money will be on the express to-night.”
+
+“To-night?”
+
+“Yes. We have just time to get ready and no more. Finish with that boy
+and come down.”
+
+“That’s all right, too, but----”
+
+A crash of thunder close at hand made both Barker and Bob jump.
+
+The crash was followed by one of a different sort, as a tree which had
+stood close at hand was split from top to bottom, and one side smashed
+in the entire window-sash.
+
+“Oh!” howled Barker. “I can’t stand this!”
+
+Pale as a ghost he made for the door, and ran down the stairs.
+
+“Now is my chance,” thought Bob. “It’s a great risk, but it’s the only
+chance I have to save my life.”
+
+Bound though he was, he managed to reach the broken window and climbed
+up on the sill.
+
+The tree, the top of which was on fire, still rested against the house,
+and upon this Bob threw himself and rolled to the ground.
+
+Some bushes were not far off, and as soon as he reached the soil the
+young photographer rolled over and over, until he was out of sight.
+
+Then came another streak of lightning which almost blinded the youth.
+The air was filled with the smell of sulphur, while the noise was
+terrific.
+
+“Help I help!” came from the interior of the red house, accompanied by
+the crash of falling walls.
+
+The lightning had struck the chimney, and run down the centre of the
+structure, ruining it completely.
+
+For the moment Bob thought the end of the world had come. He lay still,
+a strange sensation darting like needles through his whole system.
+
+“Come on out, if you value your lives!” he heard Casco cry. “Sure,
+an’ Horning is kilt!” howled Grogan as he came rushing forth. “The
+loightning shtruck him, so it did. Come away!”
+
+Bob heard no more. Another crash of thunder roared in his ears,
+followed by a tremendous downpour of rain, and the crowd moved away to
+seek a new shelter.
+
+Poor Bob felt as weak as a sick kitten. He tried to move, but the shock
+to his nerves had been too much, and presently his senses left him, and
+all became a blank.
+
+When he returned to consciousness, it was beginning to grow dark.
+The rain had ceased, and the sky overhead was once more a deep blue,
+flecked with white clouds.
+
+For a while the young photographer could not remember where he was,
+nor what had happened. But gradually he recalled the scene in the upper
+chamber of the red house, and what had followed, and raising his head
+he looked around.
+
+The cottage was a mass of ruins, burnt and water-soaked, and beside it
+lay the tree the lightning had split, the top charred and blackened.
+
+“Thank Heaven for that escape!” murmured Bob. “My! what a close shave!”
+
+He was still bound, but by working steadily at the rope he, after an
+hour’s labor, managed to free himself.
+
+He ached in every joint, but to this he scarcely gave attention. His
+one thought was of the gang and what they intended to do.
+
+Approaching the cottage, he examined the ruins, but could see nothing
+of Horning’s remains. Whether or not the gang had buried the man the
+youth could not tell.
+
+Bob knew that the express of which the men had spoken would leave
+Stampton at eight o’clock and would arrive in Dartinville at
+eight-thirty, making no stop excepting on flag.
+
+It must now be seven or half-past. He must hurry. If the train and its
+passengers were to be saved, there was no time to lose.
+
+Bob knew it was at least a mile and a half to the railroad track, and
+two miles to the nearest way station. Could he cover that distance in
+time?
+
+“I’ll do it or die in the attempt!” muttered the brave youth. “If I
+only had a horse!”
+
+But there was no horse in sight, nor, indeed, any farm-house where one
+might be procured. All was dark and lonely.
+
+Bob set out at a brisk gait. He felt like groaning at every step,
+but ground his teeth together and kept on. Either he would cover the
+necessary distance or drop dead on the road.
+
+“They will find that I am not so easily overcome as they expected,” he
+muttered, grimly. “And now, with hundreds of lives at stake, what sort
+of a chap would I be to show the white feather?”
+
+Bob had to make a guess as to which was the shortest way to the nearest
+station, and praying that he was right and would arrive in time he
+pushed on and on.
+
+Over the rough fields and through the brooks, now swollen high from the
+recent rain, went Bob, half walking and half running. He was hatless,
+and the jump from the window had nearly sprained his ankle, but what
+did he care? If those lives were to be saved, he alone must accomplish
+the task.
+
+At last a long, low rumble reached his ears.
+
+“The track can’t be far off, and that is a train.”
+
+Bob paused for only a second to listen and to locate the sound. He was
+right. It was a train, going in the opposite direction.
+
+“It’s the last train through that way to-night,” he said to himself.
+“Now the only one to pass the other way is the express, and that must
+be almost due.”
+
+Off through a patch of woods Bob heard the train slow up, come to a
+stop, and then start off again.
+
+“That means a station of some sort most likely,” was his mental
+comment. “Oh, if I can only reach it in time!”
+
+Through the woods, the brush sweeping his face and scratching his skin,
+went Bob, his breath coming in short, sharp gasps. He was almost played
+out.
+
+At last the woods were passed. Then came an open field, and beyond lay
+the iron tracks.
+
+Bob looked up and down. The little station was a good hundred yards off.
+
+“Stop the train!” cried the youth as he dashed up.
+
+Then he gave a cry of dismay--the place was deserted--the
+station-master had locked up and gone home for the night.
+
+And now came a rumble from the distance, and looking down the tracks
+Bob saw the gleaming head-light of the express as it came thundering
+along at the rate of fifty miles an hour.
+
+“If I only had a red-lantern!” groaned the youth.
+
+He looked around. Was there no lantern in sight? Hither and thither he
+rushed, growing more frantic every second.
+
+Ah! here was an old lantern at last. But it was a common affair with a
+white glass and unlit.
+
+With nervous haste Bob felt for a match and drew it forth. It was wet
+from the rain and refused to burn. He threw it away and pulled out
+another and then another, and at last the lamp was lit and burned
+brightly. But, alas! the light was white, and the danger signal must be
+red! And now the express was almost upon him. In ten seconds it would
+be gone, and then what dire disaster would follow!
+
+Suddenly Bob gave a jump. In his vest pocket was a small ruby
+lantern-slide of red glass, such as nearly every professional
+photographer possesses.
+
+In feverish haste Bob drew forth the bit of glass and held it in front
+of the white light.
+
+Then the red light was waved wildly to and fro as the express dashed
+past.
+
+Had his signal been seen?
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXIII
+
+BOB AND HIS MOTHER--CONCLUSION
+
+
+The single second which followed the passage of the express train
+seemed to Bob an age.
+
+He continued to swing the red light until he heard a shrill shriek of
+the whistle and saw the fire fly from the wheels of the locomotive as
+the engine was reversed, and then he staggered up against the little
+station.
+
+The express train had been saved!
+
+In less than ten seconds the conductor came running forward.
+
+“What’s the matter, Boswell?” he cried. “Quick, we are behind time
+already!”
+
+Bob tried to speak. His voice came almost in a sob.
+
+“Don’t go! The track--the robbers have loosened a rail and----”
+
+“Hullo! it ain’t Boswell at all! Why, what’s the matter with you?
+Rivers! Jones! Come here!”
+
+The engineer and one of the brakemen came at the call, and all three
+gazed at the young photographer, whose eyes were closed, and whose form
+was gradually slipping down on the platform.
+
+“He’s fainting!” went on the conductor. “Here, help me place him on
+this baggage truck.”
+
+“What did he stop the train for?” asked the engineer, as he assisted in
+making Bob comfortable.
+
+“I don’t know. He said something about robbers and a loosened rail.”
+
+“Is that so? Wait till I get a bit of water and dash it into his face.”
+
+“He’s been cut on the forehead,” put in the brakeman, “and he seems
+completely exhausted. You can bet he didn’t stop the train for nothing.”
+
+Water was procured and dashed into Bob’s face. With something of a
+shudder he came to his senses.
+
+“Is the train safe?” he asked feebly.
+
+“So far, yes; but what’s the trouble?”
+
+Bob was silent for a moment, as if trying to pull himself together.
+Then he sat up.
+
+“Where is the conductor?”
+
+“I am the conductor.”
+
+“You have an express car attached to the train?”
+
+“Yes; but what----”
+
+“Arrest the express agent.”
+
+“Arrest him!” called three of the hearers.
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“What for?”
+
+“He is in with a gang of robbers to rob the car of forty thousand
+dollars which you are carrying.”
+
+“How do you know that?”
+
+“I overheard the plot.”
+
+“Do you know the men?”
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“Who are they?”
+
+Bob mentioned the names. Then in as few words as possible he related
+how the deed was to be done.
+
+“I believe the boy is right,” said the engineer. “I suspected something
+was wrong by the way Mavelt acted yesterday. And, come to think of it,
+he asked me the exact time we passed Gooseneck Falls.”
+
+“Then that is the place where the gang will try to throw the train off.”
+
+“Who are you?”
+
+“I am Bob Alden, a travelling photographer. Mr. Maverick hired me to
+take pictures along the route for a new guide book.”
+
+“I’ve heard of you,” said the conductor. “By Jove! but this is a
+rascally piece of business.”
+
+“What’s to be done?” asked the engineer. “We can’t stay here all night.”
+
+“I’ll tell you what to do,” said Bob. “Run back to that last station
+and get a number of officers. Then run up to Gooseneck Falls and
+capture the rascals.”
+
+“That’s a good plan,” said the conductor. “And in the mean time I’ll
+stay with that express agent and see that he doesn’t skip out.”
+
+“Can I go along?” asked Bob.
+
+“Certainly. Come, I’ll help you to the parlor car and you can go into
+the lavatory and wash up. The porter will give you some court-plaster
+and such stuff, if you need it.”
+
+Bob braced up and was soon aboard the car. Then they started back, much
+to the surprise of the express agent, who came out to inquire what was
+up.
+
+The conductor told him, and also ordered him to keep still. The fellow
+was very much frightened, and said he knew nothing of the intended
+robbery.
+
+While the train was making fast time back to the last station of any
+size Bob washed his face, bound up his wounds, and sat down to rest.
+The porter offered him some whiskey, but Bob declined.
+
+“I don’t drink liquor, but if you have any coffee----”
+
+“Yes, sah, right away, sah,” returned the darkey, and just before the
+train came to a stop the young photographer had a strong cup of coffee,
+which made him feel like another person.
+
+Word was at once sent to the nearest police station, and presently four
+officers hurried to the train. Behind them came a form that looked
+familiar to Bob. It was Frank Landes.
+
+“I was out with the detectives, but I lost your trail in the storm. One
+of the men thought you had come here. I was at the police station when
+the order for the men came in. What’s up?”
+
+“They are going to bag the whole crowd,” returned Bob. “Come on, if you
+want to take part.”
+
+Frank hopped aboard. In a second more they were off. The officers, with
+Bob, Frank, and the conductor, occupied the express car, so that very
+few of the passengers on the train knew that anything unusual was going
+on, although they wondered why the run backward had been made.
+
+The engineer crowded on the steam, and they went spinning along at
+the rate of sixty miles an hour. On the way all hands talked over the
+prospects ahead.
+
+Suddenly a whistle was heard and the train slowed up.
+
+“Here we are,” said the conductor. “Gooseneck Falls are not over a
+hundred yards ahead.”
+
+Bob, Frank, and the officers jumped at once to the ground. Then they
+separated, the officers on one side of the track and Bob and Frank on
+the other.
+
+“We ought to get some distance away from the track,” said Bob. “It
+isn’t likely the gang will remain close at hand when they expect the
+train to run off.”
+
+“That’s so, Bob,” returned the young man. “Come, here is a path. Let us
+take that.”
+
+The path led to a spot fully a hundred feet back of the track. They
+pursued it in silence until Bob caught Frank by the sleeve as a signal
+to stop.
+
+“What is it?” whispered the young man.
+
+“They are just ahead.”
+
+“You are sure?”
+
+“Yes. I heard Grogan talking.”
+
+“Hark!”
+
+They listened. This time it was Barker who was speaking.
+
+“Why is the train halting down there? I don’t see anything of Rankin.”
+
+“That’s what I would like to know,” came in Casco’s tones. “Something
+is wrong.”
+
+“Sure, an’ that is phat Oi’m afther thinkin’,” put in Grogan.
+
+“I’ve a good mind to go down and see,” said Raymond. “If there is
+anything wrong, the sooner we find out the better.”
+
+“Oh, it’s all right,” put in a strange voice, which Bob supposed must
+be that of Mavelt. “Don’t get alarmed the first thing.”
+
+“That storm upset me completely,” said Barker. “Hullo, the train is
+coming on again!”
+
+“Yes, but awfully slow.”
+
+“They are watching the tracks!” cried Casco. “They must----”
+
+He broke off short. Bob had given a signal to the officers on the other
+side of the track. In a second the signal was returned. The gang heard
+it as well as Frank and Bob.
+
+“Something is amiss!” cried Raymond.
+
+“An’ we had betther git out,” added Grogan.
+
+He turned to run, but found himself confronted by the young
+photographer.
+
+“Sure an’ it’s a ghost!” he shrieked. “Let me go!”
+
+Before he could say a word more Bob struck him in the head, and down
+went Grogan in a heap.
+
+“What, Bob?” cried Barker, rushing forward. “How did you escape?”
+
+“That’s my business, Bill Dix. Hold up your hands!”
+
+The man addressed was dumfounded.
+
+“Did you hear?” went on Bob.
+
+“Who told you I was Bill Dix?” cried the robber, savagely, as soon as
+he could recover.
+
+“Never mind now. Up with your hands!”
+
+“Never!”
+
+Dix, for that was really Barker’s name, attempted to draw his pistol.
+
+Now came a rush from the other side of the track, and suddenly a pot of
+burning red fire lit up the scene.
+
+“Surrender, in the name of the law!”
+
+“Trapped!” yelled Casco. “Boys, we must fight for it.”
+
+“But _you_ sha’n’t do any fighting,” added Frank, and, rushing up
+behind the scar-faced man, the young man wrenched the pistol from his
+hand and knocked him down.
+
+Raymond turned to flee, but one of the officers caught him, while
+Mavelt was also secured, and in five minutes more the entire gang was
+under arrest.
+
+“Who gave us away?” demanded Dix, while he was being taken to the train.
+
+“I had that pleasure,” returned Bob. “I told you I would come out on
+top, Dix.”
+
+“Just wait till I get out of this scrape, I’ll----”
+
+“You won’t get out of it for a good many years,” put in one of the
+officers. “So you might as well keep your temper to yourself.”
+
+The burning of the red fire and the pistol-shots had aroused all the
+passengers, and they crowded around when the prisoners were brought to
+the train.
+
+A loosened and misplaced rail was found on the track a hundred feet
+farther ahead. It was quickly adjusted and fastened down, and then the
+express proceeded to the next large station.
+
+At the depot there was a perfect jam, including many women, who had
+been passengers on the express. They watched the transferring of the
+prisoners to the platform with deep interest.
+
+“William Dix!” suddenly cried a woman from out of the crowd.
+
+Everybody, including Bob, turned toward the woman. She was a person
+apparently forty years of age and dressed in black.
+
+“Bill Dix! I must see that man!” went on the woman, and she tried to
+push her way forward.
+
+“Do you know the man?” questioned one of the officers.
+
+“Yes, yes! I have been hunting for him for a long time! Oh, let me
+speak to him!”
+
+“You may do so at the station-house.”
+
+“Thank you! So he is one of the robbers? I knew he was a bad man, but
+he is worse than I supposed.”
+
+The woman followed the crowd to the station-house, where Bob and Frank,
+as well as the chief of the officers, made a formal complaint against
+the gang.
+
+After this, two of the officers, accompanied by Frank, set out to
+recover what they could of the money and other things which had been
+stolen.
+
+For some reason he could not explain, Bob was deeply interested in the
+woman in black. Presently, seeing a good chance, he spoke to her.
+
+“You say you know this Dix?” he began.
+
+“Yes, I have known him for years.”
+
+“I am very anxious to learn something about him,” went on Bob.
+
+“And I am very anxious to make him tell me something,” returned the
+woman. “He did me a wrong, and I want him to do what he can to right
+it.”
+
+“He did me a wrong also.”
+
+“Indeed? May I ask your name?”
+
+“I am known as Bob Alden. But my right name is Bob Perry.”
+
+The woman started back and grew as pale as death.
+
+“Robert Perry!” she gasped.
+
+“Yes. But why----”
+
+“Were you the son of Thomas Perry, an army officer?”
+
+“I was, and still am, but----”
+
+“Thank Heavens!” and the woman caught Bob in her arms.
+
+“I don’t understand,” began Bob, with a curious sensation stealing over
+him.
+
+“I am your mother, Bob!”
+
+“My mother!”
+
+“Yes, your mother! Oh, how glad I am that I have found you!”
+
+“I’m glad, too,” said Bob, brokenly. His heart was jumping so much he
+could not say a great deal. “But it’s all so wonderful,” he added,
+after a moment.
+
+“So it is.”
+
+“Where have you been all these years? Why didn’t you come to my Uncle
+Robert’s house?”
+
+“It’s a long story. When your father was killed, I nearly lost my mind.
+When I recovered, I was told by a man, who I afterward found out was
+Dix’s tool, that you had been stolen by the Indians. I made a long
+search, lasting years. Then I was coming to your uncle’s home here in
+the East, when I learned that he was dead. It was quite by accident
+that I discovered the trick which had been played on me, and I at once
+set out to find you.”
+
+“And I have been hunting for you,” replied Bob, with a beaming face. “I
+understand it all now. Dix was playing a double game--trying to keep me
+out of the way at one end and you out of the way at the other. But he
+has been foiled, just as he deserved.”
+
+When Dix was confronted by Bob and his newly-found parent, he could not
+say a word. He had played a desperate game to the finish and lost.
+
+Bob conducted his mother to a hotel, and here the two spent a happy
+night.
+
+One of the first callers in the morning was Frank. He was astonished
+when Bob introduced Mrs. Perry.
+
+“So you won’t be a nobody any longer, Bob, eh?” he smiled.
+
+Frank had glorious news. Aided by a confession made by Mavelt, he and
+the officers had recovered everything stolen by the gang, including
+John Wright’s money and plate, Blake’s package, and Frank’s eighteen
+hundred dollars.
+
+“It’s a great haul,” said Bob, “and I believe it will settle this crowd
+for good.”
+
+And he was right.
+
+But here we must leave Bob the photographer and pass over a period of
+several years.
+
+Bill Dix was tried and sentenced to twenty years in the State prison.
+After this sentence is finished he will be sent to Virginia to answer
+to a charge involving murder. The other evildoers are also suffering
+the penalty of the law.
+
+Old Blake recovered from the attack made upon him by Casco, and
+completely reformed. He now lives with his daughter, who is well
+settled in life.
+
+Frank Landes is a partner in the firm for which he formerly worked, and
+is getting rich rapidly.
+
+Bob and his mother live in an elegant mansion in Stampton. The young
+photographer has taken sweet Grace Maverick for a wife.
+
+“And she couldn’t do better, even though the young man isn’t a
+millionaire,” says Gregory Maverick, for he is more than pleased over
+Bob’s show of bravery.
+
+But Bob is doing well in life, having at present not only the finest
+studio in Stampton, but also an interest in one of the largest
+photographic supply houses in the country. And so we will leave him,
+wishing him continued success.
+
+
+THE END.
+
+
+
+
+TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES:
+
+
+  Italicized text is surrounded by underscores: _italics_.
+
+  Obvious typographical errors have been corrected.
+
+  Inconsistencies in hyphenation have been standardized.
+
+  Archaic or variant spelling has been retained.
+
+
+
+*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 75034 ***
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+</head>
+<body>
+<div style='text-align:center'>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 75034 ***</div>
+
+<div class="figcenter hide"><img src="images/coversmall.jpg" width="450" alt=""></div>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+
+<figure class="figcenter illowe28_125" id="i_002">
+  <img class="w100" src="images/i_002.jpg" alt="">
+  <figcaption class="caption"><p class="caption">JOEL CARROW DARTED FROM THE BARN, AND AFTER THE
+SCAMPERING PIGS.</p></figcaption>
+</figure>
+</div>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<div class="figcenter"><img src="images/titlepage.jpg" alt="title page"></div>
+</div>
+
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+<div class="titlepage">
+
+<h1>Bob<br>
+The Photographer</h1>
+
+<p><i>Or, A Hero in Spite of Himself</i></p>
+
+<p>BY<br>
+
+<span class="xlarge">ARTHUR M. WINFIELD</span><br>
+
+AUTHOR OF “THE ROVER BOYS SERIES,” “THE PUTNAM<br>
+HALL SERIES,” ETC.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter"><img src="images/titlepagelogo.jpg" alt=""></div>
+
+<p>NEW YORK<br>
+<span class="large">STITT PUBLISHING COMPANY</span><br>
+PUBLISHERS</p>
+</div>
+
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<div class="poetry-container">
+<div class="poetry">
+<div class="bbox">
+<p class="ph1">BOOKS BY ARTHUR M. WINFIELD</p>
+
+<hr class="full">
+
+<p class="center"><i>ROVER BOYS SERIES for young Americans</i></p>
+
+<p class="center"><i>Price, per volume, 60 cents</i></p>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">Rover Boys at School</span><br>
+<span class="smcap">Rover Boys on the Ocean</span><br>
+<span class="smcap">Rover Boys in the Jungle</span><br>
+<span class="smcap">Rover Boys Out West</span><br>
+<span class="smcap">Rover Boys on the Great Lakes</span><br>
+<span class="smcap">Rover Boys in the Mountains</span><br>
+<span class="smcap">Rover Boys on Land and Sea</span><br>
+<span class="smcap">Rover Boys in Camp</span><br>
+<span class="smcap">Rover Boys on the River</span></p>
+
+<hr class="full">
+
+<p class="center"><i>PUTNAM HALL SERIES</i></p>
+
+<p class="center"><i>Price, per volume, 60 cents</i></p>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">The Putnam Hall Cadets</span></p>
+
+<p class="center">(Other volumes in preparation)</p>
+</div></div></div>
+
+<p class="center">Copyright, 1902<br>
+<span class="smcap">By A. Wessels Company</span></p>
+</div>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_5">[5]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CONTENTS</h2>
+</div>
+
+<table>
+
+
+<tr><td class="tdr"><span class="small">CHAPTER</span></td><td class="tdr" colspan="2">         <span class="small">PAGE</span></td></tr> 
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">I.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob and His Troubles</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_9">        9</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">II.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob at the Cliff</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_22">        22</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">III.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob at the Half-Way House</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_33">          33</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">IV.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob is Left to His Fate</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_45">        45</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">V.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob Makes His Escape</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_55">        55</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">VI.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob Learns Something</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_72">        72</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">VII.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob and the Elephant</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_87">        87</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">VIII.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob Obtains a Situation</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_101">        101</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">IX.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob Has a Lively Fight</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_116">        116</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">X.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob’s First Customer</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_125">        125</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">XI.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob Assists a Stranger</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_138">        138</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">XII.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob’s Queer Experience</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_148">        148</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">XIII.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob Makes a True Friend</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_159">         159</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">XIV.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob Makes a New Move</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_170">         170</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">XV.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob Becomes a Travelling Photographer</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_178">        178</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">XVI.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob Takes a Dive Overboard</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_187">         187</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">XVII.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob Makes a Strange Capture</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_195">         195</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">XVIII.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob Shows up a Swindler</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_202">         202</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">XIX.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob on the Road</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_209">        209</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">XX.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob in the Woods</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_217">        217</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">XXI.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob Takes a Risk</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_224">        224</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">XXII.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob on the Freight Train</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_231">        231</a><span class="pagenum" id="Page_6">[6]</span></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">XXIII.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob Forms a Resolution</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_238">        238</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">XXIV.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob Sticks up for a Friend</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_246">        246</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">XXV.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob and Frank Stand Together</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_252">        252</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">XXVI.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob Shows His Nerve</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_259">        259</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">XXVII.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob Makes a Find</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_267">        267</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">XXVIII.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob Meets Old Blake</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_273">        273</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">XXIX.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob Hears Interesting News</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_280">          280</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">XXX.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob Learns Something of the Past</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_287">         287</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">XXXI.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob Goes it Alone</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_295">        295</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">XXXII.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob Becomes a Prisoner</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_302">        302</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td class="tdr">XXXIII.</td><td> <span class="smcap">Bob and His Mother—Conclusion</span>,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_313">         313</a></td></tr>
+</table>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_7">[7]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">INTRODUCTION</h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">My dear Boys</span>:</p>
+
+<p>“Bob the Photographer” relates the adventures
+of a wide-awake lad who suddenly finds
+himself thrown out on the world at large to
+make his way and earn his own living.</p>
+
+<p>Bob falls in with an amateur photographer,
+a “camera fiend,” and becomes so interested in
+the art that he resolves to take up photography
+for a living. He does so, and his pictures being
+good, he obtains a situation with a railroad company,
+to make pictures along the line, for use in
+the company’s guide books, and for other purposes.
+This work leads him into a number of
+adventures, in many of which he proves “a hero
+in spite of himself.”</p>
+
+<p>My object in writing this tale was twofold.
+First, to let boys know how they can get on in
+this world, no matter how humble the start, providing
+they will do to the best of their ability
+whatever their hands find to do. Success is
+deserved only when one “pitches in” with a
+will, and when one “sticks at it” to the end.</p>
+
+<p>My second object was to let my readers know
+something about photography, providing they<span class="pagenum" id="Page_8">[8]</span>
+have not already mastered the first steps in that
+art. During my leisure hours I have taken up
+“snap shotting” myself, and have found that,
+and the work of developing and printing the
+pictures, very interesting. All told, there is no
+cleaner or better recreation, nor one better calculated
+to make the follower more patient.</p>
+
+<p>Trusting the story will prove to your liking,
+I remain,</p>
+
+<p class="right">
+Affectionately and sincerely yours, &#160; &#160;<br>
+<span class="smcap">Arthur M. Winfield</span>.</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_9">[9]</span>
+
+<p class="ph2">BOB THE PHOTOGRAPHER</p>
+
+<hr class="tiny">
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER I<br>
+
+<small>BOB AND HIS TROUBLES</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p>“<span class="smcap">Bob</span>! I say, Bob! Where is that saw?”</p>
+
+<p>“I left it in the barn, Mr. Carrow.”</p>
+
+<p>“Humph! I don’t believe it. I’ve looked all
+over, and I can’t find it.”</p>
+
+<p>“I left it on the peg where it belongs,” returned
+the boy, his eyes flashing at the manner
+in which he had been addressed.</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t believe a word on it!” growled Joel
+Carrow. “You are always leavin’ things layin’
+round loose. Go an’ git it, an’ be quick about
+it, or you’ll git your hide tanned well, mind
+that!”</p>
+
+<p>Bob Alden stood for a moment irresolute, and
+then folded his arms and unflinchingly faced
+the man before him.</p>
+
+<p>“If the saw isn’t where I put it, I don’t know
+where it is,” he said.</p>
+
+<p>“What’s that?” roared the farmer. “Don’t<span class="pagenum" id="Page_10">[10]</span>
+talk back to me! Be off with you, and bring it
+quick.”</p>
+
+<p>Still the boy did not budge. Joel Carrow
+gazed at him in amazement, then made a rush
+and seized the youth by the arm.</p>
+
+<p>“See here, what’s got into you this mornin’?”
+he snarled. “Ain’t you a-goin’ to obey me?”</p>
+
+<p>“No, I’m not,” answered Bob, coolly and
+firmly.</p>
+
+<p>“You ain’t?” gasped Joel Carrow, scarcely
+believing he had heard aright.</p>
+
+<p>It was the first time that Bob had stood up
+for himself, and the mean, miserly farmer for
+whom he worked could not fully comprehend
+the turn of affairs.</p>
+
+<p>“No, I am not,” repeated the youth. “Let
+go of my arm.”</p>
+
+<p>“Oh, I’ll let go!” snarled Joel Carrow, in a
+rage. “Take that!” and with his disengaged
+hand he aimed a blow at Bob’s head. The
+youth ducked, and the fist of the farmer came
+in sharp and painful contact with a corner of
+the pig-sty he was repairing. With a howl of
+pain he let go his hold on the boy and placed
+his wounded hand to his mouth, and then swung
+it in the air. The youth lost no time in retreating
+several paces.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll fix you!” cried Joel Carrow. “You’re a
+good-for-nothin’ lazy whelp!”</p>
+
+<p>“Thank you!” returned Bob, with increased<span class="pagenum" id="Page_11">[11]</span>
+coolness. “And you are the meanest man in
+the State.”</p>
+
+<p>“Shut up!”</p>
+
+<p>“I won’t. I’ve stood your abuse long enough,
+and now I intend to speak my mind. I’ve
+worked for you nearly a year now, and in that
+time you have treated me worse than a dog.”</p>
+
+<p>“I’ve treated you better’n yer deserve,” muttered
+Joel Carrow, not knowing what else to
+say.</p>
+
+<p>“You promised to give me ten dollars a
+month and my board, and you have never yet
+paid me a full month’s wages, always deducting
+something for this or that I couldn’t help; and
+the food you gave me wasn’t fit for a pig.”</p>
+
+<p>With a snarl Joel Carrow sprang toward Bob.
+The youth had told the plain truth, and it was
+evident the farmer knew it only too well.</p>
+
+<p>Bob retreated, and his miserly employer followed
+him into the barn-yard. He had almost
+succeeded in catching the youth, when he tripped
+over a pitchfork and fell headlong into a puddle
+of water. His face was covered with mud, so
+was his blue jean shirt, and he was a sight to
+behold.</p>
+
+<p>Bob gazed for a second in silence, and then
+burst into a peal of laughter.</p>
+
+<p>“Hold up, till I take a snap shot of you!”
+sang out a voice from the fence behind the barn.</p>
+
+<p>Bob looked in the direction, and beheld a<span class="pagenum" id="Page_12">[12]</span>
+young man seated on the top rail of the fence.
+The newcomer held a camera on his lap, and the
+lens was pointed toward Joel Carrow.</p>
+
+<p>Before the farmer could rise from the puddle,
+there was a click, and the amateur photographer
+had taken his picture.</p>
+
+<p>Bob gazed with interest at the young man.
+He had seen the fellow before, and knew him
+to be the son of a wealthy merchant of New
+York.</p>
+
+<p>“I was going to take a picture of still life
+around the barn,” explained the newcomer.
+“But this suits me better.”</p>
+
+<p>“Go on about yer business,” snarled Joel
+Carrow.</p>
+
+<p>“What are you chasing that boy for?”</p>
+
+<p>“None o’ yer business, Frank Landes.
+Clear out, afore I set the dogs on you!”</p>
+
+<p>“I must say you are in a very amiable mood
+this morning, Carrow,” laughed Frank Landes,
+without shifting his position.</p>
+
+<p>“Are yer goin’?”</p>
+
+<p>“Not just yet. I saw you try to strike the
+boy, and I’m curious to know what it’s all
+about.”</p>
+
+<p>“You have no right on my place.”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s true, Carrow, in one way, but not in
+another.”</p>
+
+<p>“What do you mean?” returned the farmer,
+uneasily.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_13">[13]</span>“I came down to tell you that the last consignment
+of eggs you sent our firm weren’t
+strictly fresh, and unless you do better in the
+future, Mr. Dale says he will get his eggs elsewhere.”</p>
+
+<p>“Them eggs were strictly fresh when they
+left here,” grumbled Joel Carrow.</p>
+
+<p>“That’s not so,” put in Bob. “The eggs
+were taken from those we had stored all winter,
+and——”</p>
+
+<p>“Shut up!” interrupted the farmer, red with
+rage.</p>
+
+<p>“I won’t. I said it wasn’t a fair way to do
+when you shipped them.”</p>
+
+<p>“If yer don’t keep quiet, I’ll wring yer
+neck!”</p>
+
+<p>Joel Carrow made another dive for the youth.
+Bob escaped to the barn, but before he could go
+farther the farmer caught him by the collar,
+pulled him backward, and threw him down.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll fix yer!” he foamed, as he caught up a
+heavy stick, and hauled back ready to strike
+Bob on the head.</p>
+
+<p>“Don’t you dare strike me, Joel Carrow!”</p>
+
+<p>“Yer can’t worry me, Bob Alden. Let this
+be a lesson to you.”</p>
+
+<p>Joel Carrow’s hand was about to descend, but
+the blow never reached its mark.</p>
+
+<p>“Not so fast!” sang out the voice of Frank
+Landes, and the next instant the farmer was<span class="pagenum" id="Page_14">[14]</span>
+hurled backward, and the stick was wrenched
+from his grasp.</p>
+
+<p>Taking advantage of the interruption, Bob
+Alden sprang quickly to his feet.</p>
+
+<p>“I owe you one for that,” he said to Frank
+Landes.</p>
+
+<p>“No, you don’t,” returned Landes. “If I am
+not mistaken, it was you saved me from that
+wild bull the day I was taking pictures over in
+Sarding’s meadow.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob smiled. He remembered the incident
+well, in which he had played the part of a hero.</p>
+
+<p>During this time Joel Carrow was muttering
+a number of nasty things under his breath. He
+now strode over to where Frank Landes stood,
+the stick still in his hand.</p>
+
+<p>“You ain’t got no right ter interfere in this
+fashion,” he began, savagely.</p>
+
+<p>“No?” returned Landes, with just the faintest
+show of a smile playing around the corners
+of his mouth.</p>
+
+<p>“No, yer ain’t. I won’t stand it.”</p>
+
+<p>“What do you propose to do about it?”</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll—I’ll have yer arrested.”</p>
+
+<p>At this even Bob was compelled to laugh.
+The laugh enraged the miserly farmer still more,
+and his eyes blazed furiously.</p>
+
+<p>“It ain’t no laughin’ matter.”</p>
+
+<p>“You have no right to hit the boy,” returned
+Frank Landes, sternly.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_15">[15]</span>“What do you know about it?”</p>
+
+<p>“If I hadn’t stepped in you would have nearly
+killed him.”</p>
+
+<p>“He deserves it,” howled Carrow. “He’s the
+imp’s own.”</p>
+
+<p>“What’s the row?”</p>
+
+<p>“As I said afore, it’s none o’ your business.”</p>
+
+<p>“He said I hadn’t put the saw where it belonged,”
+explained Bob. “I placed it on the
+peg in this barn, and just because it wasn’t there,
+he told me he was going to tan my hide for
+me.”</p>
+
+<p>“And I presume you objected to the tanning
+process, eh?”</p>
+
+<p>“I did.”</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t wonder. Carrow, you are a big
+brute.”</p>
+
+<p>“What!”</p>
+
+<p>“I’ve said it, and I’ll stick to it. You are a
+brute and ought to go to jail.”</p>
+
+<p>“Take care, Landes, I ain’t standin’ everything,”
+snarled the farmer.</p>
+
+<p>“Is this boy anything to you?”</p>
+
+<p>“I hired him ter work on the farm, but he
+ain’t wuth his salt.”</p>
+
+<p>“He works me half to death,” put in Bob.
+“He makes me get up at four o’clock every
+morning, Sundays included, and I don’t have
+five minutes to myself till it’s time to knock off,
+generally nine or ten o’clock at night.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_16">[16]</span>“I wouldn’t stay if I were you,” replied Frank
+Landes.</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t intend to. I’m going to leave to-day.”</p>
+
+<p>It was a sudden resolution on Bob’s part, but
+the youth meant it.</p>
+
+<p>“Leave!” ejaculated Joel Carrow, in sudden
+alarm.</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, leave.”</p>
+
+<p>“Yer month ain’t up.”</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t care.”</p>
+
+<p>“I won’t pay yer a cent.”</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t care for that, either. I’m going, and
+that’s all there is to it.”</p>
+
+<p>“You ought to pay the boy what is coming
+to him,” put in Frank Landes.</p>
+
+<p>“Not a cent,” returned the farmer, decidedly.</p>
+
+<p>“You had better, Carrow. If you don’t, I’ll
+help him take his case to the nearest justice and
+testify as to how you’ve been treating him.”</p>
+
+<p>“You villain!”</p>
+
+<p>“Softly, sir. You had no more right to hit
+that boy than you had to hit me. The best
+thing you can do is to settle up with him.”</p>
+
+<p>Joel Carrow breathed hard. He wanted to
+say something sharp, to tear somebody to pieces,
+but he didn’t dare to make a move, and there
+was really nothing to say.</p>
+
+<p>Frank Landes turned to Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“How much does he owe you?” he asked.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_17">[17]</span>“Five dollars on this month, and three on
+last.”</p>
+
+<p>“Then, Carrow, pay the boy eight dollars and
+let him go.”</p>
+
+<p>The coolness of the suggestion amazed the
+farmer. He stared at the young man and staggered
+up against a feed box.</p>
+
+<p>“Pay—him—eight—dollars?” he said, with
+painful slowness.</p>
+
+<p>“Either that, or I will take him to the nearest
+justice without further delay. You will find
+going to law much more expensive.”</p>
+
+<p>Joel Carrow gave a groan. Then he brought
+forth a well-worn pocket-book and with trembling
+fingers counted out eight greasy bills.</p>
+
+<p>“Now you are acting sensibly,” said Landes,
+as Bob took the money. “Will you go with
+me?” he asked, turning to the youth.</p>
+
+<p>“Where to?”</p>
+
+<p>“I am bound to Stampton, on a camera tour.
+I will pay your way if you care to go.”</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll jump at the chance,” returned Bob,
+quickly. “I would like——”</p>
+
+<p>“Joel! Joel Carrow! Where are you?” came
+in the shrill voice of the farmer’s wife. “Here
+you are leavin’ the pig-sty wide open an’ all the
+pigs running into the garden! Mercy sakes!
+one of ’em’s in the dairy! Come quick, you big
+fool, an’ tend to ’em, or I’ll be out there with a
+broom!”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_18">[18]</span>Mrs. Carrow’s angry voice was coming nearer,
+and without stopping to parley longer with the
+others, Joel Carrow darted from the barn, and
+after the scampering pigs who were scattering
+in all directions.</p>
+
+<p>“Now is your chance to get away,” said Frank
+Landes, hurriedly. “I presume you have a better
+suit of clothes than that.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob shook his head.</p>
+
+<p>“This is my best and only one.”</p>
+
+<p>“And your shoes?”</p>
+
+<p>“The same, and also the hat. But I have a
+few things up in my room,” and running up the
+ladder to the part of the loft called his room Bob
+soon reappeared with a small bundle tied up in
+a piece of old table oil-cloth.</p>
+
+<p>“Here are all my duds,” he laughed. “Ain’t
+quite a trunk full, is it? Now I’m ready to——”</p>
+
+<p>A wild cry from outside reached their ears,
+and both ran to the door-way and then out into
+the barn-yard.</p>
+
+<p>“By Jove! that’s rich!” cried Frank Landes.
+“I must take another picture by all means!”</p>
+
+<p>He hurried for his camera, and meanwhile
+Bob stood by the corn-crib laughing merrily.</p>
+
+<p>Joel Carrow and his wife had cornered two of
+the frisky porkers and were doing their best to
+catch them. The pigs began to squeal, and
+suddenly one of them darted under Mrs. Carrow’s
+foot just as she raised it to step out of the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_19">[19]</span>
+way. She fell down, and Joel Carrow went with
+her, while both pigs flew over a log and went
+crashing into the glass top of a hothouse bed.</p>
+
+<p>The farmer rose up and went after the pigs.
+He was so mad he did not notice the hot-bed
+frame, and before he knew what he was doing,
+he, too, was smashing glass at the rate of a
+dozen panes a second.</p>
+
+<p>“Joel! you good-for-nothing man!” shrieked
+Mrs. Carrow. “Come out o’ thet!”</p>
+
+<p>Mrs. Carrow arose, madder than a hornet.
+Near at hand was a broom, and, picking it up,
+she went after her husband.</p>
+
+<p>“We had better get out before they see us,”
+said Bob. “I’ve got my fill of the place.”</p>
+
+<p>“Come on, then.”</p>
+
+<p>Frank Landes leaped the fence and Bob
+quickly followed. In a few minutes the two
+were on a country road and out of sight of the
+Carrow farm.</p>
+
+<p>As they walked along the two became thoroughly
+acquainted. There was something in
+Bob Alden’s composition that pleased Frank
+Landes, and he became thoroughly interested
+in the youth.</p>
+
+<p>“And you say you are an orphan, Bob?” he
+said.</p>
+
+<p>“So far as I know,” returned the youth.
+“Old Thompson, of Windham, brought me up,
+and he said he never knew where I came from.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_20">[20]</span>“Where did he get you?”</p>
+
+<p>“He never told me. I intended to ask him
+once, but before I could get the chance he was
+killed over to the flour mill. Then I had to
+shift for myself, for his relatives came in and
+cleared out the house and wouldn’t have nothing
+to do with me.”</p>
+
+<p>“That was hard luck.”</p>
+
+<p>“It wasn’t as hard as falling in with Joel Carrow,”
+answered Bob. “Gee Christopher! but
+he was a hard one to get along with. If I had
+stayed there another month I would have committed
+suicide.”</p>
+
+<p>“Well, as I said before, I will take you to
+Stampton with me if you wish to go, and I’ll
+pay expenses on the way. But what will you
+do when you get there?”</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t know.”</p>
+
+<p>“Finding work is no easy job in a city.”</p>
+
+<p>“I reckon I’ll fall on my feet. I generally
+do. I would like to learn to take pictures,” concluded
+the boy.</p>
+
+<p>More talk followed, and they hurried along
+until it was past noon.</p>
+
+<p>“About dinner-time,” said Frank Landes,
+consulting his watch. “Let us see if we
+can’t get dinner at that farm-house just beyond.”</p>
+
+<p>They walked to the farm-house, and, after
+some talk, the farmer’s wife agreed to furnish<span class="pagenum" id="Page_21">[21]</span>
+them with a meal for twenty cents each—a price
+which Landes promptly paid.</p>
+
+<p>“By jinks! this is what I call a spread,” cried
+Bob, as he surveyed the fairly well-filled table.
+“I never struck such a table at Carrow’s.”</p>
+
+<p>“Well, fill up, Bob,” laughed Landes. “The
+price is the same.”</p>
+
+<p>And Bob did fill up, much to the amusement
+of the woman who had served the meal, a fat,
+jolly person.</p>
+
+<p>After the meal Landes lit a cigar and sat
+down on the stoop to enjoy it. He offered Bob
+one, but the youth shook his head and munched
+an apple instead.</p>
+
+<p>The cigar finished, Frank Landes arose and
+stretched himself.</p>
+
+<p>“Well, Bob, we might as well be on our way.”</p>
+
+<p>“I’m ready whenever you are, Mr. Landes.”</p>
+
+<p>Landes took up his camera and satchel, and
+Bob his bundle, and both started on again.</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_22">[22]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER II<br>
+
+<small>BOB AT THE CLIFF</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">Toward</span> the middle of the afternoon, Bob and
+Frank Landes came to a picturesque mountain
+stream, flanked on one side by sloping hills and
+on the other by a jagged cliff fifty or sixty feet
+in height.</p>
+
+<p>“I want to get one or two views here,” said
+Frank Landes. “Let us get over the stream
+and under the cliff.”</p>
+
+<p>They crossed the bridge and walked along
+the base of the cliff for a distance of several
+hundred feet.</p>
+
+<p>“Now straighten out that tripod and I’ll put
+some plates in the camera,” went on the young
+man.</p>
+
+<p>He had explained the workings of the different
+parts of his instrument to Bob, and the
+youth lost no time in complying with his request.</p>
+
+<p>The tripod was set up, and the young man
+was just about to place the camera upon it, when
+there came a terrible scream from overhead.</p>
+
+<p>“What’s up?” queried Frank Landes.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_23">[23]</span>“My gracious!” burst out Bob. “Look
+there!”</p>
+
+<p>The young man looked to the spot indicated.</p>
+
+<p>The sight presented was enough to chill the
+blood of both. A young girl had fallen over
+the edge of the cliff, and now hung suspended
+in mid-air, her dress caught in some scraggy
+rocks and bushes.</p>
+
+<p>“She’ll be killed!” ejaculated Frank Landes.</p>
+
+<p>“We must save her!” returned Bob. “I wonder
+if I can’t climb up to her and keep her from
+falling.”</p>
+
+<p>“Help! help!” cried the girl, in tones of
+deepest agony, as she caught hold of one of the
+bushes with her right hand.</p>
+
+<p>“Hold fast till I climb up to you!” shouted
+Bob.</p>
+
+<p>He caught up the tripod and began to ascend
+the face of the cliff as best he could.</p>
+
+<p>“What are you going to do?” asked Frank
+Landes.</p>
+
+<p>“Save the girl,” returned Bob, resolutely.</p>
+
+<p>In a few minutes the fearless youth had
+reached a ledge some ten feet below the spot
+where the girl hung. He tried to go up higher,
+but found it was impossible to do so.</p>
+
+<p>“Oh, help me! Help me, please!” cried the
+girl, as soon as she caught sight of Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“I will,” he said.</p>
+
+<p>Taking the tripod he braced it as firmly as he<span class="pagenum" id="Page_24">[24]</span>
+could on the ledge upon which he was standing.
+Then, by the aid of some bushes he managed to
+balance himself upon the top.</p>
+
+<p>By reaching out he could now grasp the girl’s
+arm.</p>
+
+<p>“Let go and I will land you safely on the
+ledge,” said Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“I am afraid. The fall has made me
+dizzy,” cried the girl. “Besides, my dress is
+caught.”</p>
+
+<p>“Then wait till I crawl up a little higher.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob had hardly spoken when there was a sudden
+crack. One of the legs of the tripod had
+broken, and with a wild cry, the boy lost his balance
+and went over the ledge!</p>
+
+<p>Frank Landes gave a cry of horror, and the
+girl above a shrill shriek of added fear.</p>
+
+<p>As Bob plunged over the ledge, he threw out
+both of his hands, and one of them caught in
+some of the bushes growing below.</p>
+
+<p>The bushes were torn from their roots, but
+Bob’s progress downward was somewhat stayed,
+and, when his other hand caught a bit of projecting
+rock, he held fast.</p>
+
+<p>“Hold hard!” shouted Landes. “I forgot,
+I’ve got a bit of rope with me.”</p>
+
+<p>He clambered up the cliff until he reached
+the ledge. Then he lowered one end of the
+rope and Bob grasped it.</p>
+
+<p>“Can you pull me up?” asked the youth.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_25">[25]</span>“I can, if you will help by holding on to the
+bushes,” returned Landes.</p>
+
+<p>He began to pull up slowly and with great
+care, and soon Bob’s hands grasped the edge of
+the ledge, and he drew himself up to a place of
+safety.</p>
+
+<p>In the mean time the girl above was growing
+weaker, and she gave a low moan.</p>
+
+<p>“I can’t hold on any longer,” she gasped.
+“My head is awfully dizzy.”</p>
+
+<p>“Hold for just a minute longer,” shouted
+Bob. “Frank, let me climb up on your shoulders.”</p>
+
+<p>Landes agreed. In an instant Bob was up
+on the young man’s shoulders. By this time
+the bushes to which the girl clung had partly
+loosened themselves, and the girl now hung
+within reach of Bob’s sturdy arms.</p>
+
+<p>“Steady below!” he shouted to Landes.
+“Now, hold out your hand and jump. You
+will come down all right,” he added to the fair
+one.</p>
+
+<p>The girl hesitated, but after one look into
+Bob’s truthful eyes, she grew confident, and,
+letting go her hold, allowed herself to drop into
+his outstretched arms.</p>
+
+<p>Landes collapsed under the combined weight.
+But Bob expected this, and, as he and the girl
+came down, he took good care that neither
+should go over the edge of the ledge.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_26">[26]</span>“Oh, thank you for that!” cried the girl, and
+with these words she fainted in Bob’s arms.</p>
+
+<p>“Why it’s Grace Maverick,” cried Frank
+Landes, in intense surprise.</p>
+
+<p>“And who is she?” queried Bob, gazing at
+the beautiful form in rather a helpless way.</p>
+
+<p>“She is the daughter of Gregory Maverick,
+the president of the T. W. &amp; L. Railroad which
+runs through Stampton.”</p>
+
+<p>“Well, what shall I do now?” queried Bob,
+more awed than ever, now he knew who his fair
+burden was.</p>
+
+<p>“Let me help you down to the brook with
+her,” replied Landes. “Come this way, there is
+quite a good path.”</p>
+
+<p>Between them they carried the girl from the
+narrow ledge to a grassy slope at the base of the
+cliff. Then Bob took off his cap, filled it with
+water, and dashed some of it into Grace Maverick’s
+face.</p>
+
+<p>With something like a gasp the girl came to
+her senses. She gazed around for a moment,
+and then sat up.</p>
+
+<p>“Where—where am I?” she stammered, in
+bewilderment.</p>
+
+<p>“You are safe, Miss Maverick,” returned
+Frank Landes, politely.</p>
+
+<p>“Oh, Mr. Landes, is it you? I remember it
+all! And where is the boy who saved me?”</p>
+
+<p>“Here he is. His name is Bob Alden.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_27">[27]</span>Landes turned to the youth, and Bob shuffled
+forward, blushing furiously. Grace Maverick
+grasped his hands within her own.</p>
+
+<p>“Oh, how can I thank you!” she cried, impulsively.
+“If it hadn’t been for you, I would have
+been killed.”</p>
+
+<p>“Mr. Landes did his share,” said Bob, generously.</p>
+
+<p>“Nonsense,” put in Frank. “Bob is the
+hero.”</p>
+
+<p>“I am thankful to both,” said the girl.
+“Where are the others?”</p>
+
+<p>“What others?”</p>
+
+<p>“My friends. There were four of us on the
+cliff, and a savage dog scared us. I ran near
+the edge, and stumbled.”</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll go up and look for your friends,” said
+Landes, and, without waiting, he made off.</p>
+
+<p>“And your name is Bob Alden?” questioned
+Grace Maverick.</p>
+
+<p>Bob nodded.</p>
+
+<p>“Mine is Grace Maverick. I am awfully glad
+to know you. Do you belong around here?”</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t belong anywhere just now.”</p>
+
+<p>“Why, what do you mean?”</p>
+
+<p>“I worked for a farmer over in Shellville, but
+he treated me so meanly I left. I am bound for
+Stampton.”</p>
+
+<p>“To get work?”</p>
+
+<p>“If I can.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_28">[28]</span>“Well, when you get there you must call on
+me. Mr. Landes will tell you where I live.”</p>
+
+<p>“Thank you.”</p>
+
+<p>“Don’t forget. I want my papa to see you.
+He says he likes to see heroes, and you are
+one.”</p>
+
+<p>“No, I’m not! I’m only a plain country boy,”
+said Bob. “Anybody could do what I did.”</p>
+
+<p>“Perhaps they could, but they wouldn’t all
+have the nerve to try. Oh, here comes Mr.
+Landes now, and he has found my teacher!”</p>
+
+<p>Frank now returned with an elderly lady, who
+at once proceeded to take Grace in charge,
+scolding her for going so close to the edge of
+the cliff.</p>
+
+<p>“Here is the young man who saved me,” said
+Grace, pointing to Bob.</p>
+
+<p>The elderly teacher gave the youth one stare,
+and then shrugged her shoulders.</p>
+
+<p>“You must have nothing to do with such
+common people, Grace,” she said, lowly, but
+still loud enough for Bob to hear. “Come with
+me at once.”</p>
+
+<p>“He is a noble boy,” protested the girl.
+“Good-bye, Bob Alden, I shall expect to see you
+in Stampton. Good-bye, Mr. Landes.”</p>
+
+<p>The teacher hurried Grace away. Bob and
+Frank both tipped their caps, and then the
+youth turned to the young man.</p>
+
+<p>“Christopher! Isn’t the old lady a sour one?”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_29">[29]</span>“Rather,” returned Frank. “But, Bob, you’re
+in luck.”</p>
+
+<p>“How so?”</p>
+
+<p>“It’s a good stroke for you,” went on Frank.
+“It ought to be worth a good deal to you.”</p>
+
+<p>“What ought?”</p>
+
+<p>“Saving Grace’s life. Such a thing isn’t done
+every day.”</p>
+
+<p>“Pooh! You’re as bad as she was.”</p>
+
+<p>“Why, what did she say?”</p>
+
+<p>Bob told him. Frank caught his hand. “Let
+me congratulate you. You’re all right.”</p>
+
+<p>“Give it to me plainer, please.”</p>
+
+<p>“Can’t you see? You call on Grace. See
+old Maverick. He takes an interest in you and
+rewards you handsomely.”</p>
+
+<p>“But he won’t.”</p>
+
+<p>“Why not?”</p>
+
+<p>“Because I won’t call.”</p>
+
+<p>Frank stared at Bob in amazement.</p>
+
+<p>“Won’t call?” he gasped.</p>
+
+<p>“That’s it. I’d feel worse than a cat in a
+strange garret. I’m not used to high-toned society.”</p>
+
+<p>“But look what it might be worth to you.”</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t want anything for doing a nice girl
+like her a little service.”</p>
+
+<p>“Well you’re the queerest!”</p>
+
+<p>“Maybe I am. But, say, I’m downright sorry
+I broke the three-legged thing.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_30">[30]</span>“Don’t bother your head about that. It’s
+worth a dozen tripods to be a hero.”</p>
+
+<p>“If you don’t shut down on that talk, I’ll leave
+you at once,” burst out Bob. “I’m not a hero,
+never was, and am not likely to be. Here’s a bit
+of strong string. Let me see if I can’t splice
+the broken leg of your machine.”</p>
+
+<p>Frank said no more, and, sitting down, Bob
+took the tripod and speedily mended the split
+leg.</p>
+
+<p>This done, the two proceeded to take several
+pictures of the spot, including one of the place
+where the thrilling scene recorded had occurred.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll give you a copy of it,” said Frank.
+“And perhaps I’ll send one to Miss Maverick.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob was very much interested in the taking
+of the pictures, and asked innumerable questions.</p>
+
+<p>“We’ll stop at Fitt’s Half-way House to-night,”
+said Frank. “And then I’ll show you
+how to develop the plates. You have to do it
+in a dark room.”</p>
+
+<p>“How can you see to show me, then?” asked
+Bob, and Frank laughed.</p>
+
+<p>“We use a red light,” said the young man.
+“It is the only light that doesn’t affect the
+plates.”</p>
+
+<p>“Do you know, I would like to become a
+photographer,” burst out Bob. “It must be an
+interesting business.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_31">[31]</span>“It is, especially outdoor work. Gallery
+work, though, is rather confining.”</p>
+
+<p>“I would like to become a travelling photographer,
+taking houses and so, for people.
+Couldn’t a fellow make money that way?”</p>
+
+<p>“I should think so, if he went at it the right
+way.”</p>
+
+<p>After this, Bob was silent for a long while.
+He was revolving a great number of things in
+his mind. He loved to travel about, and the
+idea of combining business with pleasure just
+suited him. Besides, he was of an artistic turn,
+and pictures pleased him.</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, I’ll become a photographer,” he said to
+himself. “And I’ll travel around, and not only
+try to make money, but also see if I can’t find
+out who I am, and where I came from. I won’t
+be Bob Alden, the nobody, any longer.”</p>
+
+<p>At about sunset the two came to Fitt’s half-way
+road-house, an old-fashioned hotel. Half a
+dozen wagons were tied up beneath the shed,
+and the dining-room and parlor were both comfortably
+filled.</p>
+
+<p>They met the proprietor of the place in the
+hall, and Frank at once made arrangements for
+a room for both with supper and breakfast.
+Their traps were taken up, and both took a
+wash and a brushing up previous to entering
+the dining-room.</p>
+
+<p>“Did you see that dark-looking fellow standing<span class="pagenum" id="Page_32">[32]</span>
+by the door of the office?” questioned
+Frank, as they were arranging their toilet.</p>
+
+<p>“The chap with the cut on his left cheek?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes. He is an enemy of mine, and I’m
+sorry he is here.”</p>
+
+<p>“How is he your enemy?” asked Bob, with
+interest, for he could not understand how so
+good-hearted a person as Frank Landes could
+have an enemy.</p>
+
+<p>“He used to work for our firm, and I once
+detected him in wrong-doing. I exposed him,
+and he was discharged. He promised to get
+square, and I know he will try to keep his
+word.”</p>
+
+<p>“What is his name?”</p>
+
+<p>“James Casco. He has Spanish blood in
+him, and is a bad man when in a temper.”</p>
+
+<p>“We’ll both keep our eyes open for him,” returned
+Bob. “If he tries any underhand work,
+and I catch him at it, I’ll—I’ll pulverize him.”</p>
+
+<p>“Really!” laughed Frank.</p>
+
+<p>“I will. I always stick up for my friends,
+and you’re the first friend I’ve struck in a long
+time. So let Casco keep his distance.”</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_33">[33]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER III<br>
+
+<small>BOB AT THE HALF-WAY HOUSE</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">When</span> Bob and Frank Landes entered the
+dining-room and looked around at the guests
+present, they saw nothing of James Casco.</p>
+
+<p>“Most likely in the bar-room,” said Frank.
+“He is a pretty heavy drinker.”</p>
+
+<p>They did full justice to the spread, and then
+the young man lit a cigar, and Bob followed him
+out on a side piazza, which was almost deserted.</p>
+
+<p>Frank had hardly seated himself, when a door
+at the end of the piazza opened, and James
+Casco came out.</p>
+
+<p>The scar-faced fellow had been drinking freely,
+and the habitual scowl upon his face was deeper
+than ever.</p>
+
+<p>“So you are here, eh?” he said, abruptly.</p>
+
+<p>Frank stared at him.</p>
+
+<p>“Did you address me?” he demanded, coolly.</p>
+
+<p>“I did, and you know it. What do you mean
+by following me?”</p>
+
+<p>“I was not aware I was following you.”</p>
+
+<p>“It’s false!” cried Casco. “You’ve been following
+me all the way from New York.”</p>
+
+<p>The young man jumped to his feet.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_34">[34]</span>“See here, Casco, I want you to shut up. I
+have not been following you, and I am not in
+the habit of being addressed as you have addressed
+me. The quicker you get out of here
+the better.”</p>
+
+<p>“Humph! So you fancy you can bluff me?”
+sneered the scar-faced man.</p>
+
+<p>“It’s no bluff, I want you to take back what
+you said.”</p>
+
+<p>“Take back nothing, Landes. You are a
+sneak—and worse, and——”</p>
+
+<p>Casco did not finish. Drawing back, Frank
+left out with his right hand and Casco received
+a slap on the cheek that sent him staggering.</p>
+
+<p>“The next time you address a gentleman be
+careful what you say.”</p>
+
+<p>With a howl of pain and rage, Casco gathered
+himself together.</p>
+
+<p>Bob looked on with keen interest. Frank
+seemed to be well able to take his own part, and
+so the youth saw no reason to interfere.</p>
+
+<p>Muttering something under his breath, Casco
+now sprang to the edge of the piazza and looked
+around. No one appeared in sight. Bob was
+standing in a deep shadow, and in his rage the
+scar-faced man did not notice him.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly Casco put his hand into his pocket
+and drew forth a short club. It made Bob start.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll see how you like that, Landes,” cried
+Casco. “Here you are!”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_35">[35]</span>Jumping forward, Casco attempted to hit
+Frank Landes on the head, but before the club
+could descend, Bob rushed forward and hauled
+Casco back.</p>
+
+<p>“Better call the landlord,” he said to Frank.
+“This man ought to be arrested.”</p>
+
+<p>“Never!” muttered Casco. “Let me go, or
+I will strike you!”</p>
+
+<p>Casco began to struggle, and Frank Landes
+jumped in to help Bob. They had just succeeded
+in disarming the scar-faced man, when
+Casco uttered a peculiar whistle.</p>
+
+<p>“What does that mean?” queried Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t know,” muttered his companion.
+“Get up,” he said to their prisoner.</p>
+
+<p>Casco had hardly arisen, when two men rushed
+around the corner of the hotel. Each wore a
+slouch hat, and in the darkness nothing could
+be seen of their faces.</p>
+
+<p>“Help me!” cried Casco. “We must get
+away from here.”</p>
+
+<p>“But the plan, Jim, that——” began one of
+the men.</p>
+
+<p>“It’s all up,” muttered Casco. “Quick, help
+me.”</p>
+
+<p>Both of the new arrivals at once fell upon Bob
+and Frank. The youth and the young man
+fought well, but they could not overcome the
+other three, and by the time the landlord and a
+number of his guests arrived the two had Casco<span class="pagenum" id="Page_36">[36]</span>
+free, and then the three assailants made off in
+the darkness, Casco carrying his short club
+with him.</p>
+
+<p>“What’s the trouble?” demanded Fitt, the
+keeper of the road-house.</p>
+
+<p>Frank and Bob related their story. All
+crowded around, and listened with deep interest.</p>
+
+<p>“I thought that chap was up to no good,”
+said Fitt. “I took him to be a gambler.”</p>
+
+<p>“He does play cards,” said Frank. “Do you
+know those other men?”</p>
+
+<p>Fitt shook his head.</p>
+
+<p>“The three of them landed here this afternoon,”
+he said. “They hired a front room, but
+brought no baggage. I told ’em they would
+have to pay in advance, and this Casco pulled
+out a fat roll of bills and settled on the spot.
+The roll of bills and his general way made me
+suspicious of him.”</p>
+
+<p>“I wonder where he got the money?” mused
+the young man. “When he was discharged
+from our house, he was compelled to make up a
+deficiency in his accounts, and he then claimed
+he was without a dollar.”</p>
+
+<p>“Maybe he didn’t give it all back, or else stole
+some since,” ventured Bob. “He looks thoroughly
+bad.”</p>
+
+<p>“You may be right.”</p>
+
+<p>“Shall we go after the rascals?” asked Fitt.
+“All three ought to be in the lock-up.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_37">[37]</span>“I don’t know which way they went,” returned
+Frank. “Do you, Bob?”</p>
+
+<p>“I thought they cut around the back. Is
+there a road in that direction?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, Martin’s lane comes through, and meets
+the road alongside the railroad track,” answered
+the hotel-keeper.</p>
+
+<p>“Then perhaps they took that road,” suggested
+Bob. “If you say the word, Frank, we’ll
+go after them.”</p>
+
+<p>“Couldn’t find ’em in the dark,” said Fitt,
+who was too scared to venture on such a quest.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ve got pretty good eyes,” laughed the
+youth.</p>
+
+<p>A hurried consultation was held, and Frank
+and Bob started off alone, Bob carrying a revolver
+Fitt had loaned him, Frank being supplied
+with a weapon of his own.</p>
+
+<p>On the two went until Bob came to a sudden
+halt, and plucked Frank by the sleeve.</p>
+
+<p>“Hush!” whispered the youth.</p>
+
+<p>“What did you see?” came in a low tone.</p>
+
+<p>“Do you see that stack of hay over yonder?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes.”</p>
+
+<p>“I’m pretty sure I just saw a man dodge behind
+it.”</p>
+
+<p>“Only one?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes. But the whole three may be there.
+Wait here for a few minutes.”</p>
+
+<p>“What do you intend to do?”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_38">[38]</span>“Go back a short distance and jump the fence.
+There is a ditch there, and I think I can crawl
+along and get on the other side of that hay-stack.”</p>
+
+<p>“Hadn’t I better go along?”</p>
+
+<p>“No; you watch out on the road. They may
+make a dash, and then you will have to go after
+them. My idea is to see if they are there without
+letting them discover me.”</p>
+
+<p>“And if they are?”</p>
+
+<p>“Then I’ll give you a signal—a whip-poor-will
+cry—and you can hurry off for help, and we can
+capture them. Understand?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, but the danger——” protested Frank.</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t mind it. Now, I’ll be off. Watch
+the hay-stack, and listen for the whip-poor-will
+cry.”</p>
+
+<p>And with these words, Bob slipped into the
+shadow of some near-by bushes, leaving Frank
+standing by a tree in the lane, alone.</p>
+
+<p>Frank stood perfectly still for several minutes
+and then moved silently toward a stone near the
+fence, intending to rest until he should hear
+from Bob in one way or another.</p>
+
+<p>Having seated himself the young man drew
+out his pistol, and examined it to make sure
+that it was in proper condition for use.</p>
+
+<p>It was then that he made a discovery which
+caused him to utter a low cry of dismay.</p>
+
+<p>The weapon was empty.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_39">[39]</span>“That’s a fine state of affairs,” he muttered
+to himself. “And the cartridge box in my
+satchel, too. I ought to be kicked for not
+looking at the pistol before we left the hotel.”</p>
+
+<p>Frank was thoroughly put out, but this did
+no good, and, with something of a sigh, he restored
+the useless fire-arm to his pocket.</p>
+
+<p>“I ought to have something,” he went on.
+“I wonder if I couldn’t cut a stick somewhere
+in the bushes.”</p>
+
+<p>He arose once more, and getting out his
+pocket-knife proceeded to cut a sapling,
+which he quickly reduced to quite a respectable
+club having several hard knobs at one
+end.</p>
+
+<p>“There, I reckon if a fellow got that on the
+head it would make him see stars,” thought
+Frank. “It isn’t as good as a loaded pistol, but
+it’s better than nothing.”</p>
+
+<p>Quarter of an hour passed, and still he heard
+or saw nothing of Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“He’s making slow work of it,” soliloquized
+the young man. “I presume he wants to make
+sure and not walk into any trap. Dear me, but
+this is lonely, and I half wish I was back at the
+hotel.”</p>
+
+<p>Another quarter of an hour passed, and Frank
+arose to walk to a spot several yards away, and
+thus obtain a different view of the hay-stack,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_40">[40]</span>
+which was all of two hundred feet back in the
+meadow lot.</p>
+
+<p>Scarcely had he walked a rod when a shadow
+crossed his shoulder.</p>
+
+<p>He wheeled about to see what was there, but
+no one was in sight.</p>
+
+<p>What did it mean? Had a night bird swept
+near, or had he merely imagined the shadow
+there?</p>
+
+<p>He grasped the club a little tighter, and listened
+with strained ears. A faint crackling
+sound reached him, coming from a distance but
+a few feet away.</p>
+
+<p>Again he swung around. A form leaped directly
+before him, the form of James Casco.</p>
+
+<p>“Casco!”</p>
+
+<p>“You are right, Landes. So you are following
+me again.”</p>
+
+<p>“I am following this time, yes. Stop where
+you are.”</p>
+
+<p>“What do you mean?”</p>
+
+<p>“Move another step, and you will be sorry for
+it.”</p>
+
+<p>And Frank drew his empty pistol, and pointed
+it.</p>
+
+<p>Casco was somewhat dismayed, but only for a
+second. Then he rushed at Frank.</p>
+
+<p>At the same instant came a whip-poor-will
+cry. In the excitement, however, the young
+man did not notice it.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_41">[41]</span>Casco rushed in, and knocked up Frank’s
+weapon, at the same time uttering the same
+whistle he had used on the hotel piazza.</p>
+
+<p>Knowing that this was a call for help, Frank
+tried to run away. Casco promptly tripped him
+up and then came down on the young man.</p>
+
+<p>“Do you give in?” he demanded.</p>
+
+<p>“No,” returned Frank, firmly.</p>
+
+<p>Without ado the scar-faced man brought
+down his club upon Frank’s head. It was a
+vicious blow, well directed, and with a groan
+the young man fell back insensible.</p>
+
+<p>“He’ll not worry me again, I reckon,” muttered
+Casco, as he surveyed the inanimate form
+before him. “I suppose I might as well go
+through him now I have the chance. By Jove,
+this is starting on the new career for certain!
+No backing out after this.”</p>
+
+<p>Casco bent over Frank’s form, and began a
+rapid search of his victim’s pockets. He brought
+to light a roll of bills amounting to seventy dollars,
+a number of letters and documents, and
+several things of less importance.</p>
+
+<p>“A pretty good haul,” muttered the thief.</p>
+
+<p>Just then the bushes parted, and one of the
+men wearing a slouch hat came over the fence.</p>
+
+<p>“Where are you, Casco?”</p>
+
+<p>“Here, Barker, I’ve knocked him out.”</p>
+
+<p>“Him? Who?”</p>
+
+<p>“The fellow I had a row with at the hotel. I<span class="pagenum" id="Page_42">[42]</span>
+felt certain he must be somewhere around
+here.”</p>
+
+<p>“Humph! You seem to have a grudge against
+him.”</p>
+
+<p>“I have. It was he exposed me in New
+York. I might have had that snap yet if it
+hadn’t been for him.”</p>
+
+<p>The man called Barker chuckled, as if what
+he had been told was a joke.</p>
+
+<p>“What was his pockets worth?”</p>
+
+<p>“Not much. A handful of change and these
+letters.”</p>
+
+<p>“What will you do with him?”</p>
+
+<p>“Throw him in the ditch, behind the bushes.
+They won’t find him so easily.”</p>
+
+<p>“All right.”</p>
+
+<p>The two caught up the limp body, and, taking
+it to the ditch, threw it in.</p>
+
+<p>In the mean time Bob had crawled along the
+ditch to a point almost directly behind the hay-stack.
+It was so dark here that he could see
+but little, but his ears were on the alert and, by
+listening intently, he made out the faint murmur
+of voices.</p>
+
+<p>He could not make out what was said, and,
+after waiting for several minutes, he ventured a
+couple of yards closer.</p>
+
+<p>Then he beheld the two men in slouch hats
+in low but earnest conversation. Casco was nowhere
+to be seen.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_43">[43]</span>Making sure that he was not discovered, Bob
+drew still closer to learn, if possible, what had
+become of the scar-faced man.</p>
+
+<p>“Well, Grogan, what do you think of Casco’s
+plan?” he heard one of the men say.</p>
+
+<p>“Sure, an’ Oi think it purty bould, Barker,”
+replied Grogan, who was undoubtedly an Irishman.
+“’Tis a foine way to make money widout
+workin’.”</p>
+
+<p>“It’s not so fine if you get caught,” replied
+Barker. “To my mind it’s rather risky.”</p>
+
+<p>“Sure, an’ how could it be? If Casco gits in
+wid the——”</p>
+
+<p>“Hush! What’s that?”</p>
+
+<p>Barker sprang up from his bed on the hay.</p>
+
+<p>“Phat did yez hear?” demanded Grogan, in
+alarm.</p>
+
+<p>“I heard some kind of a noise.”</p>
+
+<p>“Perhaps ’tis Casco comin’ back.”</p>
+
+<p>Barker looked around, and Bob did his best
+to keep out of sight. His foot had struck a dry
+stick, which had snapped in two, making quite
+a loud report.</p>
+
+<p>The two men went on talking, but Bob caught
+only a few words to the effect that inside of a
+week Casco would have some plan ready in all
+its details.</p>
+
+<p>“They are up to no good,” thought Bob. “I
+think their talk means robbery on a large scale
+and nothing else.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_44">[44]</span>Presently from the road came a sharp whistle.
+Barker again jumped up.</p>
+
+<p>“It’s a signal from Casco,” he said. “Something
+is wrong. Look around here, while I go
+and see what it is.”</p>
+
+<p>He hurried off. Grogan sprang up a moment
+later, and almost immediately sighted Bob
+lying in the long grass.</p>
+
+<p>“Who be yez?” he demanded, pouncing upon
+the youth.</p>
+
+<p>Bob at once gave his whip-poor-will signal to
+warn Frank.</p>
+
+<p>“Stand where you are, you rascal,” he said to
+Grogan.</p>
+
+<p>“Bad cess to yez!” cried the Irishman. “Do
+yez think Oi’m to be overpowered by a b’y?
+Indade not.”</p>
+
+<p>He rushed at Bob, and a desperate struggle
+ensued.</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_45">[45]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER IV<br>
+
+<small>BOB IS LEFT TO HIS FATE</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">Bob</span> was strong for his age, but his strength
+was nothing compared with that of Mike Grogan,
+who now faced the intrepid youth.</p>
+
+<p>The Irishman was every inch of six feet in
+height, and, as he towered in front of Bob, it
+looked as if he would crush the boy.</p>
+
+<p>As he closed in he struck out at Bob several
+times, but the youth ducked and dodged and
+not a blow took effect.</p>
+
+<p>Then the Irishman tried new tactics. He
+pretended to run, and, when Bob followed, he
+turned swiftly and caught the youth by the
+waist.</p>
+
+<p>“Now I have yez!” cried Grogan. “How
+do ye loike that, me b’y?”</p>
+
+<p>He threw Bob on the ground, and kicked
+him heavily in the side. The youth attempted
+to scramble up, but the Irishman kicked him
+again, and then Bob was glad enough to lie still.</p>
+
+<p>“’Tis the same b’y we met at Fitt’s hotel,”
+muttered Grogan, as he looked closer at Bob.
+“Phat brought yez here?” he demanded.</p>
+
+<p>“That’s my business,” returned Bob, with a<span class="pagenum" id="Page_46">[46]</span>
+gasp. Besides bruising him severely, the kicks
+had taken all the wind out of him.</p>
+
+<p>“Is it?” said Grogan, sarcastically. “Mebbe
+Oi’ll make it moine, too. Lie where yez are,
+onless yez would rather be kicked to death.”</p>
+
+<p>“What do you propose to do with me?” demanded
+Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“Yez will see when the toime comes.”</p>
+
+<p>“You have no right to keep me here.”</p>
+
+<p>Grogan gave a chuckle.</p>
+
+<p>“’Tis not the loikes of you to be tellin’
+me phat Oi kin do, moind that. Phat’s yer
+name?”</p>
+
+<p>“Bob Alden. Does that make you feel any
+better?”</p>
+
+<p>“Do yez belong up to the hotel?”</p>
+
+<p>“No.”</p>
+
+<p>“Yez got yerself into a foine pickle whin yez
+put up against me an’ the others.”</p>
+
+<p>“You had no right to attack my friend,” returned
+Bob, warmly. “It’s a pity we didn’t
+capture you then and there.”</p>
+
+<p>“Shut up! Oi want no more from ye.”</p>
+
+<p>Grogan began to get angry, and, seeing he
+could gain nothing by keeping up the conversation,
+Bob became silent.</p>
+
+<p>The youth wondered what had become of
+Frank Landes. Had he fallen into the hands
+of Casco or Barker?</p>
+
+<p>“It looks like it,” thought Bob. “I wish I<span class="pagenum" id="Page_47">[47]</span>
+could get away from this chap, and find out for
+certain.”</p>
+
+<p>He looked up at Grogan, who still stood over
+him, smoking a short clay pipe and glaring
+down at him. The Irishman seemed to read
+his thought.</p>
+
+<p>“Yez can’t git away, and yez had better not
+troy,” he said, savagely.</p>
+
+<p>“Go for him, Bill!” exclaimed Bob, to an
+imaginary person behind Grogan.</p>
+
+<p>The ruse worked well. Mike Grogan turned,
+with a startled air, to confront the person he
+supposed was about to attack him. On the instant
+Bob jumped to his feet. His side felt fearfully
+sore, but to this he paid no attention.</p>
+
+<p>“Shtop!” roared Grogan, as soon as he realized
+that he had been imposed upon.</p>
+
+<p>But instead of stopping, Bob dashed for the
+fence which lined the lane. Grogan came after
+him at the top of his speed. But the boy was
+the better runner of the two, and he reached
+the fence fully twenty feet ahead of the Irishman.</p>
+
+<p>Bob vaulted over with a single bound. His
+intention was to run up the lane and join Frank,
+if possible.</p>
+
+<p>But as he went over the fence his hopes were
+crushed before his feet touched the ground on
+the other side. He fell plump into the hands of
+Casco and Barker, who were just returning<span class="pagenum" id="Page_48">[48]</span>
+from casting Landes into the ditch some distance
+away.</p>
+
+<p>“Ha! who’s this?” cried Casco. “That boy,
+as I live!”</p>
+
+<p>“What boy?” asked Barker.</p>
+
+<p>“Landes’ friend. Catch him!”</p>
+
+<p>Barker caught Bob by one arm, and, running
+up, the scar-faced man caught him by the
+other. Bob tried to break away, but found
+it useless.</p>
+
+<p>“Hold him tight, Barker. I’ll bind his hands
+behind him.”</p>
+
+<p>“What for?”</p>
+
+<p>“I have reasons. Hold him. That’s it.”</p>
+
+<p>Casco produced a bit of strong cord, and with
+it bound Bob’s hands together tightly.</p>
+
+<p>“Now come along, and don’t make any
+noise,” he said to the youth.</p>
+
+<p>“Where to?”</p>
+
+<p>“To that hay-stack over there.”</p>
+
+<p>“I won’t go. What have you been doing out
+here on the road?”</p>
+
+<p>“Nothing,” returned Casco, in pretended surprise,
+and he pinched Barker’s arm to make his
+companion keep silent.</p>
+
+<p>Bob was about to question them concerning
+Frank. But he thought it possible Landes had
+gotten away, and such questions might spoil
+any chance of rescue as well as the capture of
+the trio.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_49">[49]</span>Seeing he could not help himself, Bob at last
+went over the fence, and with Casco on one side
+and Barker on the other marched to the hay-stack,
+Grogan bringing up the rear, with a club
+in hand, ready to strike at the first sign of
+rebellion.</p>
+
+<p>“Now we will sift this matter to the bottom,”
+said Casco, as he came to a halt. “You are
+Frank Landes’ friend, are you not?”</p>
+
+<p>“I am,” returned Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“What has become of Landes?”</p>
+
+<p>And Casco poked Barker in the ribs on the
+sly.</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t know.”</p>
+
+<p>“Was he with you?”</p>
+
+<p>“That is my affair.”</p>
+
+<p>“Answer me.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob remained silent. Casco pretended to get
+very angry, but at last simmered down.</p>
+
+<p>“He sez his name is Bob Alden,” put in
+Grogan.</p>
+
+<p>“What’s that!” demanded Barker, in intense
+surprise.</p>
+
+<p>Bob looked at him, and saw that the man was
+very pale, and evidently under strong excitement.</p>
+
+<p>“Is your name Bob Alden?” he demanded,
+facing the youth.</p>
+
+<p>“It is.”</p>
+
+<p>“Did you use to live with old Thompson?”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_50">[50]</span>“I did. But I don’t remember you,” returned
+Bob, growing interested.</p>
+
+<p>“I suppose not. Where have you been since
+Thompson died?”</p>
+
+<p>“I lived with a farmer named Joel Carrow.”</p>
+
+<p>“What are you doing now?”</p>
+
+<p>“Answering questions,” returned the youth,
+with a faint smile.</p>
+
+<p>“I want none of your jokes,” growled Barker.
+“Do you work for a living?”</p>
+
+<p>“I expect to, just as soon as I can get a job.”</p>
+
+<p>“Are you on the road?”</p>
+
+<p>“I’m walking to Stampton, if that’s what you
+mean.”</p>
+
+<p>“Humph!”</p>
+
+<p>“How did you fall in with Landes?” put in
+James Casco.</p>
+
+<p>“He took my part when Carrow wanted to
+whip me, and I’m helping him take pictures in
+return for my board on the road.”</p>
+
+<p>The men ceased asking questions, and Casco
+and Barker walked a short distance away, leaving
+Grogan on guard.</p>
+
+<p>“It’s a surprise, and no mistake,” said Barker,
+in a low tone. “I was sure the boy had gone
+West. Thompson’s relatives said so.”</p>
+
+<p>“Is the old matter settled up?” questioned
+the scar-faced man.</p>
+
+<p>“Almost. But there might be more money
+in it,” mused Barker. “Say, I have a plan.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_51">[51]</span>“What is it?”</p>
+
+<p>“I wonder if we could get the boy to join
+us?”</p>
+
+<p>“Not likely.”</p>
+
+<p>“Why not? The promise of big money
+might fetch him.”</p>
+
+<p>“He looks too honest. Still, you might
+sound him. Only if he refuses, what then?
+You won’t dare to let him go.”</p>
+
+<p>“I won’t give him much information till I am
+sure of him,” rejoined Barker.</p>
+
+<p>Bob could not make out what the two men
+said, but from their actions he felt certain they
+were conversing about him.</p>
+
+<p>“Say, boy!” demanded Barker, coming up.
+“Have you any offer of work at Stampton when
+you reach there?”</p>
+
+<p>“No.”</p>
+
+<p>“You’ll find it mighty hard getting a job.”</p>
+
+<p>“Perhaps I will. But that’s none of your
+affair.”</p>
+
+<p>“Don’t get saucy. I thought, perhaps, you
+might like to leave Landes and join us.”</p>
+
+<p>“What at?”</p>
+
+<p>“A little private business we’re working.”</p>
+
+<p>“Does it pay?”</p>
+
+<p>“You bet it does.”</p>
+
+<p>“Do you work hard?”</p>
+
+<p>“Not at all.”</p>
+
+<p>“Then I’m afraid it wouldn’t suit me. I’ve<span class="pagenum" id="Page_52">[52]</span>
+been used to hard work, and, if I knocked off,
+it might hurt me.”</p>
+
+<p>Barker was enraged at this cool reply, and he
+would have struck Bob in the head had not
+Casco held him back.</p>
+
+<p>“I told you how it would be,” said the scar-faced
+man. “He is too particular for this
+crowd.”</p>
+
+<p>“Maybe not,” said Bob, who was anxious to
+learn what were the plans of the gang. “Tell
+me the work, and I may join.”</p>
+
+<p>“Can you keep your mouth shut?” asked
+Casco.</p>
+
+<p>“I can when I have to.”</p>
+
+<p>“We are going to get rich by a bold move,”
+said Barker. “We intend to make twenty
+thousand dollars in one night, and——”</p>
+
+<p>“Barker, don’t be a fool!” cried Casco,
+angrily.</p>
+
+<p>“’Tis bad to tell the b’y that,” grumbled
+Grogan.</p>
+
+<p>“I know what I’m doing,” returned Barker.
+“Will you help us make it?”</p>
+
+<p>“You intend to rob somebody, eh?” said
+Bob, with flashing eyes.</p>
+
+<p>“We intend to get twenty thousand dollars.
+Will you join us, and take your share?”</p>
+
+<p>“No. I am not a thief.”</p>
+
+<p>“That may be. But your father would have
+jumped at the chance,” returned Barker, coolly.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_53">[53]</span>“My father? Did you know my father?”
+cried Bob, in astonishment.</p>
+
+<p>“I did. He and I were old friends.”</p>
+
+<p>“Tell me about him. Where is he?”</p>
+
+<p>“Dead, long ago.”</p>
+
+<p>“And my mother?”</p>
+
+<p>“Dead also.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob took a long breath. Was this man telling
+the truth?</p>
+
+<p>“And you say my father would have jumped
+at a chance like this?” he said, slowly.</p>
+
+<p>“Yes. He and I worked many a little game
+together, and never got caught, either. You had
+better join us, and I will show you all the ropes.
+It beats working hard all to bits.”</p>
+
+<p>“You are an infernal scamp!” burst out Bob.
+“Tell me my father was a thief? If I were
+loose I would—would—pulverize you. If you
+knew my father at all, it must have been at some
+time when he found you out and exposed you.”</p>
+
+<p>Barker drew back as if shot. Evidently Bob’s
+last remark had struck home. He breathed
+hard, and glared at the youth.</p>
+
+<p>“You don’t know when you’re well off,” he
+cried. “I offer you the best possible chance to
+make money, and you refuse.”</p>
+
+<p>“I never trained with thieves,” returned Bob,
+stoutly.</p>
+
+<p>“Oi’ll fix yez fer that!” cried Grogan. “B’ys,
+Oi have a plan!” he said to the others.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_54">[54]</span>“Shove him into the hay-stack,” cried Barker.
+“He’s as stubborn as his father was,” he added,
+in a lower tone. “I’ll fix him later.”</p>
+
+<p>The three caught up the youth, and shoved
+him into an opening on one side of the stack.</p>
+
+<p>“Come on,” Barker cried to the others. “We
+have just about time to do that other work, and
+get away before morning.”</p>
+
+<p>The three villains hurried from the scene,
+leaving Bob to his fate.</p>
+
+<p>They had gone but a few minutes, when the
+boy smelt smoke. He looked around. Grogan
+had knocked out his pipe, and the burning tobacco
+had set fire to the hay directly behind
+him!</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_55">[55]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER V<br>
+
+<small>BOB MAKES HIS ESCAPE</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">For</span> the moment Bob could not realize his
+awful peril, but when he saw the tiny flame feeding
+on the loose hay, and creeping steadily
+toward him, he gave a cry of horror.</p>
+
+<p>The flame became stronger each instant, and
+as it grew it advanced with increased rapidity.</p>
+
+<p>“I will be burned alive!” groaned the youth.</p>
+
+<p>He tried to roll from the place in which he
+had been shoved, but Barker had tied him to a
+pole in the centre of the hay-stack, and he found
+it impossible to free himself.</p>
+
+<p>“Help! help!” he cried.</p>
+
+<p>No answer came back to his appeal. The
+spot was out of sight of any house, and it was
+more than likely that the fire would be well
+under way before being discovered by any outsider.</p>
+
+<p>“If only Frank would come,” thought Bob.
+“He ought to be somewhere about.”</p>
+
+<p>Little did the youth dream that his friend
+was at that moment lying at the bottom of the
+ditch. The blow upon Frank’s head had been
+a severe one, and when Barker and Casco left<span class="pagenum" id="Page_56">[56]</span>
+him they expected he would not very soon recover.</p>
+
+<p>The flames near the stack were now mounting
+higher, and suddenly a puff of wind carried
+them directly toward Bob, and the youth was
+almost immediately surrounded by fire.</p>
+
+<p>“I’m a goner now!” moaned Bob.</p>
+
+<p>The fire ate its way swiftly toward the youth’s
+back—it touched his hands—and he shrieked
+with pain.</p>
+
+<p>The smoke was thick, and it not only blinded
+him, but choked him as well.</p>
+
+<p>Bob was almost overcome when the wind
+shifted and carried the flames another way.</p>
+
+<p>He began another desperate struggle, and at
+last succeeded in freeing one hand, although in
+so doing he tore a large portion of the skin from
+his wrist.</p>
+
+<p>“Now or never,” he muttered, desperately.
+“I must get free before the wind shifts back, or
+I’ll be a goner.”</p>
+
+<p>He tugged at his other hand, but the cord
+held and the knot refused to budge.</p>
+
+<p>“Help! help!” he cried again, at the top of
+his lungs.</p>
+
+<p>He had hardly uttered the words before the
+wind swerved around, and once more the flames
+and smoke surrounded him.</p>
+
+<p>“Hullo there!” came faintly from the darkness
+beyond.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_57">[57]</span>“Help!” cried Bob again.</p>
+
+<p>His throat was almost choked, and his mouth
+was parched.</p>
+
+<p>“Where are you?”</p>
+
+<p>“In the hay-stack. Save me, I am tied fast!”</p>
+
+<p>“By Jove! I’m coming!”</p>
+
+<p>An instant passed and then through the
+smoke appeared a swaying form that seemed
+every moment to be on the verge of collapsing.</p>
+
+<p>“Bob!”</p>
+
+<p>“Frank! Save me, quick!”</p>
+
+<p>“What’s the trouble?”</p>
+
+<p>“I am tied to this pole,” moaned Bob.
+“Quick, cut the cord, or I’ll be burnt up!”</p>
+
+<p>Frank drew out his knife, and opened it.
+Two slashes, and Bob was free. With one mad
+leap he jumped from the burning stack to the
+open space beyond. Frank followed, and both
+were safe, while a sudden puff caught the flames
+and sent them upward with a roar.</p>
+
+<p>“In the nick of time,” burst out Bob. “Just
+look at that wrist, and I know my neck is blistered.”</p>
+
+<p>“I am glad I arrived when I did,” returned
+Frank. “I suppose the same rascals tied
+you——”</p>
+
+<p>He stopped short. Bob saw him reel, and,
+springing forward, he caught the young man in
+his arms.</p>
+
+<p>“Fainted, by jinks!” exclaimed the youth.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_58">[58]</span>
+“And his neck is covered with blood. They
+must have attacked him, too.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob laid Frank flat on his back, and began
+to fan him with his cap. While he was doing
+this, two men, evidently father and son, rushed
+up.</p>
+
+<p>“Here, what be yeou a-doin’ here?” demanded
+the elder, savagely.</p>
+
+<p>“We didn’t set the stack on fire,” returned
+Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“Thet’s well enough fer yeou to say,” went
+on the younger. “Git up there,” this to Frank.</p>
+
+<p>“He can’t get up,” replied Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“Why not?”</p>
+
+<p>“He has fainted.”</p>
+
+<p>“What were yeou doin’ in the stack?” demanded
+the elder.</p>
+
+<p>“Nothing. I was tied there by three men,
+and one set the stack on fire from his pipe.”</p>
+
+<p>“By gum!” ejaculated the younger.</p>
+
+<p>“Thet’s a likely story. Guess we can’t save
+it, Ruel, anyhow.”</p>
+
+<p>“’Tain’t likely, dad. Thet hay is lost, sure.”</p>
+
+<p>“It’s these fellers’ faults,” grumbled the father.
+“They most likely went to sleep smokin’ in it,
+an’ thet’s how it caught.” He grabbed Bob by
+the arm. “Yeou cum along o’ me.”</p>
+
+<p>“It’s not my fault. Let go,” returned Bob.
+“Look at that wrist! And my friend has been
+struck in the back of the head. You had better<span class="pagenum" id="Page_59">[59]</span>
+help me carry him to some house and get a doctor.
+He is no tramp, but a guest over to Fitt’s
+hotel.”</p>
+
+<p>At these words the farmer let go his hold and
+scratched his head.</p>
+
+<p>“Wall, I dunno. Who be yeou?”</p>
+
+<p>“Never mind that. This young man is Frank
+Landes. Perhaps you have heard of him. He
+comes around here occasionally.”</p>
+
+<p>“Frank Landes! By gum, so it is! He’s
+with a New York commission house. Wall,
+thet’s different, o’ course it is. But who sot the
+hay afire?”</p>
+
+<p>“Three men named Casco, Barker, and
+Grogan.”</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t know ’em.”</p>
+
+<p>“They are a bad set. But come, help me with
+Frank. You can’t do anything with that hay.
+It’s all smoked through, and the cattle won’t
+touch it.”</p>
+
+<p>“Thet’s so. Where shall we take him?”</p>
+
+<p>“How far is your house?”</p>
+
+<p>“Jess tudder side o’ thet hill.”</p>
+
+<p>“Then we might as well take him there,” said
+Bob.</p>
+
+<p>The three raised up the limp body, and carried
+it to the farmer’s house. Half a dozen
+neighbors, who had been attracted by the blaze,
+came up and followed.</p>
+
+<p>Ruel Dalmer—that was the son’s name—set<span class="pagenum" id="Page_60">[60]</span>
+off for the nearest doctor on his buckboard, and
+it was not long before a physician arrived.</p>
+
+<p>Just before he entered, Bob, who was standing
+over Frank, doing all in his power to make
+the young man comfortable, had the satisfaction
+of seeing the blood-shot eyes open and heard a
+faint gasp.</p>
+
+<p>“Thank fortune, he’s coming around,” murmured
+the youth. “His injuries are much
+worse than mine.”</p>
+
+<p>The physician at once went to work. He
+sewed up the cut in the back of Frank’s head,
+and gave the young man a strengthening potion.</p>
+
+<p>“All he needs now is plenty of rest,” said the
+physician. “It is an ugly wound, but by no
+means a serious one. Nevertheless, had it come
+an inch farther up the young man would have
+been killed.”</p>
+
+<p>“He can’t be moved, can he?” asked Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“Not for a day or two.”</p>
+
+<p>“He can stay here a week,” said the elder
+Dalmer. “I did not know it was Landes at
+first, or I wouldn’t have been so rough.”</p>
+
+<p>They left Frank lying on a bed in the spare
+room, and then Bob followed the others below,
+and there told his story, starting with the meeting
+between Frank and Casco at the hotel.</p>
+
+<p>“I heard about that affair only an hour ago,”
+said the doctor. “And so those are the men
+who attacked you both?”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_61">[61]</span>“They are.”</p>
+
+<p>“They oughter be in jail!” cried old Dalmer.
+“Sech rascals ain’t fit to be loose.”</p>
+
+<p>The doctor was about to leave, when a wagon
+dashed up to the house. It contained two men,
+one of whom jumped down and rapped sharply
+on the door.</p>
+
+<p>“What’s up, John?” demanded Dalmer, opening
+the door at once.</p>
+
+<p>“Our house has been robbed, and we want
+help to catch the robbers,” was the startling
+reply.</p>
+
+<p>Of course, every one was astonished. Bob
+sprang to his feet.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll wager anything it was Casco, Barker,
+and Grogan did it,” he exclaimed.</p>
+
+<p>“Wot makes yeou think thet?” questioned
+the elder Dalmer.</p>
+
+<p>“Because they spoke of having just time
+enough to accomplish something. They robbed
+the house, and are now getting away as fast as
+they can.”</p>
+
+<p>“I’m going after them, and I’ll catch ’em, too,
+just as sure as my name is John Wright,” exclaimed
+the man who had made the announcement.
+“Who’ll go along?”</p>
+
+<p>“I can’t go,” said the man who had driven up
+with Wright.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll go after them,” said Bob. “I owe those
+fellows one.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_62">[62]</span>“An’ I’ll go, too,” put in Ruel Dalmer.
+“They’ll find out they can’t fire our hay-stack
+fer nuthin’, by gosh!”</p>
+
+<p>So a party of three was hastily formed, and
+they drove off in John Wright’s wagon at a
+breakneck speed.</p>
+
+<p>“Have you any idea what direction the robbers
+took?” questioned Bob, on the way.</p>
+
+<p>“I reckon they cut toward Stampton,” said
+Wright. “We’ll see if they have learned anything
+new up to the house.”</p>
+
+<p>When they reached Wright’s home, they
+found everything in confusion.</p>
+
+<p>An entrance had been effected through a dining-room
+window, and the entire lower floor
+ransacked.</p>
+
+<p>In one closet Mrs. Wright had had a quantity
+of silverware. This was gone, and with it a
+table spread in which the robbers had most likely
+tied up this part of their booty.</p>
+
+<p>An old desk stood in a corner of the sitting-room.
+This desk held Wright’s private papers
+and also his strong box. It had been skilfully
+unlocked, and both the box and many of the
+documents were gone.</p>
+
+<p>“And the box contained eighteen hundred
+dollars in cash,” said John Wright. “Plague
+take the luck! I ought to hev took that money
+to the Stampton bank.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob began to look around carefully. Presently<span class="pagenum" id="Page_63">[63]</span>
+he stopped and picked up something lying
+on the floor near the looted desk. It was a
+short clay pipe.</p>
+
+<p>“That settles it,” he said, holding up the article.
+“That is the same pipe Grogan was smoking.”</p>
+
+<p>“You are sure?” questioned Wright.</p>
+
+<p>“Yes. We had better get after them without
+delay.”</p>
+
+<p>“But which way?”</p>
+
+<p>“Ye-as, we can’t go after ’em unless we know
+thet,” put in Ruel Dalmer.</p>
+
+<p>“I suppose they went out the way they came,”
+said Bob. “Let us see if we cannot trace them
+from the dining-room window.”</p>
+
+<p>An extra lamp was procured by Mrs. Wright,
+who was shedding copious tears over her loss,
+and a minute examination of the ground outside
+of the window took place.</p>
+
+<p>“The steps lead off in that direction,” said
+Bob, pointing toward a road which ran to the
+south of the house. “Come on!”</p>
+
+<p>By the aid of a lantern they followed the foot-prints
+to the road.</p>
+
+<p>“And from here they went straight to Stampton,”
+said Wright. “I wonder if they had a
+horse and wagon.”</p>
+
+<p>“No, they didn’t!” shouted Bob, from the
+other side of the road. “They crossed to here
+and struck out for the woods.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_64">[64]</span>Wright and Dalmer came over, and both
+agreed that the youth was right. The foot-prints
+could be seen plainly.</p>
+
+<p>“We’ll have no difficulty in following them,”
+said Bob. “I suppose you are both armed?”</p>
+
+<p>Wright said he had a pistol. Ruel Dalmer
+had a stout club, and declared he wanted no
+better weapon.</p>
+
+<p>“Jess give me a whack at ’em with this, an’
+I’ll knock the daylights clean outer ’em,” he observed,
+as he grasped the club more firmly than
+ever.</p>
+
+<p>“They are desperate men,” said Bob. “They
+would not hesitate to shoot, if cornered. I intend
+to take no chances.”</p>
+
+<p>“It’s a pity it ain’t day instead o’ night,” observed
+Wright. “I reckon it’s pitch dark in
+the woods.”</p>
+
+<p>“The moon is coming up,” said Bob. “That
+will soon help us. Let us go forward and make
+as little noise as possible.”</p>
+
+<p>Without further words, the three left the road
+and entered the belt of timber beyond. Here
+the ground was soft, and the tracks made by the
+robbers were plainly visible for a distance of
+several hundred feet.</p>
+
+<p>“Maybe they crossed to the Shanover turnpike,”
+suggested Wright. “They might do
+that, and throw us off the track.”</p>
+
+<p>“We’ll soon find out,” returned Bob.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_65">[65]</span>Deeper and deeper they went into the timber,
+until at length they came to a small stream,
+both sides of which were covered with rocks.</p>
+
+<p>Here, of course, the tracks made by the robbers
+could not be followed, and the searchers
+came to a halt.</p>
+
+<p>“Stuck,” said Dalmer, laconically. “Wot’s
+ter do now?”</p>
+
+<p>“We had better separate,” said Bob. “Supposing
+one of you go up the brook, one down,
+and I will cross and see if I can’t hit the trail in
+the wood beyond.”</p>
+
+<p>“All right, that’s a good plan,” said Wright.
+“I’ll be the one to go down stream.”</p>
+
+<p>He turned in the direction. Ruel Dalmer
+started in the opposite direction, and Bob was
+left alone.</p>
+
+<p>The moon had now risen, and a faint light
+stole through the timber, broken here and there
+by heavy shadows. A boy less brave than Bob
+might have shivered at the uncanny situation,
+but Bob did not know what fear was. He had
+seen too much of the seamy side of life for that.</p>
+
+<p>Jumping from one rock to another, he crossed
+the stream and plunged boldly ahead. He had
+a fair idea of the direction of the Shanover turnpike,
+and thought he could do no better than
+make directly for it.</p>
+
+<p>“For that is what those chaps did, if they
+were bound this way,” he reasoned.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_66">[66]</span>Less than half an hour later Bob came
+to a large mass of rocks, covered with trailing
+vines and moss. He paused for a second,
+and as he did so a peculiar sound came to his
+ears.</p>
+
+<p>“What was that?” the youth asked himself.
+“It sounded like a man’s foot slipping on a wet
+stone.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob listened intently, but the sound was not
+repeated, and after waiting a full minute the
+youth began to move forward again.</p>
+
+<p>He passed to the end of the rocks, and struck
+out for the turnpike, which he knew was now
+not five minutes’ walk ahead.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly a dark object seemed to loom up
+directly in his path. It was the form of a man.
+In a moment more the boy made out the figure
+of John Wright.</p>
+
+<p>“Do you know where the robbers went?”
+asked Wright.</p>
+
+<p>“No.”</p>
+
+<p>“I sent word over to Stampton and to Shanover,
+and the police are now on the villains’
+tracks.”</p>
+
+<p>“Hope they catch them,” muttered Bob.
+“They are the toughest crowd I ever heard of.”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s so. But the chief of police of Stampton
+assured me they couldn’t escape. I suppose
+he knows how to run ’em down first clip.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob had his doubts about the matter, but he<span class="pagenum" id="Page_67">[67]</span>
+did not express them. Yet he hoped Wright
+spoke the truth.</p>
+
+<p>He was anxious to interview Barker. What
+did the man know about him and about his
+father?</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll make him tell,” muttered Bob to himself.
+“And I’ll make him prove what he says,
+too. I don’t intend to be a nobody any
+longer.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob followed John Wright to his home. Here
+he was invited to partake of breakfast, which he
+did willingly, for the events of the past hours
+had sharpened his appetite.</p>
+
+<p>Having finished the meal, Bob started back
+toward the Dalmer house, to see how Frank
+Landes was progressing. He sincerely hoped
+his newly-found friend would speedily recover
+from the injuries he had received.</p>
+
+<p>About half-way down the road he espied a
+rickety turn-out approaching. He thought he
+knew the rig, and he was not mistaken.</p>
+
+<p>It was Joel Carrow’s turn-out, and on the seat
+sat the miserly farmer, looking meaner than
+ever.</p>
+
+<p>“I wonder what he’ll do when he sees me?”
+thought Bob.</p>
+
+<p>Joel Carrow’s horse approached on a slow
+trot, and the farmer was not long in espying the
+youth.</p>
+
+<p>Bob eyed him sharply, as he stepped aside to<span class="pagenum" id="Page_68">[68]</span>
+let the wagon pass. He was about to speak,
+but changed his mind.</p>
+
+<p>“What are yer doin’ here, yer young whelp?”
+was Carrow’s salutation, as he pulled up.</p>
+
+<p>“Are you speaking to me?” asked Bob,
+coolly.</p>
+
+<p>“Who else would I be speaking to, you rat!”</p>
+
+<p>“Thanks for your kind expressions. What
+I am doing is none of your business.”</p>
+
+<p>“I hear Wright’s house was robbed last
+night,” went on Carrow, meaningly.</p>
+
+<p>“Well?”</p>
+
+<p>“I was goin’ ter ride over an’ see. It’s more’n
+like you hed sumthin’ ter do with it.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob laughed at this.</p>
+
+<p>“You’re crazy, Mr. Carrow,” he said. “Just
+because you and I can’t hitch, I suppose you
+think I’m the worst boy in the State.”</p>
+
+<p>“So yer be! So yer be! An’ don’t yer call
+me crazy!” shouted Carrow, getting angry.</p>
+
+<p>“Then keep your opinions to yourself. Nobody
+asked you for them, and they are not
+wanted.”</p>
+
+<p>“Don’t give me any o’ yer sass!”</p>
+
+<p>“Then don’t call me hard names.”</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll do as I please. I ain’t ter be talked to
+by no boy!” howled Carrow.</p>
+
+<p>“Did you catch the pigs?” questioned Bob, in
+a teasing manner.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll pig you!”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_69">[69]</span>“How about that hot-bed? It must have cost
+a nice penny to put all that glass back.”</p>
+
+<p>“Shut up!”</p>
+
+<p>Carrow was in a fearful rage. He could not
+stand being chaffed.</p>
+
+<p>“Say another word, an’ I’ll skin yer alive!” he
+roared.</p>
+
+<p>“Another word,” returned Bob promptly,
+“You are on too good terms with yourself.
+Leave me alone, and I’ll leave you alone.”</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll leave you alone,” snarled the farmer.
+“How do yer like thet, you scamp!”</p>
+
+<p>He pulled his whip from the socket, swung
+the end in the air, and brought the lash down
+on Bob’s back.</p>
+
+<p>The blow was a heavy one, and it hurt. Bob
+sprang back, his eyes blazing like stars.</p>
+
+<p>“What did you do that for?” he demanded.</p>
+
+<p>“Ter teach you a lesson.”</p>
+
+<p>“Come down off of that seat.”</p>
+
+<p>“What fer?”</p>
+
+<p>“Come down and I’ll show you.”</p>
+
+<p>“I reckon I won’t accommodate ye!” returned
+Carrow, pulling up on his reins. “Let
+thet be a lesson to yer!”</p>
+
+<p>“If you don’t come down, I’ll throw this at
+you,” cried Bob.</p>
+
+<p>He stooped as he spoke, and picked up a
+large, round stone.</p>
+
+<p>“Don’t yer dare!” cried the farmer, in alarm.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_70">[70]</span>“Then come down. You had no right to hit
+me with the whip, and I want to settle with you.”</p>
+
+<p>Carrow looked at the determined youth, and
+grew just a bit nervous. He knew Bob was a
+good shot with a stone, and he did not fancy
+getting such a missile in the head.</p>
+
+<p>“Do you want me to give you more of the
+whip?” he asked, but in a milder tone.</p>
+
+<p>“Never mind. Come down.”</p>
+
+<p>Instead of complying, Carrow spoke to his
+horse. The animal took a step forward, but
+Bob promptly stopped him.</p>
+
+<p>“Let go the hoss!” cried the farmer.</p>
+
+<p>“I won’t, and, what is more, I want you to
+come down. I’ll give you just half a minute to
+do it in.”</p>
+
+<p>Carrow hesitated and then jumped to the
+ground, wondering what would come next.</p>
+
+<p>He still held the whip in one hand. Rushing
+up, Bob wrenched it from his grasp.</p>
+
+<p>“Turn about is fair play,” cried Bob. “How
+do you like that?”</p>
+
+<p>He hauled off and swish! the lash swept
+across Carrow’s face, leaving a deep red stripe
+behind.</p>
+
+<p>“Ough!” shrieked the farmer, dancing around
+with pain. “I’ll have you arrested for that!”</p>
+
+<p>“I am not afraid of you,” returned the youth,
+as coolly as he could. “I hope this teaches you
+a lesson.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_71">[71]</span>Carrow grew white with rage. That boy had
+dared to hit him with a whip, and in the face,
+too! It was shameful!</p>
+
+<p>He looked around for some means of getting
+the best of Bob. Suddenly his eye caught sight
+of a pitchfork which lay in the back of the
+wagon. He made a dash, and secured the pitchfork.
+Then, handling it as if it were a bayonet,
+he rushed upon the youth.</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_72">[72]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER VI<br>
+
+<small>BOB LEARNS SOMETHING</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">As</span> a matter of course, Bob retreated. He
+had no desire to be punctured with the points
+of the pitchfork—those tines looked altogether
+too ugly.</p>
+
+<p>Joel Carrow rushed after Bob, making several
+lunges, whenever he thought he saw a chance
+of reaching the youth.</p>
+
+<p>“Stop it!” cried Bob, when he had retreated
+a hundred feet or more. “Stop it, or you will
+be sorry.”</p>
+
+<p>“So yer afraid, are you?” snarled Carrow.</p>
+
+<p>He made another lunge, and had not Bob
+jumped to one side, the tines would have entered
+his body. The youth watched his chance, and
+doubled on the farmer. The wagon was a good
+bit up the road, and, running to it, he jumped in.</p>
+
+<p>“Hi! Stop there!” cried Carrow, in alarm.</p>
+
+<p>“Good-by, old freckles!” returned Bob.</p>
+
+<p>He turned the horse’s head, and before the
+farmer could reach him started off at a lively
+gait, leaving Carrow standing in the middle of
+the road, shaking his fist in impotent rage.</p>
+
+<p>Bob fully understood the horse he was<span class="pagenum" id="Page_73">[73]</span>
+driving, and he made good time to Dalmer’s
+place.</p>
+
+<p>Jumping off here, he tied the reins to the
+dash-board and started the horse off, feeling certain
+that the animal would go straight home.</p>
+
+<p>Entering the house, he found Frank Landes
+sitting up in an easy-chair.</p>
+
+<p>“Hullo, Bob! so you’ve come back! Mr.
+Dalmer thought you had followed those rascals
+to Stampton, or some other place.”</p>
+
+<p>Such was Frank’s salutation, and Bob saw at
+a glance that the young man was much better.</p>
+
+<p>“I wish I had been able to follow them,” returned
+the youth, and, sitting down, he related
+the particulars of the useless search.</p>
+
+<p>Frank shook his head slowly.</p>
+
+<p>“That’s the end of them, mark my word.”</p>
+
+<p>“I’m afraid you’re right,” returned Bob.
+“They are sly as well as bad. How do you
+feel?”</p>
+
+<p>“Much better. I think I can start out again
+by to-morrow morning. How is your wrist and
+back?”</p>
+
+<p>“Mighty sore, but I reckon I’ll pull through,”
+and Bob grinned. “I’m tough, you know.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob remained with Frank for an hour. During
+this time he saw Joel Carrow tramp past,
+pitchfork in hand, and looking the picture of
+sourness. He laughed, and told his companion
+of the incident on the road.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_74">[74]</span>“He ought to be dressed down,” said Frank.
+“But, Bob.”</p>
+
+<p>“Well?”</p>
+
+<p>“I wish you would go over to the hotel and get
+our traps. I haven’t a cent with me. Luckily
+I left some money in the satchel. Settle with
+the landlord, and tell him we intend to stay here
+to-night. Mrs. Dalmer says she will accommodate
+us.”</p>
+
+<p>“All right, Frank. But——” and Bob hesitated.</p>
+
+<p>“But what?”</p>
+
+<p>“It’s asking too much of you to keep me
+a whole day for nothing, and those fellows
+cleaned me out when they caught me at the
+hay-stack——”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s all right. You are to stay with me
+until we reach Stampton, even if we don’t get
+there until six weeks, and I’m to settle the bills.
+Don’t say no, or I’ll get angry.”</p>
+
+<p>“Thanks! I wouldn’t make you mad for the
+world,” and Bob made off without further
+words.</p>
+
+<p>It did not take the youth long to reach the
+half-way house. He secured all of Frank’s
+effects as well as his own bundle, and remained
+for a while talking to Fitt about the robbers.</p>
+
+<p>“It’s a pity they weren’t caught,” said the
+hotel-keeper. “I believe they are a regularly organized
+gang and nothing less.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_75">[75]</span>“Perhaps they are. You haven’t seen any
+trace of them around here, have you?”</p>
+
+<p>“I had a sort of an idea I saw one of them
+sneaking around early this morning, but I guess
+I must have been mistaken,” answered the landlord.</p>
+
+<p>Before leaving the hotel, Bob had occasion to
+go up-stairs, wishing to make sure that nothing
+belonging to Frank had been left behind.</p>
+
+<p>As he passed through the main corridor, he
+saw a tall, slim man pass hurriedly to one side
+and slip into a room the youth knew was vacant.</p>
+
+<p>The actions of the fellow were so peculiar that
+Bob could not help noticing them, and the more
+he thought over the matter, the more he became
+convinced that the slim man was up to no good.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll watch him for a few minutes and make
+sure,” said Bob to himself.</p>
+
+<p>He entered the room Frank and he had occupied,
+and from a crack of the door looked out
+into the vacant corridor.</p>
+
+<p>A minute passed. Then he saw the slim
+man emerge from the apartment in which he
+had sought shelter, and cross to a room opposite.</p>
+
+<p>The door of the room was locked, but the
+man inserted something, which Bob thought was
+a wire, into the key-hole, and at once passed
+inside.</p>
+
+<p>“That’s queer,” said the youth to himself.
+“I think I’ll investigate a bit further.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_76">[76]</span>Leaving his room, he tiptoed his way down
+the corridor until he came to the room which
+the man had just entered. The door had been
+closed from the inside, and, by turning the
+handle gently, Bob discovered that it had also
+been fastened.</p>
+
+<p>The catch had been turned so that the key-hole
+was still clear. Bending down, Bob peered
+through this small aperture.</p>
+
+<p>He could not see a great deal, but he saw
+enough to convince him that the man was rummaging
+through a bureau. He had all the
+drawers open, and was going through them with
+a dexterity that showed he was no novice at this
+work.</p>
+
+<p>“A hotel sneak-thief,” thought Bob. “Gracious!
+what a lot of robbing there is going on!”</p>
+
+<p>He scanned the face of the man carefully.
+The fellow was a stranger and where he had
+come from the youth could not conjecture.</p>
+
+<p>Bob concluded that the best thing he could
+do would be to call up the landlord, and place
+the case in his charge. Yet he was afraid to
+leave the corridor for fear the man would get
+away before he could return.</p>
+
+<p>At that moment the man left the bureau, and
+walked to one of the windows.</p>
+
+<p>“Hullo! she is coming back,” Bob heard him
+mutter.</p>
+
+<p>Then, stuffing a number of articles into his<span class="pagenum" id="Page_77">[77]</span>
+coat-pockets, the man rushed to the door and
+flung it open.</p>
+
+<p>He was astonished to come face to face with
+Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“Who—what—” he stammered, and tried to
+pass the youth. But Bob blocked his way.</p>
+
+<p>“What were you doing in that room?” demanded
+the youth.</p>
+
+<p>“What’s that?” came from the man.</p>
+
+<p>“You heard what I said.”</p>
+
+<p>“That room is mine, sir.”</p>
+
+<p>“Really! I thought it belonged to a lady.”</p>
+
+<p>“You mean my wife.”</p>
+
+<p>The sneak-thief spoke so coolly that for the
+instant Bob was taken aback.</p>
+
+<p>“Is she your wife?”</p>
+
+<p>“Certainly. Let me pass,” and again the
+man attempted to push Bob aside.</p>
+
+<p>“What makes you in such a hurry?” and
+Bob placed his hand on the slim man’s arm.</p>
+
+<p>“You are tremendously impudent!” cried the
+sneak-thief, putting on an air of importance.</p>
+
+<p>“Thank you. Just you come down to the
+office with me.”</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll do nothing of the kind. The idea of a
+boy, a mere boy, speaking to me in this fashion!
+Get out of my way, before I knock you down.”</p>
+
+<p>And he drew back as if to attack Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“Help! thief! help!” cried Bob, at the top of
+his voice.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_78">[78]</span>“Stop that racket, you fool!” muttered the
+slim man.</p>
+
+<p>He tried to catch Bob by the throat, but, failing
+in this, made a dash to get away.</p>
+
+<p>Near the head of the stairs stood the traps
+belonging to Frank and Bob. The corridor
+was but dimly lighted, and the fellow did not
+see them.</p>
+
+<p>“Stop the thief!” went on Bob.</p>
+
+<p>There was a commotion below. The man
+heard it, and ran harder than ever.</p>
+
+<p>At the top of the stairs he tripped over the
+camera, tripod, and satchel, and sneak-thief and
+photographic outfit rolled to the bottom together.
+Then came a greater commotion than
+ever.</p>
+
+<p>“What’s the row?”</p>
+
+<p>“Mercy! the house must be coming down!”</p>
+
+<p>“Stop that man!” yelled Bob. “He is a
+thief!”</p>
+
+<p>At this there was a shriek from several
+women.</p>
+
+<p>Fitt and another man rushed forward and
+grabbed the slim man by the arms just as he
+was rising to his feet.</p>
+
+<p>“Let me go!” cried the sneak-thief. “That
+boy is crazy.”</p>
+
+<p>“No, I’m not. He’s been ransacking one of
+the bureaus in Room 14,” returned Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“My room!” cried an elderly lady. “And I<span class="pagenum" id="Page_79">[79]</span>
+left my jewels in the middle drawer. Oh, the
+rascal! Hold him tight!”</p>
+
+<p>By this time Bob had reached the lower landing.
+Quite a crowd began to collect. The
+youth picked up the camera, and stood it out of
+the way of further harm, and then faced the
+sneak-thief, who looked decidedly uncomfortable.</p>
+
+<p>“This is all a mistake, gentlemen,” he said.
+“That boy is the thief.”</p>
+
+<p>“What?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes. I caught him with these jewels in his
+pocket. He tried hard to escape, and when
+he found he could not, he raised the cry you
+heard.”</p>
+
+<p>The crowd looked from the slim man to Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“That’s not true!” cried Bob. “I saw this
+man acting rather strangely and I watched him.
+He picked the lock of the door, and——”</p>
+
+<p>“Tut, tut!” put in the sneak-thief. “Why,
+boy, do you know who I am?”</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t care if you are the President. You
+stole those jewels, and you know it.”</p>
+
+<p>“I am Senator Briscoe from the West, looking
+up my interest in the T. W. &amp; L. Railroad.
+To say I am a sneak-thief is preposterous. I
+am afraid,” went on the pretended senator, with
+a wave of his hand, “that this youth is not quite
+right in his mind. Landlord, do you know
+him?”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_80">[80]</span>“Yes, I do,” returned Fitt. “And I don’t
+know you,” he added, suspiciously.</p>
+
+<p>“I can refer you to President Maverick of
+the railroad. You are making a sad mistake,
+and I must request you to let go of me.”</p>
+
+<p>Fitt was rather a nervous man, and of a weak
+turn of mind. At these smooth words he let
+go his hold, and so did the other man.</p>
+
+<p>“I wouldn’t trust him,” said Bob, bluntly.
+“He may be a Senator, but he is a thief, just
+the same, and—stop him!”</p>
+
+<p>For without warning the slim man had made
+a dash through the crowd. He reached the
+piazza, and, jumping into the road, made off as
+fast as his long legs would carry him.</p>
+
+<p>“After him!” shrieked the elderly woman.
+“He has my jewels still.”</p>
+
+<p>She was right. Fitt had not taken the box
+the sneak-thief had produced, and they were still
+in the slim man’s possession. Bob rushed after
+the fellow. The others followed, but the youth
+was the better runner of the two.</p>
+
+<p>He caught up to the sneak-thief just as the
+latter was about to mount a horse which stood
+a short distance from the hotel.</p>
+
+<p>“Give me those jewels!” he cried.</p>
+
+<p>The slim man paid no attention. He probably
+thought Bob was only a boy and could do
+nothing.</p>
+
+<p>Just as the man mounted the horse, Bob<span class="pagenum" id="Page_81">[81]</span>
+caught him by the side pocket of his sack coat.
+The pocket was torn away, and out on the road
+tumbled the jewel case.</p>
+
+<p>Bob snatched it up. Seeing what had happened
+the slim man thought first to dismount
+and try to recover the case, but Fitt and several
+others were not far off, and he reconsidered the
+matter and galloped off at top speed.</p>
+
+<p>“Have you it?” gasped the landlord, anxiously.</p>
+
+<p>“Yes,” and Bob held up the case. “I’ll return
+it to its owner,” he added, as Fitt held out
+his hand for it.</p>
+
+<p>The elderly woman soon appeared on the
+scene. She was overjoyed to recover her valuables.</p>
+
+<p>“Better see if they are all there,” suggested
+one of the crowd.</p>
+
+<p>The woman opened the case, and made a
+hasty examination.</p>
+
+<p>“All here but a small diamond and ruby cross,”
+she said, “and that, I think, was not inside the
+case, but on a cushion in the top drawer.”</p>
+
+<p>“Then that’s most likely a goner,” said Bob.</p>
+
+<p>He accompanied the elderly woman to her
+room. Nothing was learned concerning the
+cross, and she agreed with Bob that the sneak-thief
+must have gotten away with it.</p>
+
+<p>“But it was of small value in comparison to
+the contents of the case,” added Mrs. Varley,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_82">[82]</span>
+for such was her name. “The jewels in the
+case are worth five hundred dollars.”</p>
+
+<p>“Then it’s a good thing that chap didn’t get
+away with them,” said Bob with a smile.</p>
+
+<p>“I must reward you for your service to me.”</p>
+
+<p>“Don’t want any reward.”</p>
+
+<p>“But you have earned it. I would have to
+pay a detective well to recover them had that
+fellow gotten away with them. Here, take this,
+with my sincere thanks.”</p>
+
+<p>She handed Bob a bill. He glanced at it. It
+was for fifty dollars.</p>
+
+<p>“You—you’ve made a mistake,” he said, with
+something like a gasp.</p>
+
+<p>“How so?”</p>
+
+<p>“This is a fifty-dollar bill.”</p>
+
+<p>“Well?” smiled Mrs. Varley.</p>
+
+<p>“You didn’t mean to give me that much, did
+you?”</p>
+
+<p>She nodded.</p>
+
+<p>“But it ain’t worth it—not by half. I didn’t
+do much.”</p>
+
+<p>“Let me be the judge of that. Keep it, and
+I only hope it gives you as much pleasure to receive
+it as it does me to give it.”</p>
+
+<p>“Gee Christopher!” murmured Bob, surveying
+the crisp bill. “Fifty dollars! Why, I
+never had so much money in my life before.”</p>
+
+<p>Mrs. Varley laughed outright.</p>
+
+<p>“Well, let us hope you’ll have a great deal<span class="pagenum" id="Page_83">[83]</span>
+more than that before you are much older.
+What is your name?”</p>
+
+<p>Bob told her, and quite a conversation ensued,
+broken by the entrance of Fitt, who was still
+highly excited.</p>
+
+<p>It was nearly half an hour later before Bob
+left the half-way house. Mrs. Varley shook
+hands with him, and wished him luck, and he
+said he hoped she would get back her diamond
+and ruby cross.</p>
+
+<p>“If I ever meet that man again I’ll get it for
+you, or know the reason why,” he added.</p>
+
+<p>Frank Landes was surprised to learn what
+had kept Bob at the hotel so long.</p>
+
+<p>He listened attentively to the youth’s story.</p>
+
+<p>“Did that slim man have a slight limp when
+he ran?” he asked.</p>
+
+<p>“I imagine he did. Went this way,” and
+Bob illustrated as best he could across the room
+floor.</p>
+
+<p>“That’s it. He is known as Slippery Paul
+Bidwell in New York.”</p>
+
+<p>“He was slippery, that’s a fact.”</p>
+
+<p>“He is a professional crook, and lives altogether
+by his wits. It’s greatly to your credit
+that you got the jewel case away from him.”</p>
+
+<p>“It’s fifty dollars to my credit,” laughed Bob.
+“Say, do you know what I’m going to do with
+that money?”</p>
+
+<p>“I haven’t the slightest idea.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_84">[84]</span>“I’m going to ask you to buy a camera and
+outfit for me. I’ve been thinking it over, and I
+don’t see why I can’t go around the country
+taking pictures of houses and so on, and make
+some money.”</p>
+
+<p>“You can if you learn the business,” returned
+Frank.</p>
+
+<p>“Will you teach me?”</p>
+
+<p>“I said I would show you all I know. But
+you ought to get some points from a regular
+photographer.”</p>
+
+<p>“I will,” returned Bob, with a sudden determination.</p>
+
+<p>That evening Frank felt much stronger. He
+opened his outfit, got out his trays and chemicals,
+and, by the aid of a ruby light, proceeded
+to develop the pictures he had taken since Bob
+had been with him.</p>
+
+<p>The youth was greatly interested, and watched
+every part of the process closely. Both had a
+hearty laugh over the picture of Carrow plunging
+into the hot-bed after the pigs.</p>
+
+<p>“It’s awfully interesting,” declared Bob.
+“The glass seems to have nothing on it, and the
+picture comes out as if by magic when you pour
+the developing fluid on it.”</p>
+
+<p>“Here is a first-class book on photography,”
+replied Frank. “You can’t do better than
+study it closely. I will make you a present of
+it.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_85">[85]</span>Bob was delighted. He read a great part of
+the book before going to bed, and it was astonishing
+how quick he caught the right idea concerning
+the art he intended to make his own.</p>
+
+<p>“I imagine you must have been born a photographer,”
+said Frank on the following day,
+when the two were taking pictures. “You have
+learned more in two days about the matter than
+I learned in a week.”</p>
+
+<p>Frank was still very weak, so the taking of
+the pictures depended to a great extent on Bob,
+and the youth rose fully equal to the occasion.</p>
+
+<p>Before night came they took over a dozen
+views, and these they developed at the farm-house
+at which they put up. One of the pictures
+had not been exposed long enough, and
+Bob took his first lesson in correcting this mistake.</p>
+
+<p>“As soon as we get to Stampton, I’ll give you
+a practical lesson in printing,” said Frank.</p>
+
+<p>Early on the following morning they came
+upon a circus which was moving from one city
+to the next. First came the wagons and chariots—the
+latter covered over with canvas to protect
+the gold leaf from exposure to the weather—and
+then followed a herd of elephants and
+another of camels.</p>
+
+<p>“By Jove! we must get pictures of these
+beasts!” cried Frank. “Quick, Bob, get the
+camera into shape. They are stopping.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_86">[86]</span>Something was the matter with one of the
+wagons ahead, and a temporary stoppage all
+along the line ensued.</p>
+
+<p>Bob at once unslung the tripod and set it up.
+Then the camera was placed on top, and both
+hastily sighted the instrument at the camels,
+who were standing in a picturesque group.</p>
+
+<p>In half a second the picture was taken.</p>
+
+<p>“Now for the elephants,” said Frank. “Let
+us catch that big fellow in front. He is looking
+directly toward us.”</p>
+
+<p>“And he looks as if he didn’t like it,” added
+Bob. “See him swaying from side to side.”</p>
+
+<p>“By Jove! I believe you’re right,” cried the
+young man. “Gracious! he is coming this
+way.”</p>
+
+<p>Frank was right. Unobserved by his keeper,
+the huge beast was striding toward them, his
+trunk high in the air.</p>
+
+<p>“Look out!” yelled Bob. “Something is
+wrong.”</p>
+
+<p>He had hardly uttered the warning, when the
+elephant let out a terrific roar.</p>
+
+<p>The next instant the camera was knocked
+over and smashed under foot.</p>
+
+<p>And then with another roar the elephant
+made for Bob and Frank.</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_87">[87]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER VII<br>
+
+<small>BOB AND THE ELEPHANT</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">For</span> the moment it looked as if Bob and
+Frank would be crushed under the ponderous
+feet of the elephant. The beast was thoroughly
+enraged over the way in which the smashed
+camera had been pointed at him. Possibly he
+had never had his picture taken, and he did not
+understand it. Perhaps he took the instrument
+for some new machine of destruction.</p>
+
+<p>He trumpeted loudly as he came near to the
+two, and this noise attracted the attention of
+the keepers, who had gone ahead to see what
+had caused the delay on the road.</p>
+
+<p>“Ho, ho!” shouted one of the men. “Ho,
+there, Jonco!”</p>
+
+<p>But Jonco would not listen. He had now
+reached the spot where Bob and Frank had
+stood, and was continuing after the two, who
+were scurrying across the open field, which was
+close at hand.</p>
+
+<p>The keepers at once started after the elephant,
+only one remaining behind to keep the remainder
+of the herd in check.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_88">[88]</span>“By Jove! I believe he means business!”
+gasped Frank.</p>
+
+<p>“The best thing we can do is to get out of
+the way,” returned Bob.</p>
+
+<p>They soon reached the end of the open field.
+Beyond were a mass of brush and a number of
+small trees.</p>
+
+<p>Frank dived into the brush and disappeared
+from sight. Bob was not so fortunate, and the
+elephant continued after the youth, as if bent
+upon venting his rage before giving up the
+chase.</p>
+
+<p>At length Bob came to a clump of small trees,
+and darted among them. They were so close
+together that he knew the beast could not get
+between them, and for the moment he thought
+himself safe, although the position was far from
+a pleasant one.</p>
+
+<p>But when the elephant reached the trees, he
+at once threw his weight against the foremost,
+and they went down with a crash, as if they had
+been so many pipe-stems.</p>
+
+<p>One of the falling trees struck Bob, and he
+was knocked flat on his back. Before he could
+rise the elephant was upon him.</p>
+
+<p>Bob did his best to scramble out of the way,
+but before he could do so the beast caught
+him by the coat and hoisted the youth in the
+air.</p>
+
+<p>By this time the keepers were close at hand.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_89">[89]</span>
+Each was armed with a sharp steel, and they
+began to prod the elephant whenever they got
+the chance.</p>
+
+<p>He trumpeted at a great rate, but did not let
+go his hold upon Bob, until the youth, under a
+sudden inspiration, hit him in the eye with his
+fist.</p>
+
+<p>This blow surprised the elephant more than
+it hurt him. But his surprise made him uncurl
+his trunk and loosen his grip, and Bob lost no
+time in leaping to a safe distance.</p>
+
+<p>Then the keepers surrounded the beast, and
+swiftly and skilfully chained his two right feet
+together and otherwise bound him; and the danger
+was over.</p>
+
+<p>Frank rushed from the brush to where Bob
+stood, pale as a sheet.</p>
+
+<p>“Are you hurt?” he demanded, anxiously.</p>
+
+<p>“No; but I don’t want to go through any
+such experience again,” returned Bob. “That’s
+the first and last time I shall try to photograph
+an elephant.”</p>
+
+<p>“The camera is teetotally smashed,” went on
+Frank.</p>
+
+<p>“Serves you right,” growled the head keeper.
+“If you hadn’t pointed the thing at Jonco he
+would have been as quiet as a kitten. He don’t
+take to strange things.”</p>
+
+<p>Frank was about to say something concerning
+the damages, and who was to stand them,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_90">[90]</span>
+but he changed his mind, for he knew the keeper
+was more than half right.</p>
+
+<p>It was not long before the circus moved on
+again. Jonco still acted somewhat wildly, but
+the keepers kept him well in hand.</p>
+
+<p>“This ends the camera trip,” said Frank, as
+the last of the equipage passed out of sight
+around a bend in the road. “The camera is
+good for kindling wood, and nothing else.”</p>
+
+<p>“It is partly my fault,” said Bob. “What
+was the machine worth?”</p>
+
+<p>“It cost me seventy dollars. But it was not
+your fault, Bob, so don’t worry. I have another
+at home, even better than this.”</p>
+
+<p>“Perhaps the lens isn’t injured.”</p>
+
+<p>They made a hunt, and found the lens crushed
+in the soft dirt. There was a tiny scratch upon
+it, but this, Frank thought, could be remedied.</p>
+
+<p>Without further delay they struck out for
+Stampton, which they expected to reach by the
+middle of the afternoon.</p>
+
+<p>At twelve o’clock they found themselves near
+a moss-covered cottage, in the door-way of which
+an old man sat smoking. Frank hailed him.</p>
+
+<p>“What are the chances of our getting dinner
+here, friend, if we pay for it?”</p>
+
+<p>“The chances is mighty good,” returned the
+old man. “Mary!”</p>
+
+<p>A middle-aged woman came to the door.</p>
+
+<p>“What is it, pop?”</p>
+
+<figure class="figcenter illowe28_125" id="i_090a">
+  <img class="w100" src="images/i_090a.jpg" alt="">
+  <figcaption class="caption"><p class="caption">AND THEN WITH ANOTHER ROAR THE ELEPHANT MADE FOR BOB
+AND FRANK.</p></figcaption>
+</figure>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_91">[91]</span>“These yere young men want dinner.”</p>
+
+<p>“Oh!”</p>
+
+<p>“Cost both of ye twenty cents apiece,” went
+on the old man.</p>
+
+<p>“That’s fair enough,” said Frank. “Can we
+have it soon?”</p>
+
+<p>“I will have it ready in quarter of an hour,”
+said the woman.</p>
+
+<p>“That is time enough.”</p>
+
+<p>The woman disappeared, and Frank and Bob
+sat down on a bench to rest. They entered into
+conversation with the old man, and it was not
+long before the talk drifted around to the
+Wright robbery, of which the old man had just
+heard.</p>
+
+<p>“They ain’t cotch them fellers yet, I hear,”
+he said. “It’s great pity.”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s true. But perhaps they’ll be caught
+soon,” said Frank.</p>
+
+<p>“Do yeou know I have an idee I saw them
+chaps?”</p>
+
+<p>“Tell us of it,” put in Bob, eagerly.</p>
+
+<p>“It wuz last night. I have rheumatics, an’
+can’t sleep very well. I got up about eleven
+o’clock ter rub some liniment on my leg, when
+I heard talking goin’ on back by the barn. I
+listened fer a minit, an’ then hollered out to fin’
+out who wuz there.”</p>
+
+<p>“Well, did you see them?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes. They didn’t answer nuthin’, but made<span class="pagenum" id="Page_92">[92]</span>
+tracks fer the road, and got out o’ sight jess ez
+quick ez they could.”</p>
+
+<p>“Did you look at the place where they had
+been?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, but I couldn’t see nuthin’.”</p>
+
+<p>“Have you any objections to our looking?”</p>
+
+<p>“O’ course not. Go ahead—or, hold up, I’ll
+show ye where I seed them.”</p>
+
+<p>The old man led the way to the spot. A carriage
+shed hid it from the house.</p>
+
+<p>Both of the boys looked around carefully,
+striving to find some clew which might prove
+that the men had been the robbers.</p>
+
+<p>While they were looking the old man plied
+them with questions. He was surprised to learn
+of the part Bob had played in the first chase.</p>
+
+<p>“I shouldn’t think yeou would want ter meet
+’em again,” he laughed.</p>
+
+<p>“That’s just where you are mistaken. I shall
+not be satisfied until those rascals are run down.”</p>
+
+<p>“I have an idee they went to Stampton,” said
+the old man.</p>
+
+<p>Bob shook his head.</p>
+
+<p>“No; the police are watching out for them
+there. They have passed around Stampton and
+gone to some other place.”</p>
+
+<p>“What place?”</p>
+
+<p>“There is no telling. They might go to
+Dartinville or Burnham’s Ridge, or else strike
+out directly for the river.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_93">[93]</span>“Most likely they struck out for the river,”
+said Frank. “That is if the men were really
+the robbers. They might have been tramps.”</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t think so,” said the old man. “Tramps
+don’t move away so lively-like ez these fellers
+did.”</p>
+
+<p>All laughed at this point, the old man loudest
+of all.</p>
+
+<p>Presently, before Bob had completed his
+search, the woman came out to announce dinner.
+She looked at Bob sharply a number of
+times, and seemed on the point of asking some
+question, but changed her mind and remained
+silent.</p>
+
+<p>“Well, there doesn’t seem to be any use
+in searching farther,” said Frank. “Perhaps
+they only stopped here to talk over their
+plans.”</p>
+
+<p>“But what did they do with their booty?”
+questioned Bob. “They either have it with
+them, or else they hid it somewhere.”</p>
+
+<p>“It isn’t likely they would hide it around
+here.”</p>
+
+<p>“Thet’s so,” said the old man.</p>
+
+<p>“Did you see if any of them carried a bundle?”
+asked Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“I dunno but what one of ’em did. But it
+wuz too dark to be certain on it.”</p>
+
+<p>There was a second of silence, broken by the
+woman.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_94">[94]</span>“I am afraid dinner will be spoiled, if you
+wait any longer,” she said.</p>
+
+<p>“Well, we’ll give it up,” said Frank, as he
+turned toward the house.</p>
+
+<p>“No, we won’t,” shouted Bob. “Look here!”</p>
+
+<p>He had picked up something from among the
+straw and dirt.</p>
+
+<p>“What’s that?” cried Frank.</p>
+
+<p>“A spoon, and it’s one of Mrs. Wright’s.”</p>
+
+<p>“How do you know?”</p>
+
+<p>“Because it’s just like the one she showed
+me. It has the same letter D on it.”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, she was a Dalmer afore she got married,”
+put in the old man.</p>
+
+<p>“Perhaps there are more of them,” put in the
+woman.</p>
+
+<p>All began a stricter search than ever. But
+although they went over every inch of the
+ground nothing more was found.</p>
+
+<p>“I have an idea they merely looked over their
+booty,” said Bob. “They were anxious to find
+out what they had got and couldn’t wait any
+longer.”</p>
+
+<p>“Or else they had a row among themselves,
+and started to divide up,” suggested Frank.</p>
+
+<p>“Well, one thing is certain,” concluded Bob.
+“The men were Casco, Barker, and Grogan.”</p>
+
+<p>They were soon inside the house, and making
+away with the well-cooked food the woman had
+prepared for them. The meal over, they were<span class="pagenum" id="Page_95">[95]</span>
+on the point of leaving when the woman touched
+Bob on the arm.</p>
+
+<p>“Haven’t I seen you before?” she said.</p>
+
+<p>“Perhaps. I used to work for Joel Carrow.”</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t know the man. I must be mistaken,
+but I fancied I had met you some years ago,
+when you were a small boy.”</p>
+
+<p>“I used to live with old Peter Thompson before
+I went to work for Carrow.”</p>
+
+<p>“Then that is where we met. I used to work
+for Thompson.”</p>
+
+<p>“You did? How long?”</p>
+
+<p>“From the time his wife died until you were
+about seven or eight years old.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob was immediately interested. Here was
+somebody who might know something concerning
+the past. He motioned to the woman, and
+the two walked to one side, Frank refraining
+from following, knowing Bob would rather be
+alone.</p>
+
+<p>“May I ask your name?” went on Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“Mary Ridley.”</p>
+
+<p>“Were you related to Thompson?”</p>
+
+<p>“Very distantly, yes.”</p>
+
+<p>“Do you remember when he brought me to
+the place?”</p>
+
+<p>“He did not bring you.”</p>
+
+<p>“No?”</p>
+
+<p>“No; a man in a carriage brought you.”</p>
+
+<p>“Who was that man?”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_96">[96]</span>Mary Ridley shook her head.</p>
+
+<p>“You did not know?”</p>
+
+<p>“No. I asked Peter, but he would not say,
+and evaded the question.”</p>
+
+<p>“Did you ever hear where I came from?”
+and Bob’s heart beat quickly at this direct question.</p>
+
+<p>“I can’t answer that truthfully. Once Peter
+said you came from a Brooklyn orphan asylum,
+then he said you were the son of an old friend
+who had lived in Batavia, and another time he
+got angry and said he had a good mind to send
+you back to Buffalo, where you belonged.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob mused for a moment. It was more than
+likely that the man had spoken the truth when
+angry, and that Buffalo was the place from
+which he had been brought.</p>
+
+<p>“Did you hear the name of the man who
+brought me to Thompson’s?”</p>
+
+<p>“I heard Peter call him Bill.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob started. Could the man have been Bill
+Barker, the robber?</p>
+
+<p>Such would not be very strange. Barker had
+said he knew something concerning Bob’s early
+history. Of course, he must have told an untruth
+about the boy’s father being a thief, but
+still Bob was inclined to believe that Barker
+knew a good deal.</p>
+
+<p>“Did this Bill ever come back?”</p>
+
+<p>“Oh, yes, he used to come about every three<span class="pagenum" id="Page_97">[97]</span>
+months at first. But during the last year he
+came only once. Then Peter and him had a
+big row, and that ended it.”</p>
+
+<p>“What was the row about?”</p>
+
+<p>“Something about money. I didn’t make it
+out. But I heard Peter say that if it wasn’t that
+he had become attached to you, he would have
+sent you back.”</p>
+
+<p>“Back where?”</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t know. Haven’t you ever learned
+anything about yourself?”</p>
+
+<p>“Not a word.” Bob swallowed a curious
+lump that had come up in his throat. “But I
+am trying hard to get on the track. I know
+one thing, and since you have told me so much
+I’ll tell you it. The Bill Barker, who is one of
+the robbers we are after, was, to my way of
+thinking, the man who brought me to Peter
+Thompson’s house.”</p>
+
+<p>“Gracious! How did you learn that?”</p>
+
+<p>“By certain things I heard him say. That is
+why I am anxious these robbers should be
+caught.”</p>
+
+<p>“I see.”</p>
+
+<p>“You don’t know anything further, do
+you?”</p>
+
+<p>“No. I left Peter’s, you know, and then
+mother and my only sister died, and I was all
+upset. But I thought I knew your face. Let
+me hear from you, if you ever learn anything.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_98">[98]</span>“I certainly shall. By the way, do you think
+you would remember this Bill, if you should
+ever see him again?”</p>
+
+<p>“I can’t say. He always came at night, and
+was pretty well muffled up.”</p>
+
+<p>“Evidently he didn’t wish to be seen,” mused
+Bob. “That shows his work was underhanded.”</p>
+
+<p>A little later Bob and Frank left. The young
+man noticed that the youth was unusually silent
+on the road, but he asked no questions until the
+outskirts of Stampton were reached, and then
+he did not touch the subject nearest to Bob’s
+heart.</p>
+
+<p>“What do you intend to do in Stampton,
+now we have arrived?”</p>
+
+<p>“I hardly know,” said Bob. “I must find
+some boarding-place I suppose, and then I’ll
+hunt for a job among the photographers.”</p>
+
+<p>“Don’t you think we had better report to the
+police about that spoon first?”</p>
+
+<p>“Of course.”</p>
+
+<p>They soon met a policeman, who directed
+them to the station-house. They found the
+chief in charge, and quickly related what they
+had learned.</p>
+
+<p>“Certainly an important clew,” said the chief.
+“I will send a man to follow it up without delay.”</p>
+
+<p>“And I’ll leave the spoon with you to be returned
+to Mrs. Wright,” said Bob.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_99">[99]</span>Bob and Frank then separated, as the young
+man had to send a telegram to the firm for which
+he worked. He was having a vacation, but had
+to keep in communication in case his services
+were needed.</p>
+
+<p>Bob had but slight difficulty in finding a suitable
+boarding-house, where he obtained a neatly-furnished
+attic room and good board for four
+dollars and a half a week, washing thrown in.
+He had the landlady change the fifty-dollar bill,
+and paid for a week in advance.</p>
+
+<p>“That breaks the fifty,” thought the youth.
+“But I think I had better learn more about
+the photographing business before I buy that
+camera.”</p>
+
+<p>It was now too late to look for a situation,
+and Bob started out to hunt up Frank, who said
+he would stop at the American Hotel.</p>
+
+<p>Bob had not been to a large city for some
+time, and the many sights to be seen pleased
+him greatly. He often hesitated to gaze into a
+shop window, and, when he reached a photographic
+outfit establishment, he stopped for a
+long time.</p>
+
+<p>“Very fine views, Maverick,” he heard one
+gentleman say to another, as both emerged from
+the door-way.</p>
+
+<p>“That’s true, Fallon. I wish we had as good
+a lot. It would help our excursion tours wonderfully.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_100">[100]</span>The two men passed down the street. Bob
+gazed after them.</p>
+
+<p>“One of them must be Grace Maverick’s
+father,” he said to himself. “I wonder where
+they live? I would like to take a look around,
+even if I didn’t go in.”</p>
+
+<p>For Bob thought a country boy like himself
+had no business in one of those fine brownstone
+mansions, even if he had been invited to call.</p>
+
+<p>Bob continued to look at the things displayed
+in the show window until he had noted them
+all. He made up his mind that there was more
+to the art of photography than he had dreamed.</p>
+
+<p>“But I’ll master it, see if I don’t,” he muttered,
+as he turned away and resumed his walk.
+“I won’t be a nobody any longer.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob had scarcely gone a dozen steps when
+he saw a familiar-looking figure approaching.
+The man was Slippery Paul Bidwell, the sneak-thief.</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_101">[101]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER VIII<br>
+
+<small>BOB OBTAINS A SITUATION</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">For</span> the moment the sneak-thief did not recognize
+Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“Not so fast, my friend,” cried the boy.</p>
+
+<p>Bidwell started back.</p>
+
+<p>“What, you!” he exclaimed.</p>
+
+<p>“Exactly, Bidwell, and I want you.”</p>
+
+<p>Bidwell turned and darted across the street.
+Bob lost no time in following.</p>
+
+<p>Reaching the other side of the thoroughfare,
+the sneak-thief made off as fast as his long legs
+would permit.</p>
+
+<p>He was a good runner, and would no doubt
+have gotten away had not a fortunate accident
+occurred.</p>
+
+<p>Turning a corner Bidwell ran full-tilt into a
+stout man who was walking leisurely along, carrying
+a basket on his arm.</p>
+
+<p>Down went the stout man, with Bidwell on
+top of him, while the basket with its contents
+flew in all directions.</p>
+
+<p>“Who—what?” the stout man spluttered.</p>
+
+<p>“Beg pardon,” returned Bidwell, glibly. “It’s
+a case of life or death—man seriously injured.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_102">[102]</span>He attempted to rise, but before he could do
+so Bob had him by the arm.</p>
+
+<p>“Stay where you are!” ordered the youth,
+determinedly.</p>
+
+<p>“Let go of me, boy!” cried Bidwell, angrily.</p>
+
+<p>“Not much! Police, police!”</p>
+
+<p>The stout man arose slowly to his feet, and
+stared at Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“What does this mean, young man?” he
+questioned.</p>
+
+<p>“This man is a thief, and is trying to get
+away.”</p>
+
+<p>“It’s not so,” put in Bidwell. “A man is dying,
+and I am running for a doctor.”</p>
+
+<p>“He’s a thief I say,” went on Bob. “Will
+you call a policeman?”</p>
+
+<p>“I will,” returned the stout individual. He
+was angry at Bidwell for the rough treatment he
+had received.</p>
+
+<p>A policeman was not far away, and the man
+hurried off to get his assistance.</p>
+
+<p>Bidwell tried to wrench himself loose. But
+Bob’s grip was a good one, and he held on like
+grim death.</p>
+
+<p>“What’s the row here?” demanded the policeman,
+as he hurried up, followed by the stout
+man.</p>
+
+<p>“I want this boy arrested,” said Bidwell, hurriedly.
+“He has just escaped from the asylum.”</p>
+
+<p>“Crazy, eh?”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_103">[103]</span>“As crazy as a bedbug. He’s been following
+me around for over an hour.”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s not so,” put in Bob. “This man is
+a sneak-thief, and——”</p>
+
+<p>“He’s crazy on the subject of thieves,” said
+Bidwell. “He was once scared by a midnight
+burglar, and it affected his brain. He belongs
+up at the Cloverdale Asylum.”</p>
+
+<p>“Well, what were you running for?” asked
+the stout man, suspiciously.</p>
+
+<p>“A man was hurt. I was running to get a
+doctor.”</p>
+
+<p>“Who are you?”</p>
+
+<p>“I am Albert E. Whistler, the hardware
+manufacturer of Troy. I came to Stampton
+this morning on business.”</p>
+
+<p>“He tells it good,” said Bob. “Shall I tell
+you who he really is?”</p>
+
+<p>“Don’t believe him, he is crazy.”</p>
+
+<p>“His right name is Bidwell, and he is known
+as Slippery Paul, the crook.”</p>
+
+<p>At this declaration the policeman opened his
+eyes.</p>
+
+<p>“You are sure about that?”</p>
+
+<p>“Positive. If you don’t believe me, take us
+both to the station-house.”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s fair,” said the stout individual. “I’ll
+pick up my basket and set it in one of these
+stores and go along. I’m anxious to see the
+matter out.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_104">[104]</span>This arrangement did not suit Bidwell, but
+he put on a pleasant face.</p>
+
+<p>“All right, I’ll go along,” he said. “But keep
+a sharp lookout on that boy.”</p>
+
+<p>“And I’ll ask you to handcuff him,” said Bob.
+“He may try to slip away.”</p>
+
+<p>At this Bidwell muttered something under
+his breath. He looked as if he wanted to kill
+Bob, and the policeman saw that the shot had
+told.</p>
+
+<p>“You’ll bear watching, I’m thinking,” he said.
+“So I’ll—hullo!”</p>
+
+<p>Once more Bidwell had taken to his heels.
+But the officer was a fine runner, and he soon
+overtook the sneak-thief.</p>
+
+<p>“That settles it. Hold out your hands!”</p>
+
+<p>“What for?”</p>
+
+<p>“Never mind, hold them out!”</p>
+
+<p>Bidwell did so, and he was quickly handcuffed.
+Then the whole party marched to police
+headquarters.</p>
+
+<p>Bidwell was quickly recognized by the captain
+of the police, and his capture was considered
+an important one, especially when Bob related
+the particulars of the jewel robbery. A pawn-ticket
+was found in the sneak-thief’s pocket, and
+this afterward proved to be for money loaned
+on the diamond and ruby cross, which was returned
+to Mrs. Varley.</p>
+
+<p>The stout man who had been knocked down,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_105">[105]</span>
+became quite interested in Bob, and after the
+hearing was ended, and Bidwell locked up, he
+followed the youth to the street.</p>
+
+<p>“Good for you,” he said, clapping Bob on the
+back. “I admire your pluck. It is not every
+young man would have braved it out as you
+did.”</p>
+
+<p>“I knew I was right, and had nothing to fear,
+sir.”</p>
+
+<p>“Did you say your name was Robert Alden?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, sir.”</p>
+
+<p>“Do you belong in Stampton?”</p>
+
+<p>“Not exactly. I came from Shellville. I am
+here looking for a job.”</p>
+
+<p>“Oh! At any particular trade?”</p>
+
+<p>“I wish, if possible, to learn the art of photography.
+I know a little about it, and I am
+anxious to learn more.”</p>
+
+<p>The stout man smiled.</p>
+
+<p>“Do you know me?” he asked.</p>
+
+<p>“No, sir.”</p>
+
+<p>“My name is Edgar Starleigh, and I am a
+photographer.”</p>
+
+<p>“Edgar Starleigh? I read the name on a
+sign.”</p>
+
+<p>“So you would like to learn photography?”</p>
+
+<p>“That is my ambition, sir.”</p>
+
+<p>“Rather a difficult art, my boy.”</p>
+
+<p>“And it will take quite a while to learn, too,
+I suppose, sir.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_106">[106]</span>“That’s true, although some learn quicker
+than others.”</p>
+
+<p>“Even so, I would like to take it up.”</p>
+
+<p>“Might give you a trial,” mused Mr. Starleigh.</p>
+
+<p>“Eh? What did you say?” asked Bob,
+quickly.</p>
+
+<p>“You might come to my studio in the morning.”</p>
+
+<p>“Employment so quickly just suits me,”
+laughed Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“Rather a lucky encounter, after all,” said the
+photographer, joining in the laugh.</p>
+
+<p>“And what time shall I come?” asked Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“Unless you have other matters to arrange,
+come in at six o’clock.”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s rather early, isn’t it, for photographing?
+Not but what I’ll be on hand.”</p>
+
+<p>“Hardly, when one has a lot of sunlight printing
+to do.”</p>
+
+<p>“Oh, I see!”</p>
+
+<p>“Real good printing needs good sunlight, and
+to get that one has to be alert the moment the
+sun comes up. Of course I do a good deal of
+printing by gaslight, too.”</p>
+
+<p>The conversation then drifted around to the
+subject of wages, and Bob was hired at six dollars
+a week, to be advanced as soon as he was
+worth more.</p>
+
+<p>On the following morning the youth presented<span class="pagenum" id="Page_107">[107]</span>
+himself at Mr. Starleigh’s studio. He found the
+place somewhat shabby in appearance. But the
+man was an excellent photographer, and his
+business was brisk.</p>
+
+<p>Starleigh was well pleased at the manner in
+which Bob took hold, and predicted that if the
+youth continued to apply himself he would soon
+be able to take any kind of a picture.</p>
+
+<p>During the noon hour Bob met Frank, and
+told him of the situation he had secured, and
+also of Bidwell’s capture.</p>
+
+<p>“Good for you. Starleigh is said to be a first-class
+man, and you had better stick to him for
+a while. But I must bid you good-by for the
+present.”</p>
+
+<p>“Why, what’s up?”</p>
+
+<p>“I must go back to work. One of our men
+has been taken sick, and I’ve got to take his
+trip throughout the western part of the State
+next month.”</p>
+
+<p>“Then I won’t see you for a while?”</p>
+
+<p>“No; but I’ll write, and I’ll expect you to do
+the same.”</p>
+
+<p>And so the two parted firm friends.</p>
+
+<p>Several days went by and Bob stuck diligently
+to his work, much to Mr. Starleigh’s satisfaction.
+He saw nothing of Grace Maverick, and
+in a roundabout way learned that the young
+lady was away on a brief trip to the seashore.</p>
+
+<p>The building in which the photographic studio<span class="pagenum" id="Page_108">[108]</span>
+was situated was a large one, containing over
+two dozen offices. A hall ran through the middle
+as far as the top floor, and there was also a
+rear hall on the second and third stories.</p>
+
+<p>On the evening of the fourth day Bob was
+left to lock up alone, Mr. Starleigh having gone
+away on business, and the other assistant being
+sick. Bob remained behind a little later than
+usual, being anxious to finish mounting a set of
+landscapes, which were to be called for the next
+day.</p>
+
+<p>It was dark when Bob finished and stepped
+out into the hall-way. Locking up securely, he
+started to go below.</p>
+
+<p>Presently he heard the murmur of voices on
+the floor below. He looked down, and saw
+three men coming up the second flight of stairs.</p>
+
+<p>The hall-way was too dark to distinguish
+faces. But as the three men turned and entered
+an office near the landing just below Bob, the
+youth recognized the voices.</p>
+
+<p>The men were Casco, Barker, and Grogan.</p>
+
+<p>What had brought them to the place, and at
+this hour in the evening?</p>
+
+<p>“Perhaps they are up to one of their old
+tricks,” said Bob to himself. “I ought to notify
+the police and have them bagged without delay.”</p>
+
+<p>He heard the men still talking, and, anxious
+to make out what was being said, he tiptoed his
+way to the door and listened.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_109">[109]</span>“You are sure Lawrence is nowhere about?”
+he heard Barker say.</p>
+
+<p>“Positive,” returned Casco. “He got a letter
+calling him to Middletown, and he left on the
+four-fifteen train.”</p>
+
+<p>“Then we have the whole office to ourselves.”</p>
+
+<p>“We have.”</p>
+
+<p>“Then lock the door and come to business.”</p>
+
+<p>“Yis, it’s hoigh toime we did that same,”
+growled Grogan. “’Tis a lot ov toime we’ve
+been afther wastin’.”</p>
+
+<p>“Slow but sure, Mike,” laughed Casco. “You
+mustn’t forget that the police are on our heels.”</p>
+
+<p>“I doubt if they know we are in Stampton,”
+put in Barker. “The old Nick take that boy!
+If it hadn’t been for him they wouldn’t know
+who stole the stuff.”</p>
+
+<p>“Say, Bill, you seem to be down on him more
+than any of us,” came from Casco.</p>
+
+<p>“So I am.”</p>
+
+<p>“What’s the reason?”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s my affair.”</p>
+
+<p>“Oh, if you’re going to be so close-mouthed
+about it——” began Casco, coldly.</p>
+
+<p>“That boy’s father did me an injury once,
+and I haven’t forgotten it,” returned Barker.</p>
+
+<p>“Who was his father?”</p>
+
+<p>“Never mind that. He had me jugged, and
+that’s enough.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_110">[110]</span>“And now the old man’s dead, you are going
+to take it out of the boy, eh?”</p>
+
+<p>“And so would you, if you had been treated
+as I have been. I am not one of the forgiving
+or forgetting kind.”</p>
+
+<p>“Sure an’ we both know that same!” laughed
+Grogan. “Yer a gintlemon in yer shtoyle, Barker,
+but yer a terror whin it comes to timper.”</p>
+
+<p>“But say, Bill, didn’t you have something to
+do with the boy when he was younger?” went
+on Casco, curiously.</p>
+
+<p>“Who told you I had?”</p>
+
+<p>“Nobody exactly, but I fancied——”</p>
+
+<p>“You fancy too much, Jim. That matter
+hasn’t got anything to do with the work on
+hand.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob listened with bated breath to all that was
+said. He was sorry Barker had cut the others
+short. What might he not have learned had
+the man chosen to continue the conversation!</p>
+
+<p>Bob was in a quandary. Should he summon
+the police, or should he stay and hear whatever
+might be said?</p>
+
+<p>“If I go out, they may leave during my absence,”
+he said to himself. “I think I had better
+stay with them until somebody comes this way.”</p>
+
+<p>He heard the men seat themselves around a
+table, and then Barker and Casco lit cigars, while
+Grogan got out a pipe.</p>
+
+<p>“Now to come to business,” said Barker.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_111">[111]</span>“That’s the talk,” said Grogan.</p>
+
+<p>“Well, Rosenbaum says he will give four
+hundred dollars for the stuff,” began Casco.</p>
+
+<p>“That’s mighty little.”</p>
+
+<p>“He says all the stuff is not solid silver.”</p>
+
+<p>Barker’s face fell and so did Grogan’s.</p>
+
+<p>“I know it’s a disappointment,” went on
+Casco. “I thought the haul would pay much
+better myself, but still four hundred dollars is
+better than nothing, not to say anything of the
+cash.”</p>
+
+<p>“Ye can’t make that Jew come up in the
+proice?” ventured Grogan, puffing away vigorously.</p>
+
+<p>“No. He only wanted to give three-fifty
+first.”</p>
+
+<p>“Well, we might as well let it go,” said
+Barker. “The sooner we get the stuff off our
+hands the better.”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s so,” returned Casco. “It will leave
+us free for that other deal.”</p>
+
+<p>“Thrue fer you,” added Grogan. “’Tis meself
+that is itchin’ to get to worruk upon that.”</p>
+
+<p>“Plenty of time,” said Barker. “By the way,
+I wonder if there is anything in this place worth
+taking along?”</p>
+
+<p>“Nothing like making a search,” returned
+Casco, coolly.</p>
+
+<p>He and the others arose, and Bob heard them
+moving about the office. Presently he heard<span class="pagenum" id="Page_112">[112]</span>
+the slide of a roller-top desk shoved back, and
+then a conversation, too low for him to hear
+clearly, reached his ears.</p>
+
+<p>“If I only knew how long they intended to
+remain,” thought the youth. “If I go for the
+police now they may leave at any instant, and
+then I’ll miss them sure.”</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly he heard Barker utter a cry.</p>
+
+<p>“Just the thing!”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s so. It will help us wonderfully.”</p>
+
+<p>“Phat is it?” questioned Grogan.</p>
+
+<p>“Never mind, Mike; you’ll know before you
+are much older.”</p>
+
+<p>“Yis, but——”</p>
+
+<p>Bob caught no more. There was a quick step
+on the stairs, and the janitor of the building appeared,
+broom in hand, to sweep out the place.</p>
+
+<p>“Hullo! what are you doing at that door?”
+he asked, loudly.</p>
+
+<p>Bob motioned him to be silent, and then tiptoed
+his way to where the man stood, mouth
+wide open in expectation.</p>
+
+<p>“There are three well-known robbers in Mr.
+Lawrence’s office,” whispered the youth.</p>
+
+<p>“Robbers!” cried the man, louder than ever.
+“Just wait till I get after them!”</p>
+
+<p>“Better summon the police,” urged Bob.
+“They are all strong men, and you cannot capture
+them alone.”</p>
+
+<p>“We’ll see if I can’t,” cried the janitor, who<span class="pagenum" id="Page_113">[113]</span>
+was a very self-important individual. “Run for
+the police yourself, if you want to.”</p>
+
+<p>He took a key from his pocket and unlocked
+the office door.</p>
+
+<p>Rushing into the apartment he gazed around.</p>
+
+<p>“What’s the matter with you?” he cried,
+turning to Bob, angrily.</p>
+
+<p>“Nothing! Catch them!”</p>
+
+<p>“There is nobody here.”</p>
+
+<p>“What?” gasped Bob.</p>
+
+<p>He brushed past the man. Sure enough, the
+room appeared deserted.</p>
+
+<p>“They were here a moment ago,” went on
+the youth. “Look in the closets.”</p>
+
+<p>“This is some trick of yours,” grumbled the
+janitor.</p>
+
+<p>Nevertheless he opened the two closets which
+the office contained. Neither held a single
+human form.</p>
+
+<p>During this time Bob had entered a private
+office located in the rear of the main one.
+Here there was a window opening upon a narrow
+alley.</p>
+
+<p>The window-sash was raised, and looking out
+Bob saw that the opening readily connected with
+a fire-escape.</p>
+
+<p>“That settles it; they have gotten away,”
+thought the youth.</p>
+
+<p>“Well?” queried the janitor.</p>
+
+<p>“You just missed them,” said Bob. “They<span class="pagenum" id="Page_114">[114]</span>
+got out on the fire-escape. I’m going to run
+them down if I can.”</p>
+
+<p>“You must be mistaken,” said the janitor.
+“There don’t seem to be anything disturbed.”</p>
+
+<p>But Bob did not hear him. He was already
+on his way down-stairs, three steps at a time.</p>
+
+<p>Reaching the sidewalk he hurried around to
+the alley-way. It appeared to be deserted.</p>
+
+<p>Bob looked around. On the curbstone sat a
+bootblack eating a banana.</p>
+
+<p>“Shine, boss?”</p>
+
+<p>“No. Did you see three men come out of
+the alley a moment ago?”</p>
+
+<p>“I did.”</p>
+
+<p>“Which way did they go?”</p>
+
+<p>The bootblack pointed his dirty finger down
+the street.</p>
+
+<p>“Straight down?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes.”</p>
+
+<p>“Thanks.”</p>
+
+<p>Away went Bob at the top of his speed. At
+the first corner he paused. Had the three robbers
+gone straight ahead, or turned down the
+side street?</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll take my chances that they made a turn.
+The question is which way, to the left or the
+right?” he asked himself.</p>
+
+<p>Bob looked up and down the side street. He
+saw that to the left the street came to an end
+but a block off.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_115">[115]</span>“They must have gone to the right,” he muttered.
+“I’ll try that, anyway.”</p>
+
+<p>Turning to his right he dashed down the
+cross street.</p>
+
+<p>He had gone less than five hundred feet when
+he saw the figure of a man emerge from behind
+a bill-board and scale a near-by fence.</p>
+
+<p>The man was Bill Barker.</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_116">[116]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER IX<br>
+
+<small>BOB HAS A LIVELY FIGHT</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">Barker</span> was alone, and no sooner had he disappeared
+over the high board fence, than Bob
+made up his mind to follow him.</p>
+
+<p>It was quite dark by this time, and perched
+on the top of the fence Bob could see little or
+nothing. He listened intently, but nothing save
+the hissing of escaping steam reached his ears.</p>
+
+<p>The yard was one attached to a planing mill
+and box factory. It was filled with boards and
+packing cases, and affording a number of excellent
+hiding-places.</p>
+
+<p>Bob dropped inside the yard and stole cautiously
+forward until he reached a sort of driveway
+which divided the yard into two parts.</p>
+
+<p>Nothing was yet to be seen of Barker, and
+Bob was puzzled to know what had become of
+the robber.</p>
+
+<p>Stepping to a nook near a high pile of lumber,
+Bob stopped once more to listen.</p>
+
+<p>Was he mistaken, or had he heard the faint
+creaking of a board to his left?</p>
+
+<p>He bent in the direction and waited. No; he
+was not mistaken; there was the noise again.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_117">[117]</span>Feeling around, Bob found a billet of wood.
+It was two feet long, and more than an inch
+thick, and would answer very well as a club.</p>
+
+<p>With the stick in his hand, he made his way
+cautiously to the spot whence the sound had
+proceeded.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly something brushed past him, and a
+second later he found himself confronted by
+Barker, who caught him by the arm.</p>
+
+<p>“What are you following me for?” demanded
+the man.</p>
+
+<p>Instead of replying Bob raised the stick and
+struck the fellow on the head.</p>
+
+<p>“Stand where you are, Barker!” he cried.</p>
+
+<p>“What, Bob Pe——” began Barker, and
+stopped short.</p>
+
+<p>“You know me, I reckon,” returned the youth.
+“Stand where you are, unless you want another
+taste of this stick.”</p>
+
+<p>“Was it you in the hall-way of that building?”
+demanded Barker, in astonishment.</p>
+
+<p>“It was. Where are Casco and Grogan?”</p>
+
+<p>“Skipped the town,” returned the robber.
+“Are you alone?” he went on, anxiously, as he
+tried to pierce the darkness behind Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“Never mind about that,” returned the youth.</p>
+
+<p>“You come along with me.”</p>
+
+<p>“Where to?”</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll soon show you.”</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t think I will be such a fool.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_118">[118]</span>“If you don’t come along, I’ll knock you over
+with this stick,” returned Bob, decidedly. “I
+don’t propose to stand any more fooling.”</p>
+
+<p>“You talk mighty big for a boy,” sneered
+Barker.</p>
+
+<p>“Perhaps I do, but I mean what I say.
+Come, move along.”</p>
+
+<p>Instead of complying, Barker made a spring
+for the youth.</p>
+
+<p>Bob retreated, and the next instant the stick
+descended on the robber’s head with such
+force that the man was knocked flat on his
+back.</p>
+
+<p>“Now will you mind?” demanded the youth,
+standing over him with the stick upraised.</p>
+
+<p>“The old Nick take you!” cried Barker, in a
+rage. “Let up there!”</p>
+
+<p>“Will you promise to go along if I do?”</p>
+
+<p>Barker hesitated. His head ached from the
+blow Bob had administered, and he did not wish
+such a dose repeated.</p>
+
+<p>“Answer me.”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, I’ll go. But, Bob, you are making a
+great mistake.”</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t think so.”</p>
+
+<p>“You are. Do you know me?”</p>
+
+<p>“I know you are the man who said my father
+was a thief,” was the bitter answer.</p>
+
+<p>“I was only fooling, Bob.”</p>
+
+<p>“I knew you wasn’t telling the truth.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_119">[119]</span>“I thought I could get you to join in our little
+plan to make money.”</p>
+
+<p>“And you found out I wasn’t built that way,
+Barker.”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s so. But you are making a big mistake
+by handing me over to the police.”</p>
+
+<p>“I think it will be a first-class job done.”</p>
+
+<p>“You want to learn something about yourself,
+don’t you?” went on Barker, significantly.</p>
+
+<p>Bob breathed hard. Barker had touched the
+subject dearest to his heart.</p>
+
+<p>“It’s natural that I should, isn’t it?” was the
+slow response.</p>
+
+<p>“Well, you will never learn anything by having
+me locked up.”</p>
+
+<p>“Don’t be too sure about that.”</p>
+
+<p>“I am dead positive, for nobody knows anything
+about that matter but me.”</p>
+
+<p>“You are mistaken, Barker.”</p>
+
+<p>“No, I am not.”</p>
+
+<p>“There is a woman knows about it.”</p>
+
+<p>Barker started.</p>
+
+<p>“What, has Sarah Blake dared to tell you——”
+he began, and stopped short.</p>
+
+<p>Bob caught the name and remembered it.
+Little did he dream of the peculiar circumstances
+under which he would meet Sarah
+Blake.</p>
+
+<p>“Never mind, Barker. I am not so much in
+the dark as you think.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_120">[120]</span>“Sarah doesn’t know it all,” grumbled Barker.
+“I am the only one that has all the facts.”</p>
+
+<p>“And you won’t tell if I have you arrested?”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s the size of it.”</p>
+
+<p>“And if I let you go, what will you tell me?”</p>
+
+<p>“A good deal that will be to your interest.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob looked at the man and smiled grimly.</p>
+
+<p>“I wouldn’t trust you, Barker. I would
+rather hear what you had to say after you were
+behind the bars.”</p>
+
+<p>“I won’t tell you a word, then. You can live
+and die the poor, miserable nobody that you
+now are.”</p>
+
+<p>“We’ll see. Let me tell you something.
+Even if I could trust you to tell the whole truth,
+I wouldn’t let you go. You are a criminal, and
+your place is in prison.”</p>
+
+<p>“You’ll never put me there,” cried Barker.</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, I will. Now march along.”</p>
+
+<p>“Where to?”</p>
+
+<p>“Over to that gate.”</p>
+
+<p>Barker moved on as indicated. He wanted
+to run for it, but Bob kept the club raised, and
+he did not dare.</p>
+
+<p>Just as they neared the gate footsteps were
+heard, and a man appeared with a lantern.</p>
+
+<p>“Vot’s der madder here?” he demanded, in
+broken English.</p>
+
+<p>“This man is a robber,” said Bob. “I want
+him arrested.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_121">[121]</span>“By chimminy, vos dot so?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes. Are you the watchman around here?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yah. I dinks me I vos hear somepotty by
+der yard.”</p>
+
+<p>“Will you call a policeman?”</p>
+
+<p>“Sure, I vill.”</p>
+
+<p>The watchman hurried off, and presently returned
+with an officer. In a few words Bob
+told the policeman that Barker was one of
+the men who had robbed John Wright’s
+house.</p>
+
+<p>The officer at once took the robber in charge,
+and Bob accompanied both.</p>
+
+<p>The station was some distance from the lumber-yard,
+and Barker proposed that they take a
+horse-car, stating that he had slipped on a log in
+the factory yard and sprained his ankle.</p>
+
+<p>To this the policeman consented, and smilingly
+added that if his ankle was sprained perhaps
+he wouldn’t feel much like trying to get
+away.</p>
+
+<p>“No, confound the luck,” returned the robber.</p>
+
+<p>The car was crowded, and all three were compelled
+to stand on the back platform.</p>
+
+<p>They had scarcely gone a block, when the car
+stopped at rather a dark spot to take on a couple
+of passengers. There was squeezing on all
+sides, and for a moment Bob lost sight of both
+Barker and the policeman.</p>
+
+<p>Then when the car started again Bob looked<span class="pagenum" id="Page_122">[122]</span>
+around with a cry of dismay. The officer and
+the robber had disappeared.</p>
+
+<p>Bob forced his way inside of the car, thinking
+that the pair might have entered to get out of
+the crush outside.</p>
+
+<p>But a thorough search failed to reveal either
+of the persons in whom the youth was interested.</p>
+
+<p>“Gone!” ejaculated Bob, with a sinking heart.</p>
+
+<p>“What’s that?” asked a bystander.</p>
+
+<p>“Nothing. Did you see anything of that policeman
+and his prisoner?”</p>
+
+<p>“They got off at the last stop.”</p>
+
+<p>“Thank you.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob lost no time in leaving the car and hurrying
+back to the place. All was dark, and nobody
+appeared in sight.</p>
+
+<p>“Hullo there, officer!” he called out.</p>
+
+<p>He repeated the call several times, and finally
+the policeman came running toward him, club
+in hand.</p>
+
+<p>“Where is the man?” asked Bob, breathlessly.</p>
+
+<p>“That’s what I want to know,” returned the
+officer.</p>
+
+<p>“Did he get off with you?”</p>
+
+<p>“No; he jumped off, and I followed.”</p>
+
+<p>“Well, that’s a fine piece of business!” exclaimed
+Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“I’m not to blame,” returned the officer,
+alarmed over the thought that he had in some
+way neglected to do his duty.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_123">[123]</span>“Really?” asked Bob, sarcastically. He was
+angry.</p>
+
+<p>“No. Why didn’t you watch him?”</p>
+
+<p>“It wasn’t my business after I had delivered
+him to you.”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, it was.”</p>
+
+<p>“It was not. You’re a fine officer to take
+charge of a man.”</p>
+
+<p>“Come, don’t talk to me that way,” cried the
+policeman.</p>
+
+<p>“You didn’t attend to your business.”</p>
+
+<p>“Say another word and I’ll run you in for
+loafing,” cried the policeman, catching Bob by
+the arm.</p>
+
+<p>“Let go of me!”</p>
+
+<p>“Then don’t say it was my fault. I had nothing
+to do with it. It was your duty to keep
+watch of the man until you made a charge
+against him.”</p>
+
+<p>The policeman thought he could hoodwink
+Bob by saying this, but the youth’s common
+sense told him better.</p>
+
+<p>“It was all your fault,” said Bob, breaking
+away. “I have your number, and perhaps I’ll
+report you. Now, I am going to hunt for the
+man again.”</p>
+
+<p>And before the officer could stop him, Bob
+made off, while the policeman went back to his
+beat, there to concoct some excuse for his failure
+to do his duty.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_124">[124]</span>Bob hurried down the street, looking in all directions
+for Barker, but the robber was nowhere
+to be seen.</p>
+
+<p>At the end of an hour the youth was discouraged,
+and slowly and thoughtfully he made his
+way to his boarding-house.</p>
+
+<p>How much had been missed by the escape of
+Barker! Not only the chance of recovering the
+stolen goods, but also that of interviewing the
+robber concerning the shrouded past.</p>
+
+<p>“But I’ll meet him again some day, and then
+I won’t trust him to any fool of a policeman,”
+said Bob to himself.</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_125">[125]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER X<br>
+
+<small>BOB’S FIRST CUSTOMER</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">Mr. Starleigh</span> was much interested in the
+story Bob had to tell him on the following morning.</p>
+
+<p>“Lawrence has got back, and his desk was
+robbed of a hundred and five dollars, so he
+says.”</p>
+
+<p>“Those chaps are bad ones,” said the boy.
+“They steal wherever they happen to be.”</p>
+
+<p>The old photographer advised Bob to make
+a complaint against the officer who had allowed
+Barker to slip away, but Bob shook his
+head.</p>
+
+<p>“What’s the use? He would find some excuse,
+and I would only get into trouble. No;
+after all, I’ll simply do what I can alone, and let
+the rest go.”</p>
+
+<p>A week passed, and Bob made rapid strides in
+the art he was following, for photography now
+interested him more than ever before.</p>
+
+<p>One day he was left alone at noon, and in
+rushed a young man.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ve got fifteen minutes to spare,” he said.
+“Can you give me a sitting in that time?”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_126">[126]</span>“I am sorry, but Mr. Starleigh is out, and so
+is his assistant,” said Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“Too bad! If I had a sitting to-day when
+could I have the photos?”</p>
+
+<p>“All of them?”</p>
+
+<p>“The first one.”</p>
+
+<p>“In a few hours. The others, if you want a
+dozen, would be done a couple of days later.”</p>
+
+<p>“I wanted one to-morrow night sure. My
+brother is going to South America day after to-morrow,
+and I promised him my picture to take
+along.” The young man scratched his head.
+“Can’t you give me a sitting?”</p>
+
+<p>“I would rather you would wait,” replied
+Bob, fearing Mr. Starleigh would not like such
+a proceeding.</p>
+
+<p>“I can’t wait. Go ahead, if you know anything
+about the work.”</p>
+
+<p>The young man insisted, and at last Bob consented
+to give him a sitting.</p>
+
+<p>With great care Bob adjusted his focus, and
+gave his customer what he considered an artistic
+pose. In a minute more two plates were taken.</p>
+
+<p>“How about proofs?” asked the youth, as the
+young man pulled out his watch and then a roll
+of bills.</p>
+
+<p>“I haven’t time to come for them. How
+much will the dozen be?”</p>
+
+<p>“Four dollars and a half.”</p>
+
+<p>“Here’s your money. Send that picture to<span class="pagenum" id="Page_127">[127]</span>
+my home on Mountain Avenue. My name is
+Ralph Maverick.”</p>
+
+<p>And before Bob could say a word, the young
+man was gone.</p>
+
+<p>“Ralph Maverick,” murmured Bob to himself.
+“I wonder if he is any relation to Grace?
+The two look a little alike. Perhaps they are
+sister and brother.”</p>
+
+<p>When Mr. Starleigh returned, Bob related
+what he had done. The old photographer lost
+no time in looking at the plates and developing
+them.</p>
+
+<p>“One is no good, but the other is excellent,”
+he said. “You gave him a first-rate pose, Bob.
+Get a frame and some paper, and we will print
+a couple at once. You’ll soon be a full-fledged
+photographer, and I’m glad of it, for Sidler
+drinks so much I’ll have to discharge him.”</p>
+
+<p>While Bob was getting the paper, he asked
+Mr. Starleigh if he knew the young man.</p>
+
+<p>“Oh, yes; he is a son of Gregory Maverick,
+the president of the T. W. &amp; L. Railroad. You
+can take the picture to his house as soon as it is
+done.”</p>
+
+<p>This pleased Bob. He wished to see Grace
+Maverick once again, if possible, but he did not
+care to make a call unless he had business, being
+afraid she might think he had come to be rewarded
+for his bravery in helping her down the
+cliff.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_128">[128]</span>Bob left the photographing establishment at
+six o’clock with four of the pictures in his pocket.
+He had worked hard during the day, and
+he felt both tired and dirty.</p>
+
+<p>“I think I’ll go home first and wash, dress,
+and get supper before I deliver the picture,” he
+said to himself. “If I called at the house looking
+like this, Grace Maverick might take me for
+a tramp.”</p>
+
+<p>Which showed that Bob placed a high value
+on the beautiful young girl’s opinion.</p>
+
+<p>Bob hurried to his boarding-house, and after a
+good scrubbing dressed himself in a new suit he
+had just purchased. Then he hastily swallowed
+his supper, and set out for Mountain
+Avenue.</p>
+
+<p>The way lay past the studio, and as Bob drew
+near to the place where he was employed, he noticed
+a crowd rushing along.</p>
+
+<p>“What’s up?” he asked of a man who was
+running.</p>
+
+<p>“Fire up the street.”</p>
+
+<p>The man had hardly answered, when with a
+shrill tooting an engine came tearing along, followed
+by a hose-cart and a hook and ladder company.</p>
+
+<p>Bob was instantly interested. He had never
+witnessed a fire in the city, and he was anxious
+to see how the thing was managed.</p>
+
+<p>He followed the crowd. What was his astonishment<span class="pagenum" id="Page_129">[129]</span>
+to see the engine stop directly in
+front of the building in which the studio was
+situated.</p>
+
+<p>“Back there!” cried a policeman to the crowd,
+while the firemen began to run a hose into the
+hall-way.</p>
+
+<p>“Why, where is the fire?” cried Bob, in alarm.</p>
+
+<p>“Upstairs,” returned a bystander.</p>
+
+<p>“They say it started in a photographic place,”
+said another man.</p>
+
+<p>Bob turned pale. They must mean Mr. Starleigh’s
+studio. He wondered if his employer
+was around.</p>
+
+<p>Bob had a key to the studio. Breaking
+through the crowd, he dashed past the policeman
+on duty.</p>
+
+<p>“Here—what?” demanded the officer.</p>
+
+<p>“I want to save our things if I can,” returned
+Bob.</p>
+
+<p>He dashed up the first flight of stairs and then
+the second. The hall-way was filling with smoke,
+but no fire was to be seen.</p>
+
+<p>But on the third landing he paused. The
+smoke was thicker than ever, and he could hear
+the faint crackling of flames. Would it be safe
+to venture farther?</p>
+
+<p>He hesitated for only a second.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll save what I can,” he murmured, and up
+he dashed.</p>
+
+<p>He was about to insert the key in the lock,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_130">[130]</span>
+when he noticed that the door was already unfastened.
+He pushed it open, and rushed in.</p>
+
+<p>The thick smoke rolled directly into his face,
+almost choking him.</p>
+
+<p>“I can’t stand this very long,” was his
+thought.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly a puff of flame rolled overhead,
+lighting up the apartment.</p>
+
+<p>Guided by this, Bob made a rush for the operating-room,
+bent on saving the valuable lenses,
+if nothing more.</p>
+
+<p>He had just reached the curtain to this apartment,
+when there came another puff of flame,
+followed by a shower of sparks.</p>
+
+<p>Some of the sparks alighted on a table in the
+corner filled with chemicals.</p>
+
+<p>There was an explosion almost immediately,
+and poor Bob was hurled backward, while the
+chemicals flew all around him.</p>
+
+<p>The smoke was thick, and, completely bewildered,
+the lad could not tell which way to turn to
+reach the door.</p>
+
+<p>Once he started, crawling on his hands and
+knees, and brought up directly opposite to where
+he wanted to go.</p>
+
+<p>The smoke was every moment getting thicker,
+and it looked as if the brave youth was to die
+like a rat in a trap.</p>
+
+<p>“I must get out somehow,” he muttered, desperately.
+“Why can’t I find the door?”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_131">[131]</span>He turned, and, rising, made a dash forward.</p>
+
+<p>“Help, help!”</p>
+
+<p>The cry startled him. It came from the developing
+closet, and Bob recognized the voice as
+that of Mr. Starleigh.</p>
+
+<p>“Mr. Starleigh!” he called out.</p>
+
+<p>“Oh, Bob, is that you? Help me, in Heaven’s
+name!”</p>
+
+<p>“I will.”</p>
+
+<p>Guided by the voice, Bob rushed through the
+operating-room, and threw open the door of the
+dark closet.</p>
+
+<p>A red light burned on a stand, and by it Bob
+saw his employer lying on the floor, one hand
+grasping a box of plates.</p>
+
+<p>“Help me, Bob!”</p>
+
+<p>“I will if I can, sir. Can’t you get up?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, but I can’t walk. I tried to save all
+those new plates, and two of the boxes fell on
+my ankle.”</p>
+
+<p>“Take my hand.”</p>
+
+<p>The old photographer did so, and got up,
+although the movement caused him great pain.</p>
+
+<p>“I’m afraid we can’t get out through the main
+room,” said Bob. “The flames are breaking
+through everywhere.”</p>
+
+<p>“I see, and—your coat is on fire. Let me
+put it out.”</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Starleigh caught the burnt portion in his
+hand, and crushed it.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_132">[132]</span>“That must have caught when the chemicals
+exploded. Tell me, what is beyond this
+closet?”</p>
+
+<p>“The hall-way, I believe.”</p>
+
+<p>“There is no door out?”</p>
+
+<p>“There was, in that corner, but I nailed it
+up.”</p>
+
+<p>“We must get it open somehow. Stand over
+there, out of the way.”</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Starleigh followed directions. Bob
+pulled away the stand which stood before the
+closed door.</p>
+
+<p>“If I only had an axe,” he said.</p>
+
+<p>“There is a hammer in the next room on the
+shelf.”</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll get it.”</p>
+
+<p>Leaving Mr. Starleigh leaning against a table,
+Bob rushed out into the operating-room. He
+found the hammer, and also brought with him
+the valuable lenses, which he knew his employer
+greatly prized.</p>
+
+<p>With all his force he began to batter on the
+door. At first it resisted his efforts, but finally
+with a crash one of the panels gave way.</p>
+
+<p>Then another panel was knocked out, and,
+with savage energy, Bob attacked the middle
+strip.</p>
+
+<p>His blows fell thick and fast. At last came a
+crash, and the top of the door was smashed into
+several parts.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_133">[133]</span>“Just in time,” cried Mr. Starleigh. “See,
+the whole operating-room is in flames!”</p>
+
+<p>The hall-way seemed to be now quite free
+from smoke. Bob leaped through the opening
+he had made, and helped his employer to
+follow.</p>
+
+<p>“Hullo! what’s up here?”</p>
+
+<p>It was a fireman who asked the question.</p>
+
+<p>“We’ve just escaped,” said Mr. Starleigh.
+“Help us to get down-stairs.”</p>
+
+<p>“He can’t walk,” said Bob. “If you will get
+on one side of him I will get on the other.”</p>
+
+<p>The fireman willingly complied, and it was
+not long before they reached the sidewalk,
+where a denser crowd than ever was now congregated.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Starleigh was assisted to a near-by drug-store,
+and a doctor at once gave his injured ankle
+proper attention.</p>
+
+<p>“I wish I had saved my lenses,” he sighed.
+“The rest of the stuff in the place was not of so
+much account.”</p>
+
+<p>“Here are the lenses,” returned Bob, producing
+them.</p>
+
+<p>“What! Did you really get them?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes. I trust they are not scratched,” went
+on the youth, with considerable concern.</p>
+
+<p>“They do not appear to be. Bob, I shall not
+forget you for this work, nor for saving my life,
+also.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_134">[134]</span>“Pooh! I didn’t save your life,” replied Bob,
+and he returned to the fire.</p>
+
+<p>By this time several other engines had arrived,
+and half a dozen streams of water were being
+poured on the flames. The firemen had a hard
+fight of it, but in less than an hour the fire was
+under control, although they continued on
+guard and would allow no one within the fire
+lines.</p>
+
+<p>Bob stood around for a while longer, and then
+he suddenly remembered the photographs in his
+pocket. He pulled them out, and found they
+were uninjured, which was strange, considering
+the rough usage they had seen.</p>
+
+<p>“I might as well deliver these, and get it off
+my hands,” he said to himself. “I wonder if
+Mr. Starleigh saved the plate, so that we can
+print the others.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob returned to the drug-store. He found a
+fellow-photographer talking to Mr. Starleigh.
+A number of plates had been saved, among
+them the one containing Ralph Maverick’s picture,
+and these the other photographer said he
+would finish for Mr. Starleigh.</p>
+
+<p>At the drug-store Bob brushed up as best he
+could. His new coat had several small holes
+burnt in it, but this could not be helped.</p>
+
+<p>Arriving at the Maverick mansion, he rang
+the bell and asked for Mr. Ralph Maverick.</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, he is in.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_135">[135]</span>“Please tell him I come from Mr. Starleigh’s
+studio.”</p>
+
+<p>The servant who had answered the summons
+retired, and presently Ralph Maverick appeared.</p>
+
+<p>He was well satisfied with the picture.</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t see how Mr. Starleigh could have
+done any better,” he said.</p>
+
+<p>Bob told the young man of the fire, but added,
+that the pictures would, nevertheless, be ready
+in the course of a few days.</p>
+
+<p>“Well, it’s too bad you were burned out,”
+said Ralph Maverick. “Will you start up
+again?”</p>
+
+<p>“I suppose so.”</p>
+
+<p>A little more talk followed, and then Bob
+turned to go. He was keenly disappointed at
+not seeing Grace.</p>
+
+<p>But his disappointment was of short duration.
+Presently, while the two stood in the hall-way,
+there was a rush of feet on the stairs and Grace
+Maverick ran up.</p>
+
+<p>“There! I was afraid you would never call!”
+she cried, catching Bob by the hand, and giving
+him a squeeze that made him blush.</p>
+
+<p>“Why, Grace, do you know him?” questioned
+Ralph Maverick, in surprise.</p>
+
+<p>“Indeed I do,” returned the beautiful girl,
+warmly. “He is the young gentleman who
+saved my life when I fell over the cliff.”</p>
+
+<p>“You don’t say! I must shake hands with<span class="pagenum" id="Page_136">[136]</span>
+him myself. Why didn’t you introduce yourself?”</p>
+
+<p>“Oh, I—I——”</p>
+
+<p>“He brought my picture. He didn’t say anything
+about knowing you,” went on Ralph.</p>
+
+<p>“Then you didn’t come to see me?” asked
+Grace, pouting slightly.</p>
+
+<p>“Well, I’m glad I did see you,” stammered
+Bob. “But I have to attend to business, you
+see,” he went on, lamely. “I work for a photographer,
+and we are fearfully busy.”</p>
+
+<p>“I’ve been looking for you ever since I got
+back from the seashore.”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, I heard you had gone,” said Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“Come into the parlor, I want to talk to you.
+I thought sure you and Mr. Landes would call
+together.”</p>
+
+<p>“He had to go on a trip for the house he represents.
+Otherwise, I imagine he would have
+been glad to come,” explained Bob.</p>
+
+<p>He was taken into an elegant parlor, where he
+felt a good deal like a fish out of water. But
+Grace and her brother did all they could to make
+him feel at ease, and, before he left, he was quite
+at home.</p>
+
+<p>“Papa wants to see you very much,” said
+Grace, during the course of conversation. “He
+is not at home to-night, but he will be to-morrow
+evening. Will you call, then?”</p>
+
+<p>“I will, if I can.”</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_137">[137]</span>“Oh, that won’t do! You come sure, and I
+will make papa stay home, even if he has got
+another engagement.”</p>
+
+<p>“He might not care to do that,” suggested
+Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“Oh, he cares to do whatever I want him to,”
+returned the young lady.</p>
+
+<p>When Bob left, he felt in particularly high
+spirits; why, he could not exactly state.</p>
+
+<p>He returned to his boarding-house by way of
+a short cut through a number of back streets.</p>
+
+<p>It was quite dark when he reached the steps
+of the boarding-house. As he was about to ascend,
+latch-key in hand, he noticed a man sitting
+on the curbstone, his head resting on his hands.</p>
+
+<p>Approaching the man, Bob shook him by the
+shoulder.</p>
+
+<p>“What’s the matter with you?” he asked.</p>
+
+<p>The man stared at him vacantly.</p>
+
+<p>“What’s that?” he asked.</p>
+
+<p>“I asked what was the matter with you?” repeated
+Bob.</p>
+
+<p>Instead of replying the man sprang to his feet,
+and caught Bob by the throat.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll show you,” he mumbled, with a hiccough.
+“Give me back my money, Jim Casco,
+d’ye hear?”</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_138">[138]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER XI<br>
+
+<small>BOB ASSISTS A STRANGER</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">Bob</span> was surprised at the stranger’s words.
+He shook off the hold the man had on his
+throat, and then grasped him by both arms.</p>
+
+<p>“What did you say?” he demanded.</p>
+
+<p>“I said I wanted my money back,” growled
+the stranger, wildly. “You drugged me, and I
+know it, Jim Casco.”</p>
+
+<p>Again the man stared at Bob, and then to
+both sides.</p>
+
+<p>“I must be off,” he hiccoughed. “I thought
+I was still in Cabot’s place.”</p>
+
+<p>“Is Cabot’s a saloon?”</p>
+
+<p>“It’s a saloon and a thieves’ den,” growled the
+man. “Gosh! how my head spins.”</p>
+
+<p>“And you think you were drugged?”</p>
+
+<p>“Of course I was. Ordinary liquor wouldn’t
+knock me out like this.”</p>
+
+<p>“You said something about a Jim Casco.”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s the man—heard the barkeeper call
+him by the name, but he got hushed up pretty
+quick.”</p>
+
+<p>“Where did you meet this Casco?”</p>
+
+<figure class="figcenter illowe28_125" id="i_138a">
+  <img class="w100" src="images/i_138a.jpg" alt="">
+  <figcaption class="caption"><p class="caption">THERE WAS AN EXPLOSION AND BOB WAS HURLED BACKWARD.</p></figcaption>
+</figure>
+
+<p>The drugged man gave a deep sigh. He was
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_139">[139]</span>gradually coming to his right senses. Bob got
+some water and bathed his head, after which the
+victim felt better.</p>
+
+<p>“Let me think. Oh, yes, I met this Casco
+down by the river. There was an Irishman with
+him——”</p>
+
+<p>“What was his name?”</p>
+
+<p>“This Casco called him Mike. But, say,
+who are you?”</p>
+
+<p>“I know those rascals, and I am willing to be
+your friend,” returned Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“Good for you. And your handle?”</p>
+
+<p>“Bob Alden.”</p>
+
+<p>“Mine is Walter Anderson. I came to
+Stampton from Buffalo a month ago, and I’ve
+been making pretty much of a fool of myself
+ever since. But I wish I had my money back.”</p>
+
+<p>“How much did you have with you?”</p>
+
+<p>“About thirty dollars.”</p>
+
+<p>“And it’s gone?”</p>
+
+<p>“Every cent of it, hang the luck!”</p>
+
+<p>Bob thought for a moment.</p>
+
+<p>“Would you mind showing me the way to
+Cabot’s place?”</p>
+
+<p>“Certainly not. Come on. I’m feeling better
+than I did a while ago.”</p>
+
+<p>Walter Anderson led the way down the
+street, and into a dirty square fronting the
+river.</p>
+
+<p>“See that fancy light over on the corner?”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_140">[140]</span>“Yes.”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s it. Cabot calls it the Rivermen’s
+Rest. It is nothing but a thieves’ den.”</p>
+
+<p>“Now listen to me,” said Bob, earnestly. “If
+I go in, will you stay here till I come out?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, but——”</p>
+
+<p>“I will see if this Casco and Mike are inside.
+If they are, I will let you know, and you can
+summon assistance, and we can have them arrested.”</p>
+
+<p>“Good enough.”</p>
+
+<p>Anderson took a seat on a stepping stone
+near the curb. Pulling his hat far down over
+his eyes, and turning up his collar in true
+“tough” style, Bob made his way toward the
+Rivermen’s Rest.</p>
+
+<p>Nothing could be seen from the outside but
+the lights, as the screens were tightly drawn over
+windows and doors.</p>
+
+<p>Bob hesitated only a moment, then he opened
+one of the doors and entered.</p>
+
+<p>A cloud of thick and rank tobacco smoke
+greeted him, mingled with the smell of stale
+liquors.</p>
+
+<p>“Phew! enough to make a decent man sick!”
+was the youth’s mental comment. “How anybody
+can love to come to such a place is past my
+comprehension.”</p>
+
+<p>The place was a long and narrow one. In
+the rear was a sort of restaurant, and, seeing a<span class="pagenum" id="Page_141">[141]</span>
+vacant table, Bob walked over to it, and dropped
+into a seat.</p>
+
+<p>“A sandwich and a cup of coffee,” he said to
+the dirty waiter who came to take his order.</p>
+
+<p>While the waiter was filling the order Bob
+gazed around him, and his keen eyes took in
+every detail of the place.</p>
+
+<p>Not far behind him was a door leading to a
+side room. This door stood partly ajar, and by
+pushing his chair back a little distance from the
+table, Bob was enabled to see into this apartment.</p>
+
+<p>At a table in the middle of the small room
+were seated an old man and a middle-aged woman.
+The old man, it was plain to see, was little
+better than a sot. His clothes were worn out
+and dirty, and his general appearance showed
+that he had long since lost all pride.</p>
+
+<p>The woman was quite lady-like in appearance
+and well dressed. She seemed to be expostulating
+with the old man.</p>
+
+<p>“Why don’t you leave them, father, and turn
+over a new leaf?” Bob heard her say.</p>
+
+<p>“That’s all right enough to say,” growled the
+old man, in return. “I can’t leave ’em.”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, you can.”</p>
+
+<p>“If I did, how would I get along?”</p>
+
+<p>“I will help you.”</p>
+
+<p>“Bosh! Your help wouldn’t amount to
+enough. It costs money to live.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_142">[142]</span>“It costs money to drink,” she cried. “Otherwise——”</p>
+
+<p>Bob did not catch any more of the conversation.
+Presently, just as the waiter came with
+the youth’s order, the lady arose and left by a
+side door.</p>
+
+<p>“She looked out of place here,” thought Bob.
+“If that is her father, I pity her.”</p>
+
+<p>In vain Bob scanned the faces of those already
+in the place, and those who came in. Nothing
+was to be seen of Casco and Grogan.</p>
+
+<p>“They must have left before I got here,”
+thought Bob. “I wonder if I can find out where
+they went.”</p>
+
+<p>He ate his sandwich slowly, but even when he
+had finished he was still in doubt as to how to
+proceed.</p>
+
+<p>But just as he was about to arise, some one
+came through a hall-way in the back, and entered
+the little side room.</p>
+
+<p>“Well, Blake, did you think I wouldn’t get
+back?” asked the newcomer of the old man.</p>
+
+<p>“You’ve been a long time,” mumbled the old
+man.</p>
+
+<p>“I couldn’t help it. Where is the girl?”</p>
+
+<p>“Gone.”</p>
+
+<p>“Good! I don’t want to run against her any
+more.”</p>
+
+<p>“Sarah ain’t like she used to be,” was the
+reply.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_143">[143]</span>Bob listened with great interest to this talk.
+The old man’s name was Blake, and the woman
+was spoken of as Sarah. Could she be the
+Sarah Blake Barker had mentioned?</p>
+
+<p>“If she is, I must meet her and talk to her
+by all means,” said Bob to himself. “She must
+know something about the past.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob wondered who the newcomer was, but he
+was not kept in doubt long. The voice sounded
+slightly familiar from the start, and presently the
+speaker spoke up louder, and the youth made
+the astonishing discovery that the man was
+James Casco in disguise.</p>
+
+<p>The scar-faced man wore a heavy beard and
+mustache, and was dressed in the garb of a waterman.</p>
+
+<p>“I have located him at last,” thought Bob.
+“Now to see that he does not escape me.”</p>
+
+<p>Casco and the old man entered into a low conversation,
+of which Bob heard but little, although
+he tried his best to make out what was
+being said.</p>
+
+<p>Presently the two arose, and slipped out of a
+door into the back hall.</p>
+
+<p>“They are going up-stairs,” was Bob’s conclusion.
+“I wonder if I dare follow them?”</p>
+
+<p>Arising, he walked to the desk, and settled
+for what he had had. Then he pretended to be
+interested in a number of pictures hanging on
+the walls.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_144">[144]</span>Gradually he drifted back toward the side
+room, and, watching his chance to see that he
+was not observed, he slipped into the apartment,
+and swiftly but silently made his way to the hall.</p>
+
+<p>Here only a smoky lamp, hanging from the
+ceiling, lit up the place, leaving all in semi-darkness.</p>
+
+<p>No one appeared to be in the hall, and, listening
+intently so as not to be caught napping, Bob
+ascended the stairs.</p>
+
+<p>“I suppose if they found me here, and knew
+what I was after, it would go hard with me,” he
+thought. “Well, I am in this game to win, and
+I’ll prove to them yet that I am not a nobody.”</p>
+
+<p>Arriving at the upper hall, Bob paused and
+peered around. All was dark save for a thin ray
+of light that shone from under the door to one
+of the middle rooms.</p>
+
+<p>Approaching this door Bob listened for several
+minutes. At first he could hear nothing,
+but gradually there came to his ears the voices
+of four men in earnest conversation.</p>
+
+<p>The four men appeared to be in a room beyond
+the one opening upon the hall. Should
+Bob enter the first room?</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll go the length of the string,” he said,
+bravely. “It is the only way to capture them.
+I wonder if that Walter Anderson is still on
+guard?”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_145">[145]</span>He tried the door, and, finding it unlocked,
+pushed it open.</p>
+
+<p>The room appeared to be a sort of lodge-room,
+with half a dozen benches scattered
+around, and a desk and chair at one end.</p>
+
+<p>A lamp stood on the desk, which was piled
+high with papers.</p>
+
+<p>Opposite the desk was the door leading to the
+room in which were the four men. This door
+stood on a crack, and tiptoeing his way forward,
+Bob peered in and beheld Casco and Blake on
+one side of a table with Barker and Mike Grogan
+on the other.</p>
+
+<p>“All of them,” he muttered to himself.
+“What a haul it would make if the police were
+only here at this moment.”</p>
+
+<p>He was about to leave and summon help,
+when he heard Barker mention his name.</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, I had a hard time of it getting away,”
+went on the man. “I tell you that boy is smart.”</p>
+
+<p>“He comes from a smart family,” put in old
+Blake. “His father——”</p>
+
+<p>“Hush!” cried Barker, hastily. “None of
+that here.”</p>
+
+<p>“Well, just as you say, Bill,” returned the old
+man. “But I reckon you will have a job with
+Sarah——”</p>
+
+<p>Barker put up his hand, and the old man
+broke off at once.</p>
+
+<p>“Well, how about that money?” demanded<span class="pagenum" id="Page_146">[146]</span>
+Grogan. “Sure, an’ we have waited long
+enough fer it, so we have.”</p>
+
+<p>“And we’ll have to wait a while longer.”</p>
+
+<p>“Phat fer?”</p>
+
+<p>“The Jew has got into trouble.”</p>
+
+<p>“How?”</p>
+
+<p>“Over some stolen goods a jeweller’s clerk
+sold him. We have got to take the stuff to
+somebody else.”</p>
+
+<p>“Sure, an’ ’tis a shame,” growled Grogan.
+“We’ve had more throuble about that swag than
+enny Oi ever seen befure.”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s true,” said Casco. “But the whole
+thing will be settled by next week, and then
+we’ll be off for the big haul.”</p>
+
+<p>“And I’m to be in that?” put in old Blake,
+eagerly.</p>
+
+<p>“You are,” said Barker.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly Casco jumped to his feet.</p>
+
+<p>“I forgot to ask Cabot about something,” he
+cried. “Just wait till I come back.”</p>
+
+<p>He made for the door. Bob tried to retreat,
+but he was too late. Out in the hall Casco overtook
+him, and caught him by the shoulder.</p>
+
+<p>“Who are you?” he demanded.</p>
+
+<p>“Let me go!” cried Bob.</p>
+
+<p>He tried to break away, but the scar-faced man
+held him fast.</p>
+
+<p>“Hullo, it’s that Bob Alden! How did you
+get in here?”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_147">[147]</span>“Walked in. Let me go!”</p>
+
+<p>“Oh, I’ll let you go!” returned Casco, sarcastically.
+“Hi, there, boys, here’s a spy!”</p>
+
+<p>“Sure, an’ who is it?”</p>
+
+<p>Barker ran out, and aided Casco in dragging
+Bob into the lodge-room.</p>
+
+<p>Then before they released him the door was
+closed and locked.</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_148">[148]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER XII<br>
+
+<small>BOB’S QUEER EXPERIENCE</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p>“<span class="smcap">Now</span>, I imagine we have you safe,” said
+Casco, after the door was locked. “Sit down
+on that bench.”</p>
+
+<p>“Well, if you insist, I will,” returned the
+youth, trying to make the best of the situation.</p>
+
+<p>He was terribly chagrined at the turn affairs
+had taken, but he resolved to brave it out as
+best he could.</p>
+
+<p>“Now tell us how you came to follow us
+here,” said Barker.</p>
+
+<p>“I discovered Casco was stopping here.”</p>
+
+<p>“How did you discover that?”</p>
+
+<p>“He robbed a friend of mine.”</p>
+
+<p>“Humph! he must mean the jay who was
+drugged,” muttered Casco. “I didn’t know he
+was a friend of yours.”</p>
+
+<p>While Casco was talking, Barker opened a
+closet and brought forth a rope.</p>
+
+<p>With this Bob was bound hands and feet.</p>
+
+<p>“Now, if you make the least outcry, we will
+gag you,” he said.</p>
+
+<p>“What do you intend to do with me this
+time?” questioned the youth.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_149">[149]</span>“One thing is certain, you won’t escape us,”
+returned Barker, with an evil smile.</p>
+
+<p>“Betther see if he has any money wid him,”
+suggested Grogan.</p>
+
+<p>Bob was at once searched, and the three dollars
+in his pocket taken from him.</p>
+
+<p>“Every little counts,” said the Irishman.
+“Blake, suppose ye go down an’ git a bottle fer
+all hands.”</p>
+
+<p>Old Blake at once left the lodge-room.</p>
+
+<p>In less than two minutes he returned all out
+of breath.</p>
+
+<p>“Get the boy out of sight,” he cried.</p>
+
+<p>“What’s up?” asked the others, in concert.</p>
+
+<p>“Cabot says the police are watching the place.
+He just saw an officer walk past with that fellow
+who was drugged.”</p>
+
+<p>“The old Nick you say!” muttered Casco.
+“I thought he had been fixed for all night.
+Catch hold, Barker.”</p>
+
+<p>“Where to?”</p>
+
+<p>“The garret, quick!”</p>
+
+<p>Barker caught hold of Bob on one side,
+and Casco on the other, and between them they
+carried the youth up two flights of narrow
+stairs, and into a sloping room under the
+roof.</p>
+
+<p>Grogan followed with a lamp which was
+placed on the floor.</p>
+
+<p>“Let me see!” said Casco, looking around.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_150">[150]</span>
+“Ah! here is a cross-beam! Let us lash him
+to that!”</p>
+
+<p>This was quickly done in such a manner that
+Bob could move but little.</p>
+
+<p>“We must make it impossible for him to escape,”
+said Barker.</p>
+
+<p>In spite of his stout heart, Bob was compelled
+to shiver at being tied up.</p>
+
+<p>“We had better gag him,” went on Barker.</p>
+
+<p>“Of course. Here is a bit of rag will do for
+that purpose.”</p>
+
+<p>A strip of an old dress was brought forth,
+and after tying a large knot in the middle the
+strip was placed over Bob’s mouth with the knot
+inside and made fast.</p>
+
+<p>“That settles him for the present,” said the
+scar-faced man. “Now we had better put out
+the light.”</p>
+
+<p>“Yis, douse the glim be all manes,” said Grogan.
+“Thin Oi’ll look out the front winder, an’
+see if thim men is still hangin’ around.”</p>
+
+<p>The light was extinguished, and the Irishman
+opened the small window in the front end of
+the garret. The fresh air that came in was
+very welcome to Bob, who could hardly
+breathe.</p>
+
+<p>“Oi can’t see anybody,” said Grogan, after a
+long look down into the street. “Perhaps Cabot
+was mistaken.”</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll go down and see,” replied Barker. “If<span class="pagenum" id="Page_151">[151]</span>
+anybody comes up here and tries to nose around
+bluff him off.”</p>
+
+<p>“We will,” said Casco. “But keep watch,
+and give us plenty of warning.”</p>
+
+<p>This was agreed to, and Barker left the garret
+immediately.</p>
+
+<p>The others grew silent, Casco standing by the
+stairs with ears on the alert.</p>
+
+<p>Five minutes passed. They dragged slowly
+to Bob, who was wondering what would happen
+next, and if he would ever get out of his predicament
+with a whole skin.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly two pistol-shots rang out. They
+were followed by a whistle outside, and then
+another on the second floor below. The raid
+by the police had begun.</p>
+
+<p>As it was dark in the garret, Bob could not
+make out the movements of his captors.</p>
+
+<p>He heard Casco say something to Grogan,
+and then the two went off, leaving old Blake in
+sole charge. The latter remained near the
+stairs, listening intently for the first sign of any
+one trying to come up.</p>
+
+<p>Presently there was another cry, and then
+Blake hurried to Bob’s side.</p>
+
+<p>“Listen to me,” he said. “Don’t you dare
+to make a move or a sound till I come back. If
+you do, I’ll fix you.”</p>
+
+<p>Then Bob heard him descend the stairs, and
+heard the opening and closing of the door.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_152">[152]</span>Bob at once set to work freeing himself. He
+did not care for the threat which had been
+made. Probably Blake had become frightened,
+and would not return at all.</p>
+
+<p>Close to where Bob was bound was a large
+blue chest, with iron-bound corners. When he
+had been brought to the spot the youth had noticed
+that one of the iron corners was broken,
+leaving a sharp edge sticking from the top.</p>
+
+<p>Bob could just reach the chest with his feet,
+and, by rubbing the rope around his ankles over
+the rough edge of the iron, he managed after
+considerable trouble to wear the rope in two,
+thus freeing his feet.</p>
+
+<p>But his hands were still tied behind him and
+to a small bit of joist between two upright
+beams.</p>
+
+<p>Planting his feet firmly on the floor Bob
+tugged at the joist with all his strength, and was
+at last overjoyed to find he had loosened one end.</p>
+
+<p>To loosen the other was a comparatively easy
+job, and then Bob stood a free boy, but with his
+hands still fastened to the bit of wood. Bending
+over the chest, he again began his rubbing process,
+and soon the wood fell to the floor, and
+Bob’s hands were once again ready for use.</p>
+
+<p>He lost no time in tearing the dirty gag from
+his mouth. While he was doing this, he heard
+the door at the foot of the stairs unlocked, and
+Grogan came up.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_153">[153]</span>Bob knew the Irishman’s tread too well to be
+mistaken. He turned to flee, then, not knowing
+where to go, he stopped short and faced his
+enemy.</p>
+
+<p>Grogan carried a lantern on one arm. He
+cast the rays over to where Bob had been tied,
+and uttered an exclamation of dismay.</p>
+
+<p>Then he caught sight of Bob. At the same
+time the youth snatched up the piece of joist.</p>
+
+<p>“Make a sound, Grogan, and I will strike!”
+cried Bob, determinedly.</p>
+
+<p>“How did you git loose?” demanded the
+Irishman.</p>
+
+<p>“That is my affair. Stand where you are.”</p>
+
+<p>Instead of complying, Grogan made a dash
+forward. As he did so, Bob struck out at
+him.</p>
+
+<p>The joist struck the lantern, shivering it to
+pieces and leaving the pair in darkness.</p>
+
+<p>Bob struck out again, and this time Grogan
+was knocked over.</p>
+
+<p>Finding his enemy did not offer to move, Bob
+spoke to him. Grogan made no reply. Growing
+alarmed, Bob struck a match and lit the
+wick of the lantern which lay close at hand.</p>
+
+<p>“Knocked out that trip,” muttered Bob to
+himself. “Well, it serves him right. I reckon
+I had better go below.”</p>
+
+<p>He was about to carry out this idea, when he
+heard the door at the foot of the stairs open.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_154">[154]</span>“Hurry up, Barker,” he heard, in the voice of
+Casco, and then the steps came closer.</p>
+
+<p>What was to be done? It would be fool-hardy
+to face the two men, both of whom he felt sure
+were armed. He must escape by some other
+means.</p>
+
+<p>The window in the front end of the garret was
+still open, and toward this Bob rushed and
+looked out. The sidewalk was fully forty feet
+below, and there was no way to reach it save
+by a jump, and this would have meant instant
+death.</p>
+
+<p>Bob looked up. Overhead, the roof of the
+building was but a few feet away. He sprang
+upon the window-sill, and without hesitation
+pulled himself out and upon the sloping roof
+beyond.</p>
+
+<p>It was a dangerous situation, but Bob’s nerves
+were up to a high tension, and he did not falter.</p>
+
+<p>The electric lights on the street beyond threw
+considerable light on the roof, and by this means
+the youth was enabled to crawl down to the gutter.
+Then he walked along to the rear, and
+finding here a projection one story lower,
+dropped upon it.</p>
+
+<p>All had become quiet in the saloon and restaurant
+below, and Bob wondered what the police
+had done, and if they had really gone.</p>
+
+<p>The youth looked around for some means of
+reaching the ground. There was the water<span class="pagenum" id="Page_155">[155]</span>
+spout, but that seemed too frail to bear his
+weight.</p>
+
+<p>Leaning over the edge of the roof, he saw not
+far below a pulley-line used for drying clothes.
+The other end of the line was fastened to a
+house on the opposite side of the yard, and, by
+pulling upon the line, Bob found it moved
+through the pulley easily.</p>
+
+<p>Taking his pocket-knife the youth quickly severed
+one of the lines and hauled in on the other.
+The consequence was that he soon found himself
+in possession of about a hundred feet of
+good strong wash-line.</p>
+
+<p>Twisting the line double, Bob fastened one
+end to a chimney, and, grasping the other, he
+started to lower himself down over the edge of
+the roof.</p>
+
+<p>Bob came down the last ten feet with a great
+rush, thereby tearing some of the skin from his
+hands.</p>
+
+<p>But he shut his teeth hard, and though the
+pain was great, he made no sound.</p>
+
+<p>Darting across the yard, he entered the back
+door of the house on the next street. The door
+led to a dark and narrow hall-way. Once inside,
+Bob closed the door, and finding a bolt on it,
+quickly slipped the fastening into place.</p>
+
+<p>By feeling around the youth found that there
+was no way out of the hall-way, except by going
+up the stairs or down into the cellar. He followed<span class="pagenum" id="Page_156">[156]</span>
+the former course, and soon found himself
+on an upper landing, where a broad staircase led
+to a large and well-lighted front hall.</p>
+
+<p>He lost no time in descending the stair, doing
+so almost silently, as the steps were heavily
+carpeted.</p>
+
+<p>But below the hall-way was of polished wood,
+and his footsteps rang out clearly as he passed
+to the door.</p>
+
+<p>This was locked and bolted, and the youth
+had considerable difficulty in opening it.</p>
+
+<p>“Hullo, young man, what are you doing
+here?” suddenly demanded a sharp voice, and
+a side door opened from a store, and a heavy-set
+man rushed out.</p>
+
+<p>“I was trying to escape from the house on
+the next street,” explained Bob. “Some men
+weren’t treating me right.”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s fine enough to say, but I don’t believe
+you. Just you wait until I call an officer.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob was so taken aback that for the moment
+he did not know what to say.</p>
+
+<p>“An officer!” he gasped.</p>
+
+<p>“That’s what I said. We have suffered from
+your kind several times, and now I intend to
+put a stop to it.”</p>
+
+<p>The man spoke very decidedly, and, as he
+faced Bob, he looked fiercely at the youth.</p>
+
+<p>“I am not a thief. You can search me, if
+you wish.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_157">[157]</span>“Perhaps you didn’t have the chance to get
+anything,” sneered the heavy-set man. “But
+you are in the hall of my house, and that’s
+enough.”</p>
+
+<p>The man saw to it that the front door was
+locked, and placed the key in his pocket.</p>
+
+<p>Then he walked to the side door.</p>
+
+<p>“Jimmy,” he called loudly.</p>
+
+<p>“What’s up, pop?” came in a boyish voice.</p>
+
+<p>“Go and get a policeman. I’ve caught one
+of those confounded sneak-thieves at last.”</p>
+
+<p>“Is that so, pop! Good for you!”</p>
+
+<p>A freckle-faced boy with red hair came
+out into the hall, and looked wonderingly at
+Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“So you’re a sneak-thief, hey?” he said.</p>
+
+<p>“No, I am not,” replied Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“Don’t stand there all night, Jimmy; but do
+as I told you,” cried the parent.</p>
+
+<p>Jimmy at once disappeared. The heavy-set
+man stood close to Bob, wearing upon his face
+a look of great importance.</p>
+
+<p>“You are making a great mistake, sir,” said
+Bob. “I just came from Cabot’s place, and all
+I did was to attempt to pass through your hall-way.”</p>
+
+<p>“And pick up anything you could find on the
+way, I suppose,” was the cold reply.</p>
+
+<p>“No, sir.”</p>
+
+<p>“Well, I won’t waste words with you. The<span class="pagenum" id="Page_158">[158]</span>
+police will give your case all the attention it deserves.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob heaved a sigh. If arrested, how could he
+prove his innocence? The fact that he had been
+in Cabot’s at the time of the raid would not
+stand to his credit. Perhaps his story of being
+a prisoner would not be believed, especially if
+Casco, Barker, and the others escaped.</p>
+
+<p>Bob meditated a dash for liberty, but before
+he could put it into execution the boy came back
+with a policeman.</p>
+
+<p>“Caught one of ’em, have you, Mr. Olney?”
+said the officer, as he took Bob in charge.</p>
+
+<p>“I have.”</p>
+
+<p>In vain Bob tried to explain matters. The
+policeman would not listen, and the youth was
+hurried off to the station-house and thrust into a
+cell, to await a hearing in the morning.</p>
+
+<p>He wondered what had been done at Cabot’s
+place, and if any of his enemies had been captured.</p>
+
+<p>“If not, this will give them a good chance to
+clear out,” he said to himself, bitterly.</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_159">[159]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER XIII<br>
+
+<small>BOB MAKES A TRUE FRIEND</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">The</span> cell in which Bob was confined was provided
+with a rough sleeping-bench, but though
+the youth lay down he did not slumber, but lay
+awake thinking over his troubles.</p>
+
+<p>At last morning came, and at nine o’clock
+Bob was brought out into the little court-room
+attached to the station. Here sat a stern-faced
+judge who eyed him sharply, as the charge
+against him was made.</p>
+
+<p>“What have you to say to this?” Bob was
+asked.</p>
+
+<p>Bob, of course, put in a plea of not guilty.
+Then he was asked a number of questions, and
+he related his whole story.</p>
+
+<p>“You look as if you were telling the truth,
+but the facts in the case don’t bear you
+out,” said the judge. “You had no right
+under any circumstances to enter Mr. Olney’s
+house.”</p>
+
+<p>At that moment a man brushed forward. It
+was Mr. Starleigh.</p>
+
+<p>“May it please your honor, may I ask why
+this young man was brought here?” he asked.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_160">[160]</span>The judge happened to know the old photographer,
+and he related the case.</p>
+
+<p>“He is not guilty, you may be sure of that,”
+said Mr. Starleigh. “I am positive he is perfectly
+honest.”</p>
+
+<p>“You know him, then?”</p>
+
+<p>“He works for me. He is the person who
+helped to capture Bidwell, the thief.”</p>
+
+<p>“Oh, then, that is a different matter. But
+still——”</p>
+
+<p>While the judge was talking, Mr. Starleigh
+turned to Olney.</p>
+
+<p>“John, you are making a sad mistake. This
+young man is not a sneak-thief.”</p>
+
+<p>“It looks mighty suspicious,” returned Olney.
+He was a dealer in photographic supplies, and
+Starleigh was a good customer.</p>
+
+<p>“I feel certain you are mistaken.”</p>
+
+<p>“Did you say he works for you?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes.”</p>
+
+<p>“Then I’ll withdraw the charge,” Olney said,
+not wishing to displease a valued customer. He
+turned to the judge. “Your honor, will you
+allow me to withdraw the charge?”</p>
+
+<p>“Well, under the circumstances, you may,”
+returned the judge. “The young man having
+such a person as Mr. Starleigh to vouch for his
+honesty, makes a difference. Robert Alden,
+you may go.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob lost no time in stepping down. Olney<span class="pagenum" id="Page_161">[161]</span>
+stopped to talk to Mr. Starleigh for several minutes.
+When he was gone, the youth grasped
+the old photographer by the hand.</p>
+
+<p>“Oh, how can I thank you!” he exclaimed,
+warmly.</p>
+
+<p>“That’s all right,” returned Mr. Starleigh.
+“I haven’t forgotten what you did for me, Bob.”</p>
+
+<p>“It was fortunate you came here.”</p>
+
+<p>“I was summoned to testify against a fellow
+who set the building on fire,” returned the old
+photographer. “He had a grudge against one
+of the tenants. But the case has been postponed
+for a couple of days, so I am not needed.”</p>
+
+<p>“What do you want me to do?”</p>
+
+<p>“If you will, I wish you would go over to
+Martin’s studio. He will give us facilities for
+printing from the plates we saved. This afternoon
+the fire insurance agents are going to adjust
+my claim and then I will open somewhere
+else just as soon as I can.”</p>
+
+<p>“Before I leave I would like to know what the
+police did at Cabot’s,” said Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“We will ask Captain Downes. I know him
+quite well.”</p>
+
+<p>The official mentioned was found close at
+hand. He said two rivermen had gotten into a
+dispute in the saloon, and both had discharged
+their pistols, but without damage. Two policemen
+had been summoned, and the rivermen
+were now in jail.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_162">[162]</span>Bob then told of Casco, Barker, and Grogan.</p>
+
+<p>“I heard about that through the fellow who
+was drugged,” said Captain Downes. “And two
+detectives are already on the way. But no doubt
+those men have lost no time in getting away, and
+Cabot will deny they were ever there. They
+are a set of shrewd and slippery criminals.”</p>
+
+<p>“Can you tell me anything about this Blake?”</p>
+
+<p>The captain shook his head.</p>
+
+<p>“Never heard of him.”</p>
+
+<p>“And Sarah Blake?”</p>
+
+<p>“Never heard of her, either. They are probably
+newcomers to Stampton.”</p>
+
+<p>The conversation continued for several minutes,
+and then Bob left to make his way to Martin’s
+studio, while Mr. Starleigh hurried off to
+rent new quarters in place of the ones burnt out.</p>
+
+<p>Bob found Martin a very nice man. The
+youth worked hard, and by evening he had printed
+and mounted an unusually large number of
+photographs.</p>
+
+<p>“You have the knack of it, I see,” said Martin.
+“If you are ever out of a job, come over
+and see me.”</p>
+
+<p>“Thank you, perhaps I will,” replied Bob.</p>
+
+<p>He had not forgotten the promise he had
+made to Grace Maverick, and, after supper that
+evening, he brushed up and again visited the
+mansion on Mountain avenue.</p>
+
+<p>The girl met him at the door, and at once<span class="pagenum" id="Page_163">[163]</span>
+conducted him to the library, where sat Mr.
+Gregory Maverick, the president of the T. W.
+&amp; L. Railroad.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Maverick was a short, round-faced man,
+with rather a pleasant cast of countenance. He
+sat in an easy-chair, his slippered feet resting on
+a cushion.</p>
+
+<p>“Papa, this is Mr. Robert Alden,” said Grace,
+presenting the youth.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Maverick at once jumped up, and caught
+Bob by the hand.</p>
+
+<p>“So you are the young man who rescued
+Grace, are you?” he said. “I am very happy
+to meet you. I have been wanting to thank you
+for a long time for that brave act.”</p>
+
+<p>“Oh, it wasn’t much!” stammered Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“I think it a good deal,” laughed the railroad
+president. “Sit down. Grace tells me you are
+a stranger to Stampton.”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, sir. I came here looking for work.”</p>
+
+<p>“And have you succeeded?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, sir.”</p>
+
+<p>And Bob started to tell how he had run across
+Mr. Starleigh through the sneak-thief’s effort to
+get away.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ve heard of that fellow,” said Mr. Maverick.
+“But go on with your story. I am quite
+interested.”</p>
+
+<p>“And so am I,” added Grace, who had taken
+a seat at her father’s feet.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_164">[164]</span>Bob did as requested. Both Mr. Maverick
+and his daughter asked a great number of questions,
+and before the youth was aware he had
+related his entire history, and the clock had long
+since struck ten.</p>
+
+<p>“Really I must be making you tired,” said the
+youth, as he glanced at the time-piece.</p>
+
+<p>“On the contrary, I have been deeply interested,”
+said the railroad president. “I like to
+see a young man show pluck and determination.
+That is the only way to succeed in life. So your
+ambition is to become a first-class photographer?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, sir. I don’t care so much for studio
+work, but I would like to use the art on the
+road. I love travelling from place to place.”</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Maverick stroked his chin reflectively. A
+sudden idea had flashed through his mind.</p>
+
+<p>“You like to do work outdoors, eh?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, sir.”</p>
+
+<p>“How long will it take you to learn that
+branch of the work?”</p>
+
+<p>“Oh, I can take that sort of a picture now.
+Faces are the hardest things to photograph.”</p>
+
+<p>“I see.” Mr. Maverick mused for a moment.
+“Will you do me the favor to call here to-morrow
+evening? I may have a proposition to make
+to you.”</p>
+
+<p>“I will come, sir.”</p>
+
+<p>Then the conversation became general, and<span class="pagenum" id="Page_165">[165]</span>
+a quarter of an hour later Bob left, Grace Maverick
+seeing him to the door.</p>
+
+<p>Bob could not help but wonder what proposition
+the railroad president would have to make.
+Of course, it would be in return for the assistance
+he had given Grace.</p>
+
+<p>Perhaps Mr. Maverick would offer him a
+place on the road. Well, if it paid, Bob would
+accept it, even though it was not in exact line
+with his desires. He would do a good deal to
+be where he might occasionally come in contact
+with Grace.</p>
+
+<p>On the following morning Mr. Starleigh announced
+that he had purchased the title and interest
+in a photographic establishment close to
+the one which had been burned out. The
+plates which had been saved, as well as the
+lenses, were at once transferred to the newly-acquired
+studio, and by dinner-time they were
+once more ready for business.</p>
+
+<p>The assistant who drank had been discharged,
+and when Mr. Starleigh went off to purchase
+some supplies which would soon be needed,
+Bob was left in sole charge of the studio.</p>
+
+<p>The man who had owned the establishment
+before Mr. Starleigh had purchased it had been
+a wild sort of a fellow, and had paid but scant
+attention to business. Consequently trade was
+all run down, and as Mr. Starleigh’s former
+patrons had not yet heard of the change, business<span class="pagenum" id="Page_166">[166]</span>
+during the afternoon was exceedingly
+dull.</p>
+
+<p>But Bob worked hard at printing and mounting
+photographs, and to him the time passed
+quickly enough.</p>
+
+<p>At length, about five o’clock, there came a
+series of loud knocks on the glass door which
+led to the hall.</p>
+
+<p>“Come in!” called out Bob, and in response
+there stalked in a very tall, lean man, with hollow
+cheeks and sunken eyes.</p>
+
+<p>The man stared vacantly around the studio,
+and then dropped into a chair.</p>
+
+<p>“You take photos here, I understand?” he
+said, in a deep bass voice.</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, sir,” returned Bob, politely.</p>
+
+<p>“Photos of all the Presidents, I understand?”</p>
+
+<p>“Hardly,” laughed Bob. He thought the
+man was joking. “Sometimes we take a bank
+president, or something like that.”</p>
+
+<p>“Never took a President of the United
+States?” demanded the man, sharply.</p>
+
+<p>“I think not, sir.”</p>
+
+<p>“I understood differently, understand, I understood
+differently,” cried the man, raising his
+voice and jumping to his feet. “I am not to be
+imposed upon, either,” he added.</p>
+
+<p>“I am not imposing on you,” returned Bob,
+gently. He realized at once that the man was
+not right in his mind. “We would willingly<span class="pagenum" id="Page_167">[167]</span>
+take a President, if he would grant us a sitting.”</p>
+
+<p>“Ah! so I thought. That’s the reason I
+came here. Do you know who I am?”</p>
+
+<p>“I do not, sir.”</p>
+
+<p>“I am the President of the Sandwich Islands—appointed
+by act of Congress last month.
+Take off your hat.”</p>
+
+<p>As Bob had no hat on, he could not comply
+with this demand. His failure to do as bidden
+seemed to anger the man, who was nothing more
+or less than crazy.</p>
+
+<p>“Did you hear me, sir?”</p>
+
+<p>“I did; but I haven’t any hat on.”</p>
+
+<p>“Ah! that’s different. I am short-sighted—lost
+my sight in the Mexican war—a shell passed
+in front of me—I dodged—and though I escaped,
+it carried the best part of my eyesight
+with it.”</p>
+
+<p>To this Bob made no reply. He was meditating
+on how best to get rid of his unwelcome
+visitor.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly the man stole over to where he
+stood.</p>
+
+<p>“Get the machine ready,” he cried.</p>
+
+<p>“What for?”</p>
+
+<p>“For my picture. I want you to take the
+largest ever taken, regardless of expense.”</p>
+
+<p>“I can’t do that, sir.”</p>
+
+<p>“Why not?”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_168">[168]</span>“I am only a helper here—the proprietor is
+out. You had better call again.”</p>
+
+<p>“Ha! I would, but I haven’t time, understand,
+I haven’t time. Every moment of a President’s
+life is important. I have three ministers
+to appoint before I go to sleep, and the people
+harass me to death with their applications.”</p>
+
+<p>“Well, I can’t take the picture.”</p>
+
+<p>“Then I will take it myself.”</p>
+
+<p>The man rushed toward the camera, and
+caught hold of the tube.</p>
+
+<p>“Stop!” cried Bob, in alarm. “You may
+break something.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob grasped the crazy man by the arm and
+tried to make him let go his hold on the camera.</p>
+
+<p>“You will only break it,” he went on. “Please
+come in to-morrow.”</p>
+
+<p>“Now or never! I have promised all my
+friends a picture of my skeleton, and I do not
+intend to disappoint them. Where are the
+plates? The best in the house, mind, regardless
+of expense. The President has his picture
+taken at the public expense, ha, ha! That’s a
+joke.”</p>
+
+<p>Seeing he could do nothing with the crazy fellow,
+Bob moved toward the door, intending to
+summon assistance and have him removed.</p>
+
+<p>But now a knowing look came into the lunatic’s
+eyes. He left the camera, and leaped
+toward the youth.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_169">[169]</span>“No, I’m not going back, and you can’t make
+me. They all say I’m crazy, but they are jealous,
+that’s all. But when the picture is taken
+it will be all right. Stay here till I press the
+button, and don’t dare to move, or I will have
+you banished to utter darkness forever.”</p>
+
+<p>And, catching up a folded tripod, the crazy
+man stood guard, so that Bob might not escape
+from the studio.</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_170">[170]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER XIV<br>
+
+<small>BOB MAKES A NEW MOVE</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">Bob</span> was alarmed when the crazy man strode
+forward, tripod in hand, as if to brain him
+should he attempt to leave the studio.</p>
+
+<p>He had not had much to do with people of
+unsound mind, but he was well aware that his
+present position was both a delicate and a dangerous
+one.</p>
+
+<p>If the lunatic attacked him, he would have a
+hard struggle to keep himself from harm, for,
+despite his hollow eyes and shrunken form, the
+man looked strong.</p>
+
+<p>“I’m not going to leave,” said Bob. “Put
+down the tripod, and sit in the chair if you want
+the picture of your skeleton taken.”</p>
+
+<p>He left the vicinity of the door, and seeing
+this the crazy man at once dropped the folded
+tripod and sank into a chair.</p>
+
+<p>“Will you take the picture?” he demanded.</p>
+
+<p>“I will if you will promise to go away right
+afterward,” returned the youth.</p>
+
+<p>“That goes. Take me this way, and be quick.
+I must catch the next ocean steamer for the
+Sandwich Islands.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_171">[171]</span>The man sprawled out on the chair, put one
+hand to his chin and the other to his breast and
+put on a sober, earnest look.</p>
+
+<p>Bob at once placed a prepared tin plate in the
+camera, put on the proper lens, and in a few
+minutes had a tintype of the crazy man.</p>
+
+<p>“There you are,” he said, as he trimmed it
+up. “Now you will have to hurry to catch that
+steamer.”</p>
+
+<p>The lunatic glared at the picture for a second.
+Then he burst out into a wild fit of laughter.</p>
+
+<p>“Is that me? Really, where is the skeleton?
+Oh, this is a fraud! Take a thousand more, and
+be sure and add the skeleton, if you want your
+pay.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob’s heart sank within him. He had made a
+great effort to get rid of the lunatic, and failed.
+What was to be done now?</p>
+
+<p>He decided to use strong measures. Picking
+up the folded tripod, he advanced toward the
+lunatic.</p>
+
+<p>“Get out of here at once,” he said, sternly.
+“I am too busy to be fooled with. Go!”</p>
+
+<p>The crazy man’s face fell, and with a slow
+step he moved toward the door.</p>
+
+<p>“Excuse me,” he said, softly. “I didn’t know
+you were busy. I’ll come in some time to-morrow.”</p>
+
+<p>He made a profound bow, and started as if to
+go.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_172">[172]</span>“Thank fortune I am rid of him!” thought
+Bob.</p>
+
+<p>But the youth was mistaken. Reaching the
+door, the lunatic suddenly turned, and, before
+Bob was aware, sprang straight for the youth’s
+throat.</p>
+
+<p>The attack was so unexpected that Bob was
+borne over backward, the crazy man landing on
+his breast.</p>
+
+<p>“Let up!” gasped Bob, desperately.</p>
+
+<p>The crazy man did not reply, but tightened
+his grip on Bob’s throat, so that he was nearly
+choked to death.</p>
+
+<p>In vain Bob struggled. He could not loosen
+that nervous hold the lunatic had taken, and
+now his head began to swim, and strange lights
+began to flicker before his eyes.</p>
+
+<p>He tried to kick, but could not reach his opponent.
+Half a minute more passed, and poor
+Bob was on the point of giving himself up as
+lost.</p>
+
+<p>Then the door of the studio opened, and Mr.
+Starleigh hurried in, followed by Mr. Martin.</p>
+
+<p>“Hullo! what’s this?” cried the old photographer,
+surveying the strange scene in astonishment.</p>
+
+<p>“It’s Crazy Sam Bartlett,” ejaculated Mr.
+Martin.</p>
+
+<p>“He is choking the boy to death,” went on
+Mr. Starleigh. “Here, let him be!”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_173">[173]</span>He caught the lunatic by the shoulder, and
+hauled him backward.</p>
+
+<p>The man set up a howl, and ceased tormenting
+Bob. He gave one look at Mr. Martin and
+his face fell.</p>
+
+<p>“Sam, what does this mean?” demanded the
+photographer.</p>
+
+<p>“Haven’t time to explain,” returned Bartlett,
+hurriedly.</p>
+
+<p>“When did they let you out?”</p>
+
+<p>“I ran away—they think I am crazy—but I’m
+the President of the Sandwich Islands. Here
+we go!”</p>
+
+<p>Bartlett made a dash for the door. Mr. Martin
+tried to stop him, but he was too late.</p>
+
+<p>A second later they heard a crash. Bartlett
+had leaped down the entire flight of stairs. All
+three went after him, and found him lying at the
+bottom, his left leg broken.</p>
+
+<p>The police were at once summoned, and a
+close coach was procured, in which he was
+taken to the lunatic asylum from which he had
+escaped.</p>
+
+<p>Then Mr. Starleigh had Bob tell his story.
+Both the old photographer and Mr. Martin
+listened with great interest.</p>
+
+<p>“And I never want another such experience
+as long as I live,” concluded Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“I shouldn’t think you would,” said Mr. Starleigh.
+“Cranks are bad enough, but a real<span class="pagenum" id="Page_174">[174]</span>
+crazy man is ten times worse. It is lucky we
+came in when we did.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob went to work again, but his nerves were
+all unstrung, and before long the old photographer
+told him he might as well stop for the
+day, as there was no need for further hurry.</p>
+
+<p>When Bob reached his boarding-house, he
+found a long letter from Frank Landes awaiting
+him. In the epistle Frank said he intended to
+take a trip to Stampton before long, and then go
+on a business tour along the T. W. &amp; L. Railroad.</p>
+
+<p>“I would like to go with him,” thought Bob.
+“Maybe I’ll see Frank, if Mr. Maverick offers
+me a place on the road.”</p>
+
+<p>That evening found Bob again at the railroad
+president’s mansion, according to agreement.
+Grace was present, and a long talk occurred.</p>
+
+<p>“I want to do something for you, Bob,” said
+Mr. Maverick. “I think I owe it to you, after
+what you did for Grace. But I will not offer
+you money for that service, for such acts are not
+to be paid for in cash.”</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Maverick paused. Bob bowed, but did
+not reply. He was wondering what was
+coming.</p>
+
+<p>“You said you loved the art of photography,
+and would like nothing better than a chance to
+travel about taking pictures. To help you along
+in this direction, I have purchased for you a<span class="pagenum" id="Page_175">[175]</span>
+complete travelling outfit, including a horse and
+a wagon——”</p>
+
+<p>“Mr. Maverick!” burst out the youth. “Do
+you really mean that?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, Bob,” smiled the railroad president.
+“Come with me!”</p>
+
+<p>Grace jumped up, and led the way out of the
+house and down to the barn.</p>
+
+<p>There stood a fine horse and a regular photographer’s
+turn-out. The lantern was lit inside
+of the wagon, and Bob saw it contained several
+cameras, some lenses, a great number of plates,
+besides a cabinet of chemicals and other things
+needed for taking pictures.</p>
+
+<p>“This is Grace’s gift to you,” said Mr. Maverick.
+“How does it strike you?”</p>
+
+<p>“It—it strikes me all of a heap,” gasped Bob.
+“Do you really mean to say this whole outfit is
+for me?”</p>
+
+<p>“Certainly,” said Grace. “And I hope you
+will make money out of it.”</p>
+
+<p>“But—but it’s too much!” went on the
+youth, who could as yet hardly realize his good
+fortune.</p>
+
+<p>“No, it isn’t,” returned the girl, warmly.
+“You deserve every bit of it.”</p>
+
+<p>“There is a money drawer under the seat,”
+went on Mr. Maverick. “In it you will find
+some cash, which you will need.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob shook his head. There was too much of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_176">[176]</span>
+a lump in his throat to say anything. Good fortune
+seemed to have come all in a heap.</p>
+
+<p>“Does it suit you?” asked Grace, watching
+him curiously.</p>
+
+<p>“It more than suits,” burst out Bob. “Why
+I—I can’t thank you enough. You have made
+me the happiest chap in Stampton.”</p>
+
+<p>“I have not finished yet,” said Mr. Maverick.
+“Now you have the outfit, I believe you are almost
+capable of doing the work I wish done.”</p>
+
+<p>“I will do whatever I can for you,” returned
+Bob, quickly. “And I won’t charge you a
+cent.”</p>
+
+<p>“In that case you can’t do anything. But this
+work is for the railroad.”</p>
+
+<p>“And what is it?”</p>
+
+<p>“We intend before long to get up a new guide
+book of the route, and our superintendent thinks
+we ought to get out a fine illustrated work similar
+to those put out by some of the larger roads.
+For that purpose we will have to send out a man
+to take at least thirty or forty of the finest views
+obtainable for photo-engravings. I have spoken
+to Mr. Starleigh—met him just before I returned
+home—and he thinks with a little coaching you
+could do this work very well.”</p>
+
+<p>“I would do my best,” returned Bob, with
+sparkling eyes.</p>
+
+<p>“I advise that you remain with Mr. Starleigh
+for several weeks yet, and then we will start you<span class="pagenum" id="Page_177">[177]</span>
+out. You may take your own time in getting
+over the ground, and whenever you need money
+you can send to the paymaster for it. When
+you have finished, the bill will be promptly paid,
+and I trust by that time you will have other
+work, sufficient to keep you going. Do you accept?”</p>
+
+<p>Bob did, without hesitation.</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_178">[178]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER XV<br>
+
+<small>BOB BECOMES A TRAVELLING PHOTOGRAPHER</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">Bob</span> did not know if he was walking on stone
+or the air when he left the Maverick mansion.
+To him it seemed as if the vista of good fortune
+had opened to its very widest limit.</p>
+
+<p>“I must be dreaming,” he murmured. “Bet
+a cent I wake up in the loft of old Carrow’s barn
+and find it all a dream.”</p>
+
+<p>And the youth actually pinched himself to
+make sure that he was not asleep.</p>
+
+<p>It was past eleven o’clock, but though Bob
+might have taken a horse-car to his boarding-house,
+he preferred to walk, knowing full well
+that even when he came to lie down, he would
+not be able to sleep for speculating over all that
+had happened.</p>
+
+<p>The night was a gloomy one, and presently,
+without hardly any warning, it began to rain.
+At first the drops were few and far between, but
+before the youth had gone a block farther the
+shower turned into a deluge, and Bob scampered
+for shelter.</p>
+
+<p>Not far away was a shed over the front of a
+butcher shop. Under this shed ran Bob, and<span class="pagenum" id="Page_179">[179]</span>
+huddled close to the building to avoid the rain
+which the rising wind drove in.</p>
+
+<p>Bob had been under the shed probably three
+minutes when a man and a woman came out of
+the hall-way beside the butcher shop, and stood
+watching the rain.</p>
+
+<p>“We will get all wet, Paul, if we try to leave
+in this storm,” Bob heard the woman say.</p>
+
+<p>“It may break away in a few minutes, Sarah,”
+returned the man. “It is only a shower.”</p>
+
+<p>“Showers sometimes last a long time,” was
+the reply.</p>
+
+<p>The sound of the woman’s voice was somewhat
+familiar to Bob, and he moved forward a
+bit to get a look at her face. She was the same
+he had seen in Cabot’s establishment, the one he
+rightly supposed was Sarah Blake.</p>
+
+<p>Instantly he was all attention, and, pulling his
+hat still farther over his eyes, he edged close to
+the open door-way.</p>
+
+<p>“You saw the old man?” went on the man
+called Paul, after a short pause.</p>
+
+<p>“I did.”</p>
+
+<p>“And you could do nothing with him?”</p>
+
+<p>“No. He loves drink, and will do almost
+anything to obtain it. The case is hopeless.”</p>
+
+<p>“You offered him money, I suppose?”</p>
+
+<p>“I offered him what I could. But it was not
+enough. He said he would take care of himself,
+and told me to leave him.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_180">[180]</span>“That crowd evidently have him well in
+hand.”</p>
+
+<p>“I am afraid so, Paul.”</p>
+
+<p>“Well, the best thing you can do is to let the
+whole matter drop. You have done your duty.”</p>
+
+<p>“I know, but——”</p>
+
+<p>“Remember, he is only your stepfather, and
+if you insist on following him up, you may get
+into trouble.”</p>
+
+<p>“But, Paul, I feel that he has not done right.
+He was mixed up in some crooked work, and I
+am afraid every day that I will hear of his arrest.”</p>
+
+<p>“You take too much on your shoulders,
+Sarah,” returned the man, earnestly. “You had
+better come back home with me and let the matter
+drop. This travelling around under an assumed
+name and stopping in such a boarding-house
+as this——”</p>
+
+<p>Bob heard no more. A violent gust of wind
+shut the door with a bang, and all became dark
+and dreary once more.</p>
+
+<p>Bob hesitated, not knowing what to do.
+Should he knock on the door and ask the
+woman for an interview?</p>
+
+<p>While he was deliberating, the door opened
+again, and the man came out. He hurried up
+to the corner, where stood a cab, and got in.</p>
+
+<p>Was he going to leave the woman behind?
+It certainly looked so.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_181">[181]</span>But an instant later the woman came out and
+with all speed she ran toward the cab.</p>
+
+<p>Bob dashed forward, but before he could stop
+the woman she had entered the cab beside the
+man, and the driver whipped up the horses.</p>
+
+<p>Away went the cab at a high rate of speed.</p>
+
+<p>Bob tried to catch on behind, to signal the
+driver to stop, but he failed in both. He slipped
+on the wet stones, and went down on one knee,
+and by the time he arose the cab had disappeared
+in the darkness.</p>
+
+<p>Bob was much chagrined. He felt almost
+certain that the woman could have told him
+something concerning the past.</p>
+
+<p>“And that’s not the worst of it,” grumbled
+Bob to himself. “It’s bad enough to let them
+slip, but they are most likely going out of town,
+and goodness only knows when I’ll see her
+again.”</p>
+
+<p>He turned back under the shed again, and
+dashing the water from his hat, and wiping off
+one of his hands, which had become covered
+with dirt, he rang the hall bell.</p>
+
+<p>A moment of utter silence passed, and then a
+tall, sour-faced woman, evidently an old maid,
+appeared.</p>
+
+<p>“Good-evening,” said Bob, politely. “I
+called to find out if you could tell me where
+that lady and gentleman who just left had gone
+to.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_182">[182]</span>“No, I can’t,” snapped the woman. “What
+do you want to know for?”</p>
+
+<p>“I wish to see the lady.”</p>
+
+<p>“So did several men. But she’s gone, and
+I’m glad of it.”</p>
+
+<p>“Will you please tell me her name?”</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t know it. She said it was Brown, but
+perhaps it isn’t. I didn’t like her, and I’m glad
+the man came and took her away.”</p>
+
+<p>“Do you know where she came from?”</p>
+
+<p>“No. She paid in advance, and I needed the
+money, so I took her in. But she was too sly
+for me. Is that all you wanted to know?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, ma’am.”</p>
+
+<p>Without another word, the woman shut the
+door in Bob’s face and locked it. Bob could
+not help but smile to himself.</p>
+
+<p>“Something didn’t suit,” he murmured to
+himself. “Rain or no rain, I’m going to try to
+follow that cab.”</p>
+
+<p>He started off at once in the direction the cab
+had taken, running as fast as the slippery pavement
+would allow.</p>
+
+<p>But though he traversed several blocks, no
+vehicle of any kind outside of a horse-car appeared
+in sight, and finally he was forced to
+abandon the chase.</p>
+
+<p>On the following day Bob and Mr. Starleigh
+had a long talk in regard to the youth’s future.
+The upshot of this talk was that Bob agreed to<span class="pagenum" id="Page_183">[183]</span>
+work for nothing for two weeks, providing the
+old photographer would teach him as much of
+the business as possible in that length of time.</p>
+
+<p>Bob was slightly worried over the question of
+what to do with his horse and wagon during
+that time, but Mr. Maverick solved it by telling
+Bob to leave the turn-out in charge of the stable-hand
+until he started away from Stampton.</p>
+
+<p>The two weeks passed rapidly, and Bob spent
+every hour of the time in devouring every item
+of information which might prove useful to him
+while taking pictures on the road.</p>
+
+<p>During that time Grace Maverick came to the
+studio to have her picture taken. Mr. Starleigh
+allowed Bob to do the work, which proved
+highly satisfactory. When Bob printed and
+mounted the pictures, he made an extra one,
+but this did not go among the studio samples.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll keep that for my own,” said Bob to himself.</p>
+
+<p>At length the day came for Bob to quit the
+studio. Mr. Starleigh shook him warmly by the
+hand.</p>
+
+<p>“I am sorry to lose you, Bob,” he said. “But
+I am glad you are going to start on your own
+account with such bright prospects. I have
+taught you all in my power, and you ought to
+be able to get along very well.”</p>
+
+<p>“Thanks, Mr. Starleigh, and I won’t forget
+what you’ve done for me,” returned Bob.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_184">[184]</span>Bob had received full instructions from the
+railroad superintendent as to what sort of pictures
+were desired. He was to go along the
+entire length of the road, and the original order
+for thirty pictures had been increased to fifty,
+to include sections of the roadbed, bridges, and
+views of the scenery on the route and in the
+vicinity.</p>
+
+<p>“And do your best, Bob,” said Grace
+Maverick.</p>
+
+<p>“You can take my word I will,” replied the
+youth. “And if you will allow me, I will occasionally
+send you a few private pictures, taken
+by the way.”</p>
+
+<p>“Oh, that will be delightful!”</p>
+
+<p>He shook her hand. The extra squeeze he
+gave it was returned, and both blushed. Then
+he turned to Mr. Maverick, bade him good-by,
+and drove off.</p>
+
+<p>Bob the Photographer had started on his first
+travelling tour. Little did he dream of the many
+adventures and perils he was to encounter before
+he returned to Stampton.</p>
+
+<p>The horse that had been presented to him
+was a good one, and he started off at a lively
+gait. The wagon moved along easily, and Bob,
+seated up in front, whip in hand, felt in the best
+of spirits.</p>
+
+<p>His first stop was to be at a place called Dartinville,
+a small town, situated on the mountain<span class="pagenum" id="Page_185">[185]</span>
+side. It was a great place for summer boarders,
+all of whom had to come by way of the T. W.
+&amp; L. Railroad.</p>
+
+<p>The road to Dartinville ran along the side
+of a narrow but deep creek. It was rather a
+rough road, with the mountains directly back
+of it.</p>
+
+<p>As Bob drove along, he began to whistle, but
+presently the whistle died on his lips, as he
+heard the rush of wheels directly behind him.</p>
+
+<p>He looked back, and saw a horse tearing
+toward him at a breakneck speed.</p>
+
+<p>Behind the horse was a sulky, and clinging to
+the seat of this was a bareheaded man, who
+seemed to be paralyzed with fright.</p>
+
+<p>Bob’s heart jumped into his throat. What
+was to be done?</p>
+
+<p>“Steer out!” he yelled to the man, as the
+horse and turn-out came nearer.</p>
+
+<p>“I can’t! Stop the horse!” yelled the occupant
+of the sulky, in terror.</p>
+
+<p>“I can’t stop him. Steer out or there will be
+a smash-up,” went on Bob.</p>
+
+<p>The man paid no attention. He had dropped
+the lines, which were trailing on the horse’s
+heels, and he did not have courage enough to
+risk letting go his hold in an endeavor to pick
+them up.</p>
+
+<p>Bob saw that something must be done, and at
+once. He caught up his own reins, and at the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_186">[186]</span>
+risk of upsetting his wagon turned in toward
+the mountain slope.</p>
+
+<p>“Steer out, I tell you!” he cried again. “If
+you run into me, you’ll be killed.”</p>
+
+<p>“Stop the horse!” was the man’s only reply.</p>
+
+<p>With a bound, Bob was on the ground. He
+ran back of his own wagon as fast as his legs
+would carry him.</p>
+
+<p>By this time the runaway was but a few feet
+away. Seeing Bob in the road, the horse sheered
+in and darted past the youth.</p>
+
+<p>Bob gave a groan. The runaway was now
+less than five yards from his own turn-out, and
+it looked as if he would dash headlong into it
+and thus smash it into a thousand bits.</p>
+
+<p>“Whoa!” yelled Bob, in one mighty, final
+effort to attract the mad steed’s attention.</p>
+
+<p>The horse heard the command, gave a snort,
+and shook his head. Then he swerved outward,
+and flew past Bob’s turn-out, just grazing
+one of the rear wheels.</p>
+
+<p>Bob rushed forward, but before he could catch
+the mad animal the horse swerved still more,
+made a leap, and plunged into the water, dragging
+the sulky, with the man on it, after him.</p>
+
+<figure class="figcenter illowe28_125" id="i_186a">
+  <img class="w100" src="images/i_186a.jpg" alt="">
+  <figcaption class="caption"><p class="caption">THE HORSE PLUNGED INTO THE WATER, DRAGGING THE SULKY,
+WITH THE MAN ON IT, AFTER HIM.</p></figcaption>
+</figure>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_187">[187]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER XVI<br>
+
+<small>BOB TAKES A DIVE OVERBOARD</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">Bob</span> was alarmed when he saw the horse go
+overboard, dragging the sulky with the man
+clinging to it after him.</p>
+
+<p>He saw the horse go down out of sight. The
+rear end of the sulky remained above water, but
+the man dropped over the front, and he, too,
+disappeared.</p>
+
+<p>Bob waited for a moment in breathless suspense.
+Then he saw the horse come up and
+begin to struggle wildly.</p>
+
+<p>Where was the man? Second after second
+passed, and still he failed to appear.</p>
+
+<p>“Perhaps he’s caught in the sulky and can’t
+rise,” thought Bob. “He’ll be drowned if he
+stays under much longer.”</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly the youth saw something which
+filled him with horror.</p>
+
+<p>It was one foot of the man, which stuck up
+through the left sulky wheel.</p>
+
+<p>“He’s caught sure,” burst out the youth.
+“Unless I help him he’ll be drowned.”</p>
+
+<p>The horse was still struggling madly, and the
+water all around was churned into foam.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_188">[188]</span>Bob approached the brink of the creek and
+watched eagerly to see if the man would show
+any sign of life.</p>
+
+<p>Presently he saw the foot give a spasmodic
+movement, and then on the other side of the
+wheel appeared the man’s head.</p>
+
+<p>“Save me!” were the first words he uttered,
+as he expelled a lot of water from his mouth.</p>
+
+<p>“Can’t you get clear of the wheel?” cried
+Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“No; my leg is caught in the reins, which are
+all twisted up.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob listened to no more. He pulled out his
+clasp-knife and opened it. Then watching for
+a favorable opportunity, he dived to the man’s
+assistance.</p>
+
+<p>Under the surface he went, but quickly came
+up close to where the man was situated.</p>
+
+<p>“It’s my left leg,” cried the man. “Confound
+the horse, why can’t he keep still?”</p>
+
+<p>“Because he wants to be saved, too,” replied
+Bob, and under he went.</p>
+
+<p>Bob was used to the water. Indeed the only
+recreation he had had while living with old Peter
+Thompson was to go swimming in the river behind
+the house, and gunning in the woods.</p>
+
+<p>Consequently the youth felt perfectly at home.
+With eyes wide open, he quickly took in the
+situation, and two slashes of the clasp-knife released
+the tangled-up limb, and the man was free.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_189">[189]</span>Without a word the man made for the bank,
+and, catching hold of some overhanging bushes,
+pulled himself up.</p>
+
+<p>“Don’t you want to save your horse?” called
+out Bob, taking care that the animal should not
+kick him.</p>
+
+<p>“I do, but I don’t know how.”</p>
+
+<p>“Get the rope tied under my wagon.”</p>
+
+<p>The man ran off, and in less than fifteen seconds
+returned with a long rope which the young
+photographer carried for a case of emergency.</p>
+
+<p>“Throw one end down,” went on Bob, and
+this was promptly done.</p>
+
+<p>Catching the floating end, Bob made a noose
+in it. Then he swam close to the struggling
+horse and threw the noose over the animal’s
+head.</p>
+
+<p>“Now pull him down the stream to that shallow
+place,” cried Bob. “Hurry up, or he’ll
+be a goner.”</p>
+
+<p>Pulling on the rope the man started down the
+stream. It was hard work, and long before he
+reached the shallow spot Bob was up on the
+bank beside him.</p>
+
+<p>As soon as the horse struck the shallow part
+of the creek he ceased to struggle, and they had
+but little difficulty in leading him to dry ground.</p>
+
+<p>Here, however, he began to tremble, and
+finally sank down on his side.</p>
+
+<p>“He’s chilled more than anything,” said Bob.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_190">[190]</span>
+“The best we can do will be to rub him. I
+don’t believe he has swallowed much water.”</p>
+
+<p>“He don’t look so. But he was fearfully
+heated from running away. I reckon that rubbing
+will warm us up, too.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob ran back to his wagon and got a blanket
+and several other articles. When he came back,
+he found the man had already gone to work,
+and he set to helping.</p>
+
+<p>Once thoroughly rubbed down and blanketed,
+the horse appeared to be better.</p>
+
+<p>“Leave him in the strong sunshine for a
+while, and he’ll be all right,” said Bob. “As
+soon as he makes a move to stand up make
+him do so and walk him around.”</p>
+
+<p>“I see you are used to handling horses.”</p>
+
+<p>“A little. What was the trouble, did he run
+away?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, got the bit and that settled it. I am
+glad we saved him.”</p>
+
+<p>“He looks like a valuable animal.”</p>
+
+<p>“I believe he is. He is not mine. He belongs
+to a friend, who asked me to take him out
+and exercise him.”</p>
+
+<p>“Your friend will be surprised when he learns
+of what has happened.”</p>
+
+<p>“I suppose so. But who are you, if I may
+ask?”</p>
+
+<p>Bob told him.</p>
+
+<p>“I am Edgar Willett, of Dartinville. I<span class="pagenum" id="Page_191">[191]</span>
+owe you something, Alden, for your generous
+help.”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s all right.”</p>
+
+<p>“So you are taking pictures for the railroad
+company?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes.”</p>
+
+<p>“Intend to stop at Dartinville?”</p>
+
+<p>“Such was the calculation.”</p>
+
+<p>“Then while you remain you must make my
+home your own. My house is the first beyond
+the blacksmith shop. I have lots of stable room
+for your horse and wagon.”</p>
+
+<p>“Thank you.”</p>
+
+<p>“Oh, no thanks. You saved the horse, and
+that is worth a good deal to me.”</p>
+
+<p>While they were waiting for the horse to
+recover, Bob entered his own turn-out and
+changed his clothes. He gave Willett a like
+chance, offering him a suit that almost fitted
+him, and the man gladly made the transfer.</p>
+
+<p>A couple of hours later they started for Dartinville.
+Willett led the way to his own house,
+and Bob tied up in the stable. Mrs. Willett
+was told of what had happened, and she at once
+prepared a hot dinner for the two.</p>
+
+<p>Bob was hungry, and he ate heartily. Then
+Willett started to return the horse and the
+sulky, and the young photographer went off to
+take his first picture for the railroad company.</p>
+
+<p>There was a bridge at Dartinville which the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_192">[192]</span>
+railroad company had built over the creek. It
+was a picturesque place, and Bob had every
+reason to believe that it would make a fine view.</p>
+
+<p>With his camera in one hand and his tripod
+and satchel slung over his shoulder, Bob made
+his way to the spot.</p>
+
+<p>In order to get the proper view the young
+photographer was compelled to climb through a
+mass of thick brush and stubble. This was not
+very agreeable, but Bob bore it philosophically,
+remembering that all work is not play.</p>
+
+<p>At last Bob reached a spot he thought a good
+one and without delay he set up his tripod. He
+had just adjusted his camera and was putting
+in a plate when a noise close at hand made him
+pause.</p>
+
+<p>The noise came from the depth of the brush,
+and for the moment Bob could not make out
+what it was.</p>
+
+<p>“Maybe somebody is following me,” he
+thought.</p>
+
+<p>A minute later the sound ceased. Bob
+listened for it quite a while, but at last turned
+again to his work. It was no easy matter to
+get a good picture, as the sun shone almost
+directly toward him.</p>
+
+<p>“If I am not careful, I’ll have a ghost on the
+plate,” he said to himself, thereby meaning that
+the sun would cause the picture to be white
+spotted.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_193">[193]</span>To make sure of getting a perfect plate Bob
+took two pictures, one while the sun was out
+full and the other when that luminary was
+slightly clouded.</p>
+
+<p>The pictures taken, Bob placed them away so
+that no light might reach them, and prepared to
+leave the spot.</p>
+
+<p>“That makes picture number one,” he
+thought. “And I sincerely hope that it proves
+a success.”</p>
+
+<p>He resolved to develop both plates as soon
+as he reached the wagon, and if one was not perfect
+in every way to return and try again.</p>
+
+<p>Bob had just started to close up his camera
+when the strange noise he had heard before
+reached his ears.</p>
+
+<p>This time it came closer, and the young
+photographer made up his mind it was some
+animal roaming in the brush.</p>
+
+<p>“Perhaps a stray cow,” he said to himself.</p>
+
+<p>“Here, cush! cush! cush!” he called out.</p>
+
+<p>For reply the crashing through the brush
+came even closer.</p>
+
+<p>Presently the brush was thrust aside by a pair
+of horns and the head of a large and angry-looking
+bull appeared.</p>
+
+<p>“Hello, this is interesting,” thought Bob,
+springing back.</p>
+
+<p>The bull gave a look around and then fixed<span class="pagenum" id="Page_194">[194]</span>
+his glaring eyes on the young photographer in a
+most threatening manner.</p>
+
+<p>“Gee haw!” shouted Bob, trying by this
+means to make the bull leave.</p>
+
+<p>Instead of turning, the bull gave a fierce snort.</p>
+
+<p>“He means mischief,” thought Bob, looking
+around for something with which to defend
+himself.</p>
+
+<p>Then the bull lowered his head and with
+another snort rushed toward Bob.</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_195">[195]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER XVII<br>
+
+<small>BOB MAKES A STRANGE CAPTURE</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">Bob</span> sprang to one side, catching up the
+camera as he did so.</p>
+
+<p>The bull charged forward, and had the youth
+been in the spot where he had just stood he
+would have been gored to death.</p>
+
+<p>The bull had a ring in his nose, and Bob now
+saw that he was of the wildest sort, and evidently
+used to being chained.</p>
+
+<p>“If I had an axe, I would knock him on the
+head,” said Bob, as he again dodged. “There
+goes the satchel. I’ll bet he smashed every
+bottle in it.”</p>
+
+<p>For the bull had planted his foot on the
+travelling bag, and Bob had heard the crash of
+glass.</p>
+
+<p>Again the wild animal made for Bob, his eyes
+glaring like two balls of red fire.</p>
+
+<p>“He has escaped from somebody,” thought
+Bob. “I wonder what I had best do?”</p>
+
+<p>While Bob continued to dodge around among
+the brush he heard the sounds of voices.</p>
+
+<p>“Hullo there, help!” he cried out.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_196">[196]</span>“Is that bull there?” came back almost immediately.</p>
+
+<p>“He is, horns and all,” returned Bob. “And the
+sooner you capture him the better I will like it.”</p>
+
+<p>“Drat the luck!” returned another voice.
+“Hi, hi!”</p>
+
+<p>Presently two farmers came in sight, opposite
+to where Bob stood. One carried a gad and
+the other a chain and clasp.</p>
+
+<p>“It’s him, sure enough,” said one of the
+farmers. “Look out, if you don’t want to be
+killed!” he yelled.</p>
+
+<p>“I am looking out,” said Bob. “By jinks!”</p>
+
+<p>The bull had made another charge, and the
+young photographer had to step lively to get
+out of reach.</p>
+
+<p>“If he was mine, I’d knock him on the head
+with an axe,” said Bob. “He’s too dangerous
+to leave running around.”</p>
+
+<p>“He broke away this morning,” replied one
+of the farmers. “He belongs up to the county
+fair. They had a high old time before he got
+out of the back gate.”</p>
+
+<p>“And you’ll have a high old time before you
+get him back, I’m thinking,” laughed Bob, who
+was now beginning to relish the scene.</p>
+
+<p>“I guess you’re right. What’s that thing?”</p>
+
+<p>“My satchel. He just smashed it.”</p>
+
+<p>“Humph! It’s good luck he didn’t smash
+you instead of the bag.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_197">[197]</span>“That’s so, too. How do you propose to
+catch him?”</p>
+
+<p>“Bless me if I know.”</p>
+
+<p>“I want ter git the chain on to him if I kin,”
+put in the other farmer.</p>
+
+<p>“That’s easier said than done. Hold up, give
+me that chain.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob snatched the chain from the man’s hand.</p>
+
+<p>The bull was at that moment standing under
+a tree, the lower branches of which were just
+over his back.</p>
+
+<p>Bob ran up behind the animal and in a twinkle
+was up the tree.</p>
+
+<p>Then he crawled out on the branches until
+he was near the bull’s head.</p>
+
+<p>At that instant the bull looked up. Quick as
+a flash Bob bent down and hooked the chain in
+to the ring in the animal’s nose.</p>
+
+<p>The bull gave a loud snort and tried to lower
+his head.</p>
+
+<p>But before he could do so Bob had the chain
+wound around the branch several times, and he
+held fast with all his might.</p>
+
+<p>The bull pulled hard, but though the branch
+bent pretty low, it did not break.</p>
+
+<p>“Well, I swan!” cried one of the farmers.
+“If that ain’t the cutest trick I ever see.”</p>
+
+<p>“Don’t yer tumble on to him, or he’ll gore
+yer ter jelly!” yelled the other farmer.</p>
+
+<p>Bob fastened the end of the chain so that it<span class="pagenum" id="Page_198">[198]</span>
+could not slip, and then slid down on the opposite
+side of the tree.</p>
+
+<p>By this time pulling on the chain had begun
+to hurt the bull’s nose, and he quieted down,
+although his eyes rolled as fiercely as ever.</p>
+
+<p>“He’s safe there for the present,” said Bob.
+“The best thing you can do is to get another
+chain and hobble him.”</p>
+
+<p>“We’ll get his regular keeper,” returned one
+of the farmers. “By gosh, but ain’t he a regular
+picter with his nose stuck up in the air!”</p>
+
+<p>This remark gave Bob a sudden idea. He
+ran back for his camera, and setting it up,
+hastily took a picture of the captured beast.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll send it to Frank,” he said to himself.
+“It will remind him of the time we tried to
+photograph that elephant.”</p>
+
+<p>While Bob was taking the picture and looking
+over the wreck of his satchel, one of the farmers
+made off to notify the keeper of the prize bull
+of what had occurred. He returned in a short
+while, having met the keeper on the road.</p>
+
+<p>A number of ropes and chains were procured,
+and before long the bull was under complete
+control. The keeper spoke kindly to him, and
+gradually the fierce light in the bull’s eyes died
+out utterly, and he became as gentle as an
+ordinary animal.</p>
+
+<p>“A woman teased him with a red parasol,”
+explained the man to Bob. “Otherwise he<span class="pagenum" id="Page_199">[199]</span>
+would never have acted in this fashion. I will
+be able to lead him back without further
+trouble, mark my word.”</p>
+
+<p>And when he started, the bull went along
+just as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened.</p>
+
+<p>As there were no more pictures to be taken
+that day, Bob followed the keeper and the two
+farmers to the county fair, which was being held
+on the outskirts of Dartinville. He was allowed
+in without buying a ticket, and when he met the
+owner of the bull, that individual promptly
+offered to pay for all damages done.</p>
+
+<p>“Well, the chemicals in the bag were worth
+about six dollars,” said Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“And the satchel?”</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t know. It was a gift.”</p>
+
+<p>“Will a ten-dollar bill cover it?”</p>
+
+<p>“I think so.”</p>
+
+<p>“Then here is a twenty—ten for your loss
+and ten for your ingenuity in helping us capture
+the bull.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob pocketed the cash with thanks. The adventure
+had been rather a perilous one, but on
+the whole he had enjoyed it.</p>
+
+<p>Buying himself a pocketful of peanuts, Bob
+strolled around the grounds. He was not much
+interested in the display of prize fruit and vegetables,
+having seen too much of this stuff while
+working on the farm.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_200">[200]</span>But the side-shows attracted his attention.
+They had big paintings hung outside, and Bob
+had seen very little of anything like it before.</p>
+
+<p>“Walk up, ladies and gentlemen, and see the
+most marvellous exhibition on the face of the
+globe!” cried out one of the side-show spouters.
+“The bearded lady from Georgia, the four-legged
+man from California, and the celebrated glass-eater,
+Mazzati, from the Island of Borneo. Admission
+but a dime, and if you are not satisfied
+we will refund you your money.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob listened for a while, and during the time
+he was doing so he saw a tall figure walk up to
+the stand, buy a ticket, and enter the dirty tent.</p>
+
+<p>It was Joel Carrow.</p>
+
+<p>“Gracious, he must be treating himself,”
+thought Bob. “A whole ten cents spent at one
+time, not to say anything about the price of admission
+to the fair grounds. I have half a mind
+to follow him in and see what he has to say
+when we meet.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob thought over the matter for a moment.
+Then he dropped a dime into the doorkeeper’s
+hand and passed inside the show-tent.</p>
+
+<p>As he expected, the show—if it may be designated
+by that name—was the worst kind of a
+swindle. The bearded lady’s beard was a false
+one—the four-legged man had two artificial
+limbs, and the glass-eater ate nothing more
+brittle than a peculiar kind of rock candy.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_201">[201]</span>Only half a dozen visitors were inside the
+tent, and they stared stupidly around, first at
+the so-called curiosities and then at one another.</p>
+
+<p>Bob looked for Joel Carrow, who had inspected
+the “curiosities,” and was now making
+his way to a corner of the tent where stood a
+flashily-dressed man, having before him a small
+show-case and a box filled with envelopes.</p>
+
+<p>The show-case was laden with articles of jewelry,
+each bearing a certain number.</p>
+
+<p>“Here’s your chance to make money,” said the
+flashily-dressed man. “Each of the envelopes
+in this box contains a number, and that number
+can be found on some articles of jewelry in the
+case. The price of an envelope is only twenty-five
+cents, and there are no blanks. Try your
+luck and win the gold watch or the diamond
+scarf-pin, either of which is worth fifty dollars.”</p>
+
+<p>Joel Carrow was interested. He did not
+know that none of the envelopes contained the
+number corresponding to the articles of any
+value in the case. It was true there were no
+blanks, but it was also true there were no prizes
+of a greater cash value than five cents.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll try my luck,” said Carrow, after some
+hesitation, and he passed over twenty-five cents.</p>
+
+<p>“I think I’ll watch this,” thought Bob. “That
+man will try to swindle Carrow all he can.”</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_202">[202]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER XVIII<br>
+
+<small>BOB SHOWS UP A SWINDLER</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">Bob</span> had no great feeling of love for the
+miserly farmer who had so misused him, yet he
+did not intend to stand calmly by and see Joel
+Carrow done out of his money.</p>
+
+<p>He had heard of this prize-package swindle
+while in Stampton, and he knew exactly how it
+was worked.</p>
+
+<p>The flashily-dressed man took in Carrow at a
+glance, and also noted that the farmer carried a
+well-filled pocket-book.</p>
+
+<p>He thought Carrow would prove well worth
+plucking, and smiled broadly.</p>
+
+<p>“One package? We sell five for a dollar.
+You had better try it. You may win all large
+prizes.”</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll try one first,” replied Carrow, cautiously.</p>
+
+<p>The man handed out the box. One of the
+envelopes projected slightly beyond the rest,
+and this Carrow took.</p>
+
+<p>“Number 37,” he said, reading from a slip.
+“What’s that good fer?”</p>
+
+<p>“Number 37 takes this elegant ruby scarf-pin,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_203">[203]</span>
+worth eight dollars,” replied the swindler, handing
+over a pin that was nothing but a bit of
+colored glass and brass. “You’re in luck.”</p>
+
+<p>“Is the pin worth eight dollars?” questioned
+Carrow, doubtfully.</p>
+
+<p>“Certainly. Would you rather have five dollars
+in cash? That is what they cost direct
+from the manufacturers. Many jewellers sell
+them for double the money.”</p>
+
+<p>It will be noticed that the swindler did not
+say he would give five dollars for the pin, although
+he led Carrow to believe he would.</p>
+
+<p>This remark made the old farmer feel good.</p>
+
+<p>“N-no; I’ll keep the pin.”</p>
+
+<p>“Very well. Try again? Remember, only
+one dollar for five.”</p>
+
+<p>“Well, I dun no,” and Carrow scratched his
+head.</p>
+
+<p>“Let me show you something.” The swindler
+pretended to shake up the box of envelopes.
+“How is this?”</p>
+
+<p>He drew out an envelope. The number inside
+was fifty, and this called for the watch said
+to be worth fifty dollars.</p>
+
+<p>“Gosh!” murmured Carrow, in admiration.
+“I wish I had drew it.”</p>
+
+<p>“Nothing easier. See here, I will place the
+number back into the envelope and put the
+envelope back into the box. There it goes.
+Now remember, you know as well as I it has<span class="pagenum" id="Page_204">[204]</span>
+got the number entitling you to the fifty-dollar
+watch. You most likely know just where it is.
+Try it for fun.”</p>
+
+<p>Carrow did so. Sure enough, his sharp eyes
+had followed the right envelope and the number
+was within it.</p>
+
+<p>“Now I’ll try it again. There it goes, just as
+before. If you want to win, I’ll give you the
+chance. For ten dollars you may draw three
+envelopes. You are bound to strike the right
+one in one out of three.”</p>
+
+<p>Carrow’s eyes sparkled. He was sure he had
+his eye on the right envelope.</p>
+
+<p>He drew out his pocket-book to get out his
+ten dollars.</p>
+
+<p>At this instant Bob brushed up to him. The
+young photographer had watched proceedings
+closely, and he knew exactly what had occurred.</p>
+
+<p>“Don’t try it, or you will lose,” he whispered.</p>
+
+<p>Carrow started back as if shot.</p>
+
+<p>“What, Bob Alden!” he cried.</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, Carrow. Did you hear me?”</p>
+
+<p>“Where did you come from, you scamp?”</p>
+
+<p>“I’m not a scamp, Carrow.”</p>
+
+<p>“You—you——” blustered the farmer, hardly
+knowing what to say.</p>
+
+<p>“I want no words with you,” replied Bob. “I
+merely meant to warn you. This is a swindle.”</p>
+
+<p>“A swindle!” gasped Carrow.</p>
+
+<p>“What’s that?” put in the sharper, roughly.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_205">[205]</span>“I am talking to this man,” returned the
+young photographer.</p>
+
+<p>“He says it’s a swindle,” put in Carrow.</p>
+
+<p>“You had better mind your own business,
+young man. What right have you to interfere
+here?”</p>
+
+<p>“The right of anybody to show you up,” returned
+Bob, bravely. “You sha’n’t swindle this
+man out of ten dollars if I can help it.”</p>
+
+<p>“How do yer know it’s a swindle?” asked
+Carrow, faintly.</p>
+
+<p>“Because he didn’t put the number in the
+envelope.”</p>
+
+<p>“Are yer sure o’ thet?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes.”</p>
+
+<p>“Nonsense!” cried the swindler. “This is a
+perfectly honest game of chance.”</p>
+
+<p>“He had two numbers in his hand. The first
+time he placed one of them in the envelope, but
+this time he placed the other, and you can be
+sure it wasn’t the fifty.”</p>
+
+<p>“See here, you get out of here!” cried the
+swindler, in a rage. “I have a good mind to
+have you arrested for interfering with my business.”</p>
+
+<p>“You may have me arrested if you wish,”
+replied the young photographer, coolly.</p>
+
+<p>The swindler rushed from behind his stand
+and caught Bob by the arm.</p>
+
+<p>“Let go!”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_206">[206]</span>“You get right out of here.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob pulled himself away. The row had
+attracted the attention of several in the tent
+and they now interfered.</p>
+
+<p>“Leave the boy alone!”</p>
+
+<p>“He told the truth; that game is always a
+swindle!”</p>
+
+<p>“The whole show is a swindle!”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s so, too.”</p>
+
+<p>The crowd shoved forward, and the swindler
+move back to his stand.</p>
+
+<p>As he brushed past Bob he muttered into the
+youth’s ear:</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll get square with you some time for this!”</p>
+
+<p>“Perhaps I won’t give you the chance,”
+replied Bob, aloud.</p>
+
+<p>In the disturbance Joel Carrow slipped away
+without even thanking Bob for the service which
+had been rendered to him.</p>
+
+<p>“But that’s just like him,” thought Bob. “He
+wouldn’t thank me even if I saved his life.”</p>
+
+<p>He left the tent with several others, the swindler
+shaking his fist after the youth.</p>
+
+<p>By this time the fair was about over for the
+day, and after a short walk among the exhibits
+in the main building, Bob left the grounds.</p>
+
+<p>He had accepted Willett’s invitation to remain
+at the latter’s house all night, and when
+he reached the place he found supper awaiting
+him.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_207">[207]</span>The family were all seated out on the porch,
+and they made such a fine group that Bob took
+a tintype of them, while it was still light, he
+having brought along an outfit for such pictures.
+The tintype he presented to Mrs. Willett, much
+to that lady’s pleasure.</p>
+
+<p>“I should think it would be fun taking pictures,”
+said she.</p>
+
+<p>“And worth money, too,” added her husband.</p>
+
+<p>“It is both, and it is also perilous,” returned
+Bob, and he told of the adventure with the prize
+bull.</p>
+
+<p>“My! it’s lucky you weren’t killed!” cried
+the woman. “Weren’t you scared?”</p>
+
+<p>“I was at first. But I am having so many
+adventures I am getting used to them.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob learned that the horse which had plunged
+into the creek was doing nicely, and would in
+all likelihood recover entirely from his involuntary
+bath.</p>
+
+<p>Bob had never been in Dartinville before, and
+after supper, and while it was still light, he took
+a stroll though the town. He stopped at the
+drug-store and there purchased such chemicals
+as had been lost in the smashed satchel.</p>
+
+<p>“Now if one of those plates turn out all right,
+I’ll be ready to start off first thing in the morning,”
+he thought.</p>
+
+<p>Bob did not know that his entrance into the
+drug-store had been noted, yet such was a fact.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_208">[208]</span>The man who had tried to swindle Joel Carrow
+was stopping at the hotel opposite the place
+of business, and he was now seated on the
+piazza, smoking a cigar.</p>
+
+<p>“There’s the boy who caused me so much
+trouble this afternoon,” muttered the swindler.
+“I promised to get square with him, and I will.”</p>
+
+<p>Throwing away his cigar, he ran down the
+piazza steps and took up a place behind a tree.</p>
+
+<p>He had not long to wait. With the chemicals
+in a small package in his left hand, Bob came
+out of the drug-store and walked toward the
+Willett home.</p>
+
+<p>It was getting dark now, and the young
+photographer wished to develop the pictures he
+had taken before retiring.</p>
+
+<p>With a look of intense hatred in his face, the
+swindler followed Bob until they came to a dark
+spot in the road and caught the youth by the
+collar.</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_209">[209]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER XIX<br>
+
+<small>BOB ON THE ROAD</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">For</span> the instant Bob could not make out who
+had caught hold of him. The road was dark,
+and the fair-ground swindler had come up in his
+rear.</p>
+
+<p>He thought he must be the victim of some
+footpad, and, dropping his bundle of chemicals,
+he strove to break away.</p>
+
+<p>“Let go of me!” he cried.</p>
+
+<p>“I will when I have you where I want you,”
+returned the swindler.</p>
+
+<p>Bob fancied he recognized the voice, but he
+was not sure. He renewed his struggle and had
+almost succeeded in breaking away when the
+swindler hit him a blow in the neck that dazed
+him.</p>
+
+<p>“Now we’ll see who’s ahead,” hissed the man.
+“I’ll teach you to interfere with Joe Horning’s
+business.”</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll give you away to the police the next
+time,” returned Bob, although rather faintly.
+“Let go your hold!”</p>
+
+<p>“Not much! See here, you served me a
+mean trick, and I promised to get square. I<span class="pagenum" id="Page_210">[210]</span>
+don’t intend to lose ten dollars for nothing.
+How much have you got in your pockets?”</p>
+
+<p>“More than you’ll ever get,” cried Bob, growing
+desperate. “Will you let go?”</p>
+
+<p>“I told you before I would not.”</p>
+
+<p>“Then take that!”</p>
+
+<p>Bob had by this time somewhat recovered
+from the blow in the neck. He now hauled off
+with his right fist and let the swindler have it
+straight in the mouth.</p>
+
+<p>Bob threw all his muscle in the blow. It
+caught Joe Horning in the upper lip, and not
+only drew the blood, but also loosened two of
+the swindler’s front teeth.</p>
+
+<p>The swindler began to splutter, and he put
+up one of his hands to his mouth.</p>
+
+<p>Thus partially released, Bob twisted himself
+free from the other hand, rolled over and sprang
+up.</p>
+
+<p>Joe Horning had not anticipated such resentment
+on Bob’s part, and he was surprised in
+addition to being hurt. He stepped back into
+the road, and made a movement as if to draw a
+pistol.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll fix you!” he muttered, after spitting out
+a mouthful of blood.</p>
+
+<p>Whether the swindler had a pistol or not,
+Bob did not know. But he was determined to
+take no risk with so desperate a character, and,
+springing forward, he closed in on Horning.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_211">[211]</span>The two rolled over into the dirt of the road,
+and for a while it was a question as to which
+would come out on top. Horning was at first
+under, but he was a strong man, and he now
+put forth every effort to get the best of the
+young photographer.</p>
+
+<p>“You think you’re mighty fly, but I’ll show
+you,” he puffed.</p>
+
+<p>To this Bob made no reply. He saw he had
+a hard task before him, but he did not intend to
+waste breath.</p>
+
+<p>Horning tried to roll over several times, but
+Bob held him down, until, when he could do
+nothing else, the swindler bit the young photographer
+in the finger.</p>
+
+<p>It was not a hard bite, but it was so painful
+and unexpected that Bob was for the moment
+taken off his guard.</p>
+
+<p>In that moment Horning pushed the youth
+aside and sprang on top.</p>
+
+<p>“This is my innings. Pass over that ten
+dollars that is coming to me.”</p>
+
+<p>“I won’t do it.”</p>
+
+<p>“I say you shall. Come, be quick!”</p>
+
+<p>Horning tried to get one of his hands into
+Bob’s vest pocket. That pocket contained
+seventeen dollars in bills, and Bob struggled
+vigorously to save his money.</p>
+
+<p>Just then there came the sounds of carriage
+wheels on the road. Bob, lying on his back,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_212">[212]</span>
+heard them first and brightened up. Perhaps
+help was close at hand.</p>
+
+<p>At last the swindler succeeded in getting his
+fingers into the pocket. The tips came in contact
+with the roll of bills, and he renewed his
+efforts to gain possession of the money.</p>
+
+<p>He had just succeeded in getting the bills in
+his grasp, when he noticed the approaching carriage.
+He tried to spring away, but Bob held
+him fast.</p>
+
+<p>“Help, help!” cried the young photographer.</p>
+
+<p>The carriage came to a sudden stop. A man
+sat on the front seat, whip in hand.</p>
+
+<p>“What’s up?” he cried, curiously.</p>
+
+<p>“This fellow is robbing me. Help!”</p>
+
+<p>The man made a leap to the road. Horning
+saw him coming, and he tried his best to
+wrench himself away.</p>
+
+<p>But Bob’s hold was a good one, and although
+the swindler kicked him several times, he did
+not relinquish it until the new arrival had
+Horning by the collar.</p>
+
+<p>Then Bob jumped up, and caught the fellow
+by the arm.</p>
+
+<p>“Don’t let him escape,” he cried to the man
+from the carriage.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ve got him fast enough,” returned the
+stranger. “So he was trying to rob you, eh?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes. He has a roll of bills he took from my
+vest pocket.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_213">[213]</span>“That’s not so!” cried Horning. “I have
+nothing but some loose change in my possession.”</p>
+
+<p>“Then he threw the roll away when you came
+up,” said Bob. “He took it from my vest
+pocket only a second ago.”</p>
+
+<p>“Strike a match and take a look around,”
+suggested the stranger. “He may have flung
+it away as you say.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob quickly lit a match, and then several
+more. In a few minutes he found the bills,
+lying to one side in the dust.</p>
+
+<p>“I have them,” he cried.</p>
+
+<p>“What will you do with this fellow?” asked
+the stranger. “If you say so, we can take him
+to my uncle, who is the squire.”</p>
+
+<p>“I think that would be best,” said Bob. “He
+attacked me because I exposed his swindling
+methods in a side-show at the fair this afternoon.”</p>
+
+<p>“Oh, I heard about that! So you are the
+chap, and this is the swindler.”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes,” returned Bob. “Shall we walk him
+there, or can you take him in your carriage?”</p>
+
+<p>“Take him in the carriage.”</p>
+
+<p>“Is it far?”</p>
+
+<p>“About five minutes’ drive.”</p>
+
+<p>“All right. Come, get in the carriage!”
+went on Bob, turning to Horning.</p>
+
+<p>“See here, gents, this is rather rough,” returned<span class="pagenum" id="Page_214">[214]</span>
+the swindler. All the bluster and
+bravery seemed to have died out of him.</p>
+
+<p>“It’s not any worse than you deserve,” said
+Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“No, I ain’t that kind. I sometimes go in for
+a bit of fun, but——”</p>
+
+<p>“You can do your talking when you are
+locked up,” said the stranger. “Now get in at
+once.”</p>
+
+<p>He assisted Horning up on the front seat,
+still retaining his hold on the fellow’s collar.</p>
+
+<p>“Now you had better take a seat in the rear,”
+said he to Bob. “You will find a heavy stick
+under the seat. Don’t hesitate to use it if he
+tries to escape.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob was about to enter the carriage, when
+suddenly Horning sprang up and hit the stranger
+on the breast. The blow was so unexpected
+that the carriage owner reeled backward. He
+would have struck on his head had not Bob
+caught him.</p>
+
+<p>“Get up!” cried Horning to the horse, and
+the animal moved forward.</p>
+
+<p>The swindler caught up the reins, and away
+went the carriage, leaving Bob in the middle of
+the road supporting the carriage owner, who
+had not yet recovered.</p>
+
+<p>“Whoa!” cried the youth to the horse, but
+the animal paid no attention, and soon swindler
+and turn-out had disappeared in the darkness.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_215">[215]</span>“Well, that’s a fine mess!” cried the carriage
+owner as he recovered himself. “He
+got the best of Jack Hicks that time, and no
+mistake.”</p>
+
+<p>“What is best to be done?” questioned Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“I must go after him,” replied Hicks.</p>
+
+<p>“You can’t do it on foot.”</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll borrow a rig from Edgar Willett.”</p>
+
+<p>“Do you know him? I am stopping at his
+house.”</p>
+
+<p>“Oh, yes, he is an old friend of mine.”</p>
+
+<p>The two hurried off, and soon reached the
+Willett homestead. Willett had gone to bed,
+but he quickly dressed and got out a horse and
+light spring wagon.</p>
+
+<p>He wished to accompany Hicks, but his wife
+persuaded him to remain at home.</p>
+
+<p>“I suppose I can go?” said Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“Certainly. Jump in.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob placed his chemicals in a safe place, and
+a minute later the spring wagon was on the
+road, spinning along in the direction Horning
+had taken.</p>
+
+<p>“Are there any side roads near here?” asked
+the young photographer, after a drive of several
+minutes in silence.</p>
+
+<p>“Not for fully a mile from here.”</p>
+
+<p>“We ought to try to catch him before he has
+a chance of branching off.”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s what I am thinking. The trouble is<span class="pagenum" id="Page_216">[216]</span>
+my horse is a pretty fast stepper, although he is
+rather tired just now.”</p>
+
+<p>On and on they went through the darkness.</p>
+
+<p>Presently Hicks drew up rather suddenly, and
+pointed to one side of the road.</p>
+
+<p>“There is a cow-path in here,” he said. “He
+might have gone this way.”</p>
+
+<p>“And he did,” said Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“How do you know?”</p>
+
+<p>“There is your horse and carriage standing
+in the bushes.”</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_217">[217]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER XX<br>
+
+<small>BOB IN THE WOODS</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">The</span> young photographer was right. There,
+scarcely ten yards away, were the horse and the
+wagon.</p>
+
+<p>Hicks at once jumped down and strode over
+to the turn-out. Bob followed.</p>
+
+<p>“Is it O. K.?” queried Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“Seems to be. He drove the horse for all
+he knew how,” responded Hicks.</p>
+
+<p>“Which way do you think he went?”</p>
+
+<p>“Can’t say. It’s so infernally dark it will be
+impossible to follow him up.”</p>
+
+<p>“Well, I’m glad you got your rig back.”</p>
+
+<p>“So am I. Yes, it’s all right, too.”</p>
+
+<p>“Let me have the lantern a moment.”</p>
+
+<p>“What for?”</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll see if he left any trace behind.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob took the lantern and made a close search.
+But though there were foot-marks, there were
+too many to trace out those made by the
+swindler.</p>
+
+<p>“What is beyond here?” asked the young
+photographer as he returned the lantern to the
+spring wagon.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_218">[218]</span>“This cow-path leads to Gus Freeman’s barn-yard.”</p>
+
+<p>“Is it far?”</p>
+
+<p>“Quite a walk. There is a short cut over the
+fields.”</p>
+
+<p>“Then supposing we take a walk up that
+way? We may head the fellow off.”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s so. Wait till I tie both horses and
+we’ll go.”</p>
+
+<p>To a person not accustomed to outdoor life,
+walking over the rough fields would have
+been no easy task, but Bob was used to it,
+and he easily kept up with Hicks’s long
+strides.</p>
+
+<p>When they reached the barn-yard of which
+Hicks had spoken, they found it dark and silent.
+The house stood some distance away, but there,
+also, was no sign of life.</p>
+
+<p>“He must have branched off,” said Hicks, as
+they came to a halt near the stile.</p>
+
+<p>“Perhaps, but—hist! what was that?”</p>
+
+<p>Bob pointed to the rear of the cow-shed as he
+spoke. A movement of some kind had attracted
+his attention.</p>
+
+<p>“I didn’t see anything.”</p>
+
+<p>“It looked to me like a man moving about.”</p>
+
+<p>“Perhaps it was Freeman’s colt. He leaves
+him out here over night.”</p>
+
+<p>But Bob shook his head. He was certain
+that what he had seen was not a horse.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_219">[219]</span>“I’m going up and find out,” he said. “You
+stay here and watch for a move from below.”</p>
+
+<p>“All right. If you see him, whistle.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob moved away through the semi-darkness.
+Passing along the rail fence to the end of the
+barn he hopped over, and, without making a
+sound, crossed to the cow-shed.</p>
+
+<p>As he did so, a form sprang away from the
+shed and darted around the corner of the barn.
+Bob was sure it was the form of Joe Horning.</p>
+
+<p>He gave a whistle to notify Hicks, and then
+ran after the man, who by this time had passed
+the barn and was making for a corn-field situated
+some distance to the right.</p>
+
+<p>As we know, Bob was a good runner, and
+now he put forth his best effort, hoping to catch
+Horning before he entered the field.</p>
+
+<p>But in this he was unsuccessful. The swindler
+gained the field, and in a moment vanished
+among the tall rows of corn.</p>
+
+<p>Now, any one who has been in a field of tall
+corn knows full well how difficult it is to see in
+any direction over a distance of ten feet.</p>
+
+<p>Bob ran after Horning, but once in the field
+he depended altogether on his ears to guide
+him toward the fellow.</p>
+
+<p>He heard Horning making his way down the
+slope toward the creek, and he concluded that the
+swindler knew nothing of the “lay of the land.”</p>
+
+<p>Presently Bob heard a splash, and he knew<span class="pagenum" id="Page_220">[220]</span>
+the man had reached the creek. He rushed
+straight ahead, and was just in time to see
+Horning wading knee-deep across to the stony
+field beyond.</p>
+
+<p>“He means to escape, if the thing can be
+done,” thought Bob. “I wonder if I can’t jump
+over and thus save myself a wetting?”</p>
+
+<p>He gave a loud whistle for Hicks’s benefit,
+and then, drawing back several paces, took the
+leap.</p>
+
+<p>Bob was a good jumper, and he cleared the
+creek with nearly a foot to spare.</p>
+
+<p>Horning by this time was making up the
+rocky slope which led to a patch of timber land,
+rather sparingly overgrown. He looked behind,
+and, seeing that Bob was still following, redoubled
+his speed.</p>
+
+<p>But Bob was more used to such travelling than
+the swindler from the city, and he kept gaining
+on Horning, until, when the other side of the
+timber was reached, he was not more than a
+hundred feet behind.</p>
+
+<p>Again he whistled to Hicks, but whether he
+was answered or not he was unable to tell.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll have to fight it out alone,” thought Bob,
+grimly. “Well, I won’t give him the ghost of a
+chance this trip. He’ll find he can’t nip my
+finger for nothing.”</p>
+
+<p>“You might as well stop, Horning!” he
+called out.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_221">[221]</span>“I believe I will,” returned the man, and he
+turned about and waited for Bob to come up.</p>
+
+<p>“Do you give in?”</p>
+
+<p>“Certainly not. I am no fool.”</p>
+
+<p>“We are two to one.”</p>
+
+<p>Horning started. He had supposed Bob
+alone.</p>
+
+<p>“Who is with you?”</p>
+
+<p>“Never mind, you’ll soon see.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob gave another whistle, but to his dismay
+he received no answer.</p>
+
+<p>He did not know that Hicks was slightly hard
+of hearing, and had only heard the signal when
+Bob was comparatively close by.</p>
+
+<p>In perplexity over the non-appearance of
+Hicks, Bob looked around for a stick. He
+soon found one, and, picking it up, he brandished
+it in the air.</p>
+
+<p>“Now, we’ll see who is the best man. Do
+you see that light over in the cottage yonder?”</p>
+
+<p>“Not being blind, I do,” returned Horning,
+sarcastically.</p>
+
+<p>“Well, you’ll walk straight for it.”</p>
+
+<p>“I won’t, and you can’t make me.”</p>
+
+<p>As Horning spoke, he sprang at Bob. The
+young photographer took a step back, and then
+brought down the stick with all force.</p>
+
+<p>The blow caught Horning in the arm, and he
+uttered a shrill cry of pain.</p>
+
+<p>“You have broken my arm!”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_222">[222]</span>“Not quite as bad as that I hope,” said Bob.
+“Do you intend to mind now?”</p>
+
+<p>“No.”</p>
+
+<p>Again the swindler made a dash for Bob.</p>
+
+<p>Once more the stick descended, but this time
+Horning dodged, and, putting out his foot, he
+tripped Bob up.</p>
+
+<p>When the young photographer arose, Horning
+was again running as fast as his long legs would
+permit. But Bob was equal to the emergency.
+He picked up a stone, and, with unerring aim,
+flung it at the retreating form.</p>
+
+<p>The missile caught Horning in the back of
+the head. He staggered, tried to recover, and
+then fell forward.</p>
+
+<p>He was partly stunned, and before he recovered
+Bob was on top of him. In his pocket the
+young photographer had a strong cord, and
+with this he bound Horning’s hands behind
+him.</p>
+
+<p>“You have broken my skull!” moaned
+Horning, completely subdued when he saw
+how helpless he now was.</p>
+
+<p>“No more broken than is your arm,” returned
+Bob. “Will you go along now?”</p>
+
+<p>“No.”</p>
+
+<p>“Want another dose of that stick, eh?”</p>
+
+<p>“Hold up! I’ll go. Oh, my head!”</p>
+
+<p>“We’ll have your head attended to as soon as
+I have you in a safe place. Come on!”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_223">[223]</span>Bob caught Horning by the arm, and both
+walked toward the cottage, from the window of
+which a light was streaming.</p>
+
+<p>Bob had no idea who occupied the place, but
+he thought it would be likely he would find
+somebody to give him assistance.</p>
+
+<p>Arriving at the cottage, he knocked on the
+door. There was at once a commotion inside,
+and Bob fancied that the light was lowered.</p>
+
+<p>“Who’s there?” came in rather a rough
+voice.</p>
+
+<p>“I want help,” said Bob.</p>
+
+<p>The door was opened cautiously, and the
+next moment Bob was nearly dumfounded to
+find himself confronted by Mike Grogan.</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_224">[224]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER XXI<br>
+
+<small>BOB TAKES A RISK</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">If</span> the young photographer was astonished,
+so was the Irishman.</p>
+
+<p>“Phat, you?” he gasped.</p>
+
+<p>“Mike Grogan!” ejaculated Bob.</p>
+
+<p>He darted a swift glance around the interior
+of the room, and was even more taken back
+than before by beholding Casco and Barker
+seated at the table, a bottle between them.</p>
+
+<p>“It’s that Alden boy,” cried Casco.</p>
+
+<p>“Alden!” exclaimed Barker, jumping up.
+“How did he find out we were here?”</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t know.”</p>
+
+<p>“Is he alone?”</p>
+
+<p>“No; there is a man with him, and hang me
+if it isn’t Joe Horning.”</p>
+
+<p>“What, Joe Horning the circus fakir?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes.”</p>
+
+<p>“What does he want?”</p>
+
+<p>“Give it up.”</p>
+
+<p>Barker moved toward the door, which Grogan
+still held open.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_225">[225]</span>Bob was trying to think. What should he
+do? Confronting the villainous trio had completely
+upset his calculations.</p>
+
+<p>He had half a mind to run away. It was certain
+the trio would help Horning and not himself
+when they understood the situation.</p>
+
+<p>But Casco seemed to realize what was passing
+through the young photographer’s mind, for
+with a quick movement he sprang past Grogan
+and caught Bob by the arm.</p>
+
+<p>“Come in here!” he said, sharply.</p>
+
+<p>Bob marched into the place. Horning followed,
+and then the door was locked, and the
+Irishman placed the key in his pocket.</p>
+
+<p>Bob glanced around curiously. He saw that
+the cottage contained nothing but a rude table,
+and several boxes for seats, and rightly conjectured
+that the trio had found it deserted and
+made of it a temporary rendezvous.</p>
+
+<p>“Now tell me what brings you here?” demanded
+Barker, facing Bob, savagely.</p>
+
+<p>“I came to get help,” returned the youth, as
+coolly as he could.</p>
+
+<p>“Help! What for?”</p>
+
+<p>“To take this man to the lock-up.”</p>
+
+<p>“What! Horning?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes.”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s rich.”</p>
+
+<p>And both Barker and Casco laughed.</p>
+
+<p>“Shake,” said Casco to the fakir.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_226">[226]</span>“I can’t, my hands are tied,” returned Horning,
+rather sheepishly.</p>
+
+<p>“Blame me if they ain’t. So the boy had you
+a prisoner, Joe.”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes,” growled the swindler. “He hit me
+in the head with a rock first and knocked me
+silly.” He did not fancy having the others
+think he had been overpowered by a boy.</p>
+
+<p>“Why was he after you?”</p>
+
+<p>“We had a row up to the fair grounds.”</p>
+
+<p>“I was after him because he tried to steal my
+money and then stole a horse and carriage,” returned
+Bob.</p>
+
+<p>There was a general laugh, but at whose expense
+it was hard to say.</p>
+
+<p>Casco cut the cord which bound Horning.
+The first thing the swindler did when released
+was to confront Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ve a good mind to fix you for that crack
+in the head,” he cried.</p>
+
+<p>“Hold up, Joe, he’s our game,” interrupted
+Casco.</p>
+
+<p>“He is,” added Barker.</p>
+
+<p>“An’ don’t worrhy but phat we’ll git square
+wid him,” said Grogan.</p>
+
+<p>“You seem to know him pretty well,” remarked
+Horning.</p>
+
+<p>“We do,” said Casco. He turned to Bob.
+“See here, how long have you been following us
+since you escaped from Cabot’s place?”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_227">[227]</span>“I haven’t been following you at all.”</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t believe you.”</p>
+
+<p>“Well, if you know better, what do you ask
+me for?”</p>
+
+<p>“Don’t get impudent. Do you know that
+you are in our power?”</p>
+
+<p>“Seems to me I was in your power before,”
+and Bob grinned.</p>
+
+<p>“Sure, an’ he’s a terror,” remarked Grogan.</p>
+
+<p>“He is that,” said Horning. “But I say,
+what are you three fellows doing out here? I
+thought you were in New York.”</p>
+
+<p>Barker winked at him. The wink was not
+intended to reach Bob, but, nevertheless, the
+youth caught it.</p>
+
+<p>“They are up to no good, that’s certain,” he
+thought. “If they were merely hiding from the
+authorities, they would choose some more congenial
+spot than this.”</p>
+
+<p>Barker now produced a rope, and was about
+to tie Bob up when Grogan came forward.</p>
+
+<p>“Phat’s the good o’ that?” he asked. “Sure,
+an’ the b’y kin git out o’ it loike a snake.”</p>
+
+<p>“You’re right,” said Casco. “He’s the imp’s
+own. Put him in one of the back rooms and
+place Mike to watch him. I want to talk to
+Joe.”</p>
+
+<p>Grogan’s face fell a little, but when Casco
+said he could take the bottle along for company
+the Irishman was reconciled.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_228">[228]</span>Barker conducted Bob to a room separate
+from that now occupied. Here the young
+photographer was tied to a support under a
+heavy shelf and left in care of Grogan.</p>
+
+<p>Grogan at once settled himself on a box, and,
+filling his pipe, lit it.</p>
+
+<p>“As yez don’t drink, Oi’ll take a sup fer yez,”
+he said, and took a deep potion.</p>
+
+<p>“What are you fellows doing up here, Grogan?”
+asked Bob, as cheerfully as he could.</p>
+
+<p>“Ax me no questions,” muttered Grogan.
+“If ye want ter think o’ somethin’ cheerful,
+think o’ how we will trate ye in the marnin’.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob was compelled to shiver, and he became
+silent. Once more was he in the power of this
+lawless set of men.</p>
+
+<p>Quarter of an hour dragged by. Grogan sat
+calmly smoking, with his small eyes fastened on
+the young photographer. He did not intend to
+give the youth the first chance to escape.</p>
+
+<p>Bob heard the murmur of voices, and he
+knew Casco, Barker, and Horning were talking
+over some matter of importance.</p>
+
+<p>While the time slipped slowly by, Bob heard
+a distant rumble which came closer and then
+died away utterly.</p>
+
+<p>“It must have been a train. I did not know
+we were so close to the tracks,” thought the
+youth.</p>
+
+<p>Presently Grogan took another drink, and<span class="pagenum" id="Page_229">[229]</span>
+again lit his pipe. But now Bob noticed that
+the Irishman did not puff so vigorously as before.
+Was he growing drowsy?</p>
+
+<p>Fervidly the youth hoped so. He watched
+Grogan as a cat watches a mouse, and he was
+filled with hope when he saw the man’s pipe fall
+and the Irishman make no effort to restore it to
+his mouth.</p>
+
+<p>“Now is my chance!” said Bob to himself,
+and he set swiftly to work to free himself.</p>
+
+<p>As Grogan was to watch the prisoner, Barker
+had been rather careless in tying Bob up. The
+bonds were soon slipped off, and then raising
+one of the windows Bob leaped out.</p>
+
+<p>Just as he did so, Grogan started up. Seeing
+the youth disappear through the opening, he
+gave a loud cry, which soon brought the others
+to the scene.</p>
+
+<p>“Where is he, Mike?”</p>
+
+<p>“After him, boys!”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes; he must not get away this time!”</p>
+
+<p>Meanwhile Bob was running away as fast as
+his feet could move. When about a hundred
+yards from the cottage, he looked back and saw
+that all four men were in pursuit.</p>
+
+<p>On he dashed until striking a stone with his
+toe he went down flat on the ground.</p>
+
+<p>He arose as quickly as possible, but the time
+lost had enabled his pursuers almost to close
+the distance between them.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_230">[230]</span>Bob was now but fifty feet from the railroad
+tracks, which were situated on a small embankment.
+As he ran up toward the tracks, he saw
+a slow freight approaching.</p>
+
+<p>Should he board one of the cars? It might
+afford an excellent means of escape.</p>
+
+<p>With a glare of the head-light the train came
+along. Bob ran to meet it, with the four men
+not far behind him. A moment later Bob was
+on the train.</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_231">[231]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER XXII<br>
+
+<small>BOB ON THE FREIGHT TRAIN</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">The</span> young photographer did not have the
+chance to look back at his pursuers. He had
+one foot on the iron step of the car, and, though
+the train was going at a slow rate of speed, he
+found it no easy task to draw himself up on the
+narrow platform.</p>
+
+<p>“Come back!” he heard Barker cry.</p>
+
+<p>He paid no attention to the order, satisfied
+that anything would be preferable to falling
+again into the hands of the villainous crowd
+who were pursuing him.</p>
+
+<p>At last, with a mighty effort, the youth drew
+himself up. The ladder leading to the top of
+the car was close at hand and to this he clung
+while the train swung around a curve and out
+of sight of those left on the embankment.</p>
+
+<p>“By jinks! but that was a narrow escape!”
+muttered Bob to himself as he drew a long
+breath.</p>
+
+<p>Bob remained where he was for five minutes
+or more, trying to regain his breath and collect
+his thoughts at the same time.</p>
+
+<p>“I would like to know what those men are<span class="pagenum" id="Page_232">[232]</span>
+doing out here,” he soliloquized. “Maybe they
+are planning to rob a house in the vicinity.
+They are certainly up to no good.”</p>
+
+<p>The freight train made a strong rumble as it
+moved along, but presently Bob fancied he
+heard footsteps on the top of the car behind
+him.</p>
+
+<p>He was not mistaken, for in a moment the
+form of a man appeared overhead. The man
+looked down, as if searching for something.</p>
+
+<p>“One of the train-hands most likely,” thought
+Bob. “Maybe he saw what took place, and
+wants to know what it is all about.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob was about to call out, when he made a
+discovery that filled him with surprise.</p>
+
+<p>The man above was James Casco.</p>
+
+<p>Casco had jumped aboard the sixth car behind
+the one boarded by the young photographer.</p>
+
+<p>That he was bent on searching out Bob the
+youth felt certain, and he crouched low as the
+man bent down to get a better view in the semi-darkness.</p>
+
+<p>“Must be the next platform,” Bob heard
+Casco mutter. “Although I was almost certain
+it was this one.”</p>
+
+<p>He was about to pass on, when just then the
+train rolled past a farm-house, from the upper
+windows of which streamed a strong light.</p>
+
+<p>The light fell directly upon Bob, and Casco
+caught a full view of him.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_233">[233]</span>“So I have found you, eh?” muttered the
+scar-faced man, with a gleam of satisfaction in
+his eyes.</p>
+
+<p>“What do you want here?” demanded Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“You know well enough, Alden.”</p>
+
+<p>“I must confess I do not.”</p>
+
+<p>“You think, now you have discovered our
+plans, you will inform the authorities and have
+us all bagged.”</p>
+
+<p>“What makes you think that?” asked Bob,
+with interest, for he did not know the men had
+any plans.</p>
+
+<p>“I can put two and two together. You were
+in that neighborhood tracking us.”</p>
+
+<p>“You seem to know all about it.”</p>
+
+<p>“I have watched you on the sly. Do you
+deny that you also called on Gregory Maverick?”</p>
+
+<p>“What has that got to do with it?”</p>
+
+<p>“You know as well as I, Alden. But it won’t
+do you any good. You might as well give up
+trying to hunt down this crowd. It can’t be
+done.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob was much mystified by this speech.
+Evidently Casco took it for granted that he
+knew much more than was a fact.</p>
+
+<p>“Perhaps I can do more than you think,
+Casco,” he said, on a venture.</p>
+
+<p>“You can, if I allow you to get away, maybe,
+but I don’t intend any such thing shall happen.”</p>
+
+<p>“What do you mean?”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_234">[234]</span>“Simply this: You imagine you can ride
+through to Stampton on this train, don’t you?”</p>
+
+<p>“Perhaps so.”</p>
+
+<p>“And when you arrive there, you will call on
+Maverick and the chief of police and send word
+all along the line to search for us. You will do
+nothing of the sort.”</p>
+
+<p>“Who will prevent me?” questioned Bob, as
+calmly as he could, even though he knew what
+to expect by way of an answer.</p>
+
+<p>“Who will prevent you? I will.”</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t see how.”</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll show you. Do you see this?”</p>
+
+<p>As Casco spoke, he shoved the muzzle of a
+pistol down in the neighborhood of the young
+photographer’s head.</p>
+
+<p>“Do you intend to kill me in cold blood?”</p>
+
+<p>“I intend to make you mind me, Alden.
+When I give the command, you will jump from
+the train.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob shrank back in horror. The freight
+train was now moving at the rate of twenty
+miles an hour, and a jump would be full of peril.</p>
+
+<p>He looked around for some means by which
+to protect himself. But the narrow platform
+was bare, and he was without weapon of any
+kind.</p>
+
+<p>“What if I do some firing on my own account?”
+Bob asked, more to gain time than
+anything else.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_235">[235]</span>“Have you a pistol?”</p>
+
+<p>Instead of replying, Bob made a leap upward,
+and before Casco could draw back the youth
+had hold of the pistol and had wrenched it from
+his hand.</p>
+
+<p>“Stop!” cried the scar-faced man. “Give
+me that pistol!”</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll give you one of the bullets. Stay where
+you are.”</p>
+
+<p>With the pistol in one hand, Bob turned and
+ran up the iron ladder to the top of the adjoining
+car.</p>
+
+<p>As he did this, Casco, instead of complying
+with Bob’s command, arose and hurried along
+the top plank of the freight car.</p>
+
+<p>“Stop!” cried Bob, jumping across the opening
+and making after the rascal.</p>
+
+<p>But it was too dark to see the planking
+clearly, and afraid of missing his footing, the
+young photographer was compelled to go slow.</p>
+
+<p>Casco, on the other hand, had once been a
+brakeman, and he ran over the planking of several
+cars at a lively rate, and then disappeared
+from view.</p>
+
+<p>With the pistol ready for use, Bob made his
+way along, until he came face to face with one
+of the train-hands.</p>
+
+<p>“Hullo, Jack, is that you?” called out the
+man.</p>
+
+<p>“No,” replied Bob, and added: “I am after a<span class="pagenum" id="Page_236">[236]</span>
+thief who is aboard this train. Did he just pass
+you?”</p>
+
+<p>“Nobody passed me. You are sure he is on
+board?”</p>
+
+<p>“He was a minute ago.”</p>
+
+<p>And, as briefly as possible, Bob related what
+had occurred.</p>
+
+<p>“He must be a desperate fellow,” said the
+train-hand, with a shake of his head.</p>
+
+<p>“He is, and I want to catch him the worst
+way.”</p>
+
+<p>“Humph! Well, let us take a look with the
+lantern. We don’t want any such fellows on
+this train.”</p>
+
+<p>The man got his lantern from the caboose,
+and the two began a rapid search around each
+car.</p>
+
+<p>“He might have dropped down on one of the
+platforms and swung himself into one of the
+empty cars,” suggested the train-hand. “Or he
+might have jumped off.”</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t think he jumped off,” replied Bob.
+“Let us look into those cars just ahead.”</p>
+
+<p>The train-hand went ahead, and not without
+difficulty swung himself into one of the empty
+cars.</p>
+
+<p>Seeing how the thing was done, Bob started
+to do the same upon the car ahead.</p>
+
+<p>He reached the guide upon which the door
+hung, and was making his way along it toward<span class="pagenum" id="Page_237">[237]</span>
+the opening when Casco’s head suddenly appeared
+from out of the empty car.</p>
+
+<p>“Now I have you!” cried the scar-faced man.
+He reached out, and, catching Bob by the arm,
+attempted to throw the young photographer
+from the train.</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_238">[238]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER XXIII<br>
+
+<small>BOB FORMS A RESOLUTION</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">The</span> attack was so sudden and unexpected
+that Bob had all he could do to hold on with
+the remaining hand.</p>
+
+<p>“Let up!” he cried.</p>
+
+<p>“Not much! Off you go, Alden!”</p>
+
+<p>“Help! help!” cried Bob.</p>
+
+<p>He attempted to draw back on the platform,
+but Casco held him fast by the arm, while at the
+same time trying to push him away from his
+hold.</p>
+
+<p>“What’s up?” cried the train-hand from the
+other car.</p>
+
+<p>“Here he is! Help me!” returned Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“I will.”</p>
+
+<p>Casco’s face fell when he heard that Bob had
+help close at hand. He made another effort to
+push the young photographer off, and had
+almost succeeded when the train-hand appeared.</p>
+
+<p>“By hookey!” cried the man. “Stop that,
+you villain!”</p>
+
+<p>Just then Casco succeeded in making Bob
+let go his hold. But now the train-hand caught
+the youth by the arm, and drew him back in
+safety to the platform.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_239">[239]</span>“There you are. It was a narrow escape.”</p>
+
+<p>“Thank you!” gasped Bob. “Indeed it was.”</p>
+
+<p>“So he’s safe in that car.”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes.”</p>
+
+<p>“Just wait till I call Jack, and we’ll bag him.”</p>
+
+<p>“All right. But be careful.”</p>
+
+<p>The train-hand ran off over the cars, while
+Bob, pistol in hand, sat down to watch for any
+movement Casco might make.</p>
+
+<p>It was a novel situation, but it cannot be said
+that Bob enjoyed it.</p>
+
+<p>Five minutes passed. Bob wondered how
+long the train-hand expected to be gone. Every
+second seemed ten to the young photographer.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly with a shriek of the whistle the
+freight train slowed up, and came very nearly to
+a stop. The train-hand appeared, but, instead
+of helping Bob, began to put on brakes as fast
+as possible.</p>
+
+<p>“Better watch your man,” he cried. “I’ve
+got to obey the whistle.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob did watch, and almost instantly saw
+Casco spring from the open car into a patch of
+brushwood. The scar-faced man tumbled over,
+but at once arose, and ran off through the
+darkness.</p>
+
+<p>The young photographer’s first impulse was
+to follow. But then he reasoned that the darkness
+was against him, and the district was one
+entirely unknown to him.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_240">[240]</span>“He’s gone,” he said to the train-hand as the
+whistle came to loosen brakes again.</p>
+
+<p>“Skipped, did he?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes. What neighborhood is this?”</p>
+
+<p>“We are just coming into Kentown. Here is
+the station.”</p>
+
+<p>As the man spoke, they rolled into a long,
+narrow milk depot. Without waiting to see if
+the train would come to a stop, Bob called out
+a good-night and sprang off.</p>
+
+<p>He met but three men at the depot, and all
+of these were so busy handling milk-cans that
+they could spare no time to hear what he might
+have to say.</p>
+
+<p>Finally the young photographer asked if there
+was a constable in town, and he was directed to
+one Aaron Dimler, who lived but a few rods
+from the depot.</p>
+
+<p>Bob had a hard time arousing Dimler, but
+once aroused the constable was eager to join the
+youth in a search for the scar-faced man.</p>
+
+<p>“We had better walk up the track to where
+he jumped off the freight,” said the constable.
+“Then I’ll be better able to judge of the direction
+he took.”</p>
+
+<p>So the two half-walked, half-ran up the track
+until Bob called a halt.</p>
+
+<p>“Is this the spot?” asked the constable.</p>
+
+<p>“As near as I can judge it is,” returned Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“There’s a hat. Was that his?”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_241">[241]</span>“Yes.”</p>
+
+<p>“Then you’re right about the spot. Did he
+start off in that direction?”</p>
+
+<p>“I believe he did.”</p>
+
+<p>“Then the place he would be likely to strike
+would be Raymond’s cross-road hotel.”</p>
+
+<p>“How far is that from here?”</p>
+
+<p>“Not over five minutes’ walk. If he’s reached
+that place, you might as well give up the
+hunt.”</p>
+
+<p>“Why?”</p>
+
+<p>“You will never learn anything from Raymond.
+He is a bad one, and has been in court
+half a dozen times.”</p>
+
+<p>“I would like to know if Casco knows him?”
+mused Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“Even if he didn’t, Raymond would befriend
+him, if he knew the sort of chap the man you
+are after was. He has sheltered more criminals
+than I can mention.”</p>
+
+<p>“I am quite interested,” said Bob. “Come
+on!”</p>
+
+<p>But the constable held back. The fact of the
+matter was that Raymond was down on him,
+and had threatened to make matters warm if he
+found Dimler around his hotel.</p>
+
+<p>“We can go in the morning,” said the constable,
+by way of excuse.</p>
+
+<p>“Casco may be gone by that time, if he is
+there.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_242">[242]</span>“I have no papers to search Raymond’s place.
+I don’t want to get into trouble.”</p>
+
+<p>“I believe you are afraid,” cried Bob, somewhat
+angrily. “I will go alone.”</p>
+
+<p>He turned on his heel at once. Dimler’s
+brow contracted.</p>
+
+<p>“Well, go on, if you’re so headstrong,” he
+said, and, as Bob passed out of hearing, he
+added: “He’ll have a fine time if he riles Raymond
+up, see if he don’t.”</p>
+
+<p>The road was a perfectly straight one, and
+Bob had but little difficulty in finding the cross-road
+hotel Dimler had mentioned.</p>
+
+<p>On the way the young photographer kept his
+eyes wide open for Casco, but saw nothing of
+the scar-faced man. Arriving at Raymond’s
+hotel, he found the place to consist of a long,
+two-story building, with an addition in the rear
+running down to the edge of a brook. A dim
+lamp, swinging from a post by the stepping-block,
+lit up the exterior of the hotel. A light
+also shone from the bar-room, and sounds
+of boisterous laughing reached the youth’s
+ears.</p>
+
+<p>“They must keep the place wide open all
+night,” thought Bob. “I think I will take a
+look around before I go in.”</p>
+
+<p>Having inspected the front part of the hotel,
+Bob passed around one side and then to the
+back.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_243">[243]</span>Here was situated the kitchen, and, coming
+closer, Bob heard two persons conversing in
+low tones.</p>
+
+<p>One was a man, evidently a stable-hand, and
+the other a woman-of-all-work.</p>
+
+<p>“What kept you so long, Ike?” asked the
+woman of the man, who had evidently just
+come in.</p>
+
+<p>“The boss wanted me to look out for the
+billiard-room for a while.”</p>
+
+<p>“Why, where is Dick?”</p>
+
+<p>“Tendin’ bar. He had to do it cos the boss
+had a visitor just now, an’ he had to show the
+feller a room.”</p>
+
+<p>“A visitor this time of night? Who was it,
+any of the old ones?”</p>
+
+<p>“That fellow was here a couple of times last
+week. He came in a tremendous hurry, he
+did.”</p>
+
+<p>“Say, there is something up between the boss
+an’ that feller,” commented the woman, as she
+lit a hand-lamp and moved toward a door.</p>
+
+<p>“What makes you think that, Sadie?”</p>
+
+<p>“Cos he an’ the boss did a pile of whisperin’
+the other night, an’ when the boss does that
+why——” and the woman finished with a low
+laugh.</p>
+
+<p>“Well, it ain’t none of our affairs, Sadie.”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s so, so long as we git our wages. But
+come on to bed.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_244">[244]</span>“I’m ready. This bein’ up half the night
+makes me dead tired.”</p>
+
+<p>The woman passed through the door, and,
+after extinguishing the large lamp which hung
+from a bracket, the man followed her.</p>
+
+<p>Bob had listened with keen interest to the
+conversation between the pair. One thing was
+settled. Jim Casco was in the house.</p>
+
+<p>Now what was best to do? Bob knew of no
+officer whom he could summon save Dimler, and
+after the way that individual had acted, the young
+photographer did not feel disposed to ask anything
+further at his hands.</p>
+
+<p>Bob passed back as far as the brook, and here
+sat down to think matters over. Several things
+were quite clear to him.</p>
+
+<p>One was that Casco, Barker, and Grogan were
+in the vicinity for no good purpose.</p>
+
+<p>The second was that Casco was acquainted
+with Raymond, and that he had called there before.
+This would tend to the idea that Raymond’s
+place was to be a sort of headquarters
+for the crowd of evildoers.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll shadow them, and find out what they are
+up to,” was Bob’s resolve.</p>
+
+<p>And, when Bob made a resolution, he always
+stuck to it.</p>
+
+<p>Presently, as Bob sat thinking, he saw a light
+flash from one of the upper windows of the
+hotel. Then a curtain was drawn down, and for<span class="pagenum" id="Page_245">[245]</span>
+a second a profile stood out on the white surface.</p>
+
+<p>The profile was perfect, so perfect, in fact,
+that the young photographer had no difficulty
+in guessing its original.</p>
+
+<p>The profile was that of Casco.</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_246">[246]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER XXIV<br>
+
+<small>BOB STICKS UP FOR A FRIEND</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">Bob</span> jumped up, and watched the profile
+eagerly.</p>
+
+<p>Then he saw it disappear, as the light was
+moved to one side.</p>
+
+<p>“That was Casco, sure,” he said to himself.
+“And, hello! there’s somebody else. I wonder
+who it is?”</p>
+
+<p>Bob saw that the window of the room was
+directly over the one story addition in the rear.
+He wondered if he could not get up to it and
+find out what was going on within.</p>
+
+<p>Looking around, he espied a short ladder
+resting against an apple tree. Catching up the
+ladder, he placed it against the addition, and
+found it just reached the roof above.</p>
+
+<p>Making sure that he was not being observed,
+Bob mounted the ladder silently, and then made
+his way over the roof to where the window was
+located.</p>
+
+<p>As it was a warm night in the summer, both
+the upper and the lower sashes were placed to
+admit the air, and, by putting his ear close to
+the lower opening, Bob was able to make out
+all that was being said within the room.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_247">[247]</span>“You are certain the boy didn’t follow you?”
+he heard, in a rough voice.</p>
+
+<p>“No, I’m not sure, Raymond,” came the reply,
+in the tones of Casco. “But though I
+looked back I didn’t see him.”</p>
+
+<p>“Humph! He might even this minute be
+somewhere about this place. Maybe it would
+be better to take a look around.”</p>
+
+<p>“I took a good look before I came in. He
+has either gone on to Kentown or farther, I’m
+satisfied.”</p>
+
+<p>“Well, it’s your fry, not mine,” laughed Raymond.
+“You must have had a hard time with
+him.”</p>
+
+<p>“I did. That boy is a wizard for being able
+to slip away when you least expect it.”</p>
+
+<p>“Do you suppose the others will follow you
+here?”</p>
+
+<p>“I yelled at them to do so, when I sprang on
+the freight train. They will, if they heard me.”</p>
+
+<p>“It’s about time that deal went through.”</p>
+
+<p>“I agree with you, Raymond; but the trouble
+has been that we could not strike the right man
+to help us.”</p>
+
+<p>“Won’t Watson do?”</p>
+
+<p>“No. I sounded him, but he is too honest,
+even for big money.”</p>
+
+<p>At that moment the wind flapped the curtain,
+and Bob could not hear the immediate conversation
+which followed.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_248">[248]</span>“What!” he heard Casco exclaim a minute
+later. “You are sure it is he?”</p>
+
+<p>“Certainly. He signed the register.”</p>
+
+<p>“And he is in the house now?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes.”</p>
+
+<p>“I would like to get square with him!” muttered
+the scar-faced man, savagely. “He is the
+chief cause of all my troubles.”</p>
+
+<p>“We don’t want any trouble here,” replied
+Raymond. “Unless——”</p>
+
+<p>“Unless what, Raymond?”</p>
+
+<p>“Unless there is money in it.”</p>
+
+<p>“He must have some money.”</p>
+
+<p>“He said he had been on a collecting tour.”</p>
+
+<p>“Then you may depend on it he has boodle.
+This district used to pan out several thousands
+of dollars.”</p>
+
+<p>“But how will you do the job?”</p>
+
+<p>“You have a key to his room, I suppose?”</p>
+
+<p>“Of course. It is No. 12.”</p>
+
+<p>“I have here a bottle of chloroform. I will
+put some on a handkerchief, and steal in and
+chloroform him. Then we can make up our
+minds what to do next.”</p>
+
+<p>The two men left the room, closing the door
+after them.</p>
+
+<p>Bob drew a long breath. He had actually
+overheard a plot against one of the guests of the
+hotel, and the young photographer was compelled
+to shiver at the thought.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_249">[249]</span>His duty was plain. No matter what the
+risk, he must warn the intended victim of the
+plot against him.</p>
+
+<p>Bob wondered who the person could be.
+Evidently it was somebody with whom Casco
+was well acquainted.</p>
+
+<p>Without hesitation Bob pushed aside the curtain
+and sprang through the window.</p>
+
+<p>The light was still burning, and at a glance
+the young photographer saw the apartment was
+an unoccupied bedroom.</p>
+
+<p>Listening at the door to make sure that the
+two had really gone below, Bob, a second later,
+glided into the semi-dark hall-way.</p>
+
+<p>The room in which the conversation had been
+held was numbered 47. Following this came
+No. 45, and the youth had no trouble in tracing
+the numbers until he came to No. 13, opposite to
+which was No. 12.</p>
+
+<p>Bob listened at the door, and fancied he heard
+the breathing of a sleeper within.</p>
+
+<p>He tapped lightly, and then a little harder.</p>
+
+<p>“Who’s there?” came in a hurried voice, accompanied
+by the creaking of a bed.</p>
+
+<p>“Open the door, quick!” cried Bob, through
+the key-hole.</p>
+
+<p>“What’s the matter—house afire?” exclaimed
+the occupant of the room, as he bounced up and
+unlocked the door.</p>
+
+<p>“No, but I—Frank Landes!”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_250">[250]</span>“What, Bob! is that really you?”</p>
+
+<p>And the young man held out his hand.</p>
+
+<p>“My, but ain’t I glad I overheard that talk!”
+burst out Bob, fervidly.</p>
+
+<p>“What talk?”</p>
+
+<p>“Lock the door, and I’ll tell you. But you
+must speak in a whisper.”</p>
+
+<p>Frank locked the door and also bolted
+it.</p>
+
+<p>“Now, in the first place,” began Bob, “have
+you a pistol?”</p>
+
+<p>“I have; but what under the canopy does it
+all mean?”</p>
+
+<p>“Casco is in this house.”</p>
+
+<p>“By Jove! is that true?”</p>
+
+<p>“And he and Raymond, the proprietor, have
+just hatched out a plot to chloroform and rob
+you.”</p>
+
+<p>“You are joking!”</p>
+
+<p>“No, it’s the truth. Raymond thinks you
+have money with you.”</p>
+
+<p>“So I have. I’ve been collecting for the firm,
+and that roll under my pillow has eighteen hundred
+dollars in it.”</p>
+
+<p>“They would do a good deal for it. You had
+better—hist—here they come now.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob caught Frank by the arm, and both grew
+silent.</p>
+
+<p>Soft footsteps came up to the door, and then
+something scraped in the lock.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_251">[251]</span>“I can’t open it,” came at length, in the voice
+of Raymond. “I know a better way.”</p>
+
+<p>“What is it?”</p>
+
+<p>“We can jump out on the roof of the extension
+and crawl through the window. Come on.”</p>
+
+<p>The footsteps moved away. Frank walked to
+the bed and brought forth his pistol which was
+lying beside the roll of money.</p>
+
+<p>“If they come in here, I’ll give them a warm
+reception,” he said, significantly.</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_252">[252]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER XXV<br>
+
+<small>BOB AND FRANK STAND TOGETHER</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">By</span> Frank Landes’ manner Bob knew that the
+young man meant what he said.</p>
+
+<p>“They ought to receive a warm reception,”
+returned the young photographer. “But do
+you think it will pay to stay here and fight
+them?”</p>
+
+<p>“What else is there to do?”</p>
+
+<p>Bob pointed to the door leading to the hall-way.</p>
+
+<p>“We can run away while they are trying to
+get in at the window,” he suggested.</p>
+
+<p>“But I am not dressed.”</p>
+
+<p>“Slip on your clothes. I’ll shut the window
+and lock it, so they will find themselves foiled,
+and have to come back to the door.”</p>
+
+<p>As Bob spoke, he rushed over to the window
+and tried to close it.</p>
+
+<p>But for some reason the lower sash refused to
+budge, even though in his excitement he struck
+it several times along the edging.</p>
+
+<p>“I had the same trouble when I opened it,”
+said Frank, who was hurrying into his clothing
+as rapidly as possible.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_253">[253]</span>“The confounded thing won’t come down,
+and that settles it,” cried Bob, hopelessly.</p>
+
+<p>“Never mind, let it go. I am ready to start.”</p>
+
+<p>Frank moved swiftly toward the door and
+unlocked it. As he did so, the face of Raymond
+appeared at the window.</p>
+
+<p>“Quick!” whispered the young man, and he
+flung open the door for Bob to pass through.</p>
+
+<p>The hotel-keeper saw at a glance that something
+was wrong. He whispered a few words
+to his companion, and Casco at once leaped
+into the chamber.</p>
+
+<p>“There are two of them!” cried the scar-faced
+man. “You didn’t say he had a roommate.”</p>
+
+<p>“He didn’t have. Stop them!”</p>
+
+<p>Frank and Bob had passed into the hall-way.
+Casco made after them as noiselessly as possible.</p>
+
+<p>In moving toward the stairs the two had to
+pass close to a dimly-burning lamp. As they
+did so, Casco uttered a cry of amazement.</p>
+
+<p>“That is Bob Alden with him! How did he
+get in?”</p>
+
+<p>“The boy from the freight train?” queried
+Raymond.</p>
+
+<p>“Yes. We must catch them. They have
+most likely overheard what was said. Come
+on!”</p>
+
+<p>Down the stairs went Frank and Bob, two
+steps at a time, with Casco and Raymond in<span class="pagenum" id="Page_254">[254]</span>
+close pursuit. The scar-faced man began to
+yell, but the hotel proprietor stopped him.</p>
+
+<p>“Remember, the hotel is half full of guests,”
+he said. “We must overcome them without too
+much noise.”</p>
+
+<p>Once in the lower hall, Bob and Frank turned
+toward the front door. It was locked, but the
+key was handy, and they had it open in a trice.</p>
+
+<p>“Now which way?” questioned the young
+man when they were outside.</p>
+
+<p>“It doesn’t make any difference. Come on!”</p>
+
+<p>Away dashed Bob, with Frank directly behind
+him.</p>
+
+<p>The way was dark, and the young photographer
+had scarcely proceeded a dozen steps
+when he tripped over some stones and went
+down.</p>
+
+<p>Frank came down on top of Bob, and before
+either could rise, Casco and Raymond were upon
+them.</p>
+
+<p>“We have them,” said Raymond.</p>
+
+<p>“Don’t you dare to move!” cried the scar-faced
+man.</p>
+
+<p>The darkness was unfavorable to any kind of
+fair fighting, and every one went in as best
+pleased him. Casco was a powerful man, but
+Bob was thoroughly aroused, and he fought so
+skilfully that the scar-faced man was soon retreating.</p>
+
+<p>The young photographer followed him up,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_255">[255]</span>
+thus becoming separated from Frank and Raymond.</p>
+
+<p>At length Casco turned and fled toward the
+brook, and jumping over, disappeared in the
+brush and darkness beyond.</p>
+
+<p>Bob knew it would be folly just at present to
+attempt to follow the man, and after a moment’s
+hesitation he returned to the spot where he had
+left Frank and Raymond.</p>
+
+<p>The two had disappeared!</p>
+
+<p>“Hullo, Frank!” called out the young photographer.
+“Where are you?”</p>
+
+<p>No answer came back to the cry save the
+baying of a couple of hounds in the barn, and
+Bob at once became more alarmed.</p>
+
+<p>“What’s the row?” asked a voice from the
+hotel piazza.</p>
+
+<p>The scuffle had attracted the attention of several
+of the men who were making a night of it
+in the bar-room.</p>
+
+<p>“Have you seen anything of Raymond?”
+asked Bob.</p>
+
+<p>He knew it would be worse than useless to
+ask any of those men for assistance.</p>
+
+<p>“He’s up-stairs,” returned another of the men.</p>
+
+<p>“You are sure he is up-stairs?” went on Bob,
+ignoring the question.</p>
+
+<p>“He went up there a while ago. I haven’t
+seen him since.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob was perplexed. It was more than likely<span class="pagenum" id="Page_256">[256]</span>
+that the man spoke the truth, and this being so,
+what had become of Raymond and Frank?</p>
+
+<p>Fearful of being questioned further, Bob
+moved toward the back of the hotel again, while
+the men, muttering something he could not
+catch, re-entered the bar-room.</p>
+
+<p>As Bob walked toward the brook, he fancied
+he heard a low cry coming from behind the barn,
+which was built close to the water’s edge.</p>
+
+<p>He hurried in the direction, and caught a
+faint glimpse of two forms struggling behind a
+number of bushes.</p>
+
+<p>Coming closer, he saw that Raymond had
+Frank by the throat and was forcing him over
+into the water.</p>
+
+<p>As Bob dashed forward, there was a splash,
+and Frank went over, while Raymond caught
+up a club to hit him should he attempt to
+rise.</p>
+
+<p>“Don’t you dare to strike, Raymond!”</p>
+
+<p>At the sound of Bob’s voice the hotel-keeper
+turned quickly.</p>
+
+<p>“What do you want?”</p>
+
+<p>“Let my friend up.”</p>
+
+<p>“Hit him, Bob,” exclaimed Frank, faintly.</p>
+
+<p>“Where is Casco?” asked Raymond as he
+began to retreat.</p>
+
+<p>“Never mind,” returned the young photographer.</p>
+
+<p>By this time Frank had managed to crawl<span class="pagenum" id="Page_257">[257]</span>
+from the brook. His head was bleeding from a
+severe gash over the forehead.</p>
+
+<p>“Look out for him, Bob,” he cried.</p>
+
+<p>“I am looking out. Are you badly hurt?”</p>
+
+<p>“My head feels rather queer.”</p>
+
+<p>“What shall we do with this fellow?”</p>
+
+<p>“He ought to be locked up.”</p>
+
+<p>“Neither of you can do it,” sneered Raymond.
+“You don’t know me.”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, I do,” said Bob. “You are the toughest
+road-house keeper in the country.”</p>
+
+<p>“Thanks for the compliment.” Raymond
+mused for a moment. “I will make a bargain
+with you. Quit the place at once and we’ll
+drop the whole matter.”</p>
+
+<p>“We sha’n’t leave you until you are safe in
+jail,” burst out Bob.</p>
+
+<p>At these words Raymond burst into a laugh.</p>
+
+<p>“You don’t know what you are talking about.
+You, a mere boy, expect to do what no officer
+around has been able to accomplish. Get out
+of here before I set my blood-hounds on
+you!”</p>
+
+<p>As Raymond spoke, he darted around the
+corner of the barn before Bob had time to stop
+him.</p>
+
+<p>Then they heard him utter a cry that was
+immediately followed by the deep baying of a
+hound.</p>
+
+<p>“We had better get out of here!” cried<span class="pagenum" id="Page_258">[258]</span>
+Frank. “He has two of the ugliest blood-hounds
+you ever saw.”</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll give you one minute to get away in,”
+sang out Raymond. “After that I’ll leave both
+my dogs loose.”</p>
+
+<p>Raymond muttered something under his
+breath. Then there was a rattling of chains,
+and the next minute two ferocious blood-hounds
+bounded out into the yard.</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_259">[259]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER XXVI<br>
+
+<small>BOB SHOWS HIS NERVE</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">The</span> blood-hounds stood still for a second on
+catching sight of Bob and Frank.</p>
+
+<p>Then, as if scenting the blood on Frank’s
+face, both made a dash for the young man.</p>
+
+<p>“Help me!” cried Frank. For the time being
+he seemed to be fairly paralyzed with terror.</p>
+
+<p>“Jump into the tree!” returned Bob, quickly.</p>
+
+<p>The tree he mentioned stood but a few feet
+away. The lower limbs were not far from eight
+feet from the ground and almost directly over
+Frank’s head.</p>
+
+<p>With a desperate spring the young man
+caught one of the limbs and drew himself up
+just as one of the blood-hounds reached the spot
+where he had been standing.</p>
+
+<p>Baffled, the hound let out a deep growl and
+then stood up on his hind legs, followed by his
+mate.</p>
+
+<p>Then Bob thought of the pistol he carried
+and produced it.</p>
+
+<p>Crack! Bob pulled the trigger of the pistol
+and one of the blood-hounds fell back, shot
+through the heart.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_260">[260]</span>“Here, stop that!” roared Raymond, from
+the door-way of the barn.</p>
+
+<p>“I told you to keep them chained,” returned
+the youth as coolly as he could. “Better call
+the other one in.”</p>
+
+<p>The second hound turned at the shot, and
+backed several paces. Then he looked at his
+mate as though surprised at what had happened.</p>
+
+<p>“Good for you!” cried Frank. “Wait till I
+finish the other.”</p>
+
+<p>He drew his own pistol and fired, but his aim
+was poor, and the bullet merely grazed the
+blood-hound’s back.</p>
+
+<p>With a howl of rage the hound sprang away
+from the tree. Then with set teeth and gleaming
+eyes, he turned to attack Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“Go for him, Leo!” cried Raymond.</p>
+
+<p>He was in a rage and would have liked
+nothing better than to see the hound tear Bob
+to pieces.</p>
+
+<p>Bob again took aim and pulled the trigger.
+But for some reason the weapon failed to go
+off.</p>
+
+<p>The next instant the young photographer
+was knocked flat on his back by the blood-hound.</p>
+
+<p>Seeing this, Frank leaped down from the tree
+and rushed forward.</p>
+
+<p>“Get back there!” he yelled at the hound,
+and fired his pistol at the same time.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_261">[261]</span>But the beast paid no attention to the command.
+He snapped at Bob, and it was only by
+a quick movement to one side that the young
+photographer kept himself from having his arm
+torn to shreds.</p>
+
+<p>“Go for him!” cried Raymond.</p>
+
+<p>Lying on his back, Bob made another attempt
+to shoot the blood-hound. He pulled the trigger
+again, and this time the pistol went off, and
+with a shrill yelp the beast keeled over and lay
+on his side with a bullet through his head.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll fix you for that!” screamed Raymond.</p>
+
+<p>He gave a shrill whistle, but already half a
+dozen men came running from the bar-room of
+the hotel, anxious to know what the firing was
+about.</p>
+
+<p>“Is that you, Raymond?”</p>
+
+<p>“What’s up?”</p>
+
+<p>“These fellows are prowling about the place,”
+returned Raymond.</p>
+
+<p>“That so?”</p>
+
+<p>“They are up to no good. This one just shot
+both my dogs.”</p>
+
+<p>“Don’t say! Why, those dogs were worth a
+hundred dollars.”</p>
+
+<p>“Every cent of it. Boys, will you help me
+capture them?”</p>
+
+<p>“Certainly we will. Hi! stop there!”</p>
+
+<p>“Come on,” whispered Frank to Bob. “We
+can’t stand up against such a crowd. The best<span class="pagenum" id="Page_262">[262]</span>
+we can do is to run away and summon the
+authorities.”</p>
+
+<p>“The constable don’t amount to a hill of
+beans,” returned the young photographer. “Yet
+if you say go, we’ll skip. I was principally after
+Casco.”</p>
+
+<p>“Come ahead this way.”</p>
+
+<p>“Lead ahead.”</p>
+
+<p>The young man turned to a lane which ran
+to the south of the barn, and Bob came close
+behind. It was then that one of the men yelled
+for them to stop, but he was not heeded.</p>
+
+<p>“Where is Casco?” asked Frank, as they
+scurried along.</p>
+
+<p>“Got away across the brook. I wonder if
+any of those fellows will follow us.”</p>
+
+<p>“It’s not likely, after they see the way you
+treated the hounds,” laughed Frank. “By
+Jove! Bob, you are a crack shot.”</p>
+
+<p>“I used to go hunting with old Peter Thompson’s
+gun when I wasn’t any higher than a rail
+fence,” returned the young photographer.
+“Which way now?”</p>
+
+<p>“There is a customer of mine lives up a side
+road not far from here. We might go to his
+house. I can’t go much farther with this head
+of mine.”</p>
+
+<p>“Does it hurt very bad?”</p>
+
+<p>“It aches fearfully.”</p>
+
+<p>“Let me tie it up with a wet handkerchief.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_263">[263]</span>Bob got out his handkerchief and, wetting it
+in the brook, tied it over the wound. Frank,
+declared this relieved him considerably, and the
+two continued on their way at a more rapid
+pace than ever.</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t believe they are following,” said
+Bob, as, after five minutes of running, they
+paused to listen. “I believe that was only a
+bluff to get us off.”</p>
+
+<p>“Raymond is fearfully mad over the loss of
+those blood-hounds. He set great store by
+them. That is one reason the authorities
+never cared to go there to serve him with
+papers.”</p>
+
+<p>“It was a pity to kill them, but it couldn’t be
+helped. I am glad the shots were such lucky
+ones.”</p>
+
+<p>“So am I. Here we are at Larchmond’s
+place. I suppose he will think it awfully queer
+to be roused up at this time of the night.”</p>
+
+<p>They now entered a neat garden, and walking
+up a gravel path ascended to the porch. There
+was no bell, but a brass knocker instead, and
+this Frank used vigorously.</p>
+
+<p>A minute of dead silence followed. Then an
+upper window was shoved open and a head
+covered with a night-cap appeared.</p>
+
+<p>“What do you want?”</p>
+
+<p>“Is that you, Mr. Larchmond?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_264">[264]</span>“I am Frank Landes, the collector and
+agent.”</p>
+
+<p>“Gracious! What business do you want this
+time of night? I sent that consignment of eggs
+off——”</p>
+
+<p>“The eggs are all right, Mr. Larchmond. I
+have other business of a more serious nature——”</p>
+
+<p>“Gracious, you don’t mean it!” and the old
+man’s voice actually quivered.</p>
+
+<p>“Shet the winder, you’ll catch yeour deth o’
+cold, Thomas!” came in a shrill female voice.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll be down in a minit,” said Larchmond,
+and bang, down came the window.</p>
+
+<p>Several minutes passed. Then a light appeared
+in the hall, and they heard the old man
+nervously unlock and unbolt the door.</p>
+
+<p>“Come in an’ tell me the trouble,” he said.
+“Why, who’s this?” he added, looking at Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“This is my friend, Bob Alden. We have
+just come away from Raymond’s Hotel——”</p>
+
+<p>“Is somebody killed there?” put in Larchmond,
+quickly. “I always allowed as how some
+day they would have a fight and——”</p>
+
+<p>“No one is killed but Raymond’s two blood-hounds,”
+laughed Frank.</p>
+
+<p>“Do tell!”</p>
+
+<p>“My friend Bob shot them. But we have
+had serious trouble, and we want your advice as
+to what is best to do.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_265">[265]</span>“Come into the sittin’-room. It’s all right,
+Mirandy!” called Larchmond up the stairs.</p>
+
+<p>“I’m comin’ down!” returned Mrs. Larchmond,
+and presently she appeared, fully dressed.</p>
+
+<p>The story of the happenings at Raymond’s
+Hotel was soon told. Old Larchmond and his
+wife listened with interest, the old man shaking
+his head repeatedly, and the old lady putting in
+a “do tell” at every opportunity.</p>
+
+<p>“And now we want to know what is the best
+to do,” said Frank after all the facts had been
+related.</p>
+
+<p>“Yeou can’t do nuthin’,” replied Mrs. Larchmond,
+promptly.</p>
+
+<p>“We can’t?” cried Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“No, yeou can’t.”</p>
+
+<p>“Why not?”</p>
+
+<p>“Well, it’s this way,” said the old man, by
+way of explanation. “Raymond is the wust
+feller in the whole deestrict. The law can’t tech
+him, nohow. I tried to sue him onct, but the
+constable couldn’t serve the papers, nohow.”</p>
+
+<p>“Did you have Dilmer?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, I had Dilmer, an’ I had Vincent, too;
+but it wuz no ust—them dogs kept ’em at a safe
+distance.”</p>
+
+<p>“But the hounds are now dead.”</p>
+
+<p>“It don’t make no difference. Raymond
+can’t be teched, nohow. Anybody in Kentown
+will tell you the same thing.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_266">[266]</span>“That’s a nice state of affairs,” cried Frank.
+“A man like that to terrorize the whole neighborhood!”</p>
+
+<p>“Well, you see, Raymond has lots of relations
+around here, an’ they all stick up for him.
+If it wasn’t for that, somethin’ might be did,
+although I doubt it, bless me if I don’t.”</p>
+
+<p>“Thomas is right,” put in Mrs. Larchmond.
+“If your money is safe, you better go about
+your affairs and say nuthin’.”</p>
+
+<p>“Oh, the money is safe enough,” returned
+Frank. “I grabbed that up and put it in my
+pocket the first thing.”</p>
+
+<p>As the young man spoke, he put his hand
+into his coat pocket to make sure that the
+eighteen hundred dollars were still there. Then
+he turned pale.</p>
+
+<p>“It’s gone!” he gasped.</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_267">[267]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER XXVII<br>
+
+<small>BOB MAKES A FIND</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">Every</span> one in the sitting-room was astonished.
+Bob sprang to his feet.</p>
+
+<p>“You are sure it is gone?” he demanded.</p>
+
+<p>Frank continued his search, each moment
+growing paler.</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, it’s gone!” he groaned. “Eighteen
+hundred dollars! What will the firm say?”</p>
+
+<p>“When did you feel to see if it was safe
+last?” asked the young photographer.</p>
+
+<p>“When I jumped up into the tree to get out
+of the way of the blood-hounds.”</p>
+
+<p>“And you are sure you had it then?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes.”</p>
+
+<p>“Then you must have dropped it while running
+here. Perhaps it jounced out of your
+pocket.”</p>
+
+<p>“Maybe it did. My head hurt so before you
+tied it up I didn’t give the money a thought.”</p>
+
+<p>“Well, the best thing to do is to go back for
+it,” said Bob, promptly. “The quicker the
+better.”</p>
+
+<p>“What, go back to Raymond’s?” screamed
+Mrs. Larchmond. “He will kill you.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_268">[268]</span>“It’s tremendous risky,” said the old man,
+with a shake of his head.</p>
+
+<p>“Never mind, it’s got to be done,” said Bob.
+“Eighteen hundred dollars is a lot of money.”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, I must go back,” said Frank. “What
+would the firm say if the money was lost?
+They would most likely discharge me, and
+maybe say I gambled it away, or something like
+that.”</p>
+
+<p>“Will you lend us a lantern?” asked Bob,
+turning to Larchmond.</p>
+
+<p>“Certainly.”</p>
+
+<p>“You need not go, Bob. I can go alone.”</p>
+
+<p>“No, indeed, Frank; we stick together to the
+end.”</p>
+
+<p>The old farmer left the sitting-room and presently
+returned with a lantern and a blunder-buss.</p>
+
+<p>“You might as well take the buss along,
+too,” he said. “It’s a putty good shootin’
+piece.”</p>
+
+<p>“Thank you, but I think our pistols will do,
+if you have any cartridges around.”</p>
+
+<p>“Timothy had cartridges for his pistol,” put
+in Mrs. Larchmond. “They are up in his
+closet. I’ll get ’em.”</p>
+
+<p>She soon returned with the cartridges, which,
+luckily, just fitted the pistol Bob carried. It
+took but a moment to load, and then the boys
+were ready to start back.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_269">[269]</span>“I’d go, only my rheumatism is wuss,” said
+old Larchmond, apologetically.</p>
+
+<p>“Indeed you wouldn’t!” put in his wife. “I
+wouldn’t let you go for twice eighteen hundred
+dollars; there, now!”</p>
+
+<p>The boys were soon on the road. The lantern
+shone brightly, lighting up every foot of
+the way.</p>
+
+<p>“I trust we find it before we get anywhere
+near Raymond’s,” said Frank. “I have no
+desire to get into another tussle with him.”</p>
+
+<p>“Neither have I,” returned Bob. “But,
+Frank, keep your pistol ready for use. We
+don’t want to waste words with such a desperate
+character as that hotel-keeper.”</p>
+
+<p>“I agree with you. Here is my pistol right
+in my coat pocket.”</p>
+
+<p>“And I’ll carry mine in my hand. You take
+that side of the road, while I take this, and carry
+the lantern as low as possible.”</p>
+
+<p>In this fashion the two moved slowly along,
+searching every foot of the hard and dusty road.</p>
+
+<p>“I would like to know where Casco went,”
+said Bob, presently. “For all we know, he
+might have watched that fight with the blood-hounds
+and followed us.”</p>
+
+<p>“Hardly. If he escaped across the brook, he
+most likely set out to join Barker and Grogan.
+He would leave Raymond to settle the row
+here.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_270">[270]</span>“I wish they were all in jail,” sighed Bob.
+“Then perhaps I could make Barker reveal
+something of the past, and make a somebody of
+myself.”</p>
+
+<p>“You’ll make a somebody of yourself, anyway,
+Bob,” returned Frank, encouragingly.
+“You’ve got too much grit to fail.”</p>
+
+<p>But Bob shook his head, as if the idea of
+never finding out the secret of his life did not
+please him.</p>
+
+<p>Quarter of an hour later they came to a halt.
+They had reached the boundary line of Raymond’s
+place, and still the money had not been
+found.</p>
+
+<p>“If we keep the lantern lit, they will surely
+see us,” said Bob. “You had better put it out.”</p>
+
+<p>“But how are we going to find the money in
+the dark?”</p>
+
+<p>“By feeling for it. I know exactly the way
+we came, and I will lead on.”</p>
+
+<p>Frank, after some hesitation, put out the
+lantern. The first streaks of the early dawn
+were now appearing, and it was not so dark as
+he had anticipated.</p>
+
+<p>Bob was several yards ahead, moving along
+slowly, with his eyes bent on the ground. Suddenly
+he gave a low cry.</p>
+
+<p>“Here it is!”</p>
+
+<p>“You have it?” inquired Frank, running up.</p>
+
+<p>“Isn’t this the roll?”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_271">[271]</span>“Yes.” The young man’s face took on a look
+of relief. “Oh, how thankful I am!”</p>
+
+<p>“Better examine it and make sure,” suggested
+Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“Oh, it must be all right.”</p>
+
+<p>Nevertheless, Frank hastily undid the paper
+and elastics which were placed about the roll of
+money, and began to count the bills.</p>
+
+<p>So absorbed did both he and Bob become
+that they did not notice the approach of a tall
+form from a mass of shrubbery which grew close
+to the road.</p>
+
+<p>The newcomer was Jim Casco, who was on
+his return to Raymond’s Hotel, satisfied that
+for the present, at least, it was safe to do so.</p>
+
+<p>Casco was astonished to come upon the pair,
+and still more taken aback to behold them at
+work counting a big roll of bills.</p>
+
+<p>“What does this mean?” he muttered to
+himself. “They can’t have been so near all this
+while.”</p>
+
+<p>He drew closer, and nervously clutched the
+heavy stick he held in his right hand.</p>
+
+<p>“It’s right,” said Frank finishing the counting.</p>
+
+<p>“You have every dollar of the eighteen hundred
+there?” asked Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“Yes.”</p>
+
+<p>“Good enough. Now we might as well go
+back without delay. I am dead tired.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_272">[272]</span>“I should think you would be, not having
+any sleep since last night. Perhaps Mr. Larchmond
+will give us a shake down.”</p>
+
+<p>“I hope so.”</p>
+
+<p>“Where is that wonderful photographic outfit
+you wrote me about?”</p>
+
+<p>“Over in Dartinville. I will have to go for it
+as soon as we finish up with Raymond.”</p>
+
+<p>“We will see if we can’t have him arrested,”
+said Frank, decidedly.</p>
+
+<p>“That’s it. And when—what was that?”</p>
+
+<p>Bob broke off short. A dark object loomed
+up over his back and a stinging blow went singing
+through his head.</p>
+
+<p>“Stop!” he heard Frank cry. “Give me that
+money!”</p>
+
+<p>Both Bob and Frank were sprawling in the
+road, while across the fields ran Casco, with the
+roll of bills in his hand.</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_273">[273]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER XXVIII<br>
+
+<small>BOB MEETS OLD BLAKE</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">As</span> quickly as he could, Bob sprang to his
+feet.</p>
+
+<p>“Save the money!” gasped Frank.</p>
+
+<p>He had received another crack over the head
+and the old wound was bleeding afresh.</p>
+
+<p>“Which way did that fellow go?”</p>
+
+<p>“That way.”</p>
+
+<p>“Who was it? Raymond?”</p>
+
+<p>“No; Casco.”</p>
+
+<p>“By jinks! So he had the cheek to come
+back. Stay here till I go after him.” With his
+head still stinging from the blow the scar-faced
+man had dealt him, the young photographer
+sprang over the bushes which lined the roadway
+and made after Casco, who was running across
+the open fields at top speed.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll either get Frank’s money or finish that
+wretch,” was the youth’s somewhat savage
+resolve.</p>
+
+<p>When about a hundred yards away, Casco
+looked back to see if either of his victims had
+recovered from the attack.</p>
+
+<p>He was astonished to see Bob in pursuit.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_274">[274]</span>“Humph! The young rascal means business,”
+he muttered to himself. “I must reach
+shelter as soon as I can.”</p>
+
+<p>Not very far beyond was a small lake, the
+edge of which was lined with willows. Toward
+this Casco directed his steps.</p>
+
+<p>Bob saw the scar-faced man disappear behind
+the fringe of willow trees. He did not come to
+a halt, but kept on at a slower gait, fearful that
+Casco might be setting a trap for him.</p>
+
+<p>Day was now breaking, and every moment
+the eastern sky grew lighter.</p>
+
+<p>When Bob reached the edge of the lake,
+nothing was to be seen of the scar-faced man.</p>
+
+<p>Bob looked up and down the shore in perplexity,
+and then began an examination for foot-prints.</p>
+
+<p>They were plainly visible, leading to a little
+cove a hundred feet southward.</p>
+
+<p>When Bob reached the cove, he found close
+at hand a stake with a bit of rope attached to it.
+The rope had been newly cut.</p>
+
+<p>“Stole a boat, I’ll bet,” muttered the young
+photographer to himself. “By jinks, what a
+fool I am! There he is!”</p>
+
+<p>Bob looked out on the water, and there, a
+goodly distance from the shore, was Casco in a
+boat, rowing away as fast as he could.</p>
+
+<p>The scar-faced man was too far off to make a
+shot effective, and in deep chagrin Bob saw him<span class="pagenum" id="Page_275">[275]</span>
+disappear around a cluster of islands in the
+centre of the lake.</p>
+
+<p>As fast as he could, Bob ran along the shore
+until he reached a spot where he could see the
+other side of the island.</p>
+
+<p>The boat had disappeared.</p>
+
+<p>At first the young photographer could scarcely
+believe his senses. What had become of Casco
+and the craft?</p>
+
+<p>“Perhaps she filled with water and sunk,”
+thought Bob. “In that case he would have to
+take to the islands. I wish I could keep him
+there till I could get assistance.”</p>
+
+<p>But Bob knew better than to leave the spot
+at once. Casco was a wily villain, and not
+one of the kind to be caught like a rat in a
+trap.</p>
+
+<p>“As soon as I disappear, he’ll think I’ve gone
+to summon assistance, and then he’ll come
+ashore,” was the way Bob reasoned. “I think
+I’ll play a watching game.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob sat down on a rock, out of the sight of
+the islands, and waited. Ten minutes passed
+and he saw nothing to command his attention.</p>
+
+<p>“He is certainly taking his time,” thought
+the youth. “Hullo, what’s that?”</p>
+
+<p>Bob’s attention was attracted to a small boat
+which had suddenly shot out from the opposite
+shore.</p>
+
+<p>The craft contained a single occupant, an old<span class="pagenum" id="Page_276">[276]</span>
+man, who worked away at the oars in a feeble
+way.</p>
+
+<p>“He must be going to the islands, too,”
+thought the young photographer. “This begins
+to look interesting.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob watched the old man with keen interest.
+In less than ten minutes the islands were
+reached, and the second boat disappeared as
+the first had done.</p>
+
+<p>“Who can that old chap be?” was Bob’s
+mental question. “Can he know Casco?”</p>
+
+<p>Five minutes more passed, and then the youth
+heard a well-known whistle, to which he at once
+responded.</p>
+
+<p>In a fraction of time Frank was at his side.</p>
+
+<p>“I couldn’t stay any longer,” said the young
+man. “Where is Casco?”</p>
+
+<p>“On one of those islands.”</p>
+
+<p>“You don’t say! How did he get over?”</p>
+
+<p>“On a boat; and just now another man went
+over on a second boat.”</p>
+
+<p>“This is Catfish Lake, and they say the
+islands are haunted.”</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t believe in ghosts,” declared Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“Neither do I.”</p>
+
+<p>“How is your head?”</p>
+
+<p>“It feels thick, but it doesn’t ache, so I think
+I can stand it. What do you propose to
+do?”</p>
+
+<p>“Get back your eighteen hundred dollars!”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_277">[277]</span>“Are you going to stay here until Casco
+leaves the islands?”</p>
+
+<p>“Either that or pay the islands a visit. I
+wonder if there is another boat anywhere?”</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t know. There ought to be.”</p>
+
+<p>“If you’ll watch the islands, I’ll take a look
+around.”</p>
+
+<p>“I will. Sitting still just suits me.”</p>
+
+<p>“Then maybe we had better watch all day.”</p>
+
+<p>But to this Frank demurred. He was too
+anxious to get back the stolen money.</p>
+
+<p>Bob at once began his search for another
+boat. It was by no means an easy task, as
+the shore was rocky and lined with a thick
+sedge.</p>
+
+<p>Presently he came to the rear of a large farm,
+and here he found a boat moored to a fallen tree.</p>
+
+<p>By the looks of the craft the young photographer
+felt sure that it had not been used for a
+long time. But it did not leak, so he did not
+care how dilapidated it was in appearance.</p>
+
+<p>Untying the boat, he towed her around to
+where Frank sat.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ve found one,” he said. “But there are
+no oars.”</p>
+
+<p>“I suppose they haven’t used it, fearing the
+ghosts from the islands might catch them,”
+laughed the young man. “Well, I reckon you
+can get along without oars on a pinch.”</p>
+
+<p>“How?”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_278">[278]</span>“The water is so shallow a couple of poles is
+all we will need to push ourselves over. But,
+Bob, there is another thing.”</p>
+
+<p>“What is that?”</p>
+
+<p>“By going over to the islands you will run a
+big risk.”</p>
+
+<p>“So will you. But if you are afraid——”</p>
+
+<p>“I am not afraid for myself. But it’s asking
+too much of you——”</p>
+
+<p>“Oh, stow that, Frank. I haven’t lost any
+money, but I’m just as anxious to bring Casco
+to justice as you are.”</p>
+
+<p>“And you want to make the trial in broad
+daylight?”</p>
+
+<p>“If you say so, yes. We are both armed, and
+we ought to have as good a show to come out
+on top as Casco.”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s true.”</p>
+
+<p>“If he begins to fire at us, we can come back
+and wait.”</p>
+
+<p>A few minutes after they got aboard the boat.
+Bob had cut two fair-sized poles, and also several
+bushes, which he stood up in the bow of the craft.</p>
+
+<p>“That will destroy his aim if he pulls on us,”
+said the youth.</p>
+
+<p>It was hard work poling the boat along, as the
+bottom of the lake was for the most part rocky,
+and the poles slipped. Once Frank nearly
+went overboard, but Bob caught him by the
+arm in time to save him.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_279">[279]</span>They had now come within a hundred feet of
+the islands, and still nobody made his appearance,
+nor did they see a single sign of hostilities.</p>
+
+<p>“Maybe he’s skipped,” said Frank.</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t see how he could. Come on, we will
+run in this inlet and jump ashore. Got your
+pistol handy?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes.”</p>
+
+<p>“Hold on till I take a good look ahead.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob stood up in the bow and parted the
+bushes. At the moment that he did so there
+reached them a most agonizing scream.</p>
+
+<p>“Help me! Oh, save me!”</p>
+
+<p>The cry came from behind a grove of willow
+trees, close to the shore.</p>
+
+<p>“That isn’t Casco’s voice!” exclaimed Frank.
+“What can it mean?”</p>
+
+<p>“It may be that old man I saw,” replied Bob.
+“Or it may be nothing but a trap.”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s no trap,” said Frank, as the scream
+again reached them.</p>
+
+<p>“Don’t sound so, surely. Come on!”</p>
+
+<p>Standing on the bow of the boat, Bob made a
+leap and reached the rocky shore. In a minute
+he had dashed through the willows to the open
+glade beyond.</p>
+
+<p>A sight met his gaze that filled him with horror.
+There, lying flat on his back, with his face
+covered with blood, was old man Blake!</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_280">[280]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER XXIX<br>
+
+<small>BOB HEARS INTERESTING NEWS</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">The</span> old man had been struck in the head
+with a heavy stick which lay close at hand.</p>
+
+<p>“Hullo, who did this?” cried Bob, as he
+leaned over the old man.</p>
+
+<p>“Casco, the villain!” gasped old Blake.</p>
+
+<p>“Too bad!” returned the young photographer,
+kindly. “Let me examine the wound.”</p>
+
+<p>“Catch the rascal first; he has stolen the
+papers,” cried the old man. “He must not get
+away with them.”</p>
+
+<p>“Where is he?”</p>
+
+<p>“He went off in that direction.”</p>
+
+<p>Old Blake pointed with his long, bony finger
+toward one of the other islands. Then he tried
+to rise, but fell back in a faint in Bob’s arms.
+By this time Frank had arrived on the scene.
+He did not know Blake, but he surmised that
+the old man had been another of Casco’s
+victims.</p>
+
+<p>“Tend to him, Frank, while I go after
+Casco,” said Bob. “I’ll whistle if I want you.”</p>
+
+<p>Pistol in hand, the young photographer made
+his way through the willows and over the rocks<span class="pagenum" id="Page_281">[281]</span>
+until, jumping a shallow spot in the water, he
+landed on one of the other islands.</p>
+
+<p>A noise ahead told him that Casco was not
+far off. But as Bob plunged on the sounds suddenly
+ceased, and all became profoundly silent.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll bet a hat he has taken to the water
+again,” said Bob to himself.</p>
+
+<p>Reaching the edge of the second island the
+young photographer found his surmise correct.
+There, half-way to the north shore, was Casco
+in his boat, pulling with all his strength. A
+minute later Casco reached shore and disappeared
+from view.</p>
+
+<p>“Gone!” groaned Bob. “And with Frank’s
+eighteen hundred dollars, too!”</p>
+
+<p>The youth felt almost as bad as if the loss
+had been his own.</p>
+
+<p>Frank Landes was his dearest friend, and, although
+the young man was rich, Bob knew the
+loss of the money would be a sore trial to him.</p>
+
+<p>When the young photographer returned to
+where he had left Frank and old Blake, he found
+that his friend had bound up the old man’s forehead
+with a wet rag torn from his coat sleeve.
+Blake was as pale as death, and could scarcely
+move.</p>
+
+<p>Yet he opened his eyes anxiously when Bob
+approached.</p>
+
+<p>“Did you get ’em?” he asked feebly.</p>
+
+<p>“No.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_282">[282]</span>“Didn’t you see Casco?” asked Frank.</p>
+
+<p>“Yes. He escaped to the shore.”</p>
+
+<p>Frank’s face fell, and Blake gave a groan.</p>
+
+<p>“The papers, gone!” muttered the old man.
+“Gone, and Barker promised me five hundred
+dollars for them!”</p>
+
+<p>“What’s that?” asked Bob, with sudden interest.</p>
+
+<p>“Nothin’,” mumbled Blake, but he eyed the
+youth in a dreamy, speculative way for a long
+while after.</p>
+
+<p>Bob and Frank now held a consultation. It
+was obvious that they could not leave Blake
+alone. The old man might die if left without
+somebody to nurse him.</p>
+
+<p>“If you will remain, I will go after Casco,”
+said Frank. “As soon as I reach shore, I will
+get somebody to drive me over to Dartinville,
+and from there I will telegraph to the city for a
+couple of detectives. This chase has lasted
+long enough. I will pay a couple of hundred
+dollars out of my own pocket to run down
+Casco and his gang.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob agreed to remain behind, and in a minute
+more Frank was off, poling for the shore as hard
+as his tired arms would permit.</p>
+
+<p>“Are you in the habit of coming to this
+island?” asked Bob of Blake, when the old
+man was able to sit up.</p>
+
+<p>“Sometimes,” was the slow response.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_283">[283]</span>“Is there any sort of shelter here?”</p>
+
+<p>Blake was silent for a moment.</p>
+
+<p>“Why do you ask?” he questioned at length.</p>
+
+<p>“Because if there was I might take you to it
+and make you comfortable. You are not very
+comfortable out here on these damp rocks.”</p>
+
+<p>“There is a cave-hut just back of here. Take
+me to that, please.”</p>
+
+<p>As Blake spoke, a dizziness seemed to come
+over him, and he closed his eyes. Bob waited
+until the spell was over, and then half carried,
+half dragged the old man to the place he had
+mentioned.</p>
+
+<p>The young photographer found that a large
+hollow under a shelving rock had been converted
+into a dwelling-place by having a front of
+logs built up against it.</p>
+
+<p>There were a door and a window, and, entering
+the former, Bob discovered a cot, a table,
+and a couple of chairs, while a number of pans
+and dishes lay heaped up in a corner.</p>
+
+<p>The youth placed Blake on the cot and made
+him as comfortable as the conveniences of the
+cave-hut permitted. Blake pointed to a flask
+resting on a shelf, and when the youth handed
+it to him the old man took a deep draught of
+the liquor it contained.</p>
+
+<p>It appeared to brace him up. The color
+came back into his face, and presently he sat
+up.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_284">[284]</span>“So you say Casco got away with those
+papers?” he said slowly.</p>
+
+<p>“He got away. I know nothing of any
+papers.”</p>
+
+<p>“He ought to let me have ’em back.”</p>
+
+<p>“What did the papers contain?”</p>
+
+<p>“Never mind.”</p>
+
+<p>“They ought to be pretty valuable if Barker
+offered you five hundred dollars for them.”</p>
+
+<p>“Who said he did?”</p>
+
+<p>“You did.”</p>
+
+<p>“I was only foolin’. They ain’t worth anything
+to anybody but me.”</p>
+
+<p>“How long have you known Barker?” went
+on Bob, seating himself beside the old man.</p>
+
+<p>“Longer than I care to remember.”</p>
+
+<p>“Did you ever know Peter Thompson?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes.”</p>
+
+<p>“What do you know about my past history?”</p>
+
+<p>The young photographer asked the question
+boldly, watching Blake intently as he did so.</p>
+
+<p>He saw the old man start up and then fall
+back.</p>
+
+<p>“Who said I knew anything about your history?”
+he said, sharply.</p>
+
+<p>“I say so, Blake. Come, you had better tell
+me all. I am willing to nurse you and see you
+through, but I want the truth from you, and
+unless I get it you shall go to prison.”</p>
+
+<p>“No! no!”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_285">[285]</span>“I say yes.”</p>
+
+<p>“But Sarah——”</p>
+
+<p>“You mean your daughter?”</p>
+
+<p>“Do you know her?”</p>
+
+<p>“I know of her.”</p>
+
+<p>“What will Sarah say?”</p>
+
+<p>“I believe she has been at you to turn over a
+new leaf, Blake.”</p>
+
+<p>“So she has,” and the old man sighed.</p>
+
+<p>“Then why don’t you do it?”</p>
+
+<p>For a long time Blake was silent. Bob could
+see that he was undergoing a severe mental
+struggle. At last he heaved a long sigh.</p>
+
+<p>“I will tell you all I know,” he said; “but
+you must promise to protect me against
+Barker.”</p>
+
+<p>“I will do that.”</p>
+
+<p>“If he found I had exposed him, he might
+kill me.”</p>
+
+<p>“It will not be long before Barker is in
+prison, and the others with him.”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s where they ought to be.”</p>
+
+<p>“But tell me what you know,” went on Bob,
+impatiently.</p>
+
+<p>“I first met Barker about ten or twelve years
+ago,” began old Blake.</p>
+
+<p>“Where?”</p>
+
+<p>“At the house of Robert Perry, your uncle,
+in Buffalo.”</p>
+
+<p>“Robert Perry; is he still alive?”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_286">[286]</span>“No; he died shortly after Barker came
+there.”</p>
+
+<p>“Who is my father?”</p>
+
+<p>“He was Thomas Perry, Robert’s brother.
+He was a captain in the United States Army,
+and he was killed in an Indian raid in the Black
+Hills.”</p>
+
+<p>“And my mother?”</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t know anything of her. Your father
+met her out West and married. When he was
+killed, you, a mere baby, was sent to your uncle’s
+home. The report was that your mother was
+also killed by the Indians; but your uncle could
+never learn the exact truth of that statement.”</p>
+
+<p>“Then she may be alive?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes. I believe Barker knows for certain.”</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_287">[287]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER XXX<br>
+
+<small>BOB LEARNS SOMETHING OF THE PAST</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">Never</span> had Bob listened to words that interested
+him more. Here, at last, was news concerning
+his identity. His real name was Bob
+Perry, and he was the son of an officer. It was
+not known for certain whether his mother was
+dead or not. Supposing she was alive? A
+lump arose in Bob’s throat at the mere thought.</p>
+
+<p>“You say you think Barker knows?” he said,
+quickly.</p>
+
+<p>“Yes.”</p>
+
+<p>“Then I’ll make Barker speak,” was the
+young photographer’s determination.</p>
+
+<p>Blake took another pull at his flask and then
+continued:</p>
+
+<p>“Barker pretends that he is the son of a sister
+of your father and Robert Perry—a sister who
+emigrated to Montana with a man named
+Barker.”</p>
+
+<p>“He pretends?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, pretends; for Casco found out that old
+Barker had no children when he died. That
+gave him a hold on Barker.”</p>
+
+<p>“I see. Go on.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_288">[288]</span>“Grogan knew Barker before he turned up at
+your uncle’s place. He once told me, when he
+was full of liquor, that Barker’s real name was
+Bill Dix, and that he was a Virginia outlaw,
+wanted for shooting a man in Petersburg.”</p>
+
+<p>“And that gave Grogan his hold on Barker?”</p>
+
+<p>“It did. But all three are hard customers,
+and will do anything to get money.”</p>
+
+<p>“I’ve found that out. But why did Barker
+pretend to be my uncle’s nephew?”</p>
+
+<p>“Because your uncle was a bachelor, very old,
+and worth a pile of money. He thought if he
+could get you out of the way he would come in
+for part if not all of the fortune.”</p>
+
+<p>“And how did he get me out of the way?”</p>
+
+<p>“In rather a roundabout fashion. I was
+working for your uncle at the time, and Sarah,
+my daughter, who is married to a young man
+named Paul Marks, was working for a woman
+named Rose.</p>
+
+<p>“This Mrs. Rose had a child sick with scarlet
+fever, and just at that time you were similarly
+stricken. My daughter was told by the doctor
+that Mrs. Rose’s child could not live. Barker
+heard of this, and one day, when your uncle had
+to go to New York on important business, he
+had the two children changed, paying Mrs.
+Rose quite some money for the transaction.”</p>
+
+<p>“Did your daughter know of the exchange?”</p>
+
+<p>“She never knew, but she suspected something<span class="pagenum" id="Page_289">[289]</span>
+was wrong, and often asked me. The
+day Mrs. Rose’s child was taken to your uncle’s
+house it died, and as every one was afraid of
+scarlet fever, no one came in from the neighborhood,
+and the little one was buried the next
+day, the doctor making out a certificate without
+viewing the corpse.”</p>
+
+<p>“And I was taken to Mrs. Rose’s house?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes. My daughter wanted to nurse you,
+but Mrs. Rose pretended to want to do the
+nursing herself, and would not let my daughter
+in the room. I believe the plan was to poison
+you, but you got well rapidly, and Mrs. Rose
+did not have the heart to poison you, but sent
+you off to an orphan asylum instead.”</p>
+
+<p>“But how did I get to old Thompson’s?”</p>
+
+<p>“Barker and Mrs. Rose quarrelled about a
+month later, and that very day you were taken
+from the orphan asylum by somebody, and then
+I lost track of you.”</p>
+
+<p>“No doubt it was Barker’s work,” said Bob,
+remembering what Mary Ridley, who had
+worked for Peter Thompson, had told him.
+“What became of Mrs. Rose?”</p>
+
+<p>“She died of heart failure brought on by the
+excitement of the quarrel. At least that is what
+they said. Perhaps Barker poisoned her, he is
+such a wretch.”</p>
+
+<p>“And did he get possession of my uncle’s
+property?”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_290">[290]</span>“He got possession of only a small part of it.
+The rest remains somewhere tied up in the
+courts. Barker could not produce satisfactory
+evidence in regard to his identity, and besides,
+he did not have those papers I spoke about.”</p>
+
+<p>“What papers are they?”</p>
+
+<p>“They pretend to prove that your mother
+was killed as well as your father. The package
+also has a number of letters from Barker to
+Mrs. Rose relating to the changing of the children.
+I was holding them to get money, but
+that is all over now.”</p>
+
+<p>“How did you learn of all this?”</p>
+
+<p>“By prying around and following Barker,
+whom I did not like from the start. Then I
+got to drinking, and Barker and Casco made
+me their tool. I tried to reform several times,
+because Sarah wanted me to, but the appetite
+for liquor was too strong. But now I am done
+with it forever!”</p>
+
+<p>As Blake finished, he caught up the flask,
+which was still half full of liquor, and hurled it
+with all his strength against the rocky back
+wall of the hut. It was smashed into a hundred
+pieces, and the liquor splashed in all directions.</p>
+
+<p>“I swear that from now on I’m going to lead
+a different life,” went on the old man. “And
+if you will help me, I’ll do what I can to bring
+that gang to justice and assist you in getting
+your inheritance.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_291">[291]</span>“And in finding my mother, if she be alive,”
+added Bob. “Blake, give me your hand. From
+now on we are firm friends.”</p>
+
+<p>The two shook hands. More conversation
+followed, and then Bob started up a fire, for the
+air about the hut was damp, and finding some
+coffee, made a couple of hot cupfuls, both of
+which were relished.</p>
+
+<p>The young photographer asked Blake how he
+had come to locate on the islands, and was told
+that the old man at times grew utterly disgusted
+with himself and the world, and had found on
+such occasion a haven of rest there.</p>
+
+<p>“Do you think you can stand it if I row you
+to the main land?” asked Bob, when it was
+nearly noon.</p>
+
+<p>“I reckon so, but you’ll have to put me to
+bed somewhere after that.”</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll take good care of you, Blake.”</p>
+
+<p>“You’ll find my boat over in a hollow back of
+these rocks.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob procured the craft, and then, exerting all
+of his strength, carried Blake to it and sat him
+down in the stern.</p>
+
+<p>Quarter of an hour later they drew up to the
+spot where Bob had found the other boat.
+Here a fat farmer was looking around in perplexity
+for his craft.</p>
+
+<p>“Say, does you vos see mine poats?” he
+asked.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_292">[292]</span>“Yes, I borrowed it,” said Bob. “I will pay
+you for its use.”</p>
+
+<p>“Oh, dot’s all right den. I vos dinkin’ it vos
+drifted avay, ain’t it?”</p>
+
+<p>“It’s over to the other shore. But, tell me,
+do you live here?”</p>
+
+<p>“Sure, right ofer dere,” and the German
+jerked his thumb over his shoulder.</p>
+
+<p>“This man has been hurt in the head. If you
+will take him in and send for a doctor, I will be
+very thankful and settle all bills.”</p>
+
+<p>“Sure, I took him in. Carl!”</p>
+
+<p>At this call a boy, even fatter than his father,
+appeared.</p>
+
+<p>“Run an’ tole your mudder a chentleman vos
+got hurt an’ to gits a ped reaty kvick.”</p>
+
+<p>“Yah, fadder.”</p>
+
+<p>The boy went off, and Bob, assisted by the
+German farmer, lifted old Blake out of the boat,
+and carried him up to the farm-house.</p>
+
+<p>Here the old man was placed on a soft feather
+bed, and Carl was sent off for the nearest
+doctor.</p>
+
+<p>Bob left a twenty-dollar bill behind to pay all
+immediate charges, and then bidding Blake keep
+a stout heart, he hired a horse and buggy from
+the German farmer and set off for Dartinville.</p>
+
+<p>It was a good hour’s drive, but Bob did not
+mind that, being busy thinking over all Blake
+had told him.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_293">[293]</span>“I must corner Barker and make him tell me
+the whole truth,” was his one conclusion. “If
+mother is alive, I want to know it. I’m not
+going to be a nobody any longer.”</p>
+
+<p>Half-way to Dartinville Bob met Frank driving
+a bay horse at a furious rate.</p>
+
+<p>“I have telegraphed for the detectives,” said
+the young man. “They will be on hand this
+evening.”</p>
+
+<p>“Then what is your awful hurry?”</p>
+
+<p>“I have a clew as to the whereabouts of
+Barker, Grogan, and that fair-ground swindler.
+Come along, and I will tell you how I caught it.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob eagerly assented, and the two turned off
+into a side road, leading to a hilly district,
+rather hard to travel.</p>
+
+<p>On the way Frank explained how he had got
+on the track. While telegraphing at Dartinville
+a stranger had sent a message to Stampton.
+He had written out the message twice, throwing
+the first sheet away.</p>
+
+<p>“The stranger’s manner excited my curiosity,”
+Frank went on, “and I picked up the
+slip. It read: ‘Meeting at the red house on
+Rayville Road. B., G. and C. there. To-morrow
+sure.’ I knew it meant Barker, Grogan, and
+Casco.”</p>
+
+<p>“They have some big plan on hand,” returned
+Bob, “and we must stop their evil work. Let
+us drive as fast as we can.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_294">[294]</span>On and on they went, Bob on the way relating
+to Frank what old Blake had confessed.</p>
+
+<p>“They are indeed a set of villains,” returned
+the young man. “And it—hold up!”</p>
+
+<p>He drew rein, and Bob followed suit. They
+had just passed a cross-road, and looking down
+it they discovered a crowd coming toward them
+composed of Barker, Grogan, Raymond, and
+Casco!</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_295">[295]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER XXXI<br>
+
+<small>BOB GOES IT ALONE</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">Before</span> the two could draw out of sight they
+were discovered by Barker, who was slightly
+ahead of his companions.</p>
+
+<p>“Hullo, there!” he sang out. “There they
+are, boys!”</p>
+
+<p>“It’s so, for a fact,” said Casco. “Are they
+alone?”</p>
+
+<p>“Sure, an’ they are,” put in Grogan.</p>
+
+<p>“A good chance to capture them,” suggested
+Raymond.</p>
+
+<p>“What good will it do?” asked Barker.
+“The new plan will work all right anyway.”</p>
+
+<p>“Better bag them until the thing is over.”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s so,” said Casco. “Come on, we are
+four to two.”</p>
+
+<p>He ran ahead, and the others quickly followed.</p>
+
+<p>Frank saw them coming, and he whipped up
+his horse.</p>
+
+<p>“We must drive for it, Bob!” he cried.
+“They are too many for us.”</p>
+
+<p>“I would rather stand and fight it out,” returned
+the young photographer.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_296">[296]</span>But Frank urged him to follow, and to please
+his companion Bob did so. As Barker and his
+companions were on foot they soon outdistanced
+the crowd, and then Bob called Frank to hold up.</p>
+
+<p>“What’s best to do now?” questioned the
+young man.</p>
+
+<p>“I have a plan,” said Bob. “You go back to
+Dartinville and wait for the detectives while I
+keep my eyes on this crowd.”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s asking too much of you, Bob.”</p>
+
+<p>“No, it isn’t. I will follow them wherever
+they go, and I will leave a paper trail behind me
+so that you and your men can follow me up.
+That will be the easiest way of tracking them
+down.”</p>
+
+<p>“A paper trail?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes. I have a couple of newspapers I will
+tear into strips.”</p>
+
+<p>“Well, here is another, if you insist.”</p>
+
+<p>“If you find the trail ends suddenly, look for
+a message on the last slip.”</p>
+
+<p>“I will.”</p>
+
+<p>“And take this horse and buggy, I will go
+after them on foot.”</p>
+
+<p>For five minutes more the two discussed the
+plan, and then Frank drove off with Bob’s
+buggy tied fast in the rear.</p>
+
+<p>Once on the ground, Bob lost no time in
+making his way back to the spot where they
+had discovered Barker and the others.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_297">[297]</span>The young photographer was careful to keep
+out of sight, and now leaped the rail fence on
+the side of the road and pushed forward through
+the bushes.</p>
+
+<p>To any one unaccustomed to this method of
+advancement it would have proved slow and laborious,
+but Bob knew how to go ahead, and he
+was too much interested to mind the fatigue
+entailed.</p>
+
+<p>When Bob reached the spot, he found the
+enemy had moved on up the road, but he soon
+drew close enough to make out their conversation,
+which they carried on carelessly, as they continued
+up a narrow path leading to the red house
+on the Rayville road, mentioned in the message.</p>
+
+<p>“What do you suppose they will do?” asked
+Raymond.</p>
+
+<p>“Not much,” returned Casco. “I reckon
+they have got tired of chasing me.”</p>
+
+<p>“It’s a wonder they don’t come down on your
+place, Raymond,” put in Barker.</p>
+
+<p>“If they do, they’ll find out I skipped for
+California,” chuckled the hotel-keeper.</p>
+
+<p>“But they just saw you.”</p>
+
+<p>“It don’t make any difference. I’ve skipped,
+and the property belongs to my wife, so what
+can they do about it?”</p>
+
+<p>There was a general laugh, and then Casco
+and Barker dropped slightly behind and began
+to converse in lower tones.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_298">[298]</span>Bob could not hear what was said, but when
+he came to a break in the brush he peered out
+and saw Casco hand Barker a thick packet,
+done up in a large envelope.</p>
+
+<p>“The papers and letters stolen from Blake,”
+muttered the young photographer to himself.
+“I must get them without fail.”</p>
+
+<p>A short while later the crowd reached the red
+house, a low structure, built of bricks, many of
+which were cracked and crumbled.</p>
+
+<p>All entered the house, and Bob saw the door
+closed, and heard no more.</p>
+
+<p>The youth had been dropping slips of paper
+all the way. He now took a larger slip and
+wrote this message upon it:</p>
+
+<div class="blockquot">
+
+<p>“All in the red house. I am going in to
+listen. If I am all right, I will come back for
+this slip.”</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>Bob had just finished writing the slip when a
+low rumble of thunder reached his ears. He
+glanced up and saw that a shower was coming
+up from the west.</p>
+
+<p>“Good!” he muttered. “The darkness and
+the wind may help me.”</p>
+
+<p>Two sides of the red house were surrounded
+by trees and bushes, and darting among them
+the youth had no difficulty in reaching a side
+door, which stood partly open.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_299">[299]</span>Listening intently, the young photographer
+heard a murmur of voices in the front, showing
+that the crowd had entered what had once been
+a sitting-room.</p>
+
+<p>Throwing a number of strips of paper just
+outside of the door, Bob pushed his way
+inside.</p>
+
+<p>All was full of dirt and cobwebs, but to this
+the youth paid no attention. He had a mission,
+and he felt in duty bound to fulfil it, despite
+either dirt or danger.</p>
+
+<p>From the side entry Bob passed into the rear
+room, which was separated from the sitting-room
+by a stairway leading to the second story.</p>
+
+<p>Under these stairs were a door leading to the
+sitting-room and also a deep closet.</p>
+
+<p>Peeping through the key-hole of the door,
+Bob saw the entire crowd seated around a table
+in the centre of the room, smoking and drinking.</p>
+
+<p>“It’s almost time Mavelt was here,” observed
+Barker. “He is taking all day to send that
+message.”</p>
+
+<p>“Perhaps he is waiting for an answer,” suggested
+Casco. “Did you tell him not to wait?”</p>
+
+<p>“No.”</p>
+
+<p>“Then that is what he is doing.”</p>
+
+<p>“Where is Horning?”</p>
+
+<p>“He said he would be here later.”</p>
+
+<p>“We want this thing fully understood,” put
+in Raymond. “I admit it’s a big scheme, but<span class="pagenum" id="Page_300">[300]</span>
+if it don’t work, we’ll all be sent up for ten years
+or more.”</p>
+
+<p>“We’ll be sint up for loife,” remarked Grogan.
+“’Tis no small wurruk to throw a train off the
+track.”</p>
+
+<p>“We won’t throw her off unless it’s necessary,”
+said Barker. “Rankin will set the signal
+if all is safe and——”</p>
+
+<p>Bob could not catch what followed, for a
+burst of thunder drowned out all other sound.</p>
+
+<p>Yet he had heard enough. The evildoers
+were plotting to throw a certain train off the
+track, unless matters were all right. What was
+meant by all right? Casco’s words shortly afterward
+solved the question.</p>
+
+<p>“The express car will carry over forty thousand
+dollars on her trip, and Rankin will be in
+charge,” he said. “If he gets no chance to throw
+it off, he will pull the bell-rope, jump off and join
+us. Then, when the train starts, we will throw
+over that loose rail, and over goes the train.”</p>
+
+<p>“And what then?” put in Raymond.</p>
+
+<p>“I have a key to the safe, which has an ordinary
+lock, not a combination. You men can
+overpower the agent in charge while pretending
+to help the passengers, while I open the safe. We
+can carry axes to clear away such of the wreck as
+is necessary, and Grogan can be on the wagon.”</p>
+
+<p>“An’ it’s a good tame of horses Oi have for
+the occasion,” said the Irishman.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_301">[301]</span>“With the boodle in our possession we can
+make off at top speed,” went on Casco. “Then
+we will meet here, divide up equally, and
+separate.”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, but if Rankin says it’s all right——”</p>
+
+<p>Another burst of thunder followed. Then
+came heavy drops of rain, followed by a perfect
+deluge.</p>
+
+<p>The conversation continued, but Bob could
+only catch an occasional word, and leaving the
+door he walked back to the entry.</p>
+
+<p>“They are a nice gang of rascals and no mistake,”
+thought the youth. “For the sake of
+gaining money they would derail a train, and
+perhaps kill many passengers. Frank can’t get
+here with those detectives any too soon.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob looked outside. The rain was coming
+down in a perfect sheet, while the murky air
+seemed to be filled with lightning.</p>
+
+<p>“If it wasn’t such a fearful storm, I would
+walk back to Dartinville, or up to Rayville, and
+summon help,” he muttered to himself. “But
+I couldn’t make any progress in such a storm
+as this. Phew! how the wind blows!”</p>
+
+<p>A sharp streak of lightning followed which
+made everything as bright as though the sun
+were shining.</p>
+
+<p>Somewhat blinded, Bob shrank back. As he
+did so, a hand was placed on his collar, and he
+was jerked rudely backward.</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_302">[302]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER XXXII<br>
+
+<small>BOB BECOMES A PRISONER</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p>“<span class="smcap">That’s</span> the time I caught you, you little
+sneak!”</p>
+
+<p>It was Casco who uttered the words, and it
+was he who had stepped up behind Bob and
+pulled him partly into the room.</p>
+
+<p>Without replying the young photographer
+straightened up and let out with his right
+arm.</p>
+
+<p>The scar-faced man went backward in such a
+hurry that he hit the wall opposite with considerable
+force.</p>
+
+<p>“Help!” he yelled.</p>
+
+<p>After the blow, so well delivered, Bob turned
+to flee, knowing full well the danger of remaining
+an instant longer.</p>
+
+<p>Alarmed by the sound of the row, Barker
+rushed out into the entry, followed by Grogan
+and Raymond.</p>
+
+<p>“Who is it?”</p>
+
+<p>“Bob Alden! Catch him!”</p>
+
+<p>“That imp! Which way did he go?”</p>
+
+<p>“Out of the door.”</p>
+
+<p>As he spoke, Casco managed to regain his<span class="pagenum" id="Page_303">[303]</span>
+equilibrium, and he followed Barker and the
+others outside.</p>
+
+<p>“There he goes!”</p>
+
+<p>Barker and Grogan came after Bob, but the
+youth would have escaped by outdistancing
+them had not just then something unexpected
+occurred.</p>
+
+<p>Bob was making for the roadway when suddenly
+he ran plump into a man who was making
+tracks toward the red house.</p>
+
+<p>The force of the meeting was such that both
+went sprawling in the mud, and before Bob
+could arise Barker was on top of him, and
+Grogan followed.</p>
+
+<p>“Here, what does this mean?” gasped the
+fellow Bob had knocked down.</p>
+
+<p>“Good for you, Horning!” laughed Barker.
+“We wanted him stopped, and you have done
+it.”</p>
+
+<p>“Hang me if it isn’t that young fellow who
+tried to down me,” cried Horning, as he sprang
+up and began to wipe the mud from his face.</p>
+
+<p>“March back to the house,” ordered Barker
+to Bob. “No more escapes are in order, understand.”</p>
+
+<p>With something of a sinking heart Bob turned
+about and, with Barker on one side of him and
+Grogan on the other, walked back and entered
+the sitting-room, Horning following.</p>
+
+<p>“It’s beastly weather,” muttered the latter.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_304">[304]</span>
+“I would never have started out if I had known
+it was going to pour down like this.”</p>
+
+<p>“Did you see anything of Mavelt?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes. He is waiting for an answer to his
+message. Rankin may change the plan.”</p>
+
+<p>“Pshaw! It wasn’t necessary.”</p>
+
+<p>Once in the red house the whole crowd surrounded
+poor Bob, who was disarmed and then
+bound.</p>
+
+<p>“Yez sha’n’t escape me again,” said Grogan.
+“Oi’ll not go to slape watchin’ yez this toime.”</p>
+
+<p>“No, Mike, for the simple reason that I intend
+to do the watching this trip,” laughed
+Barker. “You mean well enough, but you are
+not always to be trusted.”</p>
+
+<p>“I will take him up-stairs,” said Barker. “I
+want to have a talk with him. Then I will
+come down, and we can decide on what we intend
+to do.”</p>
+
+<p>As he spoke, he winked at Casco, and the
+scar-faced man nodded.</p>
+
+<p>“Don’t be long,” said Raymond. “I want
+you to fix up that matter for me.”</p>
+
+<p>“All right.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob was compelled to march up to the
+second story of the house and into the front
+room.</p>
+
+<p>“Now, sit down, Bob,” said Barker, as he
+closed the door. “I want you to tell me something.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_305">[305]</span>Bob took a seat. He saw that Barker’s face
+was unusually cruel. The man looked capable
+of killing him then and there.</p>
+
+<p>“You followed Casco this morning, didn’t
+you?” began the man.</p>
+
+<p>“Yes.”</p>
+
+<p>“And you met Blake.”</p>
+
+<p>“I did. I arrived just in time to save him
+from being murdered.”</p>
+
+<p>“So Casco told me. Now, I want to know
+what Blake told you.”</p>
+
+<p>“Told me about what?”</p>
+
+<p>“About——” Barker hesitated an instant.
+“About me.”</p>
+
+<p>“Supposing I don’t care to talk about that
+matter?”</p>
+
+<p>“I want you to answer me!”</p>
+
+<p>Bob remained silent. Stepping over to the
+defenceless youth, Barker raised his hand and
+struck him in the face.</p>
+
+<p>“Now will you answer me?”</p>
+
+<p>“No.”</p>
+
+<p>“You are mighty brave, I must say. But
+your bravery counts for nothing with me.”</p>
+
+<p>“And your bluster counts less with me.”</p>
+
+<p>“I have you in my power.”</p>
+
+<p>“I have been there before.”</p>
+
+<p>“And you think you can escape again. But
+you will not, mark my word.”</p>
+
+<p>“Maybe I will.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_306">[306]</span>Barker strode up and down the room a moment
+and glared at Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“Did Blake tell you anything about yourself?”
+he asked, coming to a halt.</p>
+
+<p>“I told you I wouldn’t answer any questions.
+You may ask me if it is going to stop raining
+soon, and I’ll have nothing to say.”</p>
+
+<p>Barker grated his teeth.</p>
+
+<p>“May break him, but never bend him,” he
+muttered to himself. “I never saw his equal
+for pure spunk.”</p>
+
+<p>“What did you hear down-stairs?” went on
+the man, shifting his tactics.</p>
+
+<p>Instead of replying, Bob gazed up to the ceiling,
+and began to whistle.</p>
+
+<p>Again Barker raised his hand.</p>
+
+<p>“Stop that.”</p>
+
+<p>“Does it annoy you?” asked Bob, coolly.</p>
+
+<p>“You don’t seem to realize your situation.”</p>
+
+<p>“Don’t want to if it’s going to scare me to
+death.”</p>
+
+<p>But Bob did realize matters very plainly, and
+his chaff was only uttered to keep up his courage.</p>
+
+<p>“Look here, I’ll——” began Barker, when a
+crash of thunder drowned out his voice and
+made him shrink back in awe.</p>
+
+<p>“How long are you going to be up there?”
+called Casco, from the foot of the stairs.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll be down in a little while,” replied Barker.
+“Why?”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_307">[307]</span>“Mavelt is here.”</p>
+
+<p>“What news does he bring?”</p>
+
+<p>“The money will be on the express to-night.”</p>
+
+<p>“To-night?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes. We have just time to get ready and
+no more. Finish with that boy and come
+down.”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s all right, too, but——”</p>
+
+<p>A crash of thunder close at hand made both
+Barker and Bob jump.</p>
+
+<p>The crash was followed by one of a different
+sort, as a tree which had stood close at hand
+was split from top to bottom, and one side
+smashed in the entire window-sash.</p>
+
+<p>“Oh!” howled Barker. “I can’t stand this!”</p>
+
+<p>Pale as a ghost he made for the door, and ran
+down the stairs.</p>
+
+<p>“Now is my chance,” thought Bob. “It’s a
+great risk, but it’s the only chance I have to
+save my life.”</p>
+
+<p>Bound though he was, he managed to reach
+the broken window and climbed up on the sill.</p>
+
+<p>The tree, the top of which was on fire, still
+rested against the house, and upon this Bob
+threw himself and rolled to the ground.</p>
+
+<p>Some bushes were not far off, and as soon as
+he reached the soil the young photographer
+rolled over and over, until he was out of sight.</p>
+
+<p>Then came another streak of lightning which
+almost blinded the youth. The air was filled<span class="pagenum" id="Page_308">[308]</span>
+with the smell of sulphur, while the noise was
+terrific.</p>
+
+<p>“Help I help!” came from the interior of the
+red house, accompanied by the crash of falling
+walls.</p>
+
+<p>The lightning had struck the chimney, and
+run down the centre of the structure, ruining it
+completely.</p>
+
+<p>For the moment Bob thought the end of the
+world had come. He lay still, a strange sensation
+darting like needles through his whole
+system.</p>
+
+<p>“Come on out, if you value your lives!”
+he heard Casco cry. “Sure, an’ Horning is
+kilt!” howled Grogan as he came rushing forth.
+“The loightning shtruck him, so it did. Come
+away!”</p>
+
+<p>Bob heard no more. Another crash of thunder
+roared in his ears, followed by a tremendous
+downpour of rain, and the crowd moved away
+to seek a new shelter.</p>
+
+<p>Poor Bob felt as weak as a sick kitten. He
+tried to move, but the shock to his nerves had
+been too much, and presently his senses left
+him, and all became a blank.</p>
+
+<p>When he returned to consciousness, it was
+beginning to grow dark. The rain had ceased,
+and the sky overhead was once more a deep
+blue, flecked with white clouds.</p>
+
+<p>For a while the young photographer could<span class="pagenum" id="Page_309">[309]</span>
+not remember where he was, nor what had happened.
+But gradually he recalled the scene in
+the upper chamber of the red house, and what
+had followed, and raising his head he looked
+around.</p>
+
+<p>The cottage was a mass of ruins, burnt and
+water-soaked, and beside it lay the tree the
+lightning had split, the top charred and blackened.</p>
+
+<p>“Thank Heaven for that escape!” murmured
+Bob. “My! what a close shave!”</p>
+
+<p>He was still bound, but by working steadily
+at the rope he, after an hour’s labor, managed
+to free himself.</p>
+
+<p>He ached in every joint, but to this he
+scarcely gave attention. His one thought was
+of the gang and what they intended to do.</p>
+
+<p>Approaching the cottage, he examined the
+ruins, but could see nothing of Horning’s remains.
+Whether or not the gang had buried
+the man the youth could not tell.</p>
+
+<p>Bob knew that the express of which the men
+had spoken would leave Stampton at eight
+o’clock and would arrive in Dartinville at eight-thirty,
+making no stop excepting on flag.</p>
+
+<p>It must now be seven or half-past. He must
+hurry. If the train and its passengers were to
+be saved, there was no time to lose.</p>
+
+<p>Bob knew it was at least a mile and a half to
+the railroad track, and two miles to the nearest<span class="pagenum" id="Page_310">[310]</span>
+way station. Could he cover that distance in
+time?</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll do it or die in the attempt!” muttered
+the brave youth. “If I only had a horse!”</p>
+
+<p>But there was no horse in sight, nor, indeed,
+any farm-house where one might be procured.
+All was dark and lonely.</p>
+
+<p>Bob set out at a brisk gait. He felt like
+groaning at every step, but ground his teeth together
+and kept on. Either he would cover the
+necessary distance or drop dead on the road.</p>
+
+<p>“They will find that I am not so easily overcome
+as they expected,” he muttered, grimly.
+“And now, with hundreds of lives at stake,
+what sort of a chap would I be to show the
+white feather?”</p>
+
+<p>Bob had to make a guess as to which was the
+shortest way to the nearest station, and praying
+that he was right and would arrive in time he
+pushed on and on.</p>
+
+<p>Over the rough fields and through the brooks,
+now swollen high from the recent rain, went
+Bob, half walking and half running. He was
+hatless, and the jump from the window had
+nearly sprained his ankle, but what did he care?
+If those lives were to be saved, he alone must
+accomplish the task.</p>
+
+<p>At last a long, low rumble reached his ears.</p>
+
+<p>“The track can’t be far off, and that is a
+train.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_311">[311]</span>Bob paused for only a second to listen and
+to locate the sound. He was right. It was a
+train, going in the opposite direction.</p>
+
+<p>“It’s the last train through that way to-night,”
+he said to himself. “Now the only one to pass
+the other way is the express, and that must be
+almost due.”</p>
+
+<p>Off through a patch of woods Bob heard the
+train slow up, come to a stop, and then start off
+again.</p>
+
+<p>“That means a station of some sort most
+likely,” was his mental comment. “Oh, if I can
+only reach it in time!”</p>
+
+<p>Through the woods, the brush sweeping his
+face and scratching his skin, went Bob, his
+breath coming in short, sharp gasps. He was
+almost played out.</p>
+
+<p>At last the woods were passed. Then came
+an open field, and beyond lay the iron tracks.</p>
+
+<p>Bob looked up and down. The little station
+was a good hundred yards off.</p>
+
+<p>“Stop the train!” cried the youth as he
+dashed up.</p>
+
+<p>Then he gave a cry of dismay—the place was
+deserted—the station-master had locked up and
+gone home for the night.</p>
+
+<p>And now came a rumble from the distance,
+and looking down the tracks Bob saw the
+gleaming head-light of the express as it came
+thundering along at the rate of fifty miles an hour.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_312">[312]</span>“If I only had a red-lantern!” groaned the
+youth.</p>
+
+<p>He looked around. Was there no lantern in
+sight? Hither and thither he rushed, growing
+more frantic every second.</p>
+
+<p>Ah! here was an old lantern at last. But it
+was a common affair with a white glass and
+unlit.</p>
+
+<p>With nervous haste Bob felt for a match and
+drew it forth. It was wet from the rain and refused
+to burn. He threw it away and pulled
+out another and then another, and at last the
+lamp was lit and burned brightly. But, alas!
+the light was white, and the danger signal must
+be red! And now the express was almost upon
+him. In ten seconds it would be gone, and then
+what dire disaster would follow!</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly Bob gave a jump. In his vest
+pocket was a small ruby lantern-slide of red
+glass, such as nearly every professional photographer
+possesses.</p>
+
+<p>In feverish haste Bob drew forth the bit of
+glass and held it in front of the white light.</p>
+
+<p>Then the red light was waved wildly to and
+fro as the express dashed past.</p>
+
+<p>Had his signal been seen?</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_313">[313]</span>
+
+<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER XXXIII<br>
+
+<small>BOB AND HIS MOTHER—CONCLUSION</small></h2>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="smcap">The</span> single second which followed the passage
+of the express train seemed to Bob an age.</p>
+
+<p>He continued to swing the red light until he
+heard a shrill shriek of the whistle and saw the
+fire fly from the wheels of the locomotive as the
+engine was reversed, and then he staggered up
+against the little station.</p>
+
+<p>The express train had been saved!</p>
+
+<p>In less than ten seconds the conductor came
+running forward.</p>
+
+<p>“What’s the matter, Boswell?” he cried.
+“Quick, we are behind time already!”</p>
+
+<p>Bob tried to speak. His voice came almost
+in a sob.</p>
+
+<p>“Don’t go! The track—the robbers have
+loosened a rail and——”</p>
+
+<p>“Hullo! it ain’t Boswell at all! Why, what’s
+the matter with you? Rivers! Jones! Come
+here!”</p>
+
+<p>The engineer and one of the brakemen came
+at the call, and all three gazed at the young
+photographer, whose eyes were closed, and
+whose form was gradually slipping down on the
+platform.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_314">[314]</span>“He’s fainting!” went on the conductor.
+“Here, help me place him on this baggage
+truck.”</p>
+
+<p>“What did he stop the train for?” asked the
+engineer, as he assisted in making Bob comfortable.</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t know. He said something about
+robbers and a loosened rail.”</p>
+
+<p>“Is that so? Wait till I get a bit of water
+and dash it into his face.”</p>
+
+<p>“He’s been cut on the forehead,” put in the
+brakeman, “and he seems completely exhausted.
+You can bet he didn’t stop the train for
+nothing.”</p>
+
+<p>Water was procured and dashed into Bob’s
+face. With something of a shudder he came to
+his senses.</p>
+
+<p>“Is the train safe?” he asked feebly.</p>
+
+<p>“So far, yes; but what’s the trouble?”</p>
+
+<p>Bob was silent for a moment, as if trying to
+pull himself together. Then he sat up.</p>
+
+<p>“Where is the conductor?”</p>
+
+<p>“I am the conductor.”</p>
+
+<p>“You have an express car attached to the
+train?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes; but what——”</p>
+
+<p>“Arrest the express agent.”</p>
+
+<p>“Arrest him!” called three of the hearers.</p>
+
+<p>“Yes.”</p>
+
+<p>“What for?”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_315">[315]</span>“He is in with a gang of robbers to rob the
+car of forty thousand dollars which you are
+carrying.”</p>
+
+<p>“How do you know that?”</p>
+
+<p>“I overheard the plot.”</p>
+
+<p>“Do you know the men?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes.”</p>
+
+<p>“Who are they?”</p>
+
+<p>Bob mentioned the names. Then in as few
+words as possible he related how the deed was
+to be done.</p>
+
+<p>“I believe the boy is right,” said the engineer.
+“I suspected something was wrong by the way
+Mavelt acted yesterday. And, come to think of
+it, he asked me the exact time we passed Gooseneck
+Falls.”</p>
+
+<p>“Then that is the place where the gang will
+try to throw the train off.”</p>
+
+<p>“Who are you?”</p>
+
+<p>“I am Bob Alden, a travelling photographer.
+Mr. Maverick hired me to take pictures along
+the route for a new guide book.”</p>
+
+<p>“I’ve heard of you,” said the conductor. “By
+Jove! but this is a rascally piece of business.”</p>
+
+<p>“What’s to be done?” asked the engineer.
+“We can’t stay here all night.”</p>
+
+<p>“I’ll tell you what to do,” said Bob. “Run
+back to that last station and get a number of
+officers. Then run up to Gooseneck Falls and
+capture the rascals.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_316">[316]</span>“That’s a good plan,” said the conductor.
+“And in the mean time I’ll stay with that express
+agent and see that he doesn’t skip
+out.”</p>
+
+<p>“Can I go along?” asked Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“Certainly. Come, I’ll help you to the parlor
+car and you can go into the lavatory and wash
+up. The porter will give you some court-plaster
+and such stuff, if you need it.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob braced up and was soon aboard the car.
+Then they started back, much to the surprise
+of the express agent, who came out to inquire
+what was up.</p>
+
+<p>The conductor told him, and also ordered him
+to keep still. The fellow was very much frightened,
+and said he knew nothing of the intended
+robbery.</p>
+
+<p>While the train was making fast time back to
+the last station of any size Bob washed his face,
+bound up his wounds, and sat down to rest.
+The porter offered him some whiskey, but Bob
+declined.</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t drink liquor, but if you have any
+coffee——”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, sah, right away, sah,” returned the
+darkey, and just before the train came to a stop
+the young photographer had a strong cup of
+coffee, which made him feel like another person.</p>
+
+<p>Word was at once sent to the nearest police
+station, and presently four officers hurried to<span class="pagenum" id="Page_317">[317]</span>
+the train. Behind them came a form that
+looked familiar to Bob. It was Frank Landes.</p>
+
+<p>“I was out with the detectives, but I lost your
+trail in the storm. One of the men thought you
+had come here. I was at the police station
+when the order for the men came in. What’s
+up?”</p>
+
+<p>“They are going to bag the whole crowd,”
+returned Bob. “Come on, if you want to take
+part.”</p>
+
+<p>Frank hopped aboard. In a second more they
+were off. The officers, with Bob, Frank, and the
+conductor, occupied the express car, so that very
+few of the passengers on the train knew that
+anything unusual was going on, although they
+wondered why the run backward had been made.</p>
+
+<p>The engineer crowded on the steam, and they
+went spinning along at the rate of sixty miles
+an hour. On the way all hands talked over the
+prospects ahead.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly a whistle was heard and the train
+slowed up.</p>
+
+<p>“Here we are,” said the conductor. “Gooseneck
+Falls are not over a hundred yards ahead.”</p>
+
+<p>Bob, Frank, and the officers jumped at once
+to the ground. Then they separated, the officers
+on one side of the track and Bob and
+Frank on the other.</p>
+
+<p>“We ought to get some distance away from
+the track,” said Bob. “It isn’t likely the gang<span class="pagenum" id="Page_318">[318]</span>
+will remain close at hand when they expect the
+train to run off.”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s so, Bob,” returned the young man.
+“Come, here is a path. Let us take that.”</p>
+
+<p>The path led to a spot fully a hundred feet
+back of the track. They pursued it in silence
+until Bob caught Frank by the sleeve as a
+signal to stop.</p>
+
+<p>“What is it?” whispered the young man.</p>
+
+<p>“They are just ahead.”</p>
+
+<p>“You are sure?”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes. I heard Grogan talking.”</p>
+
+<p>“Hark!”</p>
+
+<p>They listened. This time it was Barker who
+was speaking.</p>
+
+<p>“Why is the train halting down there? I
+don’t see anything of Rankin.”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s what I would like to know,” came in
+Casco’s tones. “Something is wrong.”</p>
+
+<p>“Sure, an’ that is phat Oi’m afther thinkin’,”
+put in Grogan.</p>
+
+<p>“I’ve a good mind to go down and see,” said
+Raymond. “If there is anything wrong, the
+sooner we find out the better.”</p>
+
+<p>“Oh, it’s all right,” put in a strange voice,
+which Bob supposed must be that of Mavelt.
+“Don’t get alarmed the first thing.”</p>
+
+<p>“That storm upset me completely,” said
+Barker. “Hullo, the train is coming on again!”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, but awfully slow.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_319">[319]</span>“They are watching the tracks!” cried Casco.
+“They must——”</p>
+
+<p>He broke off short. Bob had given a signal
+to the officers on the other side of the track. In
+a second the signal was returned. The gang
+heard it as well as Frank and Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“Something is amiss!” cried Raymond.</p>
+
+<p>“An’ we had betther git out,” added Grogan.</p>
+
+<p>He turned to run, but found himself confronted
+by the young photographer.</p>
+
+<p>“Sure an’ it’s a ghost!” he shrieked. “Let
+me go!”</p>
+
+<p>Before he could say a word more Bob struck
+him in the head, and down went Grogan in a
+heap.</p>
+
+<p>“What, Bob?” cried Barker, rushing forward.
+“How did you escape?”</p>
+
+<p>“That’s my business, Bill Dix. Hold up
+your hands!”</p>
+
+<p>The man addressed was dumfounded.</p>
+
+<p>“Did you hear?” went on Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“Who told you I was Bill Dix?” cried the
+robber, savagely, as soon as he could recover.</p>
+
+<p>“Never mind now. Up with your hands!”</p>
+
+<p>“Never!”</p>
+
+<p>Dix, for that was really Barker’s name, attempted
+to draw his pistol.</p>
+
+<p>Now came a rush from the other side of the
+track, and suddenly a pot of burning red fire lit
+up the scene.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_320">[320]</span>“Surrender, in the name of the law!”</p>
+
+<p>“Trapped!” yelled Casco. “Boys, we must
+fight for it.”</p>
+
+<p>“But <i>you</i> sha’n’t do any fighting,” added
+Frank, and, rushing up behind the scar-faced
+man, the young man wrenched the pistol from
+his hand and knocked him down.</p>
+
+<p>Raymond turned to flee, but one of the officers
+caught him, while Mavelt was also secured,
+and in five minutes more the entire gang was
+under arrest.</p>
+
+<p>“Who gave us away?” demanded Dix, while
+he was being taken to the train.</p>
+
+<p>“I had that pleasure,” returned Bob. “I told
+you I would come out on top, Dix.”</p>
+
+<p>“Just wait till I get out of this scrape,
+I’ll——”</p>
+
+<p>“You won’t get out of it for a good many
+years,” put in one of the officers. “So you
+might as well keep your temper to yourself.”</p>
+
+<p>The burning of the red fire and the pistol-shots
+had aroused all the passengers, and they
+crowded around when the prisoners were
+brought to the train.</p>
+
+<p>A loosened and misplaced rail was found on
+the track a hundred feet farther ahead. It was
+quickly adjusted and fastened down, and then
+the express proceeded to the next large station.</p>
+
+<p>At the depot there was a perfect jam, including
+many women, who had been passengers on<span class="pagenum" id="Page_321">[321]</span>
+the express. They watched the transferring of
+the prisoners to the platform with deep interest.</p>
+
+<p>“William Dix!” suddenly cried a woman
+from out of the crowd.</p>
+
+<p>Everybody, including Bob, turned toward the
+woman. She was a person apparently forty
+years of age and dressed in black.</p>
+
+<p>“Bill Dix! I must see that man!” went on
+the woman, and she tried to push her way forward.</p>
+
+<p>“Do you know the man?” questioned one of
+the officers.</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, yes! I have been hunting for him for
+a long time! Oh, let me speak to him!”</p>
+
+<p>“You may do so at the station-house.”</p>
+
+<p>“Thank you! So he is one of the robbers?
+I knew he was a bad man, but he is worse than
+I supposed.”</p>
+
+<p>The woman followed the crowd to the station-house,
+where Bob and Frank, as well as the
+chief of the officers, made a formal complaint
+against the gang.</p>
+
+<p>After this, two of the officers, accompanied
+by Frank, set out to recover what they could of
+the money and other things which had been
+stolen.</p>
+
+<p>For some reason he could not explain, Bob
+was deeply interested in the woman in black.
+Presently, seeing a good chance, he spoke to her.</p>
+
+<p>“You say you know this Dix?” he began.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_322">[322]</span>“Yes, I have known him for years.”</p>
+
+<p>“I am very anxious to learn something about
+him,” went on Bob.</p>
+
+<p>“And I am very anxious to make him tell me
+something,” returned the woman. “He did me
+a wrong, and I want him to do what he can to
+right it.”</p>
+
+<p>“He did me a wrong also.”</p>
+
+<p>“Indeed? May I ask your name?”</p>
+
+<p>“I am known as Bob Alden. But my right
+name is Bob Perry.”</p>
+
+<p>The woman started back and grew as pale as
+death.</p>
+
+<p>“Robert Perry!” she gasped.</p>
+
+<p>“Yes. But why——”</p>
+
+<p>“Were you the son of Thomas Perry, an
+army officer?”</p>
+
+<p>“I was, and still am, but——”</p>
+
+<p>“Thank Heavens!” and the woman caught
+Bob in her arms.</p>
+
+<p>“I don’t understand,” began Bob, with a curious
+sensation stealing over him.</p>
+
+<p>“I am your mother, Bob!”</p>
+
+<p>“My mother!”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, your mother! Oh, how glad I am that
+I have found you!”</p>
+
+<p>“I’m glad, too,” said Bob, brokenly. His heart
+was jumping so much he could not say a great
+deal. “But it’s all so wonderful,” he added,
+after a moment.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_323">[323]</span>“So it is.”</p>
+
+<p>“Where have you been all these years? Why
+didn’t you come to my Uncle Robert’s house?”</p>
+
+<p>“It’s a long story. When your father was
+killed, I nearly lost my mind. When I recovered,
+I was told by a man, who I afterward
+found out was Dix’s tool, that you had been
+stolen by the Indians. I made a long search,
+lasting years. Then I was coming to your
+uncle’s home here in the East, when I learned
+that he was dead. It was quite by accident that
+I discovered the trick which had been played on
+me, and I at once set out to find you.”</p>
+
+<p>“And I have been hunting for you,” replied
+Bob, with a beaming face. “I understand it all
+now. Dix was playing a double game—trying
+to keep me out of the way at one end and you
+out of the way at the other. But he has been
+foiled, just as he deserved.”</p>
+
+<p>When Dix was confronted by Bob and his
+newly-found parent, he could not say a word.
+He had played a desperate game to the finish
+and lost.</p>
+
+<p>Bob conducted his mother to a hotel, and
+here the two spent a happy night.</p>
+
+<p>One of the first callers in the morning was
+Frank. He was astonished when Bob introduced
+Mrs. Perry.</p>
+
+<p>“So you won’t be a nobody any longer, Bob,
+eh?” he smiled.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_324">[324]</span>Frank had glorious news. Aided by a confession
+made by Mavelt, he and the officers had
+recovered everything stolen by the gang, including
+John Wright’s money and plate, Blake’s
+package, and Frank’s eighteen hundred dollars.</p>
+
+<p>“It’s a great haul,” said Bob, “and I believe
+it will settle this crowd for good.”</p>
+
+<p>And he was right.</p>
+
+<p>But here we must leave Bob the photographer
+and pass over a period of several years.</p>
+
+<p>Bill Dix was tried and sentenced to twenty
+years in the State prison. After this sentence
+is finished he will be sent to Virginia to answer
+to a charge involving murder. The other evildoers
+are also suffering the penalty of the law.</p>
+
+<p>Old Blake recovered from the attack made
+upon him by Casco, and completely reformed.
+He now lives with his daughter, who is well settled
+in life.</p>
+
+<p>Frank Landes is a partner in the firm for
+which he formerly worked, and is getting rich
+rapidly.</p>
+
+<p>Bob and his mother live in an elegant mansion
+in Stampton. The young photographer has
+taken sweet Grace Maverick for a wife.</p>
+
+<p>“And she couldn’t do better, even though the
+young man isn’t a millionaire,” says Gregory
+Maverick, for he is more than pleased over
+Bob’s show of bravery.</p>
+
+<p>But Bob is doing well in life, having at present<span class="pagenum" id="Page_325">[325]</span>
+not only the finest studio in Stampton, but
+also an interest in one of the largest photographic
+supply houses in the country. And so
+we will leave him, wishing him continued success.</p>
+
+<p class="center">THE END.</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<div class="transnote">
+<p class="ph1">TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES:</p>
+
+<p>Obvious typographical errors have been corrected.</p>
+
+<p>Inconsistencies in hyphenation have been standardized.</p>
+
+<p>Archaic or variant spelling has been retained.</p>
+</div></div>
+
+<div style='text-align:center'>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 75034 ***</div>
+</body>
+</html>
+
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author	nfenwick <nfenwick@pglaf.org>	2025-01-13 23:48:11 -0800
committer	nfenwick <nfenwick@pglaf.org>	2025-01-13 23:48:11 -0800
commit	a577fd81b66248879448e7102321d9f4e0fe2cc9 (patch)
tree	5422d0188b92021107c9a6be62b2a8b4030f3666