.a 
 
 7

 
 "i DON'T SEE HOW THEY GOT INTO THIS SAFE," 
 
 Tk* Rover Boys in Bust net*. Frotttitfitct (.Pag* 177)
 
 THE ROVER BOYS 
 
 IN BUSINESS 
 
 OR 
 THE SEARCH FOR THE MISSING BONDS 
 
 BY 
 
 ARTHUR M. WINFIELD 
 
 (Edward Stratemeyer) 
 
 AUTHOR OF THE ROVER BOYS AT SCHOOL, THR 
 
 ROVER.BOYS ON THE OCEAN, THE PUTNAM 
 
 HALL SERIES, ETC. 
 
 ILLUSTRATED 
 
 NEW YORK 
 
 GROSSET & DUNLAP 
 PUBLISHERS 
 
 Made in the United States of America
 
 BOOKS BY ARTHUR M. WINFIELD 
 
 (Edward Stratemeyer) 
 
 THE FIRST ROVER BOYS SERIES 
 
 THE ROVER BOYS AT SCHOOL 
 
 THE ROVER BOYS ON THE OCEAN 
 
 THE ROVER BOYS IN THE JUNGLE 
 
 THE ROVER BOYS OUT WEST 
 
 THE ROVER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 
 
 THE ROVER BOYS IN THE MOUNTAINS 
 
 THE ROVER BOYS IN CAMP 
 
 THE ROVER BOYS ON LAND AND SEA 
 
 THE ROVER BOYS ON THE RIVER 
 
 THE ROVER BOYS ON THE PLAINS 
 
 THE ROVER BOYS IN SOUTHERN WATERS 
 
 THE ROVER BOYS ON THE FARM 
 
 THE ROVER BOYS ON TREASURE ISLE 
 
 THE ROVER BOYS AT COLLEGE 
 
 THE ROVER BOYS DOWN EAST 
 
 THE ROVER BOYS IN THE AIR 
 
 THE ROVER BOYS IN NEW YORK 
 
 THE ROVER BOYS IN ALASKA 
 
 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 THE ROVER BOYS ON A TOUR 
 
 THE SECOND ROVER BOYS SERIES 
 THE ROVER BOYS AT COLBY HALL 
 
 THE PUTNAM HALL SERIES 
 
 THE PUTNAM HALL CADETS 
 THE PUTNAM HALL RIVALS 
 THE PUTNAM HALL CHAMPIONS 
 THE PUTNAM HALL REBELLION 
 THE PUTNAM HALL ENCAMPMENT 
 THE PUTNAM HALL MYSTERY 
 
 I2mo. Cloth. Illustrated. 
 
 GROSSET & DUNLAP, Publishers, New York 
 
 COPYRIGHT, 1915, BY 
 
 EDWARD STRATEMEYER 
 
 The Rover Boys in Business
 
 1 
 
 INTRODUCTION 
 
 M* DEAR BOYS : This book is a complete 
 story in itself, but forms the nineteenth volume 
 in a line issued under the general title of "The 
 Rover Boys Series for Young Americans." 
 
 As I have mentioned in several other volumes, 
 this series was started a number of years ago with 
 the publication of " The Rover Boys at School," 
 "On the Ocean," and "In the Jungle." I am 
 happy to say the books were so well liked that 
 they were followed, year after year, by the pub 
 lication of " The Rover Boys Out West," " On 
 the Great Lakes," " In Camp," " On Land and 
 Sea," "On the River," "On the Plains," "In 
 Southern Waters," " On the Farm," " On Treas 
 ure Isle," "At College," "Down East," "In the 
 Air," " In New York," and finally " In Alaska," 
 where we last met the lads. 
 
 During all these adventures the Rover boys' 
 have been growing older. Dick is now married 
 and conducting his father's business in New York 
 City and elsewhere. The fun-loving Tom and his 
 
 2076525
 
 INTRODUCTION 
 
 sturdy younger brother, Sam, are at Brill College. 
 The particulars are given of a great baseball 
 game; and then Tom and Sam return home, to 
 be startled by a most unusual message from Dick, 
 calling them to New York immediately. Some 
 bonds of great value have mysteriously disap- 
 ^peared, and unless these are recovered the Rover 
 fortune may be seriously impaired. What the 
 boys did under these circumstances, I will leave 
 the pages which follow to disclose. 
 
 Once more thanking my host of young readers 
 for the interest they have taken in my books, I 
 remain, 
 
 Affectionately and sincerely yours, 
 
 EDWARD STRATEMEYER
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER PAGE 
 
 I. AT THE RIVER I 
 
 II. To THE RESCUE 14 
 
 III. SOMETHING OF A SURPRISE 25 
 
 IV. A FOUR-HUNDRED-DOLLAR RING 35 
 
 V. THREE LETTERS 46 
 
 VI. BASEBALL TALK 57 
 
 VII. THE GREAT BASEBALL GAME 66 
 
 VIII. How THE GAME ENDED 77 
 
 IX. CELEBRATING THE VICTORY 87 
 
 X. THE FIRE AT HOPE 97 
 
 XL To THE RESCUE 107 
 
 XII. TOM SPEAKS His MIND 118 
 
 XIII. AT THE FARM 128 
 
 XIV. A STARTLING SCENE 138 
 
 XV. A TELEGRAM OF IMPORTANCE 146 
 
 XVI. THE MOVING PICTURE 156 
 
 XVII. WHAT DICK HAD TO TELL 165 
 
 XVIII. AT THE OFFICES 174 
 
 XIX. THE FIRST CLEW 182 
 
 XX. BARTON PELTER AGAIN 191 
 
 XXL DAYS OF ANXIOUS WAITING 201 
 
 XXII. THE MOVING PICTURE AGAIN 209
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER PAGE 
 
 XXIII. ON THE EAST SIDE 217 
 
 XXIV. ANDY ROYCE'S CONFESSION 226 
 
 XXV. MORE TELEGRAMS 235 
 
 XXVI. IN WHICH THE GIRLS ARRIVE 243 
 
 XX VII. THE MYSTERY OF THE SAFE 251 
 
 XXVIII. JOSIAH CRABTREE ONCE MORE 259 
 
 XXIX. THE JAPANNED Box 267 
 
 XXX. MRS. TOM ROVER CONCLUSION 278
 
 THE ROVER BOYS 
 IN BUSINESS 
 
 CHAPTER D 
 AT THE RIVER 
 
 "SAM!" 
 
 No answer. 
 
 " I say, Sam, can't you listen for just a mo 
 ment?" 
 
 " Oh, Tom, please don't bother me now ! " and 
 Sam Rover, with a look of worry on his face, 
 glanced up for a moment from his writing-table. 
 " I've got to finish this theme before to-morrow 
 morning." 
 
 " Oh, I know ! But listen ! " And Tom Rover's 
 face showed his earnestness. " Last night it was 
 full moonlight, and to-night it is going to be 
 equally clear. Why can't we get out the auto and 
 pay a visit to Hope? You know we promised 
 the girls that we would be up some afternoon or 
 evening this week." 
 
 i
 
 2 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 " Sounds good, Tom, but even if we went after 
 supper, could we get there in time? You know: 
 all visitors have to leave before nine o'clock." 
 
 " We can get there if we start as soon as we 
 finish eating. Can't you finish the theme after 
 we get back? Maybe I can help you." 
 
 "Help me? On this theme!" Sam grinned 
 broadly. " Tom, you don't know what you are 
 talking about. Do you know what this theme is 
 on?" 
 
 "No, but I can help you if I have to." 
 
 " This is on ' The Theory Concerning the Evo 
 lution of ' " 
 
 " That's enough, Sam ; don't give me any of it 
 now. Time enough for that when we have to 
 get at it. There goes the supper bell. Now, 
 downstairs with you! and let us get through as 
 soon as possible and be on our way." 
 
 " All right, just as you say ! " and gathering up 
 a number of sheets of paper, Sam thrust them in 
 the drawer of the writing-table. 
 
 "By the way, it's queer we didn't get any 
 letter to-day from Dick," the youngest Rover 
 observed. 
 
 At the mention of their brother's name, Tom's 
 face clouded a little. 
 
 " It is queer, Sam, and I must say I don't like 
 it. I think this is a case where no news is bad
 
 AT THE RIVER 3 
 
 news. I think if everything was going along all 
 right in New York, Dick would surely let us 
 know. I am afraid he is having a good deal of 
 trouble in straightening out Dad's business." 
 
 " Just the way I look at it," responded Sam, as 
 the brothers prepared to leave the room. 
 
 " One thing is sure, Pelter, Japson & Company 
 certainly did all they could to mix matters up, 
 and I doubt very much if they gave Dad all that 
 was coming to him." 
 
 " I believe I made a mistake in coming back 
 to college," pursued Tom, as the two boys walked 
 out into the corridor, where they met several 
 other students on the way to the dining hall. " I 
 think I ought to have given up college and gone 
 to New York City to help Dick straighten out 
 that business tangle. Now that Dad is sick again, 
 the whole responsibility rests on Dick's shoulders, 
 and he ought not to be made to bear it alone." 
 
 "Well, if you feel that way, Tom, why don't 
 you break away and go? I think, perhaps, it 
 would be not only a good thing for Dick, but it 
 would, also, be a good thing for you," and, for 
 the moment, Sam looked very seriously at his 
 brother. 
 
 Tom reddened a bit, and then put his forefinger 
 to his forehead. "You mean it would help me 
 here?" And then, as Sam nodded, he added:
 
 4 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 " Oh, don't you worry. I am all right now, my 
 head doesn't bother me a bit. But I do wish I 
 could get just one good chance at Pelter for the 
 crack that rascal gave me on the head with the 
 footstool." 
 
 " It certainly was a shame to let him off, Tom, 
 but you know how father felt about it. He was 
 too sick to be worried by a trial at law and all 
 that." 
 
 " Yes, I know, but just the same, some day I 
 am going to square accounts with Mr. Jesse Pel 
 ter," and Tom shook his head determinedly. 
 
 Passing down the broad stairway of Brill Col 
 lege, the two Rover boys made their way to the 
 dining hall. Here the majority of the students 
 were rapidly assembling for the evening meal, 
 and the lads found themselves among a host of 
 friends. 
 
 " Hello, Songbird ! How are you this even 
 ing?" cried Tom, as he addressed a tall, schol 
 arly-looking individual who wore his hair rather 
 long. "Have you been writing any poetry to 
 day?" 
 
 "Well, er not exactly, Tom," muttered, 
 John Powell, otherwise known as Songbird be 
 cause of his numerous efforts to compose whai: 
 he called poetry. " But I have been thinking up 
 a few rhymes."
 
 AT THE RIVER 5 
 
 "When are you going to get out that book 
 pf poetry ? " 
 
 "What book is that, Tom?" 
 
 " Why, as if you didn't know ! Didn't you tell 
 me that you were going to get up a volume of 
 * Original International Poems for the Grave and 
 Gay;' five hundred pages, fully illustrated; and 
 bound in full leather, with title in gold, and " 
 
 "Tom, Tom, now please stop your fooling!" 
 pleaded Songbird, his face flushing. "Just be 
 cause I write a poem now and then doesn't say 
 that I am going to publish a book." 
 
 " No, but I'm sure you will some day, and 
 you'll make a fortune out of it or fifteen dol 
 lars, anyway." 
 
 " The same old Tom ! " cried a merry voice, 
 and another student clapped the fun-loving 
 Rover on the shoulder. " I do believe you would 
 rather joke than eat!" 
 
 "Not on your life, Spud! and I'll prove it to 
 you right now ! " and linking his arm through 
 that of Will Jackson, otherwise " Spud," Tom 
 led the way to one of the tables, with Sam and 
 several of the other students following. 
 
 "What is on the docket for to-night?" asked 
 /Songbird, as he fell to eating. 
 
 "Tom and I are going to take a little run in 
 tHe auto to Hope," answered Sant
 
 6 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 " Oh, I see ! " Songbird Powell shut one eye 
 knowingly. " Going up there to see the teachers, 
 I suppose ! " 
 
 " Sure, that is what they always do ! " came 
 from Spud, with a wink. 
 
 " Sour grapes, Spud ! " laughed Sam. " You 
 would go there yourself if you had half a chance." 
 
 " Yes, and Songbird would want to go along, 
 too, if we were bound for the Sanderson cottage," 
 put in Tom. " You see, in Songbird's eyes, Min 
 nie Sanderson is just the nicest girl " 
 
 " Now stop it, Tom, can't you ! " pleaded poor 
 Songbird, growing decidedly red in the face. 
 " Miss Sanderson is only a friend of mine, and 
 you know it." 
 
 Just at that moment the students at the table 
 were interrupted by the approach of a tall, dud- 
 ish-looking individual, who wore a reddish-brown 
 suit, cut in the most up-to-date fashion, and who 
 sported patent-leather shoes, and a white carna 
 tion in his buttonhole. The newcomer took a 
 vacant chair, sitting down with a flourish. 
 
 " I've had a most delightful ramble, don't you 
 know," he lisped, looking around at the others. 
 " I have been through the sylvan woods and by 
 
 the babbling brook, and have " 
 
 " Great Caesar's tombstone ! " exclaimed Tom, 
 looking at the newcomer critically. " Why, my
 
 AT THE RIVER 7 
 
 dearly beloved William Philander, you don't 
 mean to say that you have been delving through 
 the shadowy nooks, and playing with the bab 
 bling brook, in that outfit?" 
 
 " Oh, dear, no, Tom ! " responded William Phi 
 lander Tubbs. " I had another suit on, the one 
 ;with the green stripe, don't you know, the one 
 I had made last September or maybe it was in 
 October, I can't really remember. But you must 
 know the suit, don't you ? " 
 
 " Sure ! I remember the suit. The green- 
 striped one with the faded-out blue dots and the 
 red diamond check in the corner. Isn't that the 
 same suit you took down to the pawnbroker's last 
 Wednesday night at fifteen minutes past seven 
 and asked him to loan you two dollars and a half 
 on it, and the pawnbroker wanted to know if the 
 suit was your own?" 
 
 "My dear Tom!" and William Philander 
 looked aghast. " You know well enough I never 
 took that suit to a pawnbroker." 
 
 " Well, maybe it was some other suit. Pos 
 sibly the black one with the blue stripes, or may 
 be it was the blue one with the black stripes. 
 Really, my dearest Philander, it is immaterial to 
 me what suit it was." And Tom looked coldly 
 indifferent as he buttered another slice of bread. 
 
 " But I tell you, I never went to any pawn-
 
 8 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 broker ! " pleaded the dudish student. " I would 
 not be seen in any such horrid place ! " 
 
 " Oh, pawnbrokers are not so bad," came from 
 Spud Jackson, as he helped himself to more pota 
 toes. " I knew of one fellow down in New 
 Haven who used to loan thousands of dollars to 
 the students at Yale. He was considered a public 
 benefactor. When he died they closed up the col 
 lege for three days and gave him a funeral over 
 two miles long. And after that, the students raised 
 a fund of sixteen thousand dollars with which to 
 erect a monument to his memory. Now, that is 
 absolutely true, and if you don't believe it you 
 can come to my room and I will show you some 
 dried rose leaves which came from one of the 
 wreathes used at the obsequies." And a general 
 laugh went up over this extravagant statement. 
 
 " The same old Spud ! " cried Sam, as he gave 
 the story-teller of the college a nudge in the ribs. 
 " Spud, you are about as bad as Tom." 
 
 " Chust vat I tinks," came from Max Spang- 
 ler, a German-American student who was still 
 struggling with the difficulties of the language. 
 " Only I tinks bod of dem vas worser dan de 
 udder." And at this rather mixed statement an 
 other laugh went up. 
 
 " I wish you fellows would stop your nonsense 
 and talk baseball," came from Bob Grimes, an-
 
 AT THE RIVER g 
 
 other student. "Do you realize that if we ex 
 pect to do anything this spring, we have got to 
 get busy?" 
 
 " Well, Bob," returned Sam, " I don't see how 
 that is going to interest me particularly. I don't 
 expect to be on any nine this year." 
 
 " I know, Sam, but Tom, here, has promised, 
 to play if he can possibly get the time." 
 
 " And so I will play," said Tom. " That is, 
 provided I remain at Brill." 
 
 " What, do you mean to say you are going to 
 leave ! " cried several students. 
 
 " We can't do without you, Tom," added Song 
 bird. 
 
 "Of course we can't," came from Bob Grimes. 
 " We need Tom the worst way this year." 
 
 "Well, I'll talk that over with you fellows 
 some other time. To-night we are in a hurry." 
 And thus speaking, Tom tapped his brother on 
 the shoulder, and both left the dining-room. 
 
 As my old readers know, the Rover boys pos 
 sessed a very fine automobile. This was kept in 
 one of the new garages on the place, which was 
 presided over by Abner Filbury, the son of the 
 'old man who had worked for years around the 
 dormitories. 
 
 "Is she all ready, Ab?" questioned Tom, as 
 the young man came forward to greet them.
 
 10 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 " Yes, sir, I filled her up with gas and oil, and 
 she's in apple-pie order." 
 
 " Why, Tom ! " broke in Sam, in surprise. 
 " You must have given this order before sup 
 per." 
 
 " I did," and Tom grinned at his younger 
 brother. " I took it for granted that you would 
 make the trip." And thus speaking, Tom leaped 
 into the driver's seat of the new touring car. 
 Then Sam took his place beside his brother, and 
 in a moment more the car was gliding out of the 
 garage, and down the curving, gravel path lead 
 ing to the highway running from Ashton past 
 Brill College to Hope Seminary. 
 
 As Tom had predicted, it was a clear night, 
 with the full moon just showing over the distant 
 hills. Swinging into the highway, Tom in 
 creased the speed and was soon running at 
 twenty-five to thirty miles an hour. 
 
 " Don't run too fast," cautioned Sam. " Re 
 member this road has several dangerous curves 
 in it, and remember, too, a good many of the 
 countrymen around here don't carry lights when 
 they drive." 
 
 "Oh, I'll be careful," returned Tom, lightly. 
 " But about the lights, I think some of the coun 
 trymen ought to be fined for driving in the dark 
 ness as they do. I think "
 
 AT THE RIVER II 
 
 "Hark! what sort of a noise is that?" inter 
 rupted the younger Rover. 
 
 Both boys strained their ears. A shrill honk 
 of a horn had been followed by a heavy rumble, 
 and now, around a curve of the road, shot the, 
 beams from a single headlight perched on a heavy 
 auto-truck. This huge truck was coming along 
 at great speed, and it passed the Rovers with a 
 loud roar, and a scattering of dust and small 
 stones in all directions. 
 
 "Great Scott!" gasped Sam, after he had re 
 covered from his amazement. " Did you ever see 
 such an auto-truck as that, and running at such 
 speed ? " 
 
 " Certainly some truck," was Tom's comment 
 " That must have weighed four or five tons. I 
 wonder if it came over the Paxton River 
 bridge?" 
 
 " If it did, it must have given the bridge an 
 awful shaking up. That bridge isn't any too 
 strong. It shakes fearfully every time we go over 
 it. Better run slow, Tom, when we get there." 
 
 " I will." And then Tom put on speed once 
 more and the automobile forged ahead as be-' 
 fore. 
 
 A short run up-hill brought them to the point 
 where the road ran down to the Paxton River. 
 In the bright moonlight the boys could see the
 
 12 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 stream flowing like a sheet of silver down be 
 tween the bushes and trees. A minute more, and 
 they came in sight of the bridge. 
 
 " Stop ! " said Sam. " I may be mistaken, but 
 that bridge looks shifted to me." 
 
 " So it does," returned Tom, and brought the 
 automobile to a standstill. Both boys leaped out 
 and walked forward. 
 
 To inspect the bridge in the bright moonlight 
 was easy, and in less than a minute the boys made 
 a startling discovery, which was to the effect that 
 the opposite end of the structure had been thrown 
 from its supports and was in danger of falling at 
 any instant. 
 
 " This is mighty bad," was Sam's comment. 
 "Why, Tom, this is positively dangerous. If 
 anybody should come along here " 
 
 "Hark!" Tom put up his hand, and both 
 boys listened. From the top of the hill they had 
 left but a moment before, came the sounds of 
 an approaching automobile, r An instant later the 
 rays of the headlights shot into view, almost 
 blinding them. 
 
 " We must stop them ! " came from both boys 
 simultaneously. But scarcely had the words left 
 their lips, when they saw that such a course might 
 be impossible. The strange automobile was com 
 ing down the hill at a furious rate. Now, as the
 
 AT THE RIVER 13 
 
 driver saw the Rovers' machine, he sounded his 
 horn shrilly. 
 
 " He'll have a smash-up as sure as fate ! " 
 yelled Sam, and put up his hand in warning. 
 Tom did likewise, and also yelled at the top of 
 his lungs. 
 
 But it was too late. The occupant of the 
 strange automobile for the machine carried but 
 a single person tried to come to a stop. The 
 brakes groaned and squeaked, and the car swept 
 slightly to one side, thus avoiding the Rovers' 
 machine. Then, with power thrown off and the 
 hand-brake set, it rolled out on the bridge. There 
 was a snap, followed by a tremendous crash, and 
 the next instant machine and driver disappeared 
 with a splash into the swiftly-flowing river.
 
 CHAPTER II 
 
 TO THE RESCUE 
 
 THE accident at the bridge had occurred so 
 suddenly that, for the instant, neither Rover boy 
 knew what to do. They saw that the farther 
 end of the bridge had given way completely. 
 Just where the end rested in the water they be 
 held several small objects floating about, one of 
 them evidently a cap, and another a small wooden 
 box. But the automobile with its driver was no 
 where to be seen. 
 
 " My gracious ! That fellow will surely be 
 drowned ! " gasped Sam, on recovering from 
 the shock. "Tom, do you see him anywhere?" 
 
 "No, I don't." Tom took a few steps for 
 ward and gazed down into the swiftly-flowing 
 stream. " Perhaps he is pinned under the auto, 
 Sam!" 
 
 "Wait, I'll get the searchlight," cried the 
 younger Rover, and ran back to their automobile. 
 The boys made a point of carrying an electric 
 pocket searchlight to be used in case they had to
 
 TO THE RESCUE. 15 
 
 make repairs in the dark. Securing this, and 
 turning on the light, Sam ran forward to the? 
 river bank, with Tom beside him. 
 
 To those who have read the previous volumes 
 in this " Rover Boys Series " the lads just men-; 
 tioned will need no special introduction. For the 
 benefit of others, however, let me state that the 
 Rover boys were three in number; Dick being 
 the oldest, fun-loving Tom coming next, and 
 sturdy Sam being the youngest. When at home, 
 which was only for a short time each year, the 
 boys lived with their father, Anderson Rover, and 
 their Uncle Randolph and Aunt Martha on a 
 farm called Valley Brook, in New York State. 
 
 While their father was in Africa, the boys had 
 been sent to Putnam Hall Military Academy, as 
 related in the first volume of this series, entitled 
 "The Rover Boys at School." There they had 
 made quite a few friends, and, also, some en 
 emies.* 
 
 The first term at school was followed by an 
 exciting trip on the ocean, and then another trip 
 into the jungles of Africa, where the boys went 
 looking for their parent. Then came a journey 
 
 *For particulars regarding how Putnam Hall Military 
 Academy was organized, and what fine times the cadets 
 there enjoyed even before the Rovers appeared on the 
 scene, read " The Putnam Hall Series," six volumes, start 
 ing with " The Putnam Hall Cadets." PUBLISHERS.
 
 16 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 to the West, and some grand times on the Great 
 Lakes and in the Mountains, After that, the 
 Rover boys came back to the Hall to go into 
 camp with their fellow-cadets. Then they took 
 a long journey over land and sea, being cast away 
 on a lonely island in the Pacific. 
 
 On returning home, the boys had imagined 
 they were to settle down to a quiet life, but such 
 was not to be. On a houseboat the lads, with 
 some friends, sailed down the Ohio and the Mis 
 sissippi rivers, and then found themselves on the 
 Plains, where they solved the mystery of Red 
 Rock ranch. Then they set sail on Southern 
 Waters, and in the Gulf of Mexico discovered a 
 deserted yacht. 
 
 " Now for a good rest," Sam had said, and 
 the three lads had returned to the home farm, 
 where, quite unexpectedly, more adventures be 
 fell them. Then they returned to Putnam Hall; 
 and all graduated with considerable honor. 
 
 It had been decided by Mr. Rover that the boys 
 should next go to college, and he selected an 
 institution of learning located in the Middle 
 West, not far from the town of Ashton. Brill 
 College was a fine place, and the Rovers knew 
 they would like it as soon as they saw it. With 
 them went their old-time school chum, Songbird 
 Powell, already mentioned. At the same time,
 
 TO THE RESCUE 17 
 
 William Philander Tubbs came to the college 
 from Putnam Hall. He was a dudish fellow, 
 who thought far more of dress than of gaining 
 an education, and he was often made the butt 
 of some practical joke. 
 
 It did not take the Rover boys long to make 
 a number of friends at Brill. These included 
 Stanley Browne, a tall, gentlemanly youth; Bob 
 Grimes, who was greatly interested in baseball 
 and other sports; Max Spangler, a German- 
 American youth, who was everybody's friend; 
 and Will Jackson, always called " Spud " because 
 of his unusual fondness for potatoes. Spud was 
 a great story-teller, and some of his yarns were 
 marvelous in the extreme. 
 
 During their first term at Putnam Hall, the 
 Rover boys had become well acquainted with 
 Dora Stanhope, who lived near the school with 
 her widowed mother, and, also, Nellie and Grace 
 Laning, Dora's two cousins, who resided but a 
 short distance further away. It had not been 
 long before Dick and Dora showed a great liking 
 for each other, and, at the same time, Tom often 
 "paired off" with Nellie, and Sam as often 
 sought the company of Grace. Then came the 
 time when the boys did a great service for Mrs. 
 Stanhope, saving her from the wicked plotting 
 of Josiah Crabtree, a teacher at Putnam Hall.
 
 18 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 Crabtree was exposed, and lost no time in leav 
 ing the school, threatening at the same time that, 
 sooner or later, he would " square accounts with 
 the Rovers." 
 
 But a few miles away from Brill College was 
 located Hope Seminary, an institution for girls. 
 When the Rover boys went to Brill, Dora, Nel 
 lie and Grace entered Hope, so the young folks 
 met almost as often as before. A term at Brill 
 was followed by an unexpected trip Down East, 
 where the Rover boys again brought the ras 
 cally Crabtree to terms. Then the lads became 
 the possessors of a biplane, and took several 
 thrilling trips through the air. About this time, 
 Mr. Anderson Rover, who was not in the best of 
 health, was having much trouble with some 
 brokers, who were trying to swindle him out of 
 valuable property. He went to New York City, 
 and disappeared, and his three sons went at once 
 on the hunt for him. The brokers were Pelter, 
 Japson & Company, and it was not long before 
 Dick and his brothers discovered that Pelter and 
 Japson were in league with Josiah Crabtree. In 
 the end the boys found out what had become of 
 their parent, and they managed to bring the 
 brokers to terms. But, during a struggle, poor 
 Tom was hit on the head by a wooden footstool 
 thrown by Pelter, and knocked unconscious.
 
 TO THE RESCUE 19 
 
 Josiah Crabtree tried to escape from a garret 
 window by means of a rope made of a blanket 
 This broke, and he sustained a heavy fall, break 
 ing a leg in two places. He was taken to a 
 hospital, and the doctors there said he would be 
 a cripple for life. 
 
 " There is no use in talking, Dad," Dick had 
 said to his father, " you are not in a fit physical 
 condition to take hold of these business matters. 
 You had better leave them entirely to me." And 
 to this Mr. Rover had agreed. Then, as Dick 
 was to leave college and spend most of his time 
 in New York, it had been decided that he and 
 Dora should get married. There had followed 
 one of the grandest weddings the village of 
 Cedarville had ever seen. 
 
 The blow on Tom's head proved more serious 
 than was at first anticipated. Through it the 
 poor lad suddenly lost his mind, and while in 
 that state he wandered away from Brill College, 
 and went on a long journey, as related in detail 
 in the volume preceding this, entitled "The 
 *Rover Boys in Alaska." 
 
 As their father was too ill to take part in any 
 search for the missing one, Dick and Sam took 
 {up the hunt, and after many thrilling adventures 
 on the ice and in the snow, managed to locate 
 their brother and bring him back home.
 
 20 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 "And now, Tom, you must take a good long 
 rest," his kindly Aunt Martha had said, and she 
 had insisted upon it that he be put under the care 
 of a specialist. Tom had rested for several 
 months, and then, declaring that he felt as good 
 as ever, had returned to Brill. Sam was already 
 in the grind, and soon Tom was doing his best 
 to make up for the time he had lost on his strange 
 trip. 
 
 Of course, Nellie Laning had been very much 
 worried over Tom's condition, and his disappear 
 ance had caused her intense dismay. Since he 
 had returned to Brill, she had asked that he either 
 call on her or write to her at least once a week. 
 Tom preferred a visit to letter- writing, and as 
 Sam was usually ready to go to Hope to see 
 Grace whenever the opportunity afforded, the 
 brothers usually took the trip together, as in the 
 present instance. 
 
 Searchlight in hand, the Rover boys peered out: 
 over the surface of the swiftly-flowing rivar, 
 which at this point was about seventy-five feet 
 wide. The bridge was built in three sections, 
 and it was the middle span which" had collapsed 
 at the farther en'd, so that trie automobile had 
 plunged into water which" was at least eight feet: 
 deep. 
 
 ''Do you see anything of him?" asked Sam,
 
 TO THE RESCUE 21 
 
 eagerly, as the rays from the light flashed in one 
 direction and then in another. 
 
 "If he managed to get out of the auto, per 
 haps he floated down with the current," respond 
 ed his brother. "Anyhow, he doesn't seem tc 
 be around here." 
 
 "Maybe he was caught under the wheel. If 
 so, we had better get him out without delay." 
 
 " Look ! Look ! " And now Tom pointed 
 down the river. There in the moonlight, both 
 boys saw a form coming to the surface. The 
 fellow was beating the water wildly with his 
 hands, and now he set up a frantic cry for aid. 
 Turning the searchlight in that direction, the 
 Rover boys left the vicinity of the broken bridge, 
 and made their way down to something of a 
 footpath that ran along the water's edge. Tom 
 was in the lead. Here and there the bushes hung 
 over the stream, and both lads had to scramble 
 along as best they could. 
 
 "Help! Help!" The cry came faintly, and 
 then the two boys saw the fellow in the water 
 throw up both arms and sink from view. 
 
 " He has gone under ! " gasped Sam. " Hurry 
 tup, Tom, or we'll be too late ! " 
 
 Scrambling wildly through' tfie last of the 
 bushes and onto some flat rocks that, in this 
 vicinity, ran out into the river, the Rover boy?
 
 22 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS. 
 
 soon gained a point which was less than four 
 yards from where the unfortunate youth had 
 disappeared. Leading the way, Tom leaped from 
 one flat stone in the stream to another. Sam 
 followed closely, holding the searchlight on the 
 spot where both hoped the fellow in the water 
 might reappear. 
 
 " Here he is ! " cried Tom. And, as he spoke, 
 Sam saw a dark object turn over in the stream 
 close to the rock on which his brother had leaped. 
 The next instant Tom was down on his knees 
 and feeling through the water. 
 
 " Hold my hand, Sam," said the older Rover. 
 And as Sam took his left hand, Tom clutched 
 with his right the coat of the party in the river. 
 Then came a hard pull ; and a moment later Tom 
 had the dripping form on the rock. 
 
 " Is he he dead ? " questioned Sam, hoarsely. 
 
 " I don't think so, but he certainly has had a 
 close call. We must get him ashore and work 
 over him as soon as possible. You light the 
 way; I think I can carry him alone." 
 
 The fellow who had been hauled out of the 
 river was a slightly-built youth, not over twenty 
 years of age. As Tom was both big and mus 
 cular, it was an easy matter for him to throw: 
 the stranger over his shoulder. Sam led the way 
 to the shore, keeping the light down on the rocks
 
 TO T&E RESCUE 2 $ 
 
 so that his brother might be sure of his footing. 
 
 Once safe, the boys placed the stranger on the 
 grass and started to work over him. He was un 
 conscious, and had evidently swallowed consid- 
 ,erable water. Fortunately, the lads had taken 
 lessons in how to resuscitate a person who had 
 been close to drowning, so they knew exactly 
 what to do. 
 
 " It's a mighty lucky thing that we were here 
 to aid him," remarked Sam, as he and Tom pro 
 ceeded with their efforts. " Another minute, and 
 it would have been all up with this poor fellow." 
 
 " Well, he isn't out of the woods yet, Sam, but 
 J think he is coming around." And even as Tom 
 spoke the stranger gave a gasp and a groan, and 
 tried to sit up. 
 
 " It's all right, my friend," cried Sam, reas 
 suringly. " We've got you, you are safe." 
 
 " Oh, oh ! " moaned the young man who had 
 been so close to drowning. And then as he sat 
 up and stared at the brothers, he added : " Did 
 did you sa save me?" 
 
 "Well, we hauled you out of the river," re 
 plied Tom, simply. 
 
 " You did ! " The young man shivered as ht 
 glaaced at the swiftly-flowing stream. "The 
 bridge it was broken, but I didn't notice it in 
 time."
 
 24 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 " We tried to warn you," said Sam, " but you 
 were coming too fast." 
 
 " I know it, but I I " And then the young 
 
 man, having tried to get to his feet, suddenly 
 collapsed and became unconscious again. 
 
 " Phew ! " came from Sam in surprise. " He 
 must be worse off than we thought." 
 
 " Perhaps he got struck when he went down," 
 suggested Tom. " See here, there is blood ori 
 his hand ; it is running down his sleeve ! " 
 
 " Maybe his arm is broken, Tom. I guess the 
 best thing we can do is to get him to some doc 
 tor." 
 
 "Why not take him right down to Ashton to 
 Doctor Havens? " 
 
 "Good idea; we'll do it." 
 
 Tom again took up the unconscious young 
 man, and, with Sam leading the way, both hur 
 ried to their automobile. The stranger was de 
 posited on the seat of the tonneau, and then Tom 
 lost no time in turning the machine around and 
 Heading for town. 
 
 " I wonder who he can be ? " remarked Sam 
 as they sped along. 
 
 "I'm sure I don't know," was Tom's reply 
 Neither of the boys dreamed of the surprise in 
 store for them.
 
 CHAPTER III 
 
 SOMETHING OF A SURPRISE 
 
 IT did not take the Rover boys long to reach 
 Ashton; and once in town, they lost no time in 
 running their auto to where Doctor Havens re 
 sided. They found the house well lit up, and the 
 old doctor in his study, poring over some medical 
 works. 
 
 "Saved a fellow from drowning, eh?" he 
 queried, after the lads had explained matters. 
 " Got him out in your auto ? All right, bring 
 him right in if you want to or wait, I'll go out 
 and take a look at him. Maybe I know who he 
 is and where he belongs." And thus speaking, 
 the doctor went outside. 
 
 Sam still had the searchlight in hand, and as 
 the physician approached the automobile, the lad 
 flashed tfie rays on the face of the stranger, who 
 was still unconscious. 
 
 " Why, I've seen that young chap before ! *' ex 
 claimed Doctor Havens. " He is stopping at th 
 
 2$
 
 26 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 hotel. I saw him there only this afternoon." 
 
 "Then perhaps we had better take him over 
 there," suggested Tom. 
 
 " By all means, and I'll go with you." 
 
 Running into the house, the doctor procured 
 his hand case, and then joined the boys in the 
 automobile. A run of a few minutes brought 
 the party to the hotel, and Sam and Tom lifted 
 the young man out and carried him inside. 
 
 The arrival of the party created some conster 
 nation, but as only the proprietor of the hotel 
 and a bellboy were present, the matter was kept 
 rather quiet. The young man had a room on the 
 second floor, and to this he was speedily taken, 
 and placed in the care of the doctor. 
 
 " No bones broken so far as I can ascertain," 
 said Doctor Havens, after a long examination. 
 " He has cut his forehead, and he also has a 
 bruise behind his left ear, but I think he is suf 
 fering more from shock than anything else." 
 
 "Did you say you knew him?" questioned 
 Tom. 
 
 " Oh, no, only that I had seen him around this 
 hotel." 
 
 " What is his name? " asked Sam, of the hotel 
 proprietor, who had followed them to the room. 
 
 " His name is Pelter." 
 
 " Pelter ! " The cry came from Tom and Sam
 
 SOMETHING OF A SURPRISE 27 
 
 simultaneously, and the brothers looked at each 
 other questioningly. 
 
 "Yes, Pelter. Do you know him?" 
 
 " What is his first name? " demanded Tom. 
 
 " Why, let me see " The hotel man mused 
 
 for a moment. " I have it ! Barton Pelter." 
 
 " I never heard that name before," said Tom. 
 
 "We know a man in " And then, as Sam 
 
 looked at him in a peculiar way, he added, " Oh, 
 veil, never mind. We don't know this fellow, 
 anyway. I hope he gets over this trouble." 
 
 By this time the sufferer had again recovered 
 consciousness, but he was evidently very weak, 
 and the doctor motioned for the Rover boys and 
 the hotel man to leave the room. 
 
 " All right, but let us know in the morning by 
 telephone how he is, Doctor," returned Tom ; and 
 then the Rover boys and the hotel man went 
 below. 
 
 " Can you tell us anything about this Barton 
 Pelter?" questioned Sam, of the proprietor. 
 
 " I know very little about him, excepting that 
 he is registered as from Brooklyn, and that he ; ' 
 came here three days ago. What his business is! 
 in Ashton, I haven't the least idea." 
 
 " Is he well off that is, does he appear to have 
 much money?" asked Tom. 
 
 "Oh, he hasn't shown any great amount of
 
 28 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 cash around here," laughed the hotel man. " My 
 idea is that he is some sort of a commercial 
 traveler, although he hasn't anything with him 
 but his suitcase." 
 
 This was all the hotel man could tell them, and 
 a few minutes later the Rover boys were in their 
 automobile once more and headed back for the 
 scene of the accident. 
 
 "We ought to have put up some danger sig 
 nal, Tom," remarked Sam, while on the way. 
 
 " I know it, but we hadn't any time to waste 
 while we had that poor chap on our hands. By 
 the way, do you think he can be any relative of 
 Jesse Pelter, the rascal who knocked me out with 
 the footstool, and who tried his best to rob 
 dad?" 
 
 " I'm sure I don't know. One thing is cer* 
 tain : The name of Pelter is not common. Still, 
 there may be other Pelters besides those related 
 to that scoundrel of a broker." 
 
 Arriving at the vicinity of the broken bridge, 
 the boys found a farmer with a wagon there. 
 The countryman was placing some brushwood 
 across the road. 
 
 " The blame bridge is busted down," said the 
 farmer, "and I thought I ought to put up some 
 kind of a thing to warn folks of it." 
 
 " That is what we came for," answered Sam ;
 
 SOMETHING OF A SURPRISE 29 
 
 and then he and his brother related some of the 
 particulars of what had occurred. 
 
 " Gee, shoo ! You don't mean to tell me that 
 one of them automobiles is down in the river!" 
 gasped the countryman. " I don't see nothin' of 
 it." 
 
 " It must be down on the bottom, close to 
 where that end of the bridge settled," answered 
 Sam. " I suppose there will be a job here for 
 somebody to haul it out." 
 
 "If they want a man for that, I'm the feller 
 to do it," returned the countryman. " Maybe I 
 had better go down to the hotel and see about it.'* 
 
 "Better wait till morning," suggested Tom. 
 "The young man who owns the machine can't 
 see anyone now." 
 
 "All right, just as you say." 
 
 "Now that this bridge is down, how can we 
 get over the river? " mused Sam. 
 
 " Where do you want to go ? " 
 
 "We were on our way to Hope Seminary. I 
 suppose we can go around to the Upper Road, 
 but it will be four or five miles out of our way." 
 
 " It ain't necessary to go that far. You go 
 down stream about half a mile on the Craberry 
 Road, and you can cross The Shallows." 
 
 " Isn't it too deep for an automobile ? " ques 
 tioned Tom.
 
 30 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 "No, not now. It might be, though, in wet 
 weather." 
 
 "I don't know about that," said Sam, and 
 shook his head. " We don't want any accident 
 ! in the water, Tom." 
 
 " Oh, come ahead, we can try it, anyway," re 
 turned Tom, who, in spite of the recent happen 
 ings, was as anxious as ever to get to the semi 
 nary and see Nellie. 
 
 Leaving the countryman at his self-appointed 
 task of putting a barrier across the road and 
 he had said that he would also, get over to the 
 other side of the river somehow and put a bar 
 rier there the Rover boys swung around once 
 again in their touring car, and headed for the 
 side road which had been mentioned to them. 
 Soon they reached what was known as "The 
 Shallows," a spot where the river broadened out, 
 and was filled with loose stones and sandbars. 
 
 By the rays from the headlights, which they 
 now turned on to their fullest extent, the car 
 was guided into the water. At the edge, they 
 saw several tracks made, undoubtedly, by wagons, 
 , and one track evidently made by the anti-skid 
 tires of an automobile. 
 
 "Well, if one auto got through, we ought to 
 be able to make it," remarked Tom, grimly. 
 
 " Better take it on low gear." suggested Ki&
 
 SOMETHING OF A SURPRISE 31 
 
 brother. "We can't see in this water, and we 
 may go down in a hole before we know it." 
 
 Slowly and cautiously, Tom guided the ma 
 chine along, trying to keep as much as possible, 
 to the high points of the various sandbars which 
 ran in a diagonal direction to the stream itself. 
 Once or twice they bumped over some rather 
 large stones, and once they went into a hollow 
 which was somewhat deeper than expected, but, 
 with it all, they managed to keep the working 
 parts of the car above the surface of the stream, 
 and inside of five minutes found themselves safe 
 and sound on the opposite shore, and headed for 
 another side road which joined the main highway 
 less than a quarter of a mile beyond. 
 
 " I am mighty glad we are out of that," re 
 marked Sam, as they left the rather uneven side 
 road and came out on the smooth highway. " I 
 must say, I don't like autoing in the water." 
 
 " Pooh, that wasn't so bad ! " replied Tom. 
 " But it would be, I think, after a heavy storm, 
 when the river was swollen. It must be getting 
 late," he added. " Better speed her up a little, or 
 we'll get to Hope just in time to say 'good-' 
 night,' " and he smiled grimly. 
 
 Fortunately for the boys, there was very little 
 traveling that night. They met but two wagons 
 and one automobile; and these on straight
 
 32 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 stretches of the road where there was little dan 
 ger of collision. Tom was now running at 
 thirty-five to forty miles an hour, and this was 
 'rather dangerous where the highway curved, and 
 where what was ahead was partly hidden by 
 trees and bushes. 
 
 " Here we are at last ! " cried Tom, presently, 
 as they came in sight of Hope Seminary, a fine 
 collection of buildings nestling in a pretty grove 
 of trees. All the dormitory windows showed 
 lights, and there was also a light in the reception 
 parlor of the main building, for which the lads 
 were thankful. 
 
 " Give 'em the horn, Tom," suggested Sam. 
 
 " Sure ! I was only waiting to get a little 
 closer," was the answer, and then, as the auto 
 mobile turned into the seminary grounds and ran 
 along the road leading up to the main entrance, 
 Tom sounded the horn in a peculiar fashion, a 
 signal which had been arranged between the boys 
 and the girls long before. 
 
 "Tom!" 
 
 "Sam!" 
 
 The cries came from two girls dressed in white, 
 who had been seated on a rustic bench near a 
 small fountain. Now, as Tom brought the car to 
 a quick stop, the girls hurried forward. 
 
 " Hello, here we are again ! " sang Tom, mer-
 
 SOMETHING OF A SURPRISE 33 
 
 rily, and leaping to the ground he caught Nellie 
 Laning by both hands. " How are you? " 
 
 " Oh, I am pretty well, Tom." 
 
 "And how are you, Grace? " came from Sam,^ 
 as he, too, left the automobile. 
 
 " Oh, Sam, I am so glad you have come ! " 
 cried Grace Laning. " Nellie and I have been 
 waiting for you." 
 
 "Well, we are glad we are here. We have 
 had quite an adventure to-night." 
 
 " Oh, did you have a breakdown ? " questioned 
 Grace, anxiously. 
 
 "No, but we had to go to the rescue of a 
 fellow who ran into the river." 
 
 " Oh, dear ! Troubles never seem to come 
 singly," sighed Nellie. 
 
 " What do you mean ! " demanded Tom, 
 quickly. " Is something wrong here ? " 
 
 " Indeed there is, Tom ! " answered Grace. 
 And then, with a look at her older sister, who 
 had turned her face away, she continued : " I 
 think it is a shame! If it was not that it would 
 make it look as if Nellie were guilty, we would 
 pack up at once and leave this place." 
 
 " Why, what do you mean ? " came from both 
 of the Rovers. 
 
 " Oh, Grace, perhaps you had better not tell 
 them," cried Nellie, with almost a sob.
 
 34 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 "Nellie!" And now Tom caught the girl 
 lightly in his arms. " What has happened ? " 
 
 "I I can't tell!" sobbed the girl. "Grace 
 will tell you." 
 
 " I don't suppose it is necessary to go into all 
 the details," said Grace, " but the long and short 
 of it is, that Nellie is suspected of stealing a 
 four-hundred-dollar diamond ring." 
 
 "What!" ejaculated Tom. 
 
 " It was this way, Tom," pursued Grace. " One 
 of the teachers here, a Miss Harrow, who assists 
 the seminary management by keeping some of the 
 books, had a diamond ring said to be worth four 
 hundred dollars placed in her possession by a 
 Miss Parsons, another teacher. It seems that 
 Miss Parsons had an eccentric old aunt, who 
 wished to give the seminary some money, and so 
 turned over the ring, to be converted into cash. 
 This ring Miss Harrow left on her desk in the of 
 fice. Nellie went into the office to see the teacher, 
 but finding no one there, came away. Then Miss 
 Harrow came back a few minutes later, and found 
 the diamond ring gone. She at once made in 
 quiries, but as she could find nobody who had been 
 'in the office after Nellie had left, she called Nellie 
 in and wanted her to tell what had become of the 
 piece of jewelry."
 
 CHAPTER IV 
 
 A FOUR-HUNDRED-DOLLAR RING 
 
 ''DlD you see this ring, Nellie?" questioned 
 Tom, after a painful pause. 
 
 "Why, yes, it was lying in the middle of a 
 flat-top desk," responded the girl, wiping her eyes 
 with her handkerchief. 
 
 " Didn't somebody go into the office after you 
 were there ? " 
 
 " I don't know, Tom. In fact, nobody seems 
 to know." 
 
 " I was in the office with another girl about 
 five minutes before Nellie went there," came from 
 Grace. " I saw the ring there, too, and I thought 
 it was very foolish to leave it so exposed. Why, 
 anybody could have run off with it." 
 
 " It certainly was careless," put in Sam. 
 
 "Miss Harrow said she was on the point of 
 putting it in the safe when she was called by 
 'phone to one of the other buildings. She had a 
 dispute to settle between some of the hired help, 
 and she did not think of the ring until some time 
 later. Then, so she says, she rushed back to the 
 office to find it missing." 
 
 35
 
 36 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 " Well, I think it is a shame that she accused 
 Nellie," said Tom, stoutly and with something 
 of a savage look in his eyes. " Nellie, if I were 
 you, I wouldn't stand for it" 
 
 " She she hasn't accused me, exactly," re 
 turned the suffering girl. "But she intimated 
 that I must have taken the ring, so it's just as 
 bad." 
 
 " What does the seminary management have to 
 say about it?" asked Sam. 
 
 " They seem to think it lies between Nellie and 
 the teacher," answered Grace. 
 
 " In that case, how do we know the teacher 
 didn't take the ring herself?" broke in Tom, 
 quickly. 
 
 " Oh, do you think that possible ? " questioned 
 Nellie, in surprise. 
 
 " It's more reasonable to think she took it than 
 you did. Anyway, she hasn't any right to accuse 
 you," went on Tom, bluntly. 
 
 " As I said, Tom, she hasn't accused me that 
 is, openly; but I know what she thinks, and T 
 know what she will make others think," returnee 1 
 Nellie. And now she showed signs of bursting 
 into tears again. " Oh, I feel as if I must pack 
 up and go home ! " 
 
 "Don't you do it, Nellie. That would maV? 
 it look as if you were guilty. You stay here and
 
 A FOUR-HUNDRED-DOLLAR RING 37 
 
 face the music." Then, as Nellie began to 
 cry again, Tom took her in his arms and held 
 her tightly. 
 
 " Come on ! " said Sam, in a low tone of voice. 
 ,**! think some people at the window are listen 
 ing." And he led the way to a distant portion of 
 the seminary grounds. After that, Grace told all 
 she knew of the miserable affair, and Nellie re 
 lated just how she had seen the diamond ring on 
 the teacher's desk. 
 
 " Was the window open at the time ? " ques 
 tioned the older Rover boy. 
 
 " If I remember rightly, the window was tight 
 shut," replied Nellie. 
 
 "Yes, it was shut when I was in the office," 
 put in Grace. " I have been trying to think out 
 some way by which the ring could have disap 
 peared, but without success." 
 
 The matter was talked over for some time, and 
 then the girls questioned the boys regarding the 
 happening at the broken bridge. Nellie, and 
 Grace also, wanted to know the latest news from 
 Dick and Dora. 
 
 " So far as I know, Dora is in fine health and 
 
 "enjoying herself in the city," said Tom. "But 
 
 Dick is having his hands full, and I rather think 
 
 that, sooner or later, I'll have to pack up and go 
 
 to his assistance."
 
 38 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 "Then you'll leave Brill for good?" ques 
 tioned Nellie. 
 
 " I think so. I can't be breaking in on my 
 college course every now and then as I have been 
 doing, and pass my examinations. More than 
 that, I begin to believe that I was not cut out for 
 a college man. I am like Dick; I prefer a busi 
 ness career rather than a professional one. It 
 is Sam who is going to make the learned one of 
 the family." 
 
 " Oh, come now, Tom ! Don't pile it on ! " 
 pleaded the younger brother. And yet he looked 
 greatly pleased; and Grace looked pleased, too. 
 
 " But if you leave Brill, you won't be able to 
 get here very often, Tom," remarked Nellie, wist 
 fully. 
 
 "That is true. But if I have to go to New 
 York, why can't you go, too ? " 
 
 "Oh, Tom!" 
 
 " Well, that is what Dora did when Dick gave 
 up his college career. I think the folks under 
 stand " 
 
 Just then a bell in the tower of the main semi 
 nary building began to clang loudly. At the firs. 
 stroke both girls started. 
 
 " There goes the first bell ! " cried Grace. " We 
 must go." 
 
 " Oh, hang the bell ! " muttered Tom, and then,
 
 A FOUR-HUNDRED-DOLLAR RING 39 
 
 as Grace ran towards the building, with Sam 
 beside her, he once more caught Nellie by the 
 hand, 
 i " Now say, Nellie, don't you think " 
 
 " Oh, Tom, I must get in before the second 
 bell rings ! " pleaded Nellie. 
 
 " Yes, but won't you promise " 
 
 " How can I promise anything, Tom, with this 
 affair of the missing ring " 
 
 " Missing ring ! You don't suppose for one 
 minute that that is going to make any difference 
 to me, do you?" 
 
 " Oh, no, Tom. I know you too well for that." 
 And now Nellie gave him a look that thrilled him 
 through and through. " But I think I ought to 
 clear my name before before I do anything 
 else." 
 
 " All right. I suppose it has got to be as you 
 say," returned Tom, hopelessly. " But listen ! If 
 they make any more trouble for you, promise me 
 that you will let me know." 
 
 "All right, Tom, I will." And then, after 
 Tom had stolen a quick kiss, Nellie hastened her 
 steps, and a few seconds later she and her sister 
 disappeared within the building. 
 
 "Do you know what I'd like to do, Sam?" 
 muttered Tom, as the brothers turned away from 
 the seminary grounds in the automobile. " I'd
 
 10 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 like to wring that Miss Harrow's neck! What 
 right has she to accuse Nellie?" 
 
 " No right at all, Tom. But one thing is cer 
 tain, the ring must be missing. I don't think that 
 the teacher had anything to do with taking it. 
 They don't have that sort here." 
 
 " Possibly not. At the same time, to my mind 
 it is far more reasonable to suppose that she took 
 it than that Nellie had anything to do with it," 
 declared Tom, stoutly. 
 
 "If the window was closed down, it seems to 
 me that the ring must have been taken by some 
 body in the building," pursued Sam, thoughtfully. 
 " Perhaps one of the hired help did it." 
 
 " Maybe." Tom gave a long sigh. " I cer 
 tainly hope they clear the matter up before long. 
 I shall be very anxious to hear from the girls 
 about it." 
 
 As the young collegians had received permis 
 sion to be out after hours, they did not attempt 
 to take the short cut through The Shallows on 
 returning to Brill. Instead, they went around by 
 another road, over a bridge that was perfectly 
 safe. 
 
 " It's not so late, after all," remarked Sam, as 
 they entered their room. " Perhaps I had better 
 finish that th'eme."
 
 A FOUR-HUNDRED-DOLLAR RING 41 
 
 " Oh, finish it in the morning," returned Tom, 
 with a yawn. " You'll feel brighter." 
 
 "All right," answered Sam, who felt sleepy 
 himself; and a few minutes later the brothers 
 retired. 
 
 The next morning found Sam at work on the 
 theme long before the hour for breakfast. Tom 
 was also up, and said he would take a walk 
 around the grounds to raise an appetite. 
 
 "As if you needed anything of that sort,'* 
 grinned Sam. " The first thing you know, you'll 
 be eating so much that the college management 
 will be charging you double for board." 
 
 Down on the campus, Tom ran into Songbird 
 and, a few minutes later, William Philander 
 Tubbs. Songbird, as usual, had a pad and pencil 
 in his hand. 
 
 " Composing verses, I suppose," remarked 
 Tom. " What have you got now? " 
 
 " Oh, it isn't so very much," returned Song 
 bird, hesitatingly. " It's a little poem I was writ 
 ing about dogs." 
 
 " Dogs ! " chimed in William Philander. " My 
 gracious me! What sort of poetry can you get 
 up about dogs? I must confess, I don't like them. 
 Unless, of course, they are the nice little lap- 
 dog kin'd."
 
 42 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 " This isn't about a lap-dog, exactly," returned 
 Songbird. " It's about a watchdog." 
 
 " Um ! By the way, Songbird, haven't the San 
 dersons a new watchdog?" 
 
 " Yes." And now Songbird reddened a little. 
 
 " Well, let us have the poem, anyway. I love 
 dogs, and some poetry about them ought to run 
 along pretty good." 
 
 Thereupon, rather hesitatingly, Songbird held 
 up his writing-pad and read the following: 
 
 " The sun sinks low far in the west 
 The farmer plodeth home to rest, 
 The watchdog, watching in the night, 
 Assures him ev'ry thing is right." 
 
 " Fine ! " cried Tom. " Real, dyed-in-the-wool 
 poetry that, Songbird. Give us some more.'* 
 And then the would-be poet continued: 
 
 " The sun comes up and it is morn, 
 
 The farmer goes to plow his corn, 
 The watchdog, watching through the day, 
 Keeps ev'ry tramp and thief away." 
 
 And be it night or be it day " 
 
 "The watchdog's there, and there to stayl" 
 
 continued Torn, and then on; 
 
 "The watchdog, watching in his sleep, 
 
 Catches each flea and makes him weep!" 
 
 " Catching fleas indeed ! " interrupted Song-
 
 A FOUR-HUNDRED-DOLLAR RING 43 
 
 bird. "Now, Tom, I didn't have any fleas in 
 this poem." 
 
 " But all dogs have fleas, Songbird they own 
 them naturally. You wouldn't deprive a poor, 
 innocent dog of his inheritance, would you?" 
 
 " But, Tom, see here " 
 
 " But I wanted to say the poem couldn't be 
 better," went on the fun-loving Rover. "Why 
 don't you send it to some of the dog journals? 
 They would be sure to print it." 
 
 " Dog journals ! " snorted the would-be poet. 
 " Do you think I write for such a class of publi 
 cations as that?" 
 
 " Well, you might do worse/' responded Tom, 
 coolly. " Now, for a first-class journal, they 
 ought to pay you at least a dollar a foot." 
 
 " Oh, Tom, you are the worst ever ! " mur 
 mured Songbird, as he turned away. A few 
 minutes later, Tom saw him sit down on a bench 
 to compose verses as industriously as ever. 
 
 " I think I must be going," said William Phi 
 lander, who had listened to Songbird's effort 
 without making any comment. 
 
 " Wait a minute, my dear Billy, I want '' 
 
 " Now, Tom, please don't call me Billy," plead 
 ed the dudish student. 
 
 " Oh, all right, Philly. I was just going to 
 ssiy
 
 44 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 " Now, Tom, Philly is just as bad as Billy, if 
 not worse. You know my name well enough." 
 
 "All right, Tubblets. If you prefer any such 
 handle to the tub, why I " 
 
 " Tom, if you are going to talk that way, I'll 
 really have to leave you, don't you know," cried 
 William Philander. " I am not going to stand for 
 it any longer. I have told you at least a hun 
 dred times " 
 
 " No, not a hundred times, not more than 
 sixty-eight times at the most," interrupted Tom. 
 
 " Well, I've told you enough times, anyway, 
 Tom. So if you " 
 
 " Don't say another word, or you'll make me 
 weep," said Tom, and drew down his face sob 
 erly. " Why, my dear fellow, I wouldn't hurt 
 your feelings, not for the world and a big red 
 apple thrown in. But what I was going to say 
 was this: Are you going to play on our base 
 ball team this Spring? Somebody said you were 
 going to pitch for us," and Tom looked very 
 much in earnest. 
 
 "Me pitch for you?" queried William Phi 
 lander. "Why, who told you such a story as 
 that?" 
 
 " It's all over college, Tubbs, all over college. 
 You must be practicing pitching in private." 
 
 " But I don't know a thing about pitching. In
 
 A FOUR-HUNDRED-DOLLAR RING 45 
 
 fact, I don't know much about baseball," pleaded 
 the dudish student." 
 
 " Oh, come now, Tubbs you can't fool me. 
 Most likely you have been practicing in private, 
 and when you come out on the diamond you will 
 astonish everybody. Well, I am glad to know 
 that Brill College is really to have a first-class 
 pitcher at last. We need it if we are going to 
 win any baseball games. 
 
 " Now, Tom, I tell you that I don't know " 
 
 " Oh, you can't fool me, William," declared 
 Tom, positively. " I got the information straight, 
 and I know it is absolutely correct. You are 
 booked as the head pitcher for Brill this season." 
 And thus speaking, Tom turned on his heel and 
 walked off, leaving William Philander Tubbs 
 much perplexed.
 
 CHAPTER V 
 
 THREE LETTERS 
 
 A NEW idea had entered Tom's mind, and he 
 lost no time in carrying it out. Meeting Bob 
 Grimes and Stanley Browne, he drew them 
 quickly to one side and mentioned the talk he 
 had had with William Philander. 
 
 " Now, carry it along," he concluded. "If you 
 do it properly, we'll have a barrel of fun out of 
 it." 
 
 " Right you are ! " returned Bob, and Stanley 
 winked knowingly. Then Tom hurried off, to 
 interview several others of the students, princi 
 pally those who were interested in the Brill base 
 ball nine. 
 
 Just before the bell rang for breakfast, Wil 
 liam Philander found himself confronted by Bob, 
 who shook hands cordially. "This is the best 
 news yet, William," said the baseball leader, 
 heartily. " I have been wondering what we were 
 going to do for a pitcher this season." 
 
 "Yes, it's all to the merry," put in Stanley, 
 who had come up with Bob. " But tell us pri- 
 
 46
 
 THREE LETTERS 47 
 
 vately, William, are you going to depend on a 
 straight ball and speed, or are you going to give 
 them some curves and fadeaways ? " 
 
 "Now, see here!" spluttered the dudish stu 
 dent. " I am not a baseball pitcher, and I want 
 you to " 
 
 "Oh, William, don't try that game on us!" 
 burst out Stanley. "We know that you have 
 been practicing pitching for the past two months ; 
 that you took lessons from one of the greatest 
 ball twirlers in the Western League. Of course, 
 we understand that you wanted to surpise us ; and 
 I must confess, it is a surprise." 
 
 "But a mighty agreeable one," came from 
 Spud, who had joined the crowd, while Tom 
 hovered behind William Philander, grinning 
 broadly over what was taking place. " Brill has 
 wanted a really great pitcher for years. Of 
 course, we have won some victories with ordi 
 nary pitchers, but the moment I heard that you 
 had taken to twirling the sphere, I said to all my 
 friends : ' This is the year that Brill is going to 
 come out on top.' My dear Tubbs, I think we 
 ought to get down on our knees, and thank you 
 for doing this much for our college. I am sure 
 the board of directors, when they hear of this, 
 will certainly give you a vote of thanks, because 
 success in baseball and other athletic sports is
 
 48 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 what makes a college in these days. And you are 
 taking up the sport in such a thoroughly syste 
 matic manner " 
 
 " Oh, my dear fellow ! " pleaded William Phi 
 lander, frantically. "This is all some dreadful 
 mistake, don't you know. How it came about, I 
 can't imagine, but I haven't " 
 
 " It's no use, fellows. He simply won't ac 
 knowledge it yet," broke in another student. 
 
 "We'll have to wait until he comes out on 
 the diamond in his new uniform," added still 
 another. 
 
 " Anyway, William, you might tell us whether 
 you are going to use a straight ball or a curve 
 and the fadeaway," pleaded Stanley. 
 
 "He is going to keep that a secret, so as to 
 fool our opponents," broke in Tom. " And he'll 
 fool them all right enough, you can depend on 
 W. P. Tubbs every time." 
 
 " Three cheers for W. P. ! " cried Spud. " Now 
 then, boys, altogether: W. P., the champion 
 pitcher of Brill College ! " 
 
 A cheer and a yell rent the air, and brought a 
 great number of other students to that part of the 
 campus. In a twinkling, William Philander was 
 completely surrounded. 
 
 "What's it all about?" 
 
 "Is it a fight?"
 
 THREE LETTERS 49 
 
 "Who are they cheering?" 
 
 " It's all about Mr. W. P. Tubbs, Esq.," cried 
 Tom, loudly. " Our new, double back-action, 
 warranted, baseball twirler ; the man who is going 
 to shoot 'em over the plate in such a marvelous 
 fashion that our rivals will go down and out in 
 one, two, three order." 
 
 At this announcement, a great hubbub arose 
 On all sides. 
 
 "Tubbs! is he a baseball pitcher?" 
 
 " I didn't know he knew a thing about base 
 ball." 
 
 " That dude launching a fadeaway ? That gets 
 me!" 
 
 " Where did he learn to pitch ? " 
 
 " Who put him on the team? " 
 
 "Say, Tubbs, explain this, won't you?" This 
 last remark came from four students in uni 
 son. 
 
 "You let me out of this!" cried the dudish 
 student in despair. "It's all some horrid joke! 
 I am not going to pitch ! I don't know anything 
 about pitching! I don't know hardly anything 
 about baseball! I don't want to play! Why, 
 when a fellow falls down running around the 
 bases, he is apt to get all dirty! You let me out 
 of this!" And so speaking, William Philander 
 Tubbs pushed his way out of the crowd, and
 
 50 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 fairly ran for the nearest of the school build 
 ings. 
 
 " I guess that will hold W. P. for a while," 
 'swas Tom's comment, as the tall student vanished. 
 
 " Good joke, Tom ! " returned Bob. 
 
 * What's the matter with keeping it up?" 
 added Spud. " Don't let him know the truth. 
 Maybe some day we can drag him out on the 
 diamond." 
 
 " All right," answered Tom. " I'll do it ;" and 
 then, as the bell rang for breakfast, all of the 
 students hurried inside. 
 
 Some days passed, and during that time the 
 Rover boys waited anxiously for some news from 
 their brother Dick, and also for word from Hope 
 Seminary. In the meantime, the lads had settled 
 down to the usual grind of college life, and were 
 doing as well as could be expected considering the 
 interruptions their studies had suffered. 
 
 The Rover boys had already learned that the 
 bridge across the Paxton River had been repaired. 
 The automobile, which had gone into the stream, 
 had been found intact, only needing some clean 
 ing to make it once more useable. It had been 
 taken to the hotel garage. The young man, who 
 had been thrown into the stream at the time, was 
 still in bed under the doctor's care. Evidently,
 
 THREE LETTERS 51 
 
 the shock to his system had been more severe than 
 had been at first supposed. 
 
 "Letters at last!" cried Tom, on the third 
 morning, as he came in, holding up several epis 
 tles. One was from Grace, another from Nellie, 
 and still a third from Dick. 
 
 As might have been expected, the boys opened 
 the letters from the girls first. 
 
 " Nothing new in this," remarked Tom, some 
 what disappointedly, after having read what Nel 
 lie had written. " She says that the diamond ring 
 has not yet been found, and that everything is at 
 a standstill concerning it." 
 
 " Grace says practically the same thing," re 
 turned Sam. " She adds that Nellie is very much 
 downcast, and she thinks that, while her friends 
 all stand by her, some of the girls are giving her 
 the cold shoulder." 
 
 " It's an outrage ! Oh, Sam, I wish I could 
 do something ! " And unable to control his feel 
 ings, Tom clenched his hands and began to pace 
 the floor. 
 
 " It certainly is the meanest thing I ever heard 
 ,of, Tom. But I don't see what we can do. In 
 fact, I don't see what anybody can do. The semi 
 nary management must have made a thorough 
 v investigation, and if they haven't discovered any-
 
 52 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 thing, I don't see how an outsider can solve the 
 mystery." 
 
 " Maybe they ought to shadow some of the 
 hired help, or something like that." 
 
 "They may be doing that, Tom. They cer 
 tainly won't let a four-hundred-dollar ring get 
 away from them without making the biggest kind 
 of an effort to find out where it went. But open 
 that letter from Dick, and see what he has to 
 say." 
 
 The communication was torn open, and Tom 
 glanced over it hastily. 
 
 " Here's a surprise, Sam," he cried. " Well, 
 what do you know about this ! " And he read as 
 follows : 
 
 " I have something of a surprise for you. In 
 coming to a settlement with Pelter, Japson & 
 Company, they notified me that they were going 
 out of business in New York City. Pelter claims 
 that our exposing the firm practically ruined them, 
 and at the present time there is still due father a 
 matter of about fifteen hundred dollars, which 
 they seem unable to pay. Both Pelter and Jap- 
 son have offered to turn over to us the entire 
 contents of their offices in Wall Street, along 
 with their lease. I don't think the outfit is worth 
 the fifteen hundred dollars, but when you can't
 
 THREE LETTERS 53 
 
 get all that is coming to you, the next best thing 
 is to take what you can get. I am writing to 
 father about this, and if he agrees with me, I 
 shall take the lease of the offices, and also the 
 outfit, which includes several desks, chairs, a 
 safe and a filing cabinet. Pelter says the outfit 
 was new two years ago, so that it is in quite 
 good condition. 
 
 " Dora sends her best regards. As you know, 
 we are now installed in our suite at the Outlook 
 Hotel, and she spends quite some of her time 
 shopping and looking around the city. I have 
 gone out with her a few times, but spend most 
 of my time in straightening out these financial 
 matters, and in taking care of father's other in 
 vestments. Mr. Powell, the lawyer, is assisting 
 me to unravel the tangle, but it is hard work, and 
 I often wish that one or both of you were here 
 to help me. Remember me to all the boys and 
 likewise to Grace and Nellie. 
 
 " By the way, I understand that Josiah Crab- 
 tree is soon to leave the hospital. His leg was 
 so badly broken that he will have to walk with 
 either a crutch or a couple of canes. In one 
 way, I feel sorry for the old fellow, but he 
 brought the accident on himself. What a shame 
 that a man with his education couldn't have re 
 mained honest and straightforward.
 
 54 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 "As I said above, Pelter, Japson & Company; 
 are going to give up business here. Just the same, 
 I don't like Pelter's actions at all. I think he is 
 a bad one through and through much worse 
 than Japson who is more weak than wicked. I 
 am going to keep my eyes open whenever Pelter 
 is around." 
 
 Both boys read this communication from Dick 
 with deep interest. Then Sam read the letter a 
 second time and looked thoughtfully at Tom. 
 
 " I don't think Dick is having any easy time of 
 it," was his sober comment. 
 
 "Just what I have been thinking all along, 
 Sam. When Dick says he wishes he had one or 
 both of us with him, he means it. Just as soon 
 as the college term comes to a close, I am going 
 to New York." 
 
 " Well, I'll go with you," returned Sam. " I 
 did think we might go on some kind of an outing 
 during July and August, but it wouldn't be fair 
 to take the time off and leave Dick at the grind 
 alone." 
 
 " Of course, I think we ought to go home first," 
 continued Tom, after a pause. "The folks will 
 want to see us, and, besides, we will want to 
 talk matters over with dad, and also with Uncle
 
 THREE LETTERS 
 
 55 
 
 Randolph. They may want to tell us something 
 about the business." 
 
 " Do you think that Uncle Randolph had much 
 money invested with father?" 
 
 " I don't know exactly what to think, Sam. 
 Uncle Randolph is very peculiar, and since father 
 has been sick again, he has not wanted to talk 
 matters over very much. We will have to be 
 careful of what we say when we get home. It 
 won't do, so the doctor said, to excite him too 
 much." 
 
 " Oh, I know that as well as you do. In fact, 
 it might be best not to mention business to dad 
 at all. You must remember that this is the third 
 breakdown he has had since we came to Brill, and 
 another such turn might prove serious." 
 
 " Oh, don't talk like that ! It makes me shiver 
 to think of it. What in the world would we do 
 if anything happened to poor, dear dad ! " 
 
 " If only Uncle Randolph was more of a busi 
 ness man, he might go to New York and help 
 Dick ; but you know how he is all wrapped up in 
 what he calls 'scientific farming.' Of course, it 
 doesn't amount to a hill of beans, but he thinks 
 it does, and he spends a great deal of money on 
 it that might be put to better usage." 
 
 " Well, it's his own money, you must remem-
 
 56 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 her, and he has a right to do what he pleases 
 with it. But for gracious sake ! don't get him to 
 go to New York. It would only mix up matters 
 worse than ever. Dick would not only have to 
 take care of the business, but he would also have- 
 to take care of Uncle Randolph. Besides, it 
 wouldn't be fair to leave Aunt Martha to look 
 after dad, alone." And there, for the time being, 
 the talk on personal matters came to an end.
 
 CHAPTER VI 
 
 BASEBALL TALK 
 
 WITH so many other affairs to claim our atten 
 tion, I have purposely avoided going into the de 
 tails of the baseball season at Brill that year. As 
 my old readers know, the college had a baseball 
 nine and a football eleven, and both had, at vari 
 ous times, done well at one sport or the other. 
 
 This particular year, baseball matters had not 
 gone as well as had been expected. In the first 
 place, several of the best players on the nine had 
 graduated the year before and left the college. 
 Then had come a long wet spell, during which 
 time only some indoor practice in the gymnasium 
 could be attempted. Thus, at the opening of the 
 season, the nine possessed four players who had 
 hitherto played only on the scrub, and the whole 
 team lacked the practice that was essential to 
 success. The most serious loss was in the bat 
 tery, both the pitcher and catcher of the year pre 
 vious having left the college. Bob Grimes, who 
 played at shortstop, was the captain, and after a 
 
 57
 
 58 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 good many tryouts, he had put Spud Jackson in 
 as catcher. For pitcher, there were three candi 
 dates: a lad named Bill Harney, who was a tall 
 junior; a much smaller chap who had come from 
 Yale, named Dare Phelps; and Tom, who had 
 been pushed forward by a number of his friends. 
 Tom had thought to pay strict attention to his 
 studies for the remainder of the term, but finally 
 agreed to accept the position if it was offered to 
 him. 
 
 " I think you are going to make it, Tom," said 
 Songbird one day after Tom had been pitching 
 on the regular team against Bill Harney, who had 
 been pitching on the scrub. Tom had managed to 
 hold the scrub down to three hits, while Harney 
 had allowed fourteen hits, one of which had been 
 turned by the batter into a home run. 
 
 " Oh, I don't know about that," replied Tom. 
 " Harney isn't so bad. He had a little ill luck 
 to-day, that's all. And then, don't forget Phelps." 
 
 " I'm not forgetting either of them. Just the 
 same, I think you are going to make the nine." 
 
 The next day, Tom was put in as pitcher on 
 the scrub, while Dare Phelps occupied the box' 
 for the regular nine. For the first six innings, it 
 was a nip-and-tuck battle between the two pitch 
 ers. But from that time on, Dare Phelps seemed 
 to go to pieces, while Tom struck out man after
 
 BASEBALL TALK 59 
 
 man. As a result, the score at the end of the 
 game stood 4 to 10 in favor of the scrub. 
 
 " Tom, I think that settles it ! " cried his broth 
 er, as he rushed up and took the other by the 
 shoulder. "You certainly held them down in 
 great shape." 
 
 " And say, didn't the scrub bang Phelps all over 
 the diamond ! " broke in another student. " My, 
 he must feel pretty sore ! " And evidently this 
 was true, because a minute later Dare Phelps left 
 the diamond and disappeared from view. Nearly 
 everybody in the college had watched the games 
 between the scrub and the regular nine; and that 
 night the concensus of opinion seemed to be that 
 Tom ought to pitch for the regular team. 
 
 " You'll have to do it, Tom," said Bob Grimes, 
 when he called on the older Rover in the morn 
 ing. " Phelps acknowledges that you are a better 
 pitcher than he is, and I think Bill Harney will 
 have to do the same." 
 
 " Better wait and see how I pitch in one o 
 the regular games," returned Tom, modestly. 
 " For all you know, I may go to pieces." 
 
 " Nonsense, Tom ! I know you too w r ell for 
 that," and Bob grinned broadly. "We'll show 
 Roxley College this year what we can do." 
 
 Every year there were two contests between 
 Brill and Roxley, a rival college located .some
 
 60 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 miles away. One contest was at baseball, and 
 
 the other football. During the past Fall, Rox- 
 
 ley had suffered its second defeat on the gridiron 
 
 at the hands of Brill. But the Spring previous, 
 
 j its baseball nine had literally " wiped up the dia- 
 
 * mond " with Brill by a score of 6 to o. My 
 
 readers can, therefore, well imagine how anxious 
 
 the baseball management was to win the game 
 
 scheduled to come off in about a week. 
 
 Since returning to college from his trip to New 
 York, and then the longer trip to Alaska, Sam 
 had given almost his entire time to his studies. 
 He was quite a baseball player, but he felt that 
 to play on the regular team would take too much 
 of his time. 
 
 "If you are going to leave college this June, 
 it won't make so much difference whether you pass 
 with flying colors or not, Tom," he said. " But 
 if I am to return in the Fall, I want to make sure 
 that I am not going to do so under conditions." 
 
 "But, Sam, I don't see why you can't play a 
 game or two," persisted Tom. " It doesn't seem 
 natural for you to keep out of it altogether." 
 
 " Well, I have played some on the scrub." 
 
 "Oh, I know, but that isn't like going in for 
 the regular thing. You could be on the regular 
 team if you really wanted to." 
 
 This matter was talked over several times, but
 
 BASEBALL TALK 6l 
 
 Sam refused to be entirely persuaded. He, how 
 ever, finally agreed to go on the bench as a sub 
 stitute, provided Bob would not ask him to play 
 any inside position. By a toss-up, it had been 
 decided that the game should take place on the 
 Roxley grounds. As a consequence, the boys of 
 Brill and their friends would have to go to the 
 other college either by train from Ashton, or in 
 automobiles or some other kinds of convey 
 ances. 
 
 "Of course, we'll take the girls, Tom," said 
 Sam, in talking the matter over. "We can go 
 over to Hope in the auto for them, and I think 
 it would be nice if we took Songbird along and 
 stopped at the Sanderson cottage for Minnie." 
 
 " All right, that suits me," replied Tom, " Let 
 us ask Songbird about it." 
 
 Of course the would-be poet was delighted, and 
 he at once sent a note to Minnie, asking her to 
 be ready when the auto arrived. The girls at 
 Hope were communicated with over the telephone. 
 
 " I'm afraid it's going to rain," said Spud, on 
 the evening before the great game was to takei 
 place. And Spud was right By nine o'clock it 
 was raining steadily. 
 
 " Just our confounded luck ! " muttered Song 
 bird, as he paced up and down the room which 
 he and half a dozen others were occupying.
 
 62 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 "Now, I suppose that game and our nice auto 
 ride will be all knocked in the head." 
 
 " Don't worry so early," returned Sam, cheer 
 fully. " I don't think this is anything more than 
 a shower, and we need that to lay the dust." Sam 
 proved to be right, for before some of the boys 
 retired, the rain had stopped coming down, and 
 one by one the stars began to appear. In the 
 morning, the sun came up as bright as ever, and 
 by ten o'clock the ground was as dry as any one 
 could wish. The day was a Saturday, and, of 
 course, a holiday both at Brill and Roxley. By 
 eleven o'clock, a carryall had taken a large num 
 ber of the students to Ashton, where they were 
 to take a special train for Roxley. All of the 
 automobiles at Brill were in use, and with them 
 all of the turnouts that could be hired in the vicin 
 ity. 
 
 " No time to spare ! " sang out Tom, as he ran 
 the automobile up to the college steps. 
 
 " I am ready," said Sam, who had a dresssuit 
 case with Tom's uniform and his own in it. 
 
 "Where is Songbird?" 
 
 " I don't know, I thought he was with you." 
 
 " Here I am! " came the cry, and the would-be 
 poet of the college came rushing across the cam 
 pus. He was dressed in his very best suit, and 
 wore a rose in his buttonhole.
 
 BASEBALL TALK 63 
 
 "Wait! I almost forgot the horns!" cried 
 Sam, and he darted back into the building, to re 
 appear a few seconds later with several long tin 
 horns. Into the automobile piled the boys, and 
 then, with a laud sounding of the horn, Tom 
 turned on the power, and the machine started off 
 in the direction of Hope, soon reaching the spot 
 where the automobile had gone into the river. 
 
 " That poor chap didn't hurt his machine much, 
 so I have heard," remarked Sam, as they bowled 
 along over the bridge. "But, I think it might 
 have been better if he had come out of it scott 
 free, and the auto had gone to pieces." 
 
 " We ought io call on him, Sam," returned 
 Tom. " I would like to find out whether or not 
 he is related to Jesse Pelter." 
 
 " Oh, don't bfither about that to-day. Let your 
 mind rest on tl/s game and the girls," and Sam 
 grinned faintly. 
 
 The run to the seminary did not take long. 
 The Laning girls stood waiting on the porch, and 
 once they were in the car, the machine was headed 
 sn the direction of the Sanderson cottage. 
 
 Nellie occupied the front seat with Tom, while 
 Sam was in the tonneau with Grace and Song 
 bird. The younger girl was in her usual happy 
 mood, but Nellie's face showed worriment. 
 
 " Have you heard anything more about the
 
 64 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 missing ring?" questioned Tom, while on the 
 way to the Sanderson farmhouse. 
 
 " Not a thing, Tom," answered Nellie, soberly. 
 
 "Of course they have questioned the hired 
 help?" 
 
 " Yes. And they have also questioned a num 
 ber of the teachers and the students." 
 
 " Has Miss Harrow said anything more about 
 it to you?" 
 
 " No, but every time we meet, she gives me 
 such a cold look that it fairly makes me shiver. 
 Oh, Tom, sometimes I don't know how I am 
 going to stand it ! " And now the girl showed 
 signs of breaking down. 
 
 " There, there ! Don't think about it any more, 
 Nellie at least, for to-day. Think of the jolly 
 good time we are going to have and how we are 
 going to defeat Roxley." 
 
 "Do you think Brill will win, Tom? I heard 
 some of the girls at Hope say that they were sure 
 Roxley would come out ahead. They said they 
 have an unusually strong nine this year, and that 
 they have already won some games from the 
 strongest nines around here." 
 
 " Well, that is true. Nevertheless, we hope to 
 come out ahead." 
 
 " Sure we'll come out ahead ! " cried Song 
 bird. " With Tom in the box it's a cinch." 
 
 " Just what I say," broke in Sam. " Tom has
 
 BASEBALL TALK 65 
 
 got some curves that are bound to fool them." 
 
 In order to make time, Tom had put on nearly 
 all the speed of which the car was capable, and 
 in a short while they came in sight of the San 
 derson farm. Mr. Sanderson was at work in an 
 apple orchard near by, and waved his hand to 
 them as the machine drew up to the horse-block. 
 
 " Better come along," sang out Sam, gaily. 
 
 " I wouldn't mind a-seein' the game," returned 
 the old farmer. " But I've promised to pick these 
 early apples and ship 'em. I wish you boys luck." 
 And then he brought over a pail full of apples, 
 and dumped them in the tonneau of the car. 
 Minnie, looking as fresh and sweet as ever, was 
 on the piazza, and when the car stopped she hur 
 ried down the garden walk. Songbird leaped out 
 and helped her in beside Grace, shaking hands at 
 the same time. 
 
 "Good gracious, Pa! how could you do so?" 
 said Minnie, reproachfully, as she stepped between 
 the apples. 
 
 " Oh, I thought as how ye might git hungry 
 on th' way," returned Mr. Sanderson, with a 
 broad grin. " If ye don't want to eat them, you 
 feed your hosses on *em." And he laughed at 
 his little joke. 
 
 "We'll eat them fast enough, don't worry," 
 cried Sam, and then, with a toot of the horn, 
 the automobile proceeded on its way to Roxley.
 
 CHAPTER VII 
 
 THE GREAT BASEBALL GAME 
 
 " SOME crowd, this ! " 
 
 " Well, I should say so ! Say, this is the big 
 gest crowd we ever had at any game." 
 
 " And look at the new grandstand, all decked 
 out in flags and banners ! " 
 
 " And look at the automobiles ! We'll have to 
 hurry up, or all the parking space will be gone." 
 
 " Hurrah, Brill ! Come down here to see us 
 defeat you, eh ? " And a merry looking student, 
 wearing the colors of Roxley on his cap, and 
 waving a Roxley banner in his hand, grinned 
 broadly at Tom and the others. 
 
 " No, we came to bury you," retorted Sam. 
 " It's all over but the shouting." And then he 
 took up one of the horns he had brought, and 
 sounded it loudly. 
 
 " Better let me take the car to the other end of 
 'the grounds," suggested Songbird. " You fellows 
 will want to get into your uniforms and into prac 
 tice." 
 
 " Oh, we want to get good seats for the girls 
 66
 
 "I'VE GOT TO DO IT," MCTTSBSa TOM, '*l'VE SIMPLY GOT TO I" 
 
 The Rover Boys in Businett.
 
 THE GREAT BASEBALL GAME 67 
 
 first," broke in Tom. "It won't take long to 
 park the machine." 
 
 In a moment more, they found themselves in a 
 perfect jam of touring cars, motor cycles, and car 
 riages. Finding a suitable spot, Tom brought the 
 touring car to a standstill, turned off the power, 
 and placed the starting plug in his pocket. Then 
 the entire party made its way as rapidly as pos 
 sible to the grandstand, one-half of which had 
 been reserved for the students of Brill and their 
 friends. Here Songbird took charge of matters. 
 
 " Just leave it all to me," he said. " You fel 
 lows go in and win." 
 
 " Yes, you must win, by all means, Tom ! " 
 cried Nellie. "Just remember that I've got my 
 eye on you." 
 
 "Yes, we all want you to win," came from 
 Minnie Sanderson. " I am going to root isn't 
 that the right word? for all I know how." 
 
 " That's the word ! " cried Sam. " I declare, 
 before you get through, you'll be a regular base 
 ball fan ! " 'And at this sally there was a general 
 laugh. 
 
 Tom and Sam would have liked it had they 
 been able to stay with the girls longer, but the 
 other members of the team were already in the 
 dressing room, donning their uniforms, and 
 thither the Rovers made their way. A short
 
 68 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 while later, the word was passed around, and 
 the Brill team marched out on the grounds for 
 practice; even Sam, as a substitute, taking part. 
 Evidently, the outsiders living in that vicinity 
 were of the opinion that the game would be well 
 worth seeing, for long after the grandstand and 
 the bleachers were filled, the crowd kept coming 
 in the several gates. 
 
 " My, but this is going to be the banner game 
 so far as attendance goes," remarked Sam to Bob. 
 
 "Yes, and it will bring us in a neat bit of 
 money," returned the Brill captain. 
 
 " How are they going to divide this year? " 
 
 " One-third and two-thirds," returned Bob ; 
 meaning thereby that the winning team would 
 take two-thirds of the receipts, and the losing 
 team the remaining third. This money, of course, 
 did not go to the individual players, but was put 
 into the general athletic fund of each college. 
 
 Roxley won the toss, and as a consequence, 
 Brill went to bat first. As the first man took his 
 position, there were cries of all sorts, mingled 
 with the tooting of many horns and the sounds/ 
 of numerous rattles. 
 
 " Now then, Brill, show 'em what you can do ! " 
 
 " Knock a home run first thing ! " 
 
 " Don't let 'em see first, Roxley ! Kill 'em at 
 the plate!"
 
 THE GREAT BASEBALL GAME 69 
 
 The Roxley pitcher took his position, wound 
 up; and the ball came in quickly. 
 
 " Ball one." 
 
 "That's right! Make him give you a good 
 one." 
 
 Again the ball came in, and this time, as it was 
 a fairly good one, the batter swung for it, and 
 missed. 
 
 " Strike one." 
 
 "That's the talk, give him another like that, 
 Carson ! " 
 
 Again the ball came whizzing over the plate. 
 The batsman struck it fairly, and it sailed down 
 toward second base. The runner was off like a 
 shot, but it availed him nothing. The second 
 baseman caught the fly with ease. 
 
 "Hurray! One down! Now for the other 
 two!" 
 
 The second man at the bat went out in one-two- 
 three order. Then the third player up knocked a 
 short fly to first. 
 
 " Three out. That's the way to do it, Roxley ! " 
 
 " Now, for a few runs ! " 
 
 It must be confessed that Tom was a trifle nerv 
 *ous when he took the bat! and walked down to 
 the box. The eyes of over twelve hundred spec 
 tators were on him, and those included the eyes 
 of the girl he thought the dearest in all the world.
 
 He gave a short sigh, and then suddenly braced 
 up. " I've got to do it," he muttered to himself. 
 " I've simply got to ! " 
 
 As was to be expected, Roxley had its best 
 batters on the top of the list. The first fellow to 
 face Tom was a hitter well-known for his prow 
 ess. As Tom had heard that this man loved a 
 low ball, he purposely sent in the sphere rather 
 high. 
 
 " One ball." 
 
 " That's right, Clink ! Make him give you 
 what you want." 
 
 The next ball was intended for an out-curve, 
 but, somehow, Tom missed it, and it came in 
 fairly over the plate. Crack! The bat con 
 nected with it, and away the sphere sailed to cen 
 ter field. 
 
 " Run, run ! " The cry echoed from all sides, 
 and, almost in a twinkling, Clink was down to 
 first, and racing for second. Then, feeling that 
 he had time to go further, he bounded onward, 
 and slid safely to third. 
 
 "That's the way to do it! Look, a three- 
 bagger ! " 
 
 " Hurray ! We've got them on the run ; keep 
 it up, boys ! " And then the air was rent with the 
 noise of horns and rattles. 
 
 " Steady, Tom, steady," whispered Bob, as he
 
 THE GREAT BASEBALL GAMS, 71 
 
 [walked toward the pitcher. "Don't. Jet therii 
 rattle you; take your time." 
 
 "They are not going to rattle me," returned 
 ,Tom, and set his teeth hard. He faced the new 
 'batsman, and then, of a sudden, twirled around 
 and sent the ball whizzing to third. 
 
 "Look out! look out!" yelled the coach at 
 third, and Clink dropped and grabbed the sack 
 just in the nick of time. Then Tom went for the 
 batter. One strike was called, and then two balls, 
 and then another strike, and a ball. 
 
 " Don't walk him, Tom, whatever you do," said 
 Spud, as he came down to consult with the pitcher. 
 
 "All right. What do you think I ought to 
 give him?" 
 
 " Try him on an in-shoot." 
 
 Once again Tom sent the ball over to third, al 
 most catching Clink napping as before. Then, 
 the instant he had the sphere once more in his 
 possession, he sent it swiftly in over the plate. 
 
 " Three strikes ! Batter out ! " 
 
 " Good for you, Rover ! That's the way to do 
 it!" 
 
 " Now kill the other two, Tom ! " 
 
 But to " kill the other two " was not so easy. 
 The next man went out on a pop fly to third, 
 (which held Clink where he was. Following that 
 came a safe hit which took the batter to first and
 
 ?2 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 allowed Clink to slide in with the first run. For 
 the moment pandemonium seemed to break loose. 
 The Roxley cohorts cheered wildly and sounded 
 *heir horns and rattles. Brill, of course, had 
 nothing to say. 
 
 " Oh, Songbird, they got in a run ! " remarked 
 Nellie, much dismayed. 
 
 " Well, the game is young yet," returned the 
 Brill student. Nevertheless, he felt much crest 
 fallen to think that Roxley had scored first. 
 
 With one run in, and a man on first, Roxley 
 went to the bat with more confidence than ever. 
 But it availed nothing, for Tom finished the in 
 ning with the Roxley runner getting no further 
 than second. 
 
 " Now, boys, we've got to do something," said 
 the Brill captain, when the nine came in. " Two 
 runs at least, and three if we can possibly get 
 them." 
 
 " What's the matter with half a dozen, while 
 we are at it?" laughed the second baseman. 
 
 " All right. As many as you please," returned 
 Bob. 
 
 But it was not to be. With all her efforts, 
 Brill managed, during this inning, to get no fur 
 ther than third. Tom came in for a try at the 
 bat, but the best he could do was to send up a 
 little pop fly that the rival pitcher gathered in
 
 THE GREAT BASEBALL GAME 73 
 
 ease. Then Roxley came in once more, and 
 added another run to her credit. 
 
 " Hurrah for Roxley ! That makes it two to 
 nothing!" 
 
 There were looks of grim determination on 
 the faces of the Brill players when they went to 
 the plate for the third time. The first man up 
 was struck out, but the second sent a clean drive 
 to left field that was good for two bases. Then 
 came a sacrifice hit by Spud, that advanced the 
 runner to third, and on another one-base hit, this 
 run came in amid a wild cheering by the Brill 
 followers. 
 
 " Hurrah ! One run in ! Now, boys, you've 
 broken the ice, keep it up ! " And then the horns 
 and rattles of the Brillites sounded as loudly as 
 had those of the Roxley followers a short while 
 before. 
 
 But, alas ! for the hopes of our friends ! The 
 only other run made that inning was a third by 
 Roxley ! 
 
 During the fourth inning, Roxely added an- 
 , other run to her score. Brill did nothing, so that 
 the score now stood 4 to i in favor of Roxley. 
 The fifth inning was a stand-off, neither side scor 
 ing. Then came the sixth, in which Frank Hoi- 
 den, the first baseman, distinguished himself by 
 rapping out a three-bagger, coming in a few sec-
 
 J74 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 onds later on a hit by the man following him. 
 
 " Up-hill work, and no mistake ! " said the Brill 
 captain, when the team had come in for the sev 
 enth inning. 
 
 " See here, Bob, if you think you would rather 
 try some of the other pitchers " began Tom. 
 
 " Nothing of the sort, old man. You are do 
 ing very well. I don't consider four runs against 
 two any great lead. And you haven't walked as 
 many men as their pitcher." 
 
 The seventh inning brought no change in the 
 score. But in the eighth, Roxley added another 
 run, bringing her total up to five. 
 
 "Looks kind of bad," said Sam, to another 
 substitute on the bench. " Five to two, and the 
 ninth inning. We've got to play some if we want 
 to beat them." 
 
 " Sam, I want you ! " cried Bob, coming up. 
 "Felder has twisted his foot, and you will have 
 to take his place in left field." 
 
 " Am I to bat in his place ? " questioned the 
 youngest Rover. 
 
 "Yes." 
 
 " All right. I'll do the best I can." 
 
 There was silence around the grounds when 
 the Brill team came to the bat. With the score 
 5 to 2 in favor of Roxky, it looked rather dubi 
 ous for the visitors. Some of the onlookers*
 
 THE GREAT BASEBALL GAME 75 
 
 thinking the game practically over, started to 
 wards the gates, and the carriages and auto 
 mobiles. The first man up was the captain, and 
 he walked to the plate with a " do or die " look 
 on his face. 
 
 " Now, Bob, lam it out for all you are worth ! " 
 shouted one of his admirers. 
 
 The first ball sent in was too low, and Bob let 
 it pass him; but the second was just where he 
 wanted it The bat swung around like lightning, 
 and, following a loud crack, the sphere sailed off 
 towards left field. 
 
 " Run, Bob, run ! " yelled a great number of his 
 friends, and the captain let go all the speed that 
 was in him. When the ball finally reached the 
 diamond, it found Bob safe on third. 
 
 "That's the way to open up! Now, then, 
 bring him in ! " 
 
 This was not so easy. The batter up tried a 
 sacrifice hit, but the ball rolled down well towards 
 the pitcher, who landed it at first in a twinkling. 
 Bob attempted to get home, but then thought bet 
 ter of it, and slid back to third. The next batter, 
 up was Sam. He had with him his favorite ash 
 stick, and, as he stepped behind the plate, he 
 gritted his teeth and eyed the pitcher closely. 
 
 Carson had been practicing on what he called 
 a fadeaway ball, and now he thought this would
 
 ;6 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 be just the right thing to offer Sam. He wound 
 up with a great flourish, and sent the sphere in. 
 
 Sam was on his guard, and calculated just 
 right. Hrs bat came around in a clean sweep, 
 and on the instant the ball was flying down to 
 wards deep center. 
 
 "My! look at that!" 
 
 " Run, Rover, run ! " 
 
 No sooner had the ball connected with the bat, 
 than Bob, at third, was on his way home. He 
 reached the plate before Sam touched first. Then 
 Sam, skirting the initial bag, tore straight for 
 second, and then for third. In the meantime, the 
 fielder was still running after the ball. As Sam 
 started for home, the fielder managed to capture 
 the sphere, and threw it with all his skill to the 
 second baseman. 
 
 " Run, Sam, run ! " yelled Tom, fairly dancing 
 up and down in his anxiety. " Leg it, old man, 
 legit!" 
 
 And certainly Sam did "leg it" as he never 
 had before. Straight for the home plate he came, 
 and slid in amid a cloud of dust, just before the 
 ball came up from the field. 
 
 " Hurrah ! hurrah ! a home run ! " 
 
 " Now, boys, we've started the ball rolling," 
 cried out Bob, " Remember, only one more run 
 ties the score."
 
 CHAPTER VIII 
 
 HOW THE GAME ENDED 
 
 THE next batter up was plainly nervous. He 
 had two strikes called on him, and then he 
 knocked a small foul, which was quickly gath 
 ered in by the third baseman. Then Tom came 
 to the bat, and was lucky enough to make a clean 
 one-base hit. After that, came several base hits 
 in rapid succession. These brought in not only 
 Tom, but also the man behind him. Then came 
 a bad fumble on the part of the Roxley shortstop, 
 and, as a result, another run was put up to the 
 credit of Brill. 
 
 " Seven runs That's going some ! " 
 " I guess this is Brill's game, after all." 
 " Make it a round dozen while you're at it, 
 boys." 
 
 But this was not to be. The hits for Brill had 
 evidently come to an end, and the side retired with 
 seven runs to its credit. 
 
 " Now, Tom, hold them down if you possibly 
 can," said Bob, as his team took the field. 
 
 77
 
 78 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 " I'll do my level best, Bob," was the reply. 
 
 With the score five to seven against them, Rox- 
 ley put in a pinch .hitter by the name of Bixby. 
 This player certainly made good, getting a three- 
 base hit with apparent ease. Then followed an 
 out, and then another base hit, bringing in Bixby's 
 run. Then followed some ragged play on the part 
 of Bob and his second and third basemen, which 
 put out one man, but evened up the score, 7 to 7. 
 
 With two men out, and the score a tie, it was 
 certainly a delicate position for Tom. 
 
 " Tom, hold them! please hold them ! " pleaded 
 Bob, as he came up. " Don't let them get as far 
 as first if you can help it" 
 
 The batter to face Tom was a fairly good one, 
 but the young pitcher remembered that this fellow 
 had always struck at balls which were both high 
 and far out. Accordingly, he fed him only those 
 which were low and well in. 
 
 "One strike!" 
 
 " That's it, Tom ! Keep it up ! " 
 
 Again Tom wound up, and the ball shot over 
 the plate. This time the batsman swung for it, 
 but failed to connect. 
 
 "Strike two!" 
 
 " Good boy, Tom, Chat's the way to do it ! " 
 
 " Be careful, Billy, make him give you just 
 what you want ! "
 
 HOW THE GAME ENDED 79 
 
 Once again Tom wound up, and this time sent 
 the ball in with all the speed that was left to him. 
 Again the bat came around. 
 
 " Strike three ! Batter out ! " 
 
 A wild yell arose. Here was the end of the 
 ninth inning, and the game was a tie ! 
 
 " Oh, Songbird! do you think Brill will win? " 
 exclaimed Grace, anxiously. 
 
 " I certainly hope so. We've pulled up pretty 
 well. We had only two runs when they had five, 
 remember." 
 
 " Hasn't Tom pitched pretty well? " questioned 
 Minnie. 
 
 " Sure, he has ! Those Roxley fellows are great 
 batters. More than once they have knocked a 
 pitcher clean out of the box." 
 
 " Oh, I certainly hope Brill wins," murmured 
 Nellie. 
 
 There was an intense silence when the tenth 
 inning opened. Frank came to the bat first, and 
 knocked a little one, but managed to reach first. 
 Then, on a sacrifice hit, he advanced to second. 
 Following that, came a wild throw by the Roxley 
 pitcher, and Frank dusted as fast as he could for. 
 third. 
 
 " Now, Carson, hold him ! " yelled a number of 
 the Roxley followers to their pitcher. "Don't 
 let him get in ! "
 
 80 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 Carson did his best, but with two strikes called 
 on the batter, there came a neat little one-base hit, 
 and, amid a wild cheering and a grand tooting of 
 horns and sounding of rattles, Frank slid in to 
 the home plate. 
 
 " Hurrah ! hurrah ! that makes the score eight 
 to seven ! " 
 
 " Keep it up, boys! You've got 'em going." 
 
 But that was the end of the run making for 
 Brill. The next man was put out with ease, and 
 the side retired with the score reading: Rox- 
 ley 7, Brill 8. 
 
 " Now, if we can only hold them," was Spud's 
 comment, as he glanced at Bob and then at Tom. 
 " How about it? " he demanded, of the pitcher. 
 
 " I'll do what I can," was Tom's simple answer. 
 
 Nearly all the spectators in the grandstand and 
 on the bleachers were now on their feet. All 
 sorts of cries and suggestions rent the air. Amid 
 this great hubbub, the Brill nine took their posi 
 tions, Sam going down to left field as directed 
 by Bob. 
 
 Tom was a trifle pale as he faced the first bat 
 ter, but, if he was nervous, the Roxley player was 
 evidently more so. Almost before either of them 
 knew it, two strikes had been called. Then, how 
 ever, came a short hit to third, which the base 
 man fumbled, and the batter got safely to first.
 
 THE GAME ENDED 8l 
 
 " That's the way ! Now, keep it up ! " 
 
 " We only want two runs to win." 
 
 The next batter was one that Tom, fortunately, 
 had studied closely. This man usually waited all 
 he could in the hope of having balls called on 
 the pitcher. As a consequence, Tom fed him sev 
 eral straight ones over the plate, and so quickly 
 that two strikes were called almost before the 
 baseman realized what was occurring. Then, as 
 he swung at a low one, the third strike was called, 
 and he was declared out. In the meantime, how 
 ever, the runner on first had made second. Then 
 came another out, and then a drive to second, 
 which landed the batsman on first, but kept the 
 man on second where he was. 
 
 " Two men on base ! " 
 
 " Bring 'em in, Landy ! Bang it out for all you 
 are worth ! " 
 
 "Careful, Tom, careful!" pleaded Bob; and 
 even Spud came down to interview the pitcher. 
 
 " I'm doing all I can," returned Tom. 
 
 It must be admitted that Tom's blood was surg 
 ing wildly. 'K. miss and the game would either 
 become a tie or be won by Roxley.' 
 
 In came the ball, and the Roxley player swung 
 at it viciously. 
 
 "Strike one!" 
 
 " Good boy, Tom, keep it up ! "
 
 82 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 " Strike him out, old man ! " 
 
 Again Tom twirled the ball and sent it in. Just 
 the instant before it left his hand, his foot slipped, 
 | and the sphere came in, not on a curve as the 
 young pitcher had intended, but straight. Crack ! 
 went the bat, and in a twinkling the sphere was 
 sailing high in the air toward left field. 
 
 " Hurrah, that's the way to do it ! " 
 
 " Run, everybody run ! " 
 
 "Get it, Sam, get it!" 
 
 The ball was high in the air and well over 
 Sam's head. The youngest Rover was running 
 with might and main down left field. The eyes 
 of all the spectators were on him. On and on, 
 and still on, he sped, with the ball curving lower 
 and lower toward the field. Then, just as the 
 sphere was coming down, Sam made a wild clutch 
 with his left hand and caught it. 
 
 "Batter out!" 
 
 " My, what a catch ! " 
 
 " Wasn't it a beauty ! " 
 
 " Brill wins the game ! " 
 
 Such a riot as ensued! Hats and canes were 
 thrown up into the air, horns tooted loudly, and 
 the noise of the rattles was incessant. The Brill 
 students fairly danced for joy, and their friends, 
 including the ladies, were almost equally demoi*' 
 strative*
 
 HOW THE GAME ENDED 83 
 
 " Sam, that's the best catch I ever saw in my 
 life ! " cried Bob, as he ran forward to grab the 
 young left-fielder by the hand. 
 
 " It certainly was, Sam ; and you pulled me out 
 of a big hole," came from Tom. " When I saw 
 that fellow hit the ball, I thought it was all up 
 with us." 
 
 " Some catch, that ! " broke in Spud. And all 
 the others on the nine, and many of Sam's friends, 
 said the same. 
 
 Of course, Roxley was tremendously disap 
 pointed at the outcome of the struggle. Never 
 theless, as was usual, she cheered her opponent, 
 and was cheered in return. Then the two teams 
 broke and ran for the dressing rooms, and the 
 great crowd of spectators began to slowly dis 
 appear. 
 
 " Oh, Sam, that catch was too lovely for any 
 thing!" cried Grace, when the two Rover boys 
 had managed to break away from the rest of the 
 team and their numerous friends, and had re 
 joined the girls and Songbird. " Why, do you 
 know, I was on pins and needles when I saw that 
 ball coming down and you running after it. I 
 \ .was so afraid you wouldn't get there in time ! " 
 
 " Well, I just got it, and no more," returned 
 Sam, modestly. 
 
 " He pulled me out of a hole," broke in Tom.
 
 84 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 " If it hadn't been for Sam, Roxley would have 
 won the game." 
 
 " But you did well, Tom, better than our 
 other pitchers would have done," replied his 
 brother, loyally. " Everybody says so. Why, 
 four or five of those Roxley hitters can knock 
 the ordinary pitcher clean out of the box." 
 
 " Believe me, there will be some celebration to 
 night ! " vouchsafed Songbird, as his eyes lit up 
 in expectation. " Bonfires, speeches, parades, and 
 all that." 
 
 " Don't I wish I was a college boy, to be 
 there!" returned Minnie, wistfully. 
 
 " Too bad ! but no girls are allowed," returned 
 Sam. "Just the same, I don't think we'll have 
 to get back to the college very early." 
 
 It had already been arranged that the Rovers 
 and Songbird and the three girls should go off on 
 a little automobile trip after the game. Grace 
 and Nellie had received permission to be absent 
 from Hope during the supper hour, and Tom had 
 telephoned to the hotel at Cliffwood, about twenty 
 mites away, asking the proprietor to reserve aj 
 table for them and prepare dinner for six. 
 
 Sam was now at the wheel, and as he could 
 handle the car as well as his brother, the run to 
 Cliffwood did not take long. At the hotel, the 
 young folks encountered several other parties
 
 HOW THE GAME ENDED 85 
 
 from Brill and Hope, and the gathering was, con 
 sequently, quite a merry one. Tom had ordered 
 flowers for the table, and also small bouquets for 
 each of the girls. 
 
 "Oh, how perfectly lovely, Tom!" cried Nel 
 lie, on catching sight of the flowers. 
 
 " I think the gentlemen ought to have button 
 hole bouquets," said Grace. 
 
 " All right, I'm willing," returned Sam quickly, 
 and thereupon some of the flowers from the 
 larger bouquet were speedily transferred to three 
 coat buttonholes. 
 
 It was a lively time all around, for between 
 fehe courses that were served, the young folks in 
 sisted upon singing some of the Brill and Hope 
 songs. As it happened, there were no outside 
 guests present, so the students and their friends 
 could do pretty much as they pleased. 
 
 " Sorry, but we've got to start back," said 
 Tom, presently, as he looked at his watch. " Not 
 but what I'd rather stay here than go to Brill for 
 the celebration ! " and he looked fondly at Nellie. 
 
 " What's the matter with my driving the car? " 
 . suggested Songbird, who was well able to per 
 form that service. " You've both had a whack at 
 it; it seems to me it's my turn now." 
 
 Both of the Rovers were willing, and a short 
 time later, with Songbird at the wheel and Min-
 
 86 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 jiie beside him, and the Rovers and the Laning 
 girls in the tonneau, the touring car left the hotel 
 and started on the way to the Sanderson cottage 
 and the seminary. 
 
 " What's the matter with a song? " cried Sam, 
 as the car sped along. 
 
 " Right you are ! " returned his brother. 
 "Girls, what shall it be?" 
 
 Instead of replying, Nellie started up an old 
 favorite at the college, sung to the tune of 
 " Camping on the Old Camp Ground." Instant 
 ly all of the others joined in. 
 
 " Some song ! " exclaimed Tom, after the first 
 verse had come to an end. " Now then, alto 
 gether ! " and he waved his hand like a band 
 leader. The voices of the young people arose 
 sweetly on the evening air, but hardly had they 
 sung two lines of the second verse, when there 
 came an unexpected interruption. 
 
 Bang! The sound came from below them. 
 Then the touring car suddenly swerved to the 
 side of the road. Almost as quickly Songbird 
 uirew out the clutch and applied both brakes. 
 They came to a standstill in the middle of the 
 roadway. 
 
 " Oh, Tom ! what's the matter? " gasped Nellie, 
 
 " I don't know, but I'm afraid it's a blowout, 3 * 
 was the serious reply.
 
 CHAPTER IX 
 
 "On, what luck!" 
 
 "And just when we wanted to make time, 
 too!" 
 
 " I hope it doesn't take us long to put on an 
 other tire ! " 
 
 These remarks came from the three students 
 as they climbed down from the car to make an 
 examination of the damage done. Sam had se 
 cured his searchlight, but this was hardly needed. 
 One glance at the left-hand back tire told the 
 story. They had evidently run over something 
 sharp perhaps a piece of glass and there was 
 a cut in the shoe at least three inches long. 
 Through this, the inner tube had blown out with 
 the report that had so startled them. 
 
 " Well, boys, everybody on the job ! " cried 
 Tom, and lost no time in stripping off his coat 
 and donning a jumper, which he carried for use 
 when working on the car. 
 
 87
 
 88 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 " I suppose that's my fault," said Songbird, 
 much crestfallen. 
 
 " It might have happened to any of us, Song 
 bird," returned Sam. " Let us see how quickly 
 we can put on another shoe and inner tube." He, 
 too, put on a jumper, and in a few minutes the 
 boys had the back axle of the touring car jacked 
 up. 
 
 " You hold the light, Songbird," directed Tom. 
 " Sam and I can do this work without any help." 
 Then the two Rovers set to work, and in a very 
 short time the old shoe with its inner tube had 
 been removed. In the meantime, Songbird had 
 brought out another inner tube, and unstrapped 
 one of the extra shoes attached to the side of the 
 car, and these were quickly placed over the wheel 
 rim. 
 
 " Now, let me do my share of the pumping," 
 insisted Songbird. 
 
 "Nothing doing on that score, Songbird!" 
 replied Tom, quickly. " We had a new power 
 pump installed last week. I will attach it, and, 
 then you can start up the motor." 
 
 " A power pump ! Say, that beats hand pump-' 
 ing all to pieces." 
 
 " Indeed, it does ! " broke in Sam. " I never 
 minded putting on a new tire, but the pumping- 
 up always came hard."
 
 CELEBRATING THE VICTORY 89 
 
 " Say, this puts me in mind of a story," came 
 from Tom, with a grin. " Some Germans were 
 going on an automobile tour, and a friend was 
 bidding them good-bye. Says the friend : ' Uf 
 you haf a blowout, be sure and haf it in de right 
 place at de hotel ! ' ' And at this little joke 
 there was a general laugh. 
 
 Five minutes more found them again on the 
 way, and now Songbird had the large lights 
 turned on, which made the roadway ahead as 
 bright as day. He drove as speedily as possible, 
 but with great care, avoiding everything that 
 looked as if it might harm the tires. 
 
 " Oh, what a splendid time I have had ! " ex 
 claimed Minnie, as, all too soon, the Sanderson 
 homestead was reached. Then Songbird assisted 
 her to alight, and insisted upon accompanying her 
 into the cottage. 
 
 " I will wager he would rather stay here than 
 go on to Brill," remarked Tom, slyly. 
 
 " Sure thing! " returned Sam. " Wouldn't we 
 rather remain at Hope than go to Brill ? " And 
 at this pointed remark both of the girls giggled. 
 
 Those outside waited for several minutes, and 
 then Tom sounded the horn loudly. Soon Song 
 bird re-appeared and took his place at the wheel, 
 and then the automobile was turned in the direc 
 tion of the seminary.
 
 90 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS. 
 
 " When will we see you again ? " remarked 
 Nellie, when the touring car had been run through 
 the grounds. 
 
 " Oh, it won't be very long," replied Tom* 
 But as he spoke, little did he realize under what 
 peculiar conditions they would come together 
 again. 
 
 "If you hear anything more about that money 
 affair, let us know at once," whispered Sam to 
 Grace. 
 
 " I will, Sam," returned the girl ; and a few; 
 minutes later the young folks bade each other a 
 fond good-night, and the touring car turned to 
 wards Brill. 
 
 The lads were still some distance from the col 
 lege grounds when they heard the sounds of horns 
 and rattles. Then they beheld a glimmer of light 
 down by the river bank. Soon the light bright 
 ened until it covered a goodly portion of the 
 sky. 
 
 " Some bonfires and some noise ! " was Sam's 
 comment. 
 
 " Well, we don't defeat Roxley every day iri 
 the year," returned Tom, gaily. " Say, this suits 
 me right down to the ground! Songbird, you 
 ought to get up a poem in honor of the occasion." 
 
 " Perhaps I will," answered the would-be poet 
 of the college, and then he began to murmur to
 
 CELEBRATING THE VICTORY 91 
 
 himself. Evidently the poem was already begin* 
 ning to shape itself in his fertile mind. 
 
 " I say, you Rovers ! " came a call as the car] 
 swung into the roadway lining one side of the 
 campus. " What's the matter with giving us a 1 * 
 joy ride?" and one of the students came run 
 ning forward, followed by several others. Two 
 of them carried torches made of old brooms 
 dipped in tar. 
 
 " Nothing doing to-night," returned Sam 
 quickly, and added in a whisper to Tom : " Those 
 fellows would wreck the car completely." 
 
 " I know it," answered the older Rover, and 
 then he said aloud: "We have had all the run 
 we want this evening. We are going to celebrate 
 with the rest of the crowd down at the river." 
 And without stopping to argue the matter, Tom 
 ran the automobile to its garage. 
 
 " Back, safe an' sound, eh? " questioned Abner 
 Filbury, as he came forward to take charge of 
 the machine. 
 
 " Ab, you look out that some of the fellows 
 don't take this car to-night," warned Tom. 
 
 "There ain't no cars goin' out less'n I've the 
 correct orders for 'em," replied Abner. "This 
 is the last machine in, an' I'm goin' to lock up 
 an' stay on guard. If anybody tries to break in 
 here against orders, they'll git a dose of buckshot
 
 92 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 in 'em." And Abner pointed grimly at a shotgun 
 that hung on one of the walls. 
 
 " Oh, Ab, don't go in for shooting anybody ! " 
 exclaimed Sam, in alarm. "Turn the hose on 
 them, that will be enough." 
 
 "All right, jest as you say. But they ain't 
 goin' to git in here at these machines without 
 permission." 
 
 Tom and Sam made a hasty visit to their room, 
 and then hurried downstairs again and off to the 
 waterfront. Here, several bonfires had been lit. 
 They were composed of boxes and barrels with a 
 large quantity of brushwood added, and one bon 
 fire was nearly twenty feet in height. 
 
 " Here they come ! " called out a student. 
 
 " Hurrah for our pitcher ! " 
 
 " And the best fly catcher Brill ever saw ! " 
 
 " Say, this is certainly some bonfire ! " ex 
 claimed Sam, looking at the big blaze. 
 
 " It sure is ! " returned his brother. " If the 
 wind should shift, it might prove dangerous," he 
 added, as he watched a great mass of sparks 
 floating across the stream and over the woods 
 beyond. 
 
 " Oh, it's perfectly safe," came from Paul Or- 
 ben, who was one of the students who had helped 
 to pile up the combustibles. 
 
 The crowd was certainly a gay one, and the
 
 CELEBRATING THE VICTORY 9$ 
 
 Rovers lost no time in joining in the festivities. 
 One student had a bugle, and another had an old 
 base drum which boasted of only one head. These 
 two succeeded in forming a crowd of their fel 
 low-students into marching order, and, singing 
 gaily and tooting horns and sounding rattles, and 
 with numerous torches flickering, the collegians 
 tramped around the college buildings and over 
 the campus and then back to the bonfires. 
 
 " Whoop ! Hurrah ! " came a sudden yell, and 
 from one of the distant barns rushed half a dozen 
 students, dragging behind them a buggy. On the 
 seat, wearing an exceedingly tight jockey jacket, 
 and likewise a jockey cap, sat old man Filbury, 
 the general caretaker of the dormitories. 
 
 " Hurrah ! Here the conquering hero comes ! "" 
 
 " It's a race a race for a thousand dollars ! " 
 
 " I'll bet on Filbury, every time ! " 
 
 " Now, see here, gents, I don't like this at all. 
 
 You lemme out o' this here kerridge," wailed the 
 
 old man-of-all-work. " I ain't doin' none o' this 
 
 celebratin'. I got some work to do. You let me 
 
 go" 
 
 "Oh, we couldn't think of it, Filbury," cried* 
 
 Stanley, who was one of the students at the 1 
 shafts of the carriage. " Now then, boys, to 
 gether ! " r Knd along the turnout rattled, past the 
 various bonfires.
 
 94 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 "Speech! Speech!" came another cry. " Fil 
 bury, can't you say something about Brill and 
 this glorious victory?" 
 
 " Never mind the victory," came from Tom. 
 . " Let him tell us about how to pass our exami 
 nations without studying." 
 
 "And how to get credit down in town with 
 out paying any bills," put in another student, who, 
 evidently, had hard work making both ends meet. 
 
 " I tell you, I ain't a-goin' to make no speech," 
 wailed old Filbury. " I've got work to do. You 
 lemme go." 
 
 " Sam," whispered Tom, catching his brother 
 by the arm, " what's the matter with giving Wil 
 liam Philander a ride with old Filbury? " 
 
 " Just the cheese, Tom ! " returned the young 
 Rover. " But how can we do it? " 
 
 The matter was talked over for a short minute, 
 and Spud and Bob were called in to aid. William 
 Philander Tubbs sat on a small packing case which 
 had not, as yet, been fed to the flames. He was, 
 as usual, faultlessly attired, even down to his 
 spats. 
 
 Passing the word to those who had charge 
 of the carriage and who were doing their best to 
 get some fun out of old Fiibury, Tom and Sam 
 and their chums worked their way to a position 
 behind William Philander. Then came a sudden
 
 CELEBRATING THE VICTORY 95 
 
 rush, and the dudish student found himself 
 caught up and carried bodily over to the carriage, 
 where he was unceremoniously dumped on the 
 seat beside the old man-of-all-work. 
 
 "My gracious me! What does this mean?" 
 gasped the astonished William Philander. " I 
 don't want any ride, I want you to leave me 
 alone." 
 
 " All aboard, everybody ! " sang out Tom, and 
 gave the carriage a shove from behind. Before 
 the dudish student could attempt to leap to the 
 ground, the turnout was once more in motion and 
 dashing along the campus roadway as fast as the 
 students could pull and push it 
 
 " Them boys is plumb crazy ! " gasped old Fil- 
 bury. 
 
 " Oh, I never ! We shall certainly be hurt," 
 wailed William Philander. And then, as two 
 wheels of the turnout went over a big stone, he 
 clutched old Filbury wildly by the shoulder. 
 Then the carriage struck another stone, and both 
 occupants held fast for dear life. Three times 
 the turnout, with its terrified occupants, circled 
 the campus. All trie while William Philander and 
 Id Filbury were yelling wildly for their tor 
 mentors to stop. But now, a long rope had been 
 hitched fast to the front axle, and fully two dozen 
 students had hold of this, fresh ones continually
 
 96 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 taking the places of those who became tirei out. 
 As it was, Sam and Tom went around twice, and 
 then fell out to rest. 
 
 " Say, Washer," said a student named Lamar 
 to his close chum, " here's a chance to square up 
 with old Filbury for the way he treated us." 
 
 "What do you mean?" asked the student 
 named Washer. 
 
 " Let us get in the lead on the rope, and run 
 the carriage down to the river." 
 
 " Say, that's just the cheese ! " chuckled the 
 other. "We'll do it. I think old Filbury de 
 serves something for reporting us as he did." 
 
 On and on went the carriage, but at the turn in 
 the roadway it was suddenly hauled over the 
 grass and between some bushes. 
 
 " Oh, Tom, look ! They are heading for the 
 river ! " cried Sam. 
 
 "All aboard!" yelled Washer. "Now then, 
 straight ahead ! " He and Lamar had headed for 
 the water. Some of the students tried to turn 
 to the right or the left, but others followed the 
 'leaders. In a moment more, the carriage had 
 reached the sloping bank of the river. Then the 
 crowd scattered, and a moment later the turnout, 
 with a twist, struck the water and went over side 
 ways, plunging old Filbury and William Phi 
 lander into the stream.
 
 CHAPTER X 
 
 THE FIRE AT HOPE 
 
 " MY, what a dive ! " 
 
 "Everybody to the rescue!" 
 
 " Somebody get some life-preservers ! w 
 
 So the cries arose as the students ran from 
 every direction and lined the bank of the river, 
 which, at this point, was but a few feet deep. 
 
 Old Filbury was the first to reappear, and as 
 he stood up in water and mud that reached his 
 waist, he shook his fist at his tormentors. 
 
 " You'll pay for this ! " he cried. " I'll fix yer I 
 I'll have yer all sent home, you'll see if I don't! " 
 
 In the meantime, William Philander had also 
 struggled to his feet. He had lost his cap, and 
 on the top of his head rested a mass of grass and 
 mud. He came out of the water spluttering and 
 shaking himself. 
 
 " I won't stand this ! I'll have you all arrest 
 ed ! " he gasped. 
 
 " It was an accident," came from one of the 
 students. 
 
 " It was not ! It was done on purpose ! " 
 97
 
 98 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 " Sure ! it was done a purpose ! " roared old 
 Filbury. "I never seen such goin's on in my 
 life!" 
 
 "Never mind, you needed a bath, Filbury," 
 'shouted one student. And at this there was a 
 laugh. 
 
 " I am going to report all of you," stormed 
 William Philander. "Look at this suit, it is 
 ruined ! " and he held up the sides of his coat to 
 view. The water and mud were dripping pro 
 fusely from the garment. 
 
 " Better go down to the gym and get under a 
 shower," suggested Spud. 
 
 " I am not. I am going to my room," retorted 
 William Philander. And then, of a sudden, he 
 took to his heels, burst through the crowd, and 
 hurried toward one of the college buildings. At 
 the same time, Filbury started to run for one of 
 the stables. 
 
 " Say, Tom, that was rather rough," remarked 
 Sam, after the two had disappeared. 
 
 " It sure was, Sam. I didn't think they would 
 run the carriage into the water like that." 
 
 "It was Washer's and Lamar's fault." 
 
 " I know it. They are always out for carrying 
 a joke to the limit I suppose they had it in for 
 old Filbury, and they must have had it in for 
 Tubbs, too."
 
 THE TURNOUT, WITH A TWIST, STRUCK THE WATER AND WENT OVEK 
 
 SIDEWAYS 
 The Rover Boys in Business* f^g* W
 
 THE FIRE AT HOPE 99 
 
 "I wonder if either of them will make a kick 
 Over the way they have been treated," put in Bob. 
 It may be stated here, that, in the end, nothing 
 came of the incident. Filbury stormed around a 
 little, and so did William Philander, but, to their 
 credit be it said, both were " sports " enough not 
 to take their complaints to the college manage 
 ment. 
 
 All good times must come to an end, and by 
 midnight the bonfires had burned themselves out, 
 and, one by one, the students retired. The car 
 riage was righted and taken back to the place 
 where it belonged. 
 
 For the best part of a week after this, but 
 little out of the ordinary occurred. With the 
 excitement attending the close of the baseball 
 season over, the Rovers applied themselves more 
 diligently than ever to their studies. During that 
 time they received notes from Grace and Nellie, 
 'stating that nothing new had developed concern 
 ing the missing four-hundred-dollar ring. They 
 also received another letter from Drck, in which 
 the oldest Rover boy stated that he and the lawyer 
 ihad made a final settlement with Pelter, Japson & 
 Company, and that he had heard that the brokers 
 were about to leave New York City for good. 
 
 " By the way, Tom," said Sam, after reading 
 the letter from Dick, "this puts me in mind:
 
 100 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 What became of that fellow we hauled out of 
 the river?" 
 
 "The last I heard of him, he was still under 
 the care of Doctor Havens." 
 
 "Don't you think we ought to call on him? 
 He might want to see us." 
 
 "If he wanted that, Sam, wouldn't he send 
 us word? Perhaps, if he is any relation to Jesse 
 Pefter, he would rather we would keep away from 
 him." 
 
 On the following morning a letter came ad 
 dressed to Tom, and bearing the Ashton post 
 mark. On opening the communication, he was 
 much interested to read the following: 
 
 " DEAR MR. ROVER : 
 
 " I want to thank you and your brother for 
 What you did for me. I shall never forget it. 
 Even were I in a position to do so, I would not 
 Insult you by offering you any reward. You, 
 perhaps, have learned my name, and maybe you 
 are wondering if I am related to Mr. Pelter of 
 Pelter, Japson & Company, of New York City. 
 Mr. Pelter is my uncle, and for a number of years 
 I made my home with him. I do not altogether 
 like his way of doing business, and do not uphold 
 him in his dealings with your family. But he is 
 my uncle, and on several occasions he has assisted
 
 THE FIRE AT HOPE IOI 
 
 me very materially. For that reason, I think it is 
 best that we do not meet. 
 
 " Again thanking you, I remain 
 " Yours truly, 
 
 " BARTON PELTER." 
 
 " I guess that explains it," said Sam, after he, 
 .., t too, had read the communication. " He didn't 
 (want to face us because of his relationship to 
 Jesse Pelter." 
 
 " I am glad that he doesn't uphold Jesse Pelter 
 in his actions, Sam." 
 
 " More than likely he would be glad to come 
 and see us in order to thank us in person for 
 .what we did for him if it were not for his uncle, 
 and the fact that his uncle has aided him. You 
 know the old saying, 'You can't bite the hand 
 that feeds you.' ' 
 
 "I wonder if he is still in Ashton?" 
 
 " We might telephone to the hotel and find out" 
 
 Later on this was done, and the boys were in 
 formed over the wire that Barton Pelter had left 
 'early that morning, taking his automobile with 
 feim. 
 
 " Well, only one week more of the grin'd," re 
 marked Sam one morning on arising. "Aren't 
 glad that the closing day is so near? " 
 I think I would feel a little better if I knew
 
 102 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 how I was coming out with my examinations," 
 returned his brother. 
 
 "But, Tom, it won't make any difference to 
 you, if you are not coming back." 
 
 " That may be, but, just the same, I would like s 
 to get as much credit as possible while I am 
 here." 
 
 Some of the examinations had already been 
 held, and others were to come off within the next 
 few days. As a consequence, the majority of the 
 students were exceedingly busy, so that there was 
 little time for recreation. 
 
 Since the Rovers had come to Brill, the college 
 had been endowed with the money to build an 
 observatory. This structure had now been com 
 pleted, and the boys took great delight in visiting 
 it and looking through the telescope which it con 
 tained. It stood on the highest hill of the grounds, 
 so that from the top, quite a view of the surround 
 ing country could be had. 
 
 " I am going to the observatory," said Song 
 bird, that evening. " There is going to be some 
 kind of a transit, and- 1 want to see it. Either of 
 you fellows want to come along?" 
 
 " I can't, I've got a paper to finish up," re 
 turned Sam, who was busy at his writing table. 
 
 " I'll go. I need a little fresh air," said Torn,, 
 and reached for his cap.
 
 THE FIRE AT HOPE 103 
 
 At the observatory the boys found one of the 
 professors and about a dozen students assembled. 
 The professor was delivering something of a lec- 
 iture, to which the boys listened with interest, at 
 the same time taking turns looking through the 
 big telescope. 
 
 " It's a wonderful sight," murmured Tom, 
 after he had had his look. Then, followed by 
 Songbird, he walked to a little side window which, 
 with several others, faced in the direction of Hope 
 Seminary. 
 
 " I suppose you would rather be at Hope than 
 here," remarked Songbird, dryly. 
 
 "And you would rather be at the Sanderson 
 cottage than anywhere else in the world," re 
 torted Tom. 
 
 " It's too bad, Tom, that you are not coming 
 back next Fall," went on Songbird, seriously. " I 
 don't know how we are going to get along with 
 out you." 
 
 " It can't be helped. I've got to help Dick. 
 Father is too broken down to attend to business, 
 and I don't think it is the fair thing to put it all 
 off on Dick's shoulders." 
 
 " Oh, I understand. But Sam will come back, 
 won't he?" 
 
 " I think so. One of us, at least, ought to 
 finish the course here. Dick and I are cut out
 
 104 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 for business, but I think Sam ought to go into one 
 of the professions." 
 
 " I wish I knew what I would like to do, Tom," 
 continued Songbird, wistfully. 
 
 " Oh, some day you will be a celebrated 
 poet." 
 
 " I think I have got to do something more sub 
 stantial than write poetry." 
 
 " Well, it all depends on the brand of poetry, 
 Songbird." And Tom began to grin. "There 
 are some fellows who make big money at it." 
 
 " I'd like to know who they are ? " questioned 
 the would-be poet, eagerly. 
 
 " The fellows who write up some new brand 
 of safety razor or breakfast food." 
 
 "Tom!" And Songbird looked positively 
 hurt. " How can you be so cruel and degrade 
 poetry so ? " 
 
 " Well, they do it, I don't. Now, if you " 
 
 Tom brought his words to a sudden stop, and 
 commenced to stare out of the window. Far 
 over the distant wood he had seen a strange light. 
 Now it was increasing rapidly. 
 
 "What is it? What do you see?" demanded' 
 Songbird, as he realized that something unusual 
 had attracted his chum's attention. 
 
 * Look there ! " cried Tom, pointing with his 
 anger. " Doesn't that look like a fire? "
 
 THE FIRE AT HOPE 105 
 
 " It surely does," replied the other, after a hasty 
 inspection. " But it may be only some brush heap 
 that a farmer is getting rid of." 
 
 " I don't know about that. Say, haven't they 
 got a pair of field glasses here? " 
 ' " Sure ! " and Songbird turned to get the article 
 mentioned. 
 
 As rapidly as possible, Tom focused the glasses 
 on the distant light, and took a careful look. 
 
 " Great Scott ! it's a fire and at Hope Semi 
 nary ! " broke out the youth. " It looks to me 
 as if the whole place might burn down! " 
 
 " What ! A fire at Hope ! " cried Songbird, and 
 his words attracted the attention of all the others 
 in the observatory. He, too, took a look through 
 the glasses, and one after another the remaining 
 students did the same. 
 
 " It certainly is a fire, and at the seminary, isn't 
 it, Tom?" 
 
 Tom did not answer. He had already started 
 to leave the building. Straight down the hill he 
 tore, and then up to the building where he and 
 the others had their rooms. He burst in on his 
 brother like a cyclone. 
 
 " Sam, come on, quick ! There is a fire at the 
 seminary ! " 
 
 The younger Rover, who was deep in his writ 
 ing, looked up, startled.
 
 106 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS, 
 
 " What is that you said, Tom? " 
 
 " I said, hurry up ; come along ; there is a fire 
 at the seminary! The girls may be in danger! 
 Come on, let us go there in the auto." 
 
 " Oh, Tom, are you sure of this? " And no^ 
 Sam leaped up, brushing his writing to one side. 
 
 "Yes, I saw the fire from the observatory." 
 And in as few words as possible, Tom gave his 
 brother the particulars. He was already donning 
 his automobile outfit. Sam followed suit, and 
 both boys ran downstairs and to the garage. 
 
 By the time they had the touring car ready, 
 Songbird, Stanley, Spud, and several others had 
 joined them. The word had been passed around 
 that there was a fire at Hope, and permission to 
 go to the conflagration was readily granted by the 
 college management. 
 
 " All aboard who are going ! " sang out Tom, 
 who was at the wheel, with Sam beside him. 
 Then, after several collegians had climbed into 
 the tonneau, away the touring car dashed over 
 the road leading to Hope.
 
 CHAPTER XI 
 
 TO THE RESCUE 
 
 IT was a wild ride, never to be forgotten. Tom 
 had all the lights turned up fully, so that he might 
 see everything that was ahead. From twenty 
 miles per hour the speed climbed up to twenty- 
 five, then thirty, then thirty-five, and finally forty. 
 Over the newly-mended bridge they dashed at 
 breakneck speed. 
 
 " Be on your guard, Tom," warned Sam. 
 
 " We've got to get there," was the grim re 
 sponse. " The girls may be in danger." 
 
 " Right you are ! Let her go for all she is 
 worth ! " 
 
 They had been making many turns and going 
 up-hill and down, but now came a straight stretch 
 of several miles, and here Tom put on all the 
 extra power the touring car could command. 
 From forty miles an hour, they reached forty- 
 five, and then fifty, and, at one point, the speedo 
 meter registered fifty-four. 
 
 " My gracious, Tom, don't kill us ! " yelled Bob, 
 107
 
 108 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 to make himself heard above the roar of the 
 motor, for Tom had the muffler cutout wide open. 
 
 The youth at the wheel did not answer. He 
 was giving all his attention to the running of the 
 car, and this was needed. Along the roadway 
 they sped like an arrow from a bow, past trees and 
 fences, with here and there a farmhouse or a barn. 
 Once Tom saw a white spot in the road ahead, 
 and threw off the power. But it was only a flying 
 newspaper, and on he went as speedily as before. 
 
 " It's at Hope, all right ! " yelled Stanley, when 
 they slowed down at a turn of the road. 
 
 "Yes, but I don't think it is any of the main 
 buildings," returned another student. 
 
 " I hope not," came from Sam. 
 
 There was one more small rise to climb, and 
 then they came into full view of what was ahead. 
 Through the trees they saw that one of the large 
 barns, in which the fire had evidently started, was 
 almost totally consumed. The slight wind that 
 was blowing had carried the sparks to one of the 
 wings of the main building, and this was now 
 in flames at several points. 
 
 "Here comes the fire engine!" cried Bob, as 
 the touring car swept through the seminary 
 grounds ; and he pointed down the opposite road. 
 Along this a small engine from a nearby town 
 was approaching, hauled by a score of men and
 
 TO THE RESCUE 109 
 
 boys. Far down another road could be heard the 
 tooting of another engine, probably from some 
 other town. 
 
 " We might give some of those fellows help,* 
 suggested Songbird. " What's the matter witlit 
 running the car down to where they are, and ; 
 hitching fast?" 
 
 "You can do it, Songbird, if you wish," re 
 turned Tom, hurriedly. " I'll join you just as 
 soon as I find out if the girls are safe." 
 
 " And I'll go with Tom," put in Sam. 
 
 "Oh, they must be safe; the fire isn't in that: 
 part of the building/' broke in Stanley. "But 
 go ahead, you fellows, we'll take care of the ma 
 chine." For he well understood how anxious the 
 Rovers must be regarding the Laning girls. 
 
 Leaping from the touring car, Sam and Tom 
 joined the crowd in the vicinity of the fire, com 
 posed mostly of girl students and their teachers. 
 About a score of men and boys living in the vi 
 cinity had come up, and these, with the hired help 
 from the institution, were doing all in their power 
 to subdue the flames. 
 
 "Did all of the girls get out?" asked Tom, of 
 the first teacher he met. 
 
 " I don't know I think so," was the answer. 
 
 The boys pushed their way 'along from one 
 group of students to another, trying to catch sight
 
 HO THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 pf those whom they were seeking. In the mean 
 time, Songbird and the others from Brill had 
 taken charge of the touring car, and run it down 
 'a side road, where they hooked fast to one of the 
 ; arriving fire engines, much to the relief of those 
 ;who had been dragging the machine over the 
 somewhat rough highway, and were almost ex 
 hausted. 
 
 " Oh, Sam ! " The cry came from Grace, and 
 the next instant the girl rushed up and fairly 
 threw herself into the arms of the youngest 
 Rover. 
 
 "Where is Nellie?" he demanded, quickly. 
 "Is she safe?" 
 
 "Here I am!" was the call, and then Nellie 
 came up and caught Tom by the shoulder. " Oh, 
 isn't this dreadful ! " 
 
 " It sure is, Nellie/' returned Tom, as he 
 slipped his arm around her waist. " But I am 
 mighty glad that you are safe. Do you think 
 everybody is out ? " 
 
 "We don't know, but they ought to be out, 
 for we had plenty of warning. The fire started 
 in the barn, you know." 
 
 "What caused it?" 
 
 " They think one of the men must have been 
 smoking and dropped a light in the hay. Any 
 way, the fire started there."
 
 TO THE RESCUE III 
 
 " The other fellows took the auto to help the 
 fire engine/' broke in Sam. " Here they come 
 now," he added, as the machine came up with 
 honking horn, and dragging one of the fire en 
 gines behind it. 
 
 " I wish we could do something to put out this 
 blaze," came from Tom. " Sam, we must get 
 busy." 
 
 "Right you are!" 
 
 "Oh, do be careful, both of you!" pleaded 
 Nellie. 
 
 " Yes, don't get burnt/' added Grace. 
 
 "We'll look out, don't you fear," answered 
 Sam, and then he and Tom turned to join those 
 at the fire engines and the hose carts. 
 
 The seminary was provided with several water 
 towers, and from these some lines of hose had 
 already been run to the fire. Now some addi 
 tional lines of hose were laid from the fire en 
 gines, which began to take water from two cis 
 terns. Soon the added streams showed their 
 effect on the flames. 
 
 "Girls! girls! have any of you see Miss Har 
 row?" The cry came from one of the teachers/ 
 as she made her way through the crowd. 
 
 " Why, isn't she out? " asked a number. 
 
 " I don't know, I can't find her anywhere," re 
 plied the instructor.
 
 112 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 " Was she in the building? " 
 
 " I think so. She said at supper time that she 
 had a toothache, and was going to retire early." 
 And thus speaking, the teacher hurried on. 
 
 " Is that the Miss Harrow who lost that four- 
 hundred-dollar diamond ring? " asked Tom. 
 
 "Yes," replied Nellie. 
 
 " Was her room in that addition ? " questioned 
 Sam, quickly, pointing to an end of the building 
 which was on fire in several places. 
 
 " Yes, she has the corner window, right over 
 there," responded Grace, pointing to a spot close 
 to where the building was in flames. 
 
 The words had scarcely left the lips of the 
 girl, when, to the horror of those standing below, 
 a third story window was suddenly thrown up, 
 and the head of a woman appeared. 
 
 " Help ! Help ! Save me ! " The cry came 
 wildly from the woman, who was plainly terror- 
 stricken. 
 
 "It's Miss Harrow!" cried a score of voices. 
 
 "Look! Look! The fire is on both sides of 
 her!" 
 
 "Don*t jump! Don't jump!" yelled Tom, at 
 the top of his lungs, and he saw the teacher pre 
 pare to cast Herself to the ground. 
 
 " Can't you come down by the stairs ? " called 
 out Sam, as loudly as he could.
 
 TO THE RESCUE 113 
 
 " I'm afraid to open the door! The hall is full 
 of smoke and fire ! " screamed the teacher. " Save 
 me ! Save me ! " 
 
 "Haven't they got a ladder handy?" asked 
 Tom. 
 
 " Sure, we've got a ladder half a dozen of' 
 'em," responded one of the men .who worked 
 around the place. 
 
 " Where is it? Show it to us, quick ! " put in 
 Sam. 
 
 "All right, this way," returned the man, and 
 started off with Sam at his heels. 
 
 " Don't jump ! don't jump ! We'll help you ! " 
 cried a dozen voices to the teacher. 
 
 " We are going to get a ladder ! " yelled Tom. 
 " Stay where you are ! " 
 
 And then he followed the others. The ladders 
 were kept in a wagon shed, and it took but a few 
 moments to bring them out. They were four in 
 number, and of various sizes. 
 
 "I'm afraid none o/ 'em is long enough to> 
 reach that winder," said the man who had led 
 the way. 
 
 " You are right," replied Tom. " But what's^ 
 the matter with lashing a couple of ttiem together? 
 Here's a rope." And he pointed to a washline 
 that hung on a nearby hook. 
 
 In frantic haste a dozen persons carried the
 
 U 4 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINE& 
 
 ladders to the burning building. Tom followed 
 
 with the rope, which he unwound on the way. 
 
 Then the washline was cut, and with it two of 
 
 the longest ladders were lashed together as quickly 
 
 ;as possible. Then the combination ladder was 
 
 raised against the building and set close to the 
 
 window, to the sill of which Miss Harrow clung. 
 
 " I'll go up if you want me to," cried Tom, as 
 he saw the men who belonged around the place 
 hold back. " You steady the ladder so it doesn't 
 slip." 
 
 "Want me to help, Tom?" asked Sam. 
 
 " No, you see tkat they steady the ladder." And 
 thus speaking, Tom began to mount the rungs. 
 
 A cheer went up, but to this the youth paid no 
 attention. In a few seconds he was at the third 
 story window. He had to pass through consider 
 able smoke, but as yet the flames had not reached 
 that vicinity. 
 
 "Come, give me your hand, and step out on 
 the ladder," cried Tom to the teacher. 
 
 " I I can't ! " gasped Miss Harrow. And now 
 the youth saw that she was almost paralyzed from 
 fright. She clung desperately to the window sill, 
 evidently unable to move. Clinging to the ladder 
 with his left hand, Tom placed his right foot on 
 the window sill, and then he reached down and 
 caught the teacher under the arm.
 
 TO THE RESCUE 115 
 
 "Come, you don't want to stay here," he or 
 dered, almost sternly, and pulled the teacher to 
 her feet. 
 
 " Oh, oh, we'll fall! I can't do it! " were her 
 gasped-out words. 
 
 " You've got to do it unless you want to be 
 burned up. Now then, if you don't want to climb 
 down the ladder, let me carry you." 
 
 " I I oh I can't move ! " And with these 
 words, the teacher sank down across the window 
 sill. 
 
 A sudden change in the wind drove a cloud of 
 smoke into Tom's face, and for the moment he 
 and the teacher were hidden from the view of 
 those below. 
 
 "Oh, look! Tom will be burned up!" 
 screamed Nellie. 
 
 " No, he won't," returned Sam, reassuringly. 
 " He knows what he is doing." Nevertheless, 
 Sam was as anxious as anyone over his brother's 
 safety. 
 
 When the smoke shifted, it was seen that Tom 
 -had hauled the teacher from the window sill and 
 had her over his shoulder. She hung down limply, 
 showing that she had lost consciousness. Rung 
 by rung, the youth came down the ladder slowly 
 with his burden. 
 
 " He's got her ! He's got her ! " was the glad
 
 Il6 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 cry, and a few seconds later Tom reached the 
 ground, where he was immediately surrounded 
 by the others. 
 
 " Oh, Tom, how did you do it ? " cried Nellie, 
 hysterically. 
 
 "Oh, it was not much to do anybody could 
 have done it," replied the youth. " Say, what am 
 I to do with her ? " he added, indicating the bur 
 den on his shoulder. 
 
 " This way, please," said the teacher who had 
 taken charge of matters, and she led the way out 
 on the campus and to a bench on which some of 
 the girls had piled their fancy pillows. Here Miss 
 Harrow was made as comfortable as possible. 
 
 By this time a third fire engine had arrivexi, 
 and more streams were directed on the flames. 
 The ladder was used by some of those at the 
 nozzle of one of the hose lines, and by this means 
 the fire in the wing of the main building was 
 quickly extinguished. Nothing could be done to 
 wards saving what was left of the barn, so the 
 firemen directed all their efforts towards keeping i 
 the conflagration from spreading. 
 
 "Well, it's about out," said Sam, a little later. 
 " Some mess, though, believe me ! " 
 
 " Oh, I am so thankful it was not worse ! " 
 murmured Grace. " Suppose it had burned down 
 the main building!"
 
 TO THE RESCUE 117 
 
 " Tom, you're a hero ! " cried Spud, coming up. 
 
 " Nothing of the sort," retorted Tom. " Any 
 body could have done what I did, and you know 
 it." 
 
 " All the same, you're the one who did it," an- 
 . swered Spud, admiringly. 
 
 " He certainly did," said one cf the men in the 
 crowd. " That teacher ought to be mighty thank- 
 'ful for what he did for her." 
 
 "I don't want her thanks," added Tom, in a 
 low voice. "All I want her to do, is to treat 
 Nellie fairly."
 
 CHAPTER XII 
 
 TOM SPEAKS HIS MIND 
 
 " TOM, Miss Harrow would like to see you." 
 
 It was an hour later, and the Rovers and the 
 Laning girls had spent the time in watching the 
 efforts of the others to put out the last of the fire. 
 In the meanwhile, some of those present had gone 
 through the addition to the main building and 
 opened the various windows and doors, thus let 
 ting out the smoke. An examination proved that 
 the damage done there was very slight, for which 
 the seminary authorities were thankful. 
 
 " Wants to see me, eh ? " returned Tom, mus 
 ingly. " Well, I don't know whether I want to 
 see her or not." 
 
 " You might as well go, Tom, and have it over 
 with," suggested Sam. 
 
 " If I go, I want Nellie to go along," returned 
 the brother. " I want her to know how I stand 
 on this missing-ring question. By the way, how 
 is she, all right ? " continued the youth, address 
 ing Stanley, who had brought the news that he 
 was wanted.
 
 TOM SPEAKS HIS MIND 
 
 " She seems to be all right, although she is very 
 nervous. She says the reason she didn't hear 
 the alarm and get out of the building in time, was 
 because she had had a toothache and had taken 
 a strong dose of medicine to quiet her nerves. 
 Evidently the medicine put her into a sound 
 sleep." 
 
 "How about the toothache?" asked Sam, 
 slyly. 
 
 " Oh, that's gone now ; the fire scared it away." 
 
 " Where is she ? " questioned Tom. 
 
 " She is in the office with some of the other 
 teachers." 
 
 "All right, if I've got to go, I might as well 
 have it over with. Come along, Nellie." 
 
 " Oh, Tom, do you really think I ought to go? " 
 
 "If you won't, I won't." 
 
 "All right, then," and arm in arm, Tom and 
 Nellie proceeded into the main building. Nellie 
 showed the way to the office, which was located 
 at the end of a long corridor. 
 
 " Oh, so here is the young gentleman ! " cried 
 Miss Harrow, as they entered. She was very 
 pale, but did her best to compose herself. 
 
 " You sent for me? " returned Tom, bluntly. 
 
 " Yes. I wish to thank you for what you did 
 for me. You are a very brave young man. Were 
 I able to do so, I should be only too pleased to
 
 120 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 reward you liberally. But I am only a poor 
 teacher, and " 
 
 "I don't want any reward, Miss Harrow. 
 What I did anybody could have done." 
 
 " Perhaps, but " And now the teacher 
 
 stopped short, for the first time noticing NelKe's 
 presence. " What do you want here, Miss Lan- 
 ing?" she demanded, stiffly. 
 
 " I came in with Mr. Rover; he wanted me to 
 come," was the answer. And as the teacher con 
 tinued to glare at her, Nellie clung tightly to 
 Tom's arm. 
 
 " I I don't understand " stammered Miss 
 
 Harrow. She was evidently much surprised. 
 
 " It's this way, Miss Harrow." answered Tom, 
 with his usual bluntness. " Miss Laning and I 
 have been friends for a great many years. The 
 fact is, we hope that is, I hope " and now Tom 
 looked a bit confused " we'll be married before 
 a great while. I have been told about the dia 
 mond ring that is missing, and I know all about 
 how you have treated Nellie. I don't like it at 
 all. I think you are doing her a great injustice." 
 
 " Oh ! " The teacher paused abruptly and bit 
 her lip. She glanced from Tom to Nellie and 
 then to the others who were in the office. " I I 
 have not accused Miss Laning of anything," she 
 went on, rather lamely.
 
 121 
 
 "Perhaps not in so many words. But you 
 have acted as if you felt certain she was guilty. 
 JNow, that isn't fair. She wouldn't touch anything 
 that wasn't her own. It's a terrible thing to cast 
 suspicion on any one. What would you say if I 
 were to intimate you had taken the four-hundred- 
 dollar ring? " 
 
 " Sir ! " and now the teacher's face grew red. 
 " Do you mean to insult me ? " 
 
 " Not at all. But I mean to stand up for Miss 
 Laning first, last, and all the time," replied Tom, 
 earnestly. " I think it is an outrage to even sus 
 pect her." 
 
 For a few seconds there was an intense silence, 
 broken only by a certain nervous movement among 
 the others in the office. Miss Harrow bit her lip 
 again. 
 
 " I I am sorry if I have done Miss Laning an 
 injustice," she said, slowly. "But the diamond 
 ring is gone, and if the ring is not recovered, 1 
 may be held responsible for it." 
 
 "Now, my dear Miss Harrow, pray do not 
 agitate yourself too much," broke in another of 
 the teachers. " This is all very painful. You had 
 better drop tfie matter." 
 
 " I am willing to drop it," answered Tom, be 
 fore Miss Harrow could speak. " Only I want it 
 understood that Miss Laning is to be treated with
 
 122 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 the consideration she deserves. Otherwise I may 
 suggest to her father that she be taken away from 
 this institution and a suit for damages be in 
 stituted." 
 
 "Oh, no! Not that! Not that!" came from 
 Miss Harrow, and now she was plainly much 
 frightened. " I did not accuse Miss Laning of 
 anything, and I do not accuse her now. The ring 
 is missing. That is all I can say about it." 
 
 " I think we had better go, Tom," whispered 
 Nellie. 
 
 " You may leave, Miss Laning," said one of 
 the other teachers. " We have had trouble enough 
 for one night." 
 
 " Nellie started for the door, and Tom did the 
 same; but before the youth could leave, Miss Har 
 row clutched him by the arm. 
 
 " Mr. Rover, just a word," she said in a low 
 voice. "You did me a great service and I shall 
 not forget it. If I have done Miss Laning an in 
 justice, I am very sorry for it." And having thus 
 spoken, she turned back and sank down on a 
 couch. Tom and Nellie left and hurried to the 
 campus, where they were speedily rejoined by Sam 
 and Grace. 
 
 " How did you make out? " asked the younger 
 Rover. And then Tom gave the particulars of 
 what had occurred.
 
 TOM SPEAKS HIS MIND. 123 
 
 " Oh, Tom, I am glad you said what you did/' 
 cried Grace, heartily. " Now, maybe, Miss Har 
 row will be more careful in her actions." 
 
 " Well, I simply said what I thought," answered 
 Tom. " They are not going to lay anything at; 
 Nellie's door if I can help it." 
 
 " Oh, Tom, but you told them that that " 
 
 And Nellie grew red and could not go on. 
 
 " Well, what if I did? It's the truth, isn't it? " 
 
 "What was that?" asked Sam, curiously. 
 
 " Why, I told them that Nellie and I had been 
 friends for years and that, sooner or later, we 
 were going to be married." 
 
 "You did!" shrieked Grace. "Oh, Tom 
 Rover!" 
 
 " Folks might as well know it," returned Tom. 
 "They've got to know it when the affair comes 
 off." 
 
 " Don't you think it's about time you boys 
 started back for college ? " came from Nellie, who 
 was blushing deeply over the personal turn which 
 the conversation had taken. 
 
 " Oh, there's no great rush," answered Tom, 
 coolly. 
 
 Nevertheless, now that the conflagration was 
 over, it was thought best by all the students to get 
 back to the college, so a little later the crowd wad 
 rounded up by Spud and Stanley, and all climbed
 
 124 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 into the automobile. Sam ran the car, and the re 
 turn was made without special incident. 
 
 " Say, Tom, if that wedding is to come off so 
 soon, perhaps I had better be saving up for a 
 1 wedding present," remarked Sam, dryly, when the 
 ' two brothers were retiring for the night. 
 
 " I wouldn't advise you to start saving up just 
 now," answered his brother. "Better get some 
 sleep first." And then he playfully shied a pillow 
 at Sam's head. 
 
 The next day nearly all the talk at Brill was 
 about the fire and what Tom had done towards 
 rescuing Miss Harrow. Many insisted upon it 
 that Tom had enacted the part of a real hero, and 
 he was interviewed by a local reporter, and a num 
 ber of newspapers printed quite an item about the 
 conflagration and the part he had played. 
 
 But the students had little time just now for 
 anything outside of their final examinations. 
 Many papers had to be prepared, and poor Tom 
 often wondered how he would ever get through 
 with any satisfaction, either to himself or his in 
 structors. With Sam, the task seemed much 
 /easier, for, as Dick had once declared, Sam was 
 " a regular bookworm," and no studies seemed to 
 worry him in the least. 
 
 "If I get through at all, I shall be lucky,"
 
 TOM SPEAKS HIS MIND 125 
 
 vouchsafed Tom, after passing in a particularly 
 hard paper. 
 
 "We'll hope for the best," returned Sam. 
 
 During those days came another letter from 
 Dick, in which he stated that he had moved in-' 
 to the offices vacated by Pelter, Japson & Com 
 pany, and was doing his best to get everything 
 into working order. He added that, on the re 
 quest of their father, he had disposed of some 
 stocks, and in their stead, had purchased sixty- 
 four thousand dollars' worth of bonds. 
 
 " My, that's some bonds ! " remarked Sam, on 
 reading the letter. 
 
 " Well, bonds are usually much safer than 
 stocks, even if they don't pay so well," answered 
 Tom. 
 
 There was a letter from their Aunt Martha, 
 who stated that their father did not seem to be 
 quite as well as he had been the week previous. 
 She added that they had called in another doctor, 
 who had stated, after an examination, that there 
 was no cause for alarm that Mr. Rover must 
 be kept quiet and not worried, and probably, he 
 would be his old self in another month or two. 
 
 "I am glad that the college is to shut down 
 soon," said Sam, when he and his brother were 
 discussing this communication. "I want to see
 
 126 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 dad and make sure things are not worse than 
 Aunt Martha pictures them." 
 
 " Exactly the way I feel about it, Sam. They 
 may be holding back something on us just so we 
 won't be worried" 
 
 Two days later came the final examination for 
 both the Rovers, and they felt much relieved. 
 Songbird was also " out of the woods," as he ex 
 pressed it, and asked them if they did not want 
 to join him and Spud in a short row on the 
 river. 
 
 " That suits me," cried Tom. " I want to get 
 out into the air somewhere. I am done with 
 classrooms forever. If it was not for the look 
 of things, I would be turning handsprings on the 
 campus." 
 
 " Ditto," added Sam. 
 
 " Well, come on," said Songbird. And a few 
 minutes later the four students were down at 
 the boathouse, getting out one of the four-oared 
 boats. 
 
 " Say, Songbird, I should think this would put 
 you in the rhyming fever," said Sam, as the four 
 \ feds rowed out on the river. 
 
 " It does," returned the would-be poet. 
 
 " All right, turn on the verse spigot and let us 
 have the latest effusion," cried Tom, gaily. 
 
 "The verses aren't finished yet," answered
 
 TOM SPEAKS HIS MIND 127 
 
 Songbird. And then resting his oar, he drew 
 from his pocket a slip of paper and began to 
 read: 
 
 "The terms is passed, 
 Away we cast 
 
 Otir books and papers with great glee. 
 No more we'll train 
 Each tired brain " 
 
 "Instead, well cheer because we're free!" 
 
 concluded Tom. 
 
 " Say, that isn't half bad," broke out Song 
 bird, enthusiastically. " I was going to put in 
 something about flee " 
 
 " For gracious sake ! What have fleas to do 
 with this poetry ? " interposed Tom. 
 
 "Fleas! Who said anything about fleas?" 
 snorted Songbird. " I said ' flee/ f-l-e-e." 
 
 " Oh, I see ! " That's the flee that fled, not the 
 flea who refuses to flee," went on Tom. And 
 at this sally, the other boys laughed. 
 
 " Never mind, give us the rest of it," put in 
 Spud. 
 
 " There isn't any 'rest' not yet," answered! 
 the would-be poet. And then the boys resumed 
 the row up the river.
 
 CHAPTER XIII 
 
 AT THE FARM 
 
 "ALL aboard who are going! We haven't 
 any time to spare if you want to catch that nine- 
 fifteen train." 
 
 " Good-bye, Tom, don't forget to write." 
 
 " Say, Spud, when you get down to the Maine 
 coast, don't eat too many lobsters." 
 
 "And that puts me in mind, Stanley. When 
 you reach the Grand Canyon, send me a piece 
 of rock ; I want to see how the Canyon looks." 
 
 "Say, whose baseball mitt is this anyway?" 
 And following this question, the mitt came sail 
 ing through the air, to land on the floor of the 
 Brill carryall. 
 
 " Please get off of my feet ! " The wail came 
 ( from William Philander Tubbs, who was sitting 
 iin a corner with another student partly on his 
 lap. 
 
 " Everybody shove, and we'll be off ! " cried an 
 other student, merrily. 
 
 Then came a great mixture of cries and whis- 
 128
 
 AT THE FARM 129 
 
 ties, intermingled with the tooting of horns and 
 the sounding of rattles, in the midst of which 
 there moved from the Brill grounds several car 
 riages and an equal number of automobiles. 
 
 The term had come to an end, and the students' 
 were preparing to scatter. The majority were 
 going home, but others had planned to go directly 
 to the summer resorts where they were to spend 
 their vacations. 
 
 " Good-bye, Brill ! " sang out Tom, and, for 
 once, his voice was a trifle husky. Now that he: 
 was leaving the college not to return, a sudden 
 queer sensation stole over the youth. He looked, 
 at his brother, and then turned his gaze away. 
 
 " Never mind, Tom," said Sam, softly. " If I 
 come back, as I expect, you'll have to come and 
 visit me." 
 
 Hope Seminary was not to close until the week 
 following, and the evening before the Rovers 
 had visited Grace and Nellie. From them, Sam 
 and Tom had heard news that interested them 
 greatly. This was to the effect that Dora had 
 invited her cousins to visit her in New York, 
 City some time during the vacation. 
 
 "That will be fine!" Tom had cried. "You 
 come when Sam and I are there, and well do 
 all we can to give you the best kind of a time.'* 
 And so it had been arranged.
 
 130 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 The boys and their friends were in the Rover 
 
 towing car. This machine, it had been decided, 
 
 was to remain at the college garage, in care of 
 
 Abner Filbury. Abner was now driving, so that 
 
 Jthe boys were at liberty to do as they pleased. 
 
 "Let's give 'em a song," suggested Stanley, 
 and the boys sang one college song after another, 
 the tunes being caught up by those in the other 
 turnouts. Thus they rolled up to the railroad 
 station in Ashton. Then the train came in, and 
 afl the young collegians lost no time in getting 
 aboard. 
 
 " Where are you going, my dear William Phi 
 lander? " asked Tom, of the dudish student, who 
 sat in front of him. 
 
 " I am going to Atlantic City," was the some 
 what stiff reply, for William Philander had not 
 forgotten the ducking in the river. 
 
 "Atlantic City!" exclaimed Tom. "Of 
 course, you are not going in bathing? " 
 
 " To be sure I am ! I have a brand new bath 
 ing suit ordered. It is dark blue, with pin stripes 
 
 ^running " 
 
 . "But see here, Billy! If you go in bathing 
 at Atlantic City this season, you'll be chewed up." 
 
 " What do you mean ? " And now the dudish 
 student seemed interested. 
 
 " Haven't you heard about the sea serpents
 
 AT THE FARM 131 
 
 they have seen at Atlantic City?" demanded 
 Tom, " four or five of them." And he poked 
 Sam, who sat beside him, in the ribs; and also 
 winked at Spud, who was in the seat with Wil 
 liam Philander. 
 
 "That's right, Tubbs," put in Sam. "Why, 
 they say some of those sea serpents are twenty 
 feet long." 
 
 "Oh, yes, I heard about them, too," added 
 Spud, and now he braced himself for one of his 
 usual yarns. " Why, they tell me that one after 
 noon the sea serpents came in so thickly among 
 the bathers that it was hard for them I mean 
 those in bathing to tell which was sand and 
 which was serpents. Some of the serpents 
 crawled up on the boardwalk, and even got into 
 some of the stores and hotels. They had to 
 order out the police, and then the fire depart 
 ment, and, finally, some of the soldiers had to 
 come down from the rifle ranges with a Catling 
 gun. You never heard of such a battle ! Some 
 body said they killed as many as ninety-seven sea 
 serpents, and not less than three hundred got 
 away. Why, William Philander, I wouldn't go 
 within twenty-five miles of Atlantic City if I 
 (were you," concluded Spud. 
 
 " Oh, how ridiculous ! " responded the dudish 
 student. Nevertheless, he looked much worried.
 
 I 3 2 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 "Of course, they do report a sea serpent now 
 and then." 
 
 "Well, you haven't got to believe it, Billy," 
 answered Tom. " At the same time, you'll be a 
 fine specimen of a college boy if you come back 
 next Fall minus an arm and a leg. How on earth 
 are you going to any of the fashionable dances 
 in that condition?" And at this, there was a 
 general snicker, in the midst of which William 
 Philander arose, caught up his dresssuit case, 
 and fled to another car. 
 
 " You can bet that will hold William Philander 
 for awhile," remarked Sam. "He won't dare 
 to put as much as a toe in the water at Atlantic 
 City until he is dead sure it is safe." 
 
 " Humph ! William Philander isn't one of the 
 kind to go into the water," sniffed Tom. " He 
 belongs to the crowd that get into fancy bathing 
 costumes, and then parades up and down on the 
 sand, just to be admired." 
 
 It was not long before the Junction was 
 reached, and here the Rovers had to part from 
 a number of their friends. 'A fifteen-minute 
 wait, and then their train came along. It was 
 not more than half full, so the students had all 
 the room they desired. 
 
 "I must say, the farm will look pretty good
 
 AT THE FARM 133 
 
 to me," remarked Tom, when the time came for 
 them to collect their belongings. 
 
 "I want to see dad," returned his younger 
 brother. 
 
 " Oh, so do I." 
 
 ' " Oak Run ! All out for Oak Run ! " It was 
 the well-known cry of the brakeman as the train 
 rolled into the station where the Rovers were to 
 alight. 
 
 " Good-bye, everybody ! " sang out both Sam 
 and Tom, and, baggage in hand, they hurried to 
 the station platform. Then the train went on 
 its way, leaving them behind. 
 
 The boys had sent a message ahead, stating 
 when they would arrive, and, consequently, Jack 
 Ness, the hired man, was on hand with the fam 
 ily touring car. < 
 
 " Back safe and sound, eh? Glad to see yer ! " 
 cried the hired man, as they approached, and he 
 touched his cap. 
 
 " And we are glad to be back, Jack," returned 
 Tom, and added quickly: " How is my father? " 
 
 " Oh, he's doin' as well as can be expected, 
 Mr. Tom. The doctors say he has got to keep 
 quiet. Your Aunt Martha said to warn both of 
 you not to excite him." 
 
 " Is he in bed ? " questioned Sam.
 
 134 
 
 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 " Not exactly. He sits up in his easy chair. 
 He can't do much walkin' around." 
 
 While talking, the boys had thrown their be 
 longings into the car. Tom took the wheel, with 
 Sam beside him, leaving the hired man to get in 
 among the baggage. Then away they rolled, 
 over the little bridge that spanned the river and 
 connected the railroad station with the village of 
 Dexter's Corners. Then, with a swerve that sent 
 Jack Ness up against the side of the car, they 
 struck into the country road leading to Valley 
 Brook Farm, their home. 
 
 "Looks good, doesn't it?" remarked Sam, as 
 they rolled along, past well-kept farms and 
 through a pleasant stretch of woodland. 
 
 " Yes, it looks good and is good," returned 
 Tom, with satisfaction. "The college and the 
 city are all right enough, Sam, but I don't go 
 back on dear old Valley Brook ! " 
 
 " How the country around here has changed 
 since the time when we moved here," went on 
 Sam. "Do you remember those days, Tom?" 
 
 " Do I remember them ? Well, I guess ! And 
 how Uncle Randolph used to be annoyed at what 
 we did." And Tom smiled grimly. 
 
 Another turn or two, and they came in sight 
 of the first of the farm fields. Then they 
 reached the long lane leading to the commodious
 
 AT THE FARM 135 
 
 farmhouse, and Tom began to sound the auto 
 mobile horn. 
 
 " There is Uncle Randolph ! " cried Sam, 
 pointing to the upper end of the lane. 
 
 " Yes, and there is Aunt Martha," added Tom, 
 as a figure stepped out on the farmhouse piazza.. 
 Then both of the boys waved their hands vigor 
 ously. 
 
 " Back again, eh ! " cried Uncle Randolph, 
 when the car had been brought to a stop. " Glad 
 to see you, boys," and he shook hands. 
 
 " Back again, and right side up with care ! " 
 exclaimed Tom. He made one leap up the piazza, 
 steps, and caught his aunt in his arms. " How 
 are you, Aunt Martha ? Why, I declare, you are 
 getting younger and better looking every day!" 
 and he kissed her heartily. 
 
 " Oh, Tom, my dear, don't smother me ! " 
 gasped the aunt. Yet she looked tremendously 
 pleased as she gazed at him. Then Sam came in 
 for a hug and a kiss. 
 
 "You mustn't be too boisterous," whispered 
 Uncle Randolph, when all started to enter the 
 house. " Remember, your father isn't as strong 
 as he might be." 
 
 " Where is he ? " both boys wanted to know. 
 
 " He is up in the wing over the dining-room/' 
 answered their aunt. "We thought that would
 
 136 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 be the nicest place for him. The window has a 
 fine outlook, you'll remember." 
 
 " Can we go up now ? " questioned Tom. 
 
 "Yes, but remember, do not say anything to 
 excite him." 
 
 " All right, we'll be careful/' came from Sam. 
 And then both lads cast aside their caps and hur 
 ried up the stairs. 
 
 Mr. Anderson Rover sat in an easy chair, at 
 tired in his dressing gown. He looked thin and 
 pale, but his face lit up with a smile as his eyes 
 rested on his two sons. 
 
 " Dad ! " was the only word each could utter. 
 And then they caught him by either hand, and 
 looked at him fondly. 
 
 " I am glad to see you back, boys," said their 
 father, in a low but clear voice. " It seems like 
 a long while since you went away." 
 
 "And we have missed you a great deal!" 
 broke out Sam. It's too bad you don't feel 
 better." 
 
 "Oh, I think I'll get over it in time," an 
 swered Mr. Rover. " But the doctors tell me I 
 must go slow. I wouldn't mind that so much, if 
 it wasn't for Dick. I think he ought to have 
 some help." 
 
 " Now, don't you worry, Dad," interposed 
 Tom, gently. " You just leave everything to us.
 
 AT THE FARM 137 
 
 We are both going to New York to help Dick 
 straighten out matters, and it will be all right, I 
 am sure." And he stroked his father's shoulder 
 affectionately. 
 
 "But you'll have to go back to college " 
 
 began the invalid. 
 
 " Sam is going back. I am going to help Dick, 
 and stay with him. Now, don't say anything 
 against it, Dad, for it is all settled," went on 
 Tom, as his father tried to speak again. " I 
 don't care to go back. I think Dick and I were 
 cut out for business men. Sam is the learned 
 member of this family." 
 
 "Well, boys, have your own way; you are 
 old enough to know what you are doing." And 
 now Mr. Rover sank back in the chair, for even 
 this brief conversation had almost exhausted 
 him.
 
 CHAPTER 
 
 A STARTLING SCENE 
 
 "DEAR old dad! Isn't it awful to see him 
 propped up in that chair, unable to leave his 
 room ! " 
 
 "You are right, Sam. And yet it might be 
 worse he might be confined to his bed. I hope 
 we didn't excite him too much." 
 
 " He was very much surprised at your deter 
 mination to give up Brill, and join Dick. I guess 
 he was afraid Dick would have to shoulder the 
 business alone. And by the way, Tom," went on 
 the youngest Rover, earnestly, "somehow it 
 doesn't seem just right to me that I should put 
 all this work off on you and Dick." 
 
 " Now, don't let that bother you, Sam. You 
 can go to New York with me this Summer, and 
 then you go back to college, and come out at, 
 the head of the class. That will sorely please us 
 all." 
 
 This conversation took place while tfce twd 
 boys were retiring for the night. They had not; 
 138
 
 A STARTLING SCENE 139 
 
 remained very long with their father, fearing 
 to excite him too much. Aunt Martha had, as 
 usual, had a very fine repast prepared for them, 
 and to this, it is perhaps needless to state, the 
 youths did full justice. 
 
 " It's a grand good thing that we have Aleck 
 Pop with us," went on Sam, referring to the 
 colored man, who, in years gone by, had been a 
 waiter at Putnam Hall, but who was now firmly 
 established as a member of the Rover household. 
 "Aunt Martha says he waits on dad, hand and 
 foot; morning, noon and night." 
 
 " Well, Aleck ought to be willing to do some 
 thing for this family in return for all we have 
 done for him," answered Tom. 
 
 Despite the excitement of the day, the two 
 boys slept soundly. But they were up at an early 
 hour, and, after breakfast, took a walk around 
 the farm in company with their Uncle Randolph, 
 who wished to show them the various improve 
 ments he had made. 
 
 "We have a new corncrib and a new root 
 hovel," said their uncle, as they walked around. 
 " And next week we are going to start on a new 
 pigsty." 
 
 " Going to have one of those new up-to-date, 
 clean ones, I suppose?" returned Sam. 
 
 "Yes. I do not think that it is at all neces-
 
 140 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 sary to keep pigs as d'irty as they are usually 
 kept," returned Uncle Randolph. 
 
 " Say, Uncle," put in Tom, with a sudden 
 twinkle in his eye, "are you going to sell pork 
 by the yard after this?" 
 
 " By the yard ? " queried Uncle Randolph, and 
 then a faint smile flickered over his face. " Oh, 
 I see! You mean sausage lengths, eh?" 
 
 " Not exactly, although that is one way of 
 selling pork by the yard," returned Tom. " I 
 was thinking of what happened in our college 
 town. One of the boys went into a butcher's 
 shop, and asked for a yard of pork, and the 
 butcher handed out three pig's feet." 
 
 " Oh, what a rusty joke, Tom ! " exclaimed 
 Sam. 
 
 "Well, I didn't ask for the yard of pork; it 
 was Dobson who did that," returned Tom, coolly. 
 
 Having inspected the various improvements, 
 the boys returned to the house, and then went 
 upstairs for another short talk with their father. 
 In the midst of this, the family physician arrired. 
 When he had waited on the invalid, the boys 
 called the doctor to one side, and asked him to 
 tell them the truth regarding their parent. 
 
 " Oh, I think he'll pull through all right," said 
 the doctor. " But as I have told your uncle and 
 your aunt, he must be kept quitt. If you talk
 
 A STARTLING SCENE 141 
 
 business to him, or excite him in any way, it is 
 bound to make matters worse." 
 
 "Then we'll keep him just as quiet as possi 
 ble," returned Tom. " If anything unusual 
 occurs in his business, we won't let him know 
 anything about it." 
 
 "That would be best," answered the doctor, 
 gravely; and took his departure. 
 
 Several days passed, and by that time the boys 
 felt once more quite at home. Once they went 
 out in the touring car, taking their aunt and 
 uncle along. 
 
 "It's too bad we can't take dad," was Sam's 
 comment, "but the doctor says it won't do. 
 We'll have to leave him in charge of Aleck." 
 The ride proved a most enjoyable one, and the 
 older folks were much pleased by it. 
 
 "What do you say, Tom, if we go down to 
 the river and have a swim?" proposed Sam, the 
 next morning. It was an unusually hot day, and 
 the thought of getting into the cool water of the 
 old swimming hole appealed strongly to the 
 youth. 
 
 " Suits me," returned his brother. " We 
 haven't had a swim down there since last year." 
 
 "You young gents want to be careful about 
 that there swimmin' hole," put in Jade Ness, 
 who had heard the talk.
 
 142 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS. 
 
 " Why, what's the matter now, Jack? " 
 
 " I dunno, exactly, but I hear some of the 
 fellers say in' as how that swimmin' hole wasn't 
 safe no more. I think it's on account of the 
 tree roots a growin' there." 
 
 " We'll be on our guard," answered Sam, and 
 a little later the two lads set off. It was a long 
 walk over the fields and through the patch of 
 woods skirting the stream, and on arriving at 
 the old swimming hole, Sam and Tom were glad 
 enough to rest awhile before venturing into the 
 water. As my old readers know, the stream 
 was a swiftly-flowing one, and the water was 
 rather cool. 
 
 " Remember the day we flew over this way in 
 the biplane ? " said Tom. " That sure was some 
 adventure ! " 
 
 " Yes, but it wasn't a patch to the adventure 
 we had when the biplane was wrecked," returned 
 his brother, referring to a happening which has 
 been related in detail in "The Rover Boys in 
 New York." 
 
 Having rested awhile, the two boys started to 
 get ready for their swim. Both had just thrown 
 off their coats, when there came a sudden cry 
 from up the river. 
 
 "What's that, Tom?" questioned Sam. 
 
 " Somebody is calling. Listen ! " and then
 
 A STARTLING SCENE 
 
 143 
 
 both boys strained their ears for what might 
 follow. 
 
 " There ! Stay where you are ! Don't move ! " 
 
 " I can't stay here," said another voice. 
 
 "Shall I shoot him now?" put in a heavy 
 bass voice. 
 
 " No, wait a minute, I am coming over," said 
 still another voice, and then there was silence. 
 The Rover boys looked at each other in amaze 
 ment. What did the talk mean? 
 
 " Say, sounds to me as if somebody was in 
 trouble ! " exclaimed Sam. 
 
 " Perhaps we had better go and see," returned 
 Tom. 
 
 "All right, but we don't want to get into 
 trouble ourselves. Those fellows, whoever they 
 are, or at least one of them, seems to be 
 armed." 
 
 "We'll take a few stones along, Sam, and a 
 couple of sticks, too, if we can find them." 
 
 Stones were to be had in plenty, and having 
 picked up several of them, and cast their eyes 
 around for a couple of clubs, the lads lost no, 
 time in making their way towards the spot from* 
 whence the voices had proceeded. This was at 
 a point where the river made a turn and was 
 divided by a long, narrow island into two chan 
 nels. The island was covered with brushwood,
 
 144 THB ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 while the banks of the stream were lined with 
 overhanging trees. 
 
 " Now, I am going to shoot him ! " cried one 
 of the voices which the boys had heard before. 
 
 " No, don't do it, just wait a minute ! " an 
 swered some one else. 
 
 " Maybe they have got some poor fellow, and 
 have robbed him," suggested Sam, as he and his 
 brother hurried forward as quickly as the trees 
 and tangled brushwood would permit. 
 
 " One thing is certain, that fellow, whoever 
 he is, is in trouble," returned Tom. " Perhapa 
 we had better yell to those other fellows to 
 stop." 
 
 " If we do that, they may shoot the poor chap, 
 and then run away." 
 
 "That's so, too! Well, come ahead, let's 
 hurry and see if we can catch sight of them." 
 And then the two boys pushed ahead faster than 
 ever. 
 
 Presently the youths came to where there were 
 a number of high rocks covered with trailing 
 vines. As, to avoid these, it would have been 
 necessary to wade in the stream, and thus get 
 their shoes and stockings wet, they began to 
 scramble over the rocks with all possible speed. 
 
 " Listen ! They are talking again ! " exclaimed 
 Sam. 
 
 " Grab him ! Grab him by the throat ! "
 
 A STARTLING SCENE 145 
 
 "That's all right, Jim, but I don't want the 
 boat to upset," growled another voice. 
 
 " Say, you fellows make me tired ! " roared the 
 heavy bass voice. "Do you want to keep us 
 here all day ? " 
 
 " What do you know about this gun ? Maybe 
 it will explode." 
 
 " Say, Sam, I don't know what to make of 
 this ! " panted Tom, who was almost out of 
 breath from the violence of his exertion. 
 
 " Maybe they are tramps, and are holding 
 somebody up. Anyway, it sounds bad," returned 
 his brother. 
 
 Hauling themselves at last to the top of the 
 rocks, the Rover boys looked ahead. Down in 
 the swiftly-flowing stream, they saw a flat-bot 
 tom boat containing two men. One man, a tall, 
 burly individual, had a mch smaller fellow by 
 the throat, and was bending him backward. Close 
 at hand, on the shore, stood another man, gun in 
 hand, and with the weapon aimed at the burly 
 individual. 
 
 " Now then, shoot ! " yelled somebody from 
 the shore of the island opposite, and an instant 
 later the gun went off with a bang. As the 
 report died away, the burly man in the boat re 
 laxed his hold on the other fellow, threw up his 
 arms, and fell over into the river with a loud 
 splash.
 
 CHAPTER XV 
 
 A TELEGRAM OF IMPORTANCE 
 
 THE Rover boys were horrified by what they 
 saw, and for the instant they neither moved nor 
 spoke. They saw the small man in the boat 
 look over the side into the stream where his 
 assailant had plunged from sight, then this fel 
 low caught up a single oar that remained in the 
 craft, and commenced to paddle quickly to shore. 
 
 "Oh, Tom, they have killed him!" gasped 
 Sam, on recovering from the shock. 
 
 " It certainly looks like it, Sam," returned 
 Tom. "If he wasn't shot dead, he must be 
 drowned. Come on!" and, heedless of possible 
 danger, Tom scrambled down from the rocks 
 and hurried towards the men, with Sam close 
 behind him. They had not yet reached the pair 
 on the river bank, when, to their amazement; 
 they saw the burly individual who had gone over 
 board, reappear at a: point further down the 
 stream. He was swimming lustily for shore. 
 
 "Hello! He can't be so badly hurt!" ex 
 claimed Tom. " Look at him strike out ! " 
 146
 
 A TELEGRAM OF IMPORTANCE 147 
 
 "Maybe he was only scared, and went over 
 board to escape a second shot/' suggested Sam. 
 
 " Hi ! you fellows over there ! " yelled the man 
 ytho carried the gun. "Was that all right? " 
 
 " It looked so to me, although you were a little 
 slow about it," came from the shore of the isl 
 and; and now, glancing in that direction, Sam 
 and Tom saw two men. One had what looked 
 to be a megaphone in his hand, and the second 
 stood behind a high, thin camera with a handle 
 attached, set on a tripod. At the sight of the 
 camera, both youths stopped short. Then Tom 
 looked at his brother and began to snicker. 
 
 "Sold! What do you think of that, Sam?" 
 
 " Why, they are only taking a moving pic 
 ture ! " exclaimed the younger Rover. " Talk 
 about a sell, Tom! That's one on us." 
 
 " Don't let them know how we were sold," re 
 turned the brother, quickly. "If it leaked out 
 we'd never hear the end of it." 
 ' " Right you are ! Mum's the word ! " And it 
 may be added here that the boys kept their word, 
 and said nothing to those at home about how 
 they had been fooled. 
 
 By the time they reached the man in the boat 
 and the fellow with the gun, the individual who 
 had gone overboard was coming up the river 
 bank, dripping water with every step.
 
 148 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 "Say, was that all right?" he demanded, as 
 he stripped off his coat and wrung the water 
 from it. " I hope it was, because I don't want 
 to go through that again, not even for the extra 
 five dollars." 
 
 " So you are taking moving pictures," re 
 marked Tom, pleasantly. "That was sure a 
 great scene." 
 
 "Oh, so you saw it, did you?" returned the 
 man with a gun. " I thought we were here all 
 alone," and he did not seem to be particularly 
 pleased over the boys' arrival. 
 
 " Going to take some more pictures here ? " 
 questioned Sam. 
 
 "That's our business," answered the man in 
 the boat, crustily. 
 
 "Well, maybe it's ours, too," returned the 
 youngest Rover, quickly, not liking the manner 
 in which he had been addressed. " This land 
 belongs to my folks." 
 
 "Oh, is that it?" cried the man, and now he 
 looked a bit more pleasant. "Are you the 
 Rovers?" 
 
 "Yes." 
 
 " No, we are about done with our picture talc 
 ing in this vicinity," continued the man in the 
 boat. The next picture in this series is to be at 
 the railroad station at Oak Run."
 
 A TELEGRAM OF IMPORTANCE 149 
 
 "Say, I would like to get into some of those 
 movies," remarked Tom. "I imagine it would 
 be a lot of fun." 
 
 " Not if you've got to go overboard as I did," 
 grumbled the man who was wet. " Talk about 
 the strenuous life, this takes the cake! Why, in 
 the past ten days, I have gone over a cliff, res 
 cued two women from a burning tenement house, 
 climbed a rope hanging from a burning balloon, 
 and fallen off a moving freight car. Can you 
 beat that for action? " 
 
 " Certainly some stunts ! " answered Tom. 
 "But one must get a lot of fun out of it." 
 
 "Oh, sure! Especially when one of the wom 
 en you are saving from the burning house gets 
 nervous for fear the flames will reach her, and 
 grabs you by the ear and nearly pulls it off," 
 growled the moving picture actor. 
 
 "Say!" yelled the man with the megaphone. 
 " Aren't you coming over here to get us ? " 
 
 "Of course," returned the man in the boat, 
 
 hastily. " Bill, give me that other oar," he went 
 
 on, and having secured the blade, he lost no time 
 
 k in rowing over to the island. In the meanwhile, 
 
 ' the fellow with the camera had dismounted the 
 
 moving picture machine and folded up the tripod, 
 
 and was ready to depart. 
 
 "Would you mind telling me what this pic-
 
 150 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 ture is going to be called?" asked Sam. "We 
 would like to know so, if we see it advertised 
 anywhere, we can take a look at it." 
 
 " This is scene twenty-eight from * His Last 
 Chance,' " answered the man with the gun. 
 
 " All right, we'll take a chance on ' His Last 
 Chance ' when we get the chance," answered 
 Tom with a grin, and at this play on words the 
 moving picture men smiled. Soon they had 
 packed all their belongings, and, getting into the 
 boat, they started down the stream for a landing 
 some distance below. 
 
 " We're a fine set of heroes," remarked Sam, 
 grinningly, as he and Tom walked back in the 
 direction of the swimming hole. "Wouldn't 
 it have been rich if we had rushed in to save 
 that fellow in the boat, and spoiled the picture." 
 
 "Don't mention it, Sam," pleaded Tom. 
 " That sure was one on us." And then both 
 laughed heartily over the way they had been 
 fooled. 
 
 Reaching the swimming hole, it did not take 
 the youths long to get into the water. Remem 
 bering what Jack Ness had said about being 
 careful, they moved around cautiously. 
 
 "Here is a tree root that ought to be re 
 moved," remarked Sam, after diving down. " & 
 fellow could easily catch fast on it."
 
 A TELEGRAM OF IMPORTANCE 151 
 
 " Maybe we had better put up a danger sign," 
 suggested his brother, and getting out a note 
 book he carried, he tore a page from it and wrote 
 as follows: 
 
 DANGER! 
 LOOK OUT FOR THE TREE ROOTS! 
 
 " There ! That ought to do some good," he 
 went on, as he pinned the notice fast to the 
 nearest tree trunk. The boys enjoyed their swim 
 thoroughly. They indulged in many monkey- 
 shines, and also had a little race to the opposite 
 bank and back. This race was won by Tom, 
 but Sam proved a very close second. 
 
 "Now then, I guess we had better hurry 
 home, or we may be late for lunch," said Sam, 
 after consulting his watch. " It is quarter of 
 twelve." 
 
 Much refreshed, the lads started back for the 
 farmhouse. They were still some distance away 
 when they saw Jack Ness hurrying towards 
 them. 
 
 " I say, gents ! " called out the hired man. 
 * You' re wanted at the house right away." 
 
 " What's the matter, Jack ? " demanded Tom, 
 quickly. " Is father worse ? "
 
 152 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 " No, it ain't that, Master Tom. It's a tele 
 gram what come for you." 
 
 " A telegram ? " repeated Sam. " Do you 
 know where it is from?" 
 
 "Your uncle said it was from Mr. Dick." 
 
 "Then there must be important news," said* 
 Tom, and without further words both youths 
 started on a swift gait for the house. Their 
 aunt and uncle saw them coming, and ran out 
 on the back porch to meet them. Their aunt held 
 up her hand warningly. 
 
 " Now don't make any noise, boys," she plead 
 ed. " We must not disturb your father." 
 
 "What is it? What's the news?" 
 
 " It's a telegram from Dick," answered their 
 Uncle Randolph. " I can't quite make it out, 
 but, evidently, it is very important. Here it 
 is." 
 
 He fumbled in the pocket of his coat, and 
 brought forth the yellow envelope and handed it 
 to Tom. Taking out the telegram, the youth 
 lead it, with Sam looking over his shoulder. It ( 
 ran as follows: 
 
 " If possible, I want Sam and Tom to come to 
 New York at once. Very important. Do not 
 alarm father. 
 
 " RICHARD ROVER."
 
 A TELEGRAM OF IMPORTANCE 
 
 153 
 
 "What do you make of this, Tom?" asked 
 Sam, after he had read the telegram several 
 times. 
 
 " I don't know what to make of it, Sam. But 
 one thing is certain : Dick needs us. Something 
 out of the ordinary has happened." 
 
 " That is just what I think, boys," put in their 
 uncle. " Maybe I had better go with you," he 
 added, nervously. 
 
 " No, no, Randolph. You stay here with me," 
 pleaded his wife. " The boys can attend to the 
 New York matters better than you can." She 
 knew her husband well, and realized that he was 
 decidedly backward when it came to the trans 
 action of business matters of importance. He 
 was wrapped up in his books and his theories 
 about scientific farming and was a dreamer in 
 the largest sense of that word. 
 
 "Very well, my dear, just as you say," an 
 swered the uncle, meekly. 
 
 "Boys, you won't disturb your father, will 
 you ? " continued their Aunt Martha, anxiously. 
 " You know the doctor said he must not be dis 
 turbed under any circumstances." 
 
 "Have you told him about this telegram?" 
 questioned Sam. 
 
 " Not a word." 
 
 "Then we had better keep still. We can tell
 
 154 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 him that we want to go to New York just to see 
 Dick and Dora," put in Tom. And so it was 
 arranged. 
 
 By consulting a new timetable, the boys found 
 they could make a good railroad connection for 
 the metropolis by taking a train that left Oak 
 Run at three-thirty o'clock. This would give 
 them about three hours in which to get lunch, 
 pack their suitcases, and bid good-bye to their 
 father. 
 
 Mr. Rover was somewhat surprised when his 
 sons told him that they were going to New York 
 to see Dick and his newly-made wife, but they 
 smoothed matters over by stating that they found 
 it rather dull on the farm. 
 
 "We'd like to go if you can spare us," said 
 Sam. 
 
 " Oh, yes, boys, go by all means if you would 
 like to," returned Mr. Rover, quickly. " I can 
 get along very well. Your Aunt Martha is a 
 splendid nurse and you mustn't forget that I 
 have Aleck." 
 
 " An' you can depend upon Aleck, ebery time, 
 sah," put in the colored man, with a broad griri 
 that showed all of his ivories. 
 
 " W< are going to try to surprise Dick," said 
 Tom. "We are going to take the afternoon 
 train/' And then, after a few more words with
 
 A TELEGRAM OF IMPORTANCE 155 
 
 their father, and without letting him suspect in 
 the least why they were going to New York, the 
 two lads bade him an affectionate farewell and 
 left the room. 
 
 " Better take a good supply of clothing along, 
 Sam," remarked Tom, when they were packing 
 up. "There is no telling how long we'll have 
 to remain in the city." 
 
 "What do you suppose it is all about, Tom? " 
 questioned the younger brother, anxiously. 
 
 " It's about business, that's certain. More 
 than likely Dick has run into more trouble." 
 But how great that trouble was, neither of the 
 boys realized.
 
 CHAPTER XVI 
 
 THE MOVING PICTURE 
 
 WHEN the two Rover boys arrived at the 
 railroad station at Oak Run, they were a little 
 surprised to find themselves once more con 
 fronted by the moving picture people they had 
 met on the river. 
 
 "Hello! So you are following us up, are 
 you ? " said the man who had handled the gun. 
 But he smiled as he spoke, because he saw that 
 the boys carried dresssuit cases and were 
 equipped for traveling. 
 
 " Have you taken your picture of the railroad 
 station yet?" questioned Tom. 
 
 "We've had one scene in front of the ticket 
 office," returned the man. " But our main scene 
 we shall pull off when the train comes in or 
 rather, when it pulls out." 
 
 " Perhaps you'll want us in it, after all," broke 
 in Sam. 
 
 " See here ! If you fellows want to get in 
 this picture, just say so and I guess I can ar- 
 156
 
 THE MOVING PICTURE 157 
 
 range it," said the man who had handled the 
 megaphone in the scene on the river, and who 
 was, evidently, the director of the company. 
 
 "That depends on what you want us to do,'* 
 declared Tom. 
 
 " Oh, you won't have much to do. You see, 
 it's like this," went on the manager. " This man 
 who did the shooting wants to escape. He runs 
 up to the railroad station here and buys his 
 ticket we have that part of it already. Then 
 he is supposed to be in hiding behind yonder 
 freighthouse. When the train comes in, he 
 waits for all other passengers to get on board, 
 then, as the train pulls out, he rushes forward 
 and catches on the last car. At the same time 
 one of the other fellows rushes out as if to 
 catch him, but he is too late. Now, if you want 
 to get into the scene, you get on the train just 
 before she starts and stand on the back plat 
 form." 
 
 "Let's do it, Tom; it will be quite a lark!" 
 exclaimed Sam. 
 
 "I'm willing," answered his brother; and so 
 the matter was arranged. Then the boys hur 
 ried into the ticket office, to get their tickets to 
 New York. 
 
 In the office they found old man Ricks, tKe 
 station agent, grumbling to himself.
 
 158 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 "Wot ye want?" he demanded, sourly, as he 
 looked at the Rovers. 
 
 "Two tickets to New York, Mr. Ricks," re 
 turned Tom. "What's the matter?" 
 
 "Wot's the matter, huh? A whole lot, I 
 should say ! " declared old Ricks, as he began to 
 make out the tickets. "A! lot o' them movin* 
 picter fellers been in here cuttin' tip like mad." 
 
 "What did they do?" asked Sam, curiously. 
 
 "Huh! what didn't they do?" retorted the 
 station master. " Come in here, an' knocked over 
 a box an' a basket, rushed up to the winder, an* 
 the next thing I knew, he had planked down a 
 lot o' money, an' when I stuck my head out the 
 winder here, that feller pretended to grab up a 
 ticket wot I didn't give him at all, an' took up 
 his money and dusted out the door. At the same 
 time while this was goin' on, 'nother feller had 
 a light turned on this here winder wot nearly 
 blinded me, and the feller with that funny lookin' 
 camera was a-turnin' the crank to beat the cars ! " 
 
 " They were only taking a moving picture, Mr. 
 Ricks," declared Sam. "You shouldn't object 
 to that" 
 
 " Huh ! I ain't hired by the railroad company 
 to get in no movin' picter," growled the station 
 master. " I'm here to 'tend to the railroad busi 
 ness, and nothin' else."
 
 THE MOVING PICTURE 159 
 
 "Never mind, Mr. Ricks, if they've got you 
 in the picture you ought to be proud of it," de 
 clared Tom. "Think of the millions and mil 
 lions of people all over the world who will be 
 looking at you when they visit the moving pic 
 ture theaters." 
 
 "Huh! I ain't no movin' picter actor, I 
 ain't," snorted old Ricks. " I'm a decent, re 
 spectable member o' this community, an' I'm a 
 church member, too. I ain't got no use for them 
 movin' picter shows. It's a waste o' good 
 money, that's jest wot it is," and then Ricks 
 shuffled off to attend to some baggage that had 
 come in. 
 
 With their tickets in their pockets, the two 
 Rover boys rejoined the moving picture com 
 pany on the railroad platform. They were quite 
 interested in watching the camera man set up 
 his machine, and asked him several questions re 
 garding its operation. Then they heard a well- 
 known whistle down the track, and knew that 
 their train was coming. 
 
 " All ready, there ! " cried the manager of the 
 moving picture company. "Now, don't make a 
 fizzle of it, Jake." 
 
 " I won't, unless the train pulls out too 
 quickly," returned Jake. " I am not going to 
 get killed, though."
 
 K5o THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 "Well, you've got to take some chances in 
 this business," said the manager, coolly. 
 
 There were six or eight passengers getting off 
 
 the train, and about an equal number to board 
 
 : the cars. As they had been instructed, the 
 
 , Rover boys got on the rear platform of the last 
 
 car, and stood in the doorway looking back on 
 
 the tracks. Tom pretended that he was waving 
 
 his hand to somebody in the distance. 
 
 As the train began to move, and while the 
 camera man was taking the picture, one of the 
 actors, as agreed, rushed across the platform and 
 got hold of the rail of the last step. Then, as he 
 pretended to have hard work to pull himself up, 
 the second actor came running down the plat 
 form, shaking his fist at the man who was escap 
 ing. Then the train passed out of sight around 
 the bend, and the little moving picture scene came 
 to an end. 
 
 "Well, I'm glad that's over," declared the 
 actor, as he followed the boys into the car. " I 
 never like the scenes where I am in danger of 
 getting hurt." 
 
 "You certainly must have a strenuous time 
 of it," declared Sam ; and then he added quickly : 
 " Are you going to New York with us ? " 
 
 "Oh, no. I'm to get off at the first station 
 and take another train back to Oak Run. The
 
 THE MOVING PICTURE 161 
 
 crowd will wait for me. We have some scenes 
 to do at a farmhouse." And then, as he had a 
 ride of ten minutes, the moving picture man told 
 the boys of some things which had happened to 
 him during his career as a movies' actor. 
 
 " How soon do you think they will show that 
 picture?" asked Sam, when the man prepared 
 to leave the train. 
 
 "In a week or two," was the answer. "I 
 don't know the exact date for the release;" and 
 then the man said good-bye and left them. 
 
 " Do you know, if I didn't have anything else 
 to do, I wouldn't mind going into the moving 
 picture business," remarked Tom, as the train 
 rushed onward. "It must be lots of fun to be 
 in the different scenes." 
 
 "Perhaps so, Tom. At the same time, those 
 fellows must put up with a great number of 
 inconveniences. Think of plunging into the 
 water when it is cold, or into a burning building 
 when the thermometer is over a hundred in the 
 shade." 
 
 " Oh, I know that, and, come to think of it, I 
 was reading only yesterday about a movies' actor 
 who, in a war scene taken out on the Hacken- 
 sack meadows, fell into a trench, and broke an. 
 arm and also a leg. Just the same, I wouldn't' 
 mind trying it."
 
 162 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS. 
 
 " Maybe you'll get a chance some day." 
 
 On and on went the train, and, with little else 
 to do, the boys discussed the situations at home 
 and in the city. 
 
 " One thing is sure, Tom," said the youngest 
 Rover, earnestly. " No matter what happens in 
 New York, we mustn't let father know about it. 
 J think the worry is worse for him than anything 
 else." 
 
 " Oh, I agree on that. Even if we lose a lot 
 of money, he must not know one word about 
 it" 
 
 " Do you think we'll lose any money ? " 
 
 "I don't know what to think. One thing is 
 sure, something very much out of the way has 
 happened, or Dick wouldn't have sent that tele 
 gram." 
 
 " Perhaps Pelter, Japson & Company haven't 
 been as honest as they promised to be. Maybe 
 they are holding back some of the securities that 
 belong to dad." 
 
 " That may be so, too. At the same time, you 
 must remember that Songbird's uncle is our at 
 torney, and I don't think Mr. Powell would let 
 them get away with very much. You'll remem 
 ber what Dick wrote some time ago, that he had 
 taken the office fixtures for part of the debt. 
 That would seem to indicate that he had gotten
 
 THE MOVING PICTURE 163 
 
 everything from the firm that he could lay his 
 hands on." 
 
 " I wonder if we'll ever meet that Barton Pel- 
 kter again." 
 
 " Perhaps, although if he is a nephew of Jesee 
 Pelter, it is more than likely he will keep out of 
 sight, thinking that a meeting between us would 
 be very unpleasant." 
 
 At one of the stops a dining car was attached 
 to the train, and, as the boys were hungry, they 
 lost no time in going in for the evening meal. 
 
 " Say, Tom, look there," whispered Sam, dur 
 ing the course of the repast, and, with a look 
 from his eye, he indicated a man sitting on the 
 other side of the car. The fellow was a tall, 
 surly individual, plainly dressed. His face was 
 somewhat flushed, as if he had been drinking. 
 
 "Why, that's the head gardener at Hope!" 
 said Tom. "It is queer that he should be on 
 this train, Sam!" 
 
 " If you'll remember, he lost his job at the 
 seminary." 
 
 " He did? I didn't hear anything of that." 
 
 " Oh, yes, Grace told me about it. He was a 
 splendid gardener, but every once in a while he 
 would drink too much, and tfoen get into a quar 
 rel with the other help, so they had to let him 
 go."
 
 164 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 " It's a shame that such fellows can't leave 
 drink alone," was Tom's comment. 
 
 The man had settled himself, and ordered 
 quite an elaborate dinner. He was in the midst 
 of eating, with the Rover boys paying little 
 attention to him, when he happened to glance at 
 them. He straightened up and stared in aston 
 ishment, and then looked decidedly uncomfort 
 able. 
 
 " He's looking at us, Tom," whispered Sam. 
 
 " Well, let him look if he wants to. It doesn't 
 cost anything," was the reply. And then Tom 
 turned his head squarely, and stared at the for 
 mer seminary gardener. Immediately, the man 
 dropped his eyes, and went on with his meal. He 
 soon finished, and, paying his bill, left the dining 
 car in a hurry. 
 
 " That's a queer way to do," was Sam's com 
 ment. " He acted as if he didn't want us to see 
 him." 
 
 " Maybe he is ashamed of himself for having 
 lost his position," returned the brother. " Any 
 way, it's none of our business." And there the 
 talk came to an end.
 
 CHAPTER XVII 
 
 WHAT DICK HAD TO TELL 
 
 3 
 
 "HERE we are, Sam!" 
 
 "And I'm glad of it, Tom. I don't care much 
 about riding in the cars after it is too dark to 
 look out of the windows," returned the young 
 est Rover. 
 
 The train was nearing the Grand Central Ter 
 minal, in New York City. The passengers were 
 gathering their belongings, and the porter was 
 moving from one to another, brushing them and 
 gathering in his tips. Then the train rushed into 
 the long station, and soon came to a halt. 
 
 " I wonder if Dick will be on hand to meet 
 us? " said Sam, as he and his brother left the car 
 and made their way towards the waiting-room. 
 
 "Maybe, although it's pretty late." 
 
 There was a large crowd coming and going, 
 and, for the moment, the lads had all they could 
 fto to get through. Then, as they emerged into 
 the middle of the big waiting- room, they saw 
 itwo familiar figures close at han<.> 
 165
 
 166 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 "Hello, Dick! How do you do, Dora!" 
 
 " So here you are, Tom and Sam ! " cried their 
 big brother, and shook hands heartily. Then 
 Dora came up to greet the newcomers. 
 
 "Did you have a nice trip?" asked Dick's 
 wife, as she smiled at them. 
 
 " Oh, yes, it was all right," answered Sam. 
 " And what do you think ? We got in a moving 
 picture ! " 
 
 "You did!" exclaimed Dora. "That cer 
 tainly is a new experience." 
 
 " We received your telegram, Dick," said Tom, 
 and looked at his big brother, anxiously. "I 
 hope nothing very serious has happened." 
 
 " Well, Tom, I I " Twice Dick tried to 
 
 go on and failed. He looked at both of his 
 brothers, and his face showed something that 
 they had never seen in it before. 
 
 " Oh, Dick ! Don't say anything here ! " inter 
 posed Dora, hastily. "Wait till we get to the 
 hotel." She turned to Sam and Tom. " Don't 
 ask him any questions now. It won't do to have 
 a scene here." 
 
 "All right, Dora, just as you say," answered j 
 Tom, quickly. Yet, both he and Sam wondered 
 greatly what had occurred to so ttpset Dick. 
 
 The oldest Rover boy had a taxicab handy, 
 and into this the whole party got and were
 
 WHAT DICK HAD TO TELL 
 
 quickly driven across Forty-second Street to 
 Fifth Avenue, and then, for a number of blocks, 
 down that well-known thoroughfare. Soon they 
 turned towards Broadway, and a moment later 
 came to a stop before the main entrance of the 
 utlook Hotel. 
 
 "As you know, we have a suite of rooms 
 here," said Dick to his brothers. " I have hired 
 an extra room next door, so we can all be to 
 gether." 
 
 A bellboy had already secured the newcomers' 
 baggage, and, after signing the register, Sam and 
 Tom followed Dick and his wife to the elevator 
 and to the third floor. 
 
 " It's a fine layout, all right," declared Sam, 
 when they were settled and the bellboy had been 
 dismissed. 
 
 Dick did not make any answer to this remark. 
 He walked over to the door, to see that it was 
 closed, then he suddenly wheeled to confront his 
 brothers. 
 
 "You've got to know it sooner or later, so 
 you might as well know it now," he said in as 
 steady a voice as he could command. " Do you 
 remember that I wrote to you about sixty- four 
 thousand dollars' worth of bonds that I had 
 bought for dad in place of some securities that 
 he possessed?"
 
 168 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 " Yes," answered both brothers. 
 
 " Well, those bonds have been stolen." 
 
 " Stolen ! " gasped Sam. 
 
 " You don't mean it, Dick ! " came from Tom. 
 
 " I do mean it. The bonds have been stolen, 
 and, try my best, I can't get a single clew as to 
 where they went or who took them." 
 
 " Sixty- four thousand dollars! Phew!" ejac 
 ulated Sam. " That's some loss ! " 
 
 " But please don't blame Dick," broke in Dora. 
 " I am sure it isn't his fault." 
 
 "How did it happen?" questioned Tom. 
 
 "They were taken out of the safe at the 
 offices." 
 
 " Stolen from the safe, you mean? " 
 
 "Yes." 
 
 "When was this?" 
 
 "Day before yesterday." 
 
 " Of course the safe was locked? " put in Sam. 
 
 "Certainly." 
 
 "But Pelter and Japson knew that combina 
 tion, didn't they, Dick?" questioned Tom, eag 
 erly. 
 
 " No, Tom, they did not. When they turned 
 the offices over to me, Pelter made some sarcas 
 tic remark, stating I had better have the combina 
 tion changed. I told him I certainly would have 
 it changed; and the very next day I had the
 
 WHAT DICK HAD TO TELL 169 
 
 safe makers up to inspect the lock, and change 
 .the combination." 
 
 "Humph! Then that lets Pelter and Japson 
 out, doesn't it?" 
 
 " But somebody must have taken those bonds,'* 
 came from Sam. " Did anybody else have the 
 combination, Dick?" 
 
 " Nobody but Dora. I gave her the figures, 
 so she could get the safe open in case anything 
 happened to me, or I was away." 
 
 " I've got the figures on a card in my pocket- 
 book," explained Dora, " but I don't believe any 
 body saw them. In fact, the card has nothing 
 but the bare figures on it, so it isn't likely that 
 any one would understand what those figures 
 meant. Oh, but isn't it perfectly dreadful! I 
 I hope you you boys won't blame Dick," she 
 faltered. 
 
 "Of course we don't blame Dick," returned 
 Tom, promptly. 
 
 "Why should we blame him?" added Sam. 
 " If he put the bonds in the safe and locked them 
 up, I can't see how this robbery is his fault. It 
 might have happened to any of us." 
 
 "I'm glad to hear you say that," returned 
 Dick ; and his face showed his relief. " Just the 
 same, boys, we have got to find those bonds. 
 Our family can't afford to lose sixty- four thou-
 
 170 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 sand dollars or rather sixty thousand dollars." 
 
 "What do you mean, Dick?" asked Tom. 
 "You said sixty- four thousand dollars." 
 
 " So I did, but four thousand of the bonds 
 were registered in dad's name, principal and, 
 interest, so it's likely the thief won't be able to' 
 use them." 
 
 " And all the other bonds were unregistered? " 
 queried Sam, 
 
 " Yes, every one of them." 
 
 " So they can be used by any one ? " 
 
 " Exactly although, of course, the thief 
 Would have to be very careful how he disposed 
 of them." 
 
 "Have you notified the police?" asked Tom. 
 
 " Not yet. I wanted to consult you first. Be 
 sides, I thought it might be possible that the thief 
 would put an advertisement in the newspapers, 
 offering to return the bonds for a reward. But 
 so far, I haven't seen any such advertisement." 
 
 " It isn't likely they'll offer to return them if 
 sixty thousand dollars' worth are negotiable," re 
 turned Tom. " But give us the particulars of the 
 affair;" and the youth dropped into a seat, and 
 the others did the same. 
 
 " Well, to start with, as I said before, as soon 
 as Pelter and Japson and their hired help left, I 
 had the lock of the safe investigated, and then
 
 WHAT DICK HAD TO TELL 
 
 had the combination changed," began Dick. 
 " The fellow from the safe company showed me 
 how the combination was worked, so I fixed the 
 new numbers to suit myself, in order that no 
 outsider would know how to open the safe. I 
 put the numbers down on two cards, and placed 
 one of the cards in my notebook, and gave the 
 other to Dora. As she said, the cards had noth 
 ing on them but the bare numbers, so that a per 
 son getting one of the cards would not know 
 that the numbers referred to the safe combina 
 tion. 
 
 " It took me several days to get rid of the old 
 stocks, and while I was doing that I, from time 
 to time, purchased the bonds, buying them, on 
 the advice of Mr. Powell, from several bond 
 houses in Wall Street. I also bought a brand 
 new japanned box with a little lock, and placed 
 the bonds in that box, and then put the box in the 
 safe. The last I saw of the bonds was about 
 half -past four in the afternoon, when I placed 
 the last of the bonds in the box. I came down 
 to the office at a little before ten o'clock the next 
 morning, and Opened the safe about half an 
 hour later. Then the box was gone." 
 
 "Wait a minute, Dick," interrupted Tom. 
 " You just said you opened the safe. Wasn't the 
 door already open?"
 
 172 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 " No, the door was shut and locked, just as I 
 had left it the night before." 
 
 " Humph ! Then somebody must have worked 
 the combination," ventured Sam. 
 
 " So it would seem, Sam, and yet when I had 
 the lock inspected, the safe company man told me 
 that that was a first-class combination, and prac- 
 t'cally burglar proof." 
 
 "Is it an old safe?" 
 
 " I don't think so in fact, the safe man led 
 me to believe it was one of the newer kinds. It 
 is about five feet square, and the walls are almost 
 a foot thick. Oh, it is some safe, I can tell you 
 that!" 
 
 "But it was not safe in this instance," re 
 torted Tom, who, no matter how serious the situ 
 ation, was bound to have his little joke. 
 
 "You said Pelter and Japson had gone for 
 good," continued Sam. " Is there nobody else 
 around attached to the old firm? " 
 
 " I took on their old office boy, a lad named 
 Bob Marsh. You'll remember him," returned the 
 oldest Rover. "He said he wanted work the 
 worst way, so I thought I would give him a 
 chance." 
 
 "Maybe he got the combination, and gave it 
 to Pelter or Japson." 
 
 "I don't think so, Sam. The boy is rather
 
 WHAT DICK HAD TO TELL 173 
 
 forward in his manner, but I think he is perfectly 
 honest." 
 
 " Yes, but somebody opened that safe and 
 took the box of bonds," put in Tom. 
 
 " I know that, Tom, and we've got to get those 
 bonds back, or it will be a very serious piece of 
 business for us," answered the oldest Rover boy, 
 soberly. 
 
 "Was anything else taken, Dick?" questioned 
 Sam. 
 
 " Not a thing. And that's queer, too, because 
 I had a number of private papers in the safe, and 
 also our new set of books." 
 
 " Then that would go to show that all the thief 
 was after were the bonds," came from Tom. 
 " You say they were in a new japanned box that 
 was locked?" 
 
 " Yes, but the lock didn't amount tc- much. I 
 think it could easily be opened." 
 
 " Sixty thousand dollars is a lot of money to 
 lose," mused Sam. "Dick, that will put us in 
 something of a hole, won't it?" 
 
 " It may. But don't let us think about that, 
 Sam. Let us try to get the bonds back," returned 
 his oldest brother, earnestly.
 
 CHAPTER XVIII 
 
 AT THE OFFICES 
 
 AFTER that the three Rovers and Dick's wife 
 talked the matter over for fully an hour. Dick 
 gave Sam and Tom all the particulars he could 
 think of, and answered innumerable questions. 
 But try their best, not one of the party could 
 venture a solution of the mystery. 
 
 " I think you had better go to bed," said Dora, 
 at last. " You can go down to the offices the 
 first thing in the morning, and make up your 
 minds what to do next;" and this advice was 
 followed. 
 
 " No use of talking, this is a fierce loss ! " was 
 Tom's comment, when he and Sam were retiring. 
 
 "Yes, and Dick feels pretty bad over it," re 
 turned the youngest Rover. " I am afraid he 
 imagines that we think he is to blame." 
 
 " Maybe, but I don't blame him, Sam. That 
 might have happened to you or me just as well 
 as to him." 
 
 It must be admitted that the boys did not sleep 
 1/4
 
 AT THE OFFICES 175 
 
 very soundly that night. For a long time each 
 lay awake, speculating over the mystery, and 
 wondering what had become of the bonds. 
 
 " Perhaps Pelter and Japson had nothing at 
 all to do with it," thought Tom, as he reviewed 
 the situation. " It may have been some out 
 sider, who watched Dick alter the combination 
 of the safe." 
 
 All of the boys were up early in the morning, 
 and. accompanied by Dora, obtained breakfast in 
 the hotel dining-room. 
 
 "If you want me to go along, I shall be glad 
 to do so," said Dora, during the course of the 
 meal. It cut her to the heart to have Dick so 
 troubled. 
 
 " No, Dora, you had better stay here, or else 
 spend your time shopping," answered Dick. 
 " We'll have to take care of this matter our 
 selves." 
 
 " I'll tell you what you can do," broke in Tom. 
 " You can write a nice letter to Aunt Martha^ 
 telling her that we have arrived safely, and that 
 we are going into some business matters with 
 Dick. Of course, you needn't say a word about 
 the robbery. It will be time enough to tell her 
 and Uncle Randolph after we have tried all we 
 can to get the bonds back and failed." 
 
 As my old readers will probably remember,
 
 1 76 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 the offices formerly occupied by Pelter, Japson 
 & Company were located at the lower end of 
 Wall Street. The building was an old one, five 
 stories in height, which had recently been put in 
 repair. The offices were on the fourth floor in 
 ithe extreme rear, and had a fairly good out 
 look. 
 
 The Rovers found the office boy, Bob Marsh, 
 already on hand, and doing some work which 
 Dick had given him. He was a bright, sharp- 
 eyed lad, his only failing being that he was a 
 bit forward. 
 
 "Any one here to see me, Bob? " asked Dick, 
 as they entered. 
 
 " Nobody, sir, but an agent that wanted to sell 
 you some kind of a new calendar. I told him 
 we had bushels of calendars already," and the 
 boy grinned slightly. 
 
 Passing through two small offices, the Rovers 
 came to one in the rear that which had for 
 merly been used by Jesse Pelter. 
 
 "Looks a little bit familiar," observed Tom, 
 " Looks like when I visited it as Roy A. Putnam, 
 from Denver, Colorado, and thought about tak 
 ing stock in the Irrigation Company," and he 
 laughed shortly as he recalled that incident, the 
 particulars of which have been related in "The 
 Rover Boys in New York."
 
 AT THE OFFICES 177 
 
 " You've got pretty big offices for only you 
 and the office boy," remarked Sam. 
 
 " I took them just as the old concern had 
 them," returned Dick. "But if business in 
 creases, I guess we'll have to have quite some 
 office help. Anyway, a bookkeeper and a stenog 
 rapher." 
 
 " Hadn't you better send that office boy out for 
 a little while?" suggested Sam. 
 
 "A good idea," returned his oldest brother, 
 and sent the lad on an errand up to the post- 
 office. 
 
 Left to themselves, the Rovers once more went 
 over the details of the robbery so far as they 
 knew them. Dick opened the safe, showing his 
 brothers how the combination lock was worked; 
 then the boys looked inside the strong-box, and 
 into the private compartment which, so Dick told 
 them, had contained the missing box of bonds. 
 
 " I don't see how they got into this safe," was 
 Sam's comment, after the door had been closed 
 and the combination turned on. " I can't make 
 head or tail of how to get it open." 
 
 " Let me have a try at it," returned Tom, and 
 he worked for several minutes over the combina 
 tion. 
 
 "Here are the figures for the combination," 
 said Dick, and he turned them over to his broth-
 
 178 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 ers. But even with the figures before them, they 
 
 found it no easy task to open the heavy door of 
 
 the strong-box. This door was provided with 
 
 1 several bolts, so that to get it open without either 
 
 i working the combination or else blowing the door 
 
 open, was out of the question. 
 
 "It's a Chinese puzzle to me. I give it up," 
 declared Tom, at last. "The only way J imag 
 ine, Dick, is that, somehow or other, somebody 
 got hold of that combination." 
 
 " It would seem so, Tom. But I can't see how 
 it could be done, or who did it," was the answer. 
 
 "Do you suppose that boy suspects any 
 thing ? " questioned Sam. 
 
 " He may, because, after I discovered that the 
 box was gone, I questioned him pretty closely as 
 to who had been in the offices. I guess he knows 
 something is wrong." 
 
 " Let us ask him about Pelter and Japson when 
 he conies back," said Tom. " It certainly won't 
 do any harm to get all the information possible, 
 ,Then, if we can't get any clew by noon, I think 
 the best thing you can do, Dick, is to notify the 
 authorities." 
 
 It was not long before Bob Marsh came back 
 from his errand to the post-office, and then Dick 
 called him into the inner office. 
 
 " Now, Bob, I'm going to tell you something,"
 
 AT THE OFFICES 179 
 
 said the oldest Rover, coming to the point with 
 out delay. "There has been a robbery here." 
 
 " Robbery ! " exclaimed the boy. " I didn't do 
 it. I wouldn't take nothin'," he went on, quickly. 
 
 " I didn't say you did, Bob. But what I want 
 you to do is to tell me everything that you know. 
 Was there anybody in this office during my ab 
 sence ? " 
 
 " Nobody went into this office while I was 
 here," declared the office boy. "I wouldn't let 
 'em in. But then you must remember, the jan 
 itors come in during the night to clean up." 
 
 " Oh, yes, I know that." 
 
 " Dick, do you think the janitor of the build 
 ing could be in this?" exclaimed Sam. 
 
 "As I have said several times, I don't know 
 what to think," answered Dick. "As a matter 
 of fact, I don't know who the janitor is." 
 
 " Say I " broke in the office boy, suddenly. 
 
 " There was one feller here that I didn't tell you 
 
 about. I forgot about him. He was here three 
 
 or four days ago I don't exactly remember what 
 
 'day it was." 
 
 "Who was that?" 
 
 "Why, it was a young feller named Barton 
 Pelter. He's a relation to Mr. Pelter. I think 
 Mr. Pelter is his uncle." 
 
 " Barton Pelter! " exclaimed Dick. He looked
 
 180 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 at his brothers. " That must be the same fellow 
 that you wrote about the fellow you pulled out 
 of the river." 
 
 "What did this Barton Pelter want?" asked 
 Sam. 
 
 " He wanted to see his uncle. He knew that 
 the firm had sold out to you folks, but he was 
 not certain if they had moved away yet. When 
 I told him that his uncle was gone, he looked 
 kind of disappointed." 
 
 " Was he in this office, Bob ? " questioned 
 Dick. 
 
 " No, sir, he was only in the outside office." 
 
 " Did he say anything about bonds or 
 money ? " 
 
 " No, sir." 
 
 " Say, tell me something ! " broke in Tom. 
 " Were this Barton Pelter and his uncle on good 
 terms?" 
 
 " They used to be." replied the office boy, " but 
 once or twice they had some pretty warm talks. 
 This young feller didn't like it at all the way his 
 uncle treated your father. I heard him tell his 
 uncle once, that what he was doing was close to' 
 swindling. Then Mr. Pelter got awful mad, and 
 told him he had better get out." 
 
 " Good for Barton ! " murmured Sam. " He 
 can't be such a bad sort." 
 
 "Oh, I guess he was all right," put in the
 
 AT THE OFFICES 181 
 
 office boy, with the freedom that seemed natural 
 to him. " Only I guess he was dependent on his 
 uncle for money. Maybe if it wasn't for that, 
 he would have pitched into his uncle more than 
 he did. But say! You said something was 
 stolen. What was it?" ' 
 
 " Sixty-four thousand dollars in bonds," an 
 swered Dick. 
 
 "What! Say, boss, ain't you kiddin'?" and 
 the boy looked incredulous. 
 
 " No, it is the truth, Bob. Somebody took a 
 box out of that safe that contained sixty-four 
 thousand dollars' worth of bonds." 
 
 " Great smoke ! I didn't think there was that 
 many bonds in the hull building ! " cried the boy, 
 with emphasis. 
 
 " I only expected to keep them here a few 
 days," went on Dick. "Later on, of course, I 
 would have placed them in a safe deposit vault." 
 
 " Say, boss ! you sure don't think that I took 
 them bonds ? " cried the office boy. 
 
 " No, I don't, Bob. But somebody took them, 
 and we've got to find them." 
 
 " Sure, we've got to find them ! " cried Bob. 
 " Say, do you want me to call the janitor? May 
 be he knows something about it." 
 
 "Yes, you may call him, but don't tell him 
 what we want him for," answered Dick.
 
 CHAPTER XIX 
 
 THE FIRST CLEW 
 
 THE janitor of the building was Mike Dono 
 van, an aged Irishman, who was assisted in his 
 work by his wife and his daughter Kittie, aged 
 about fifteen. 
 
 " 'Tis me yez want to see ? " queried Donovan, 
 as he shuffled into the inner office, hat in hand. 
 
 " You are the janitor of this building? " ques 
 tioned Dick, looking him over carefully. 
 
 " I am that, sur." 
 
 " Can you tell me who is in the habit of clean 
 ing this particular office?" 
 
 "Well, sur, we are all after takin' a hand at 
 it. I ginerally do the swapin', and me wife or 
 Kittie, me daughter, do the winder clanin' an* 
 the dustin'." 
 
 " During the past four or five days, have you 
 noticed anything unusual around this office?"' 
 went on Dick. 
 
 "Phat are ye after mainm'?" 
 
 " I'll tell you. There has been a robbery here, 
 and we want to get at the bottom of it." 
 182
 
 THE FIRST CLEW 183 
 
 "I haven't touched a thing, sur, an' nather 
 have me family!" cried the janitor, quickly. 
 
 " You look like an honest man, and I can't 
 say that I suspect you," continued Dick, for he 
 saw that the old janitor was evidently much hurt. 
 " I want you to help me all you can, that is all." 
 
 "Sure, sur, an' I'll be after do in' that, Mr. 
 Rover. Phat did they be after takin' ? " 
 
 " This safe, here, has been looted, and a small 
 box that contained sixty- four thousand dollars' 
 worth of bonds is gone." 
 
 At this announcement the old janitor threw 
 up both hands and faltered back a step or two. 
 
 " Sixty- four thousand dollars, did you be 
 after say in' ? " he gasped, thinking he had not 
 heard aright. 
 
 " That is what I said. Now then, just put on 
 your thinking cap, and see if you can remember 
 anything unusual that happened around here two 
 or three days ago." 
 
 " Two or three days ago. Let me see," mused 
 the janitor, scratching his head. " I don't re 
 member anything Oh, yes, I do ! " he burst 
 
 .out. 
 
 "What was that?" queried all three of the 
 Rovers, while the office boy looked on with 
 mouth wide open. 
 
 " 'Twas one avenin' about siven or eig^t
 
 184 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 o'clock. Me an' me family were up stairs, clanin' 
 out an office that has just been rinted. Kittie, 
 me gurrel, wint down stairs for some extra 
 dustin' rags. Whin she came back, she said she 
 saw a man a-walkin' through the hallway outside. 
 She said that as soon as he saw her, he didn't 
 wait for the illevator, but went down the stairs 
 in a big hurry." 
 
 " Did she know the man? " 
 
 " She did not. At least, she said she didn't 
 recognize him, for, you see, there was only one 
 little light burnin' in the hallway, because nearly 
 all the tinnents had gone home. The illevator 
 wouldn't have been runnin', only we was goin' 
 to take up the stuff to the office we was cleanin* 
 on the fifth floor." 
 
 "Your daughter saw that man in the hall 
 way? " questioned Tom. " Did he seem to come 
 from these offices? " 
 
 " No, I axed her particular, and she said he 
 seemed to be comin' from the back av the hall." 
 
 " What is back there? " asked Sam. 
 
 "A winder wid a fire escape outside," an 
 swered the janitor. " Likewise, I've a sink closet 
 there, where I keep me brooms and me brushes 
 and such." 
 
 " And you have no idea who the man was ? " 
 questioned Dick.
 
 THE FIRST CLEW 185 
 
 "No, sur. I axed Kitty how he looked, but 
 she said she hadn't seen his face that he turned 
 away from her and went down the stairs as fast 
 as he could." 
 
 " More than likely that was the thief ! " ex 
 claimed Tom. " The question is : Who is he and 
 [where did he go ? " 
 
 "Did your daughter say how the man was 
 dressed ? " asked Sam. 
 
 " Sure ! She said he had on a dark suit of 
 clothes and a dark, soft hat. That's all she 
 knew." 
 
 "Was he a big man?" 
 
 " Oh, she said he was about middlin' big." 
 
 This was all the old janitor could tell, and a 
 little later he brought in both his wife and his 
 daughter to be interviewed. The girl was almost 
 scared to death, and could add nothing to what 
 her father had already told. 
 
 "Well, it's a clew, even if it is a slight one," 
 was Tom's comment. " Dick, I guess the best 
 thing you can do is to call up police headquar 
 ters." 
 
 "I'll do it. But please remember one thing," 
 went on the oldest Rover boy, turning to the 
 janitor and his family and also the office boy. 
 "We want to keep this as quiet as possible for 
 the present, so please don't saj anything about
 
 186 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 it." And all of them promised to keep silent. 
 
 It did not take long for Dick to get into com 
 munication with the authorities, and after a 
 short talk over the telephone, he was told that a 
 couple of detectives would be sent down to his 
 office without delay. 
 
 " Have you told Mr. Powell ? " questioned 
 Tom, suddenly. 
 
 " No, but I will call him up now," answered 
 his older brother. 
 
 Of course the lawyer was astonished at the 
 news, and asked \vhat steps had been taken to 
 apprehend the thief. When told that the author 
 ities had been asked to take charge of the case, 
 he wanted to know if he could be of any assist 
 ance. 
 
 " I don't see how you can help us, Mr. Powell," 
 answered Dick, over the wire. " I suppose we 
 will have to put the whole matter in the hands 
 of the police." 
 
 " Well, if I can do anything at all, let me 
 know," answered Songbird's uncle. " I am 
 rather busy now, but as soon as I am at leisure, 
 I will call and talk the matter over with you." 
 
 Inside of half an hour the two detectives from 
 headquarters arrived. They were bright, sharp- 
 eyed individuals, and they got down to business 
 without delay. They asked Dick innumerable
 
 THE FIRST CLEW 187 
 
 questions, and looked carefully at the safe, try 
 ing the combination several times, and then in 
 spected the offices and the hallway. After that 
 they subjected Kittie Donovan to a close exami 
 nation, getting the girl to tell everything she 
 could possibly think of regarding the strange 
 man she had seen on the evening when the rob 
 bery had occurred. 
 
 " I think I know who did this job," said one 
 of the detectives to the other, 
 
 " Looks like the work of one of three men to 
 me," returned the other sleuth. " Baldy Jack 
 son, Slim Martin, or Hank the Bluffer." 
 
 " You may be right, Joe, but I think it was 
 Hank. If I've got the dope right, those other 
 two fellows you mention are not near New York 
 just now." 
 
 " Well, if Baldy and Slim can prove that they 
 weren't around New York at the time, then I'll 
 agree with you that it was Hank who lifted that 
 box," returned the other detective. 
 
 "Who is this Hank the Bluffer?" questioned 
 Dick, curiously. 
 
 " Oh, he's an old one at this sort of game," 
 returned one of the detectives. " He is a won 
 der at opening safes. Somebody told me once 
 that he made the assertion he could open any 
 ordinary office safe inside of fifteen minutes.
 
 l88 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 He's got it all in his finger ends. They are so 
 sensitive that when he turns the safe knob, he 
 can feel every movement of the tumblers in 
 side." 
 
 " And he is at liberty now ? " asked Sam. 
 
 " He was the last I heard of him. He got out 
 of a Massachusetts prison about three months 
 ago. Somebody told me he was in New York. 
 I haven't seen him, but if he is here I think we 
 can round him up sooner or later." 
 
 "Well, what we want are those bonds," de 
 clared Dick. 
 
 "Oh, sure! That's what we'll go after," de 
 clared the detective. " Even if we locate our 
 man, we won't arrest him until we can get him 
 with the goods." 
 
 Following this conversation, the detectives 
 made a memorandum of all the bonds that had 
 been taken, along with the numbers thereon. 
 
 " If the thief is an old one at the game, it's 
 not likely that he'll try to use those registered 
 bonds," said one of the detectives, "but he'll find 
 plenty of places where he can use the others, if 
 he knows the game." 
 
 " I'm inclined to agree with you on one point," 
 said Dick. " And that is that no ordinary per 
 son could have worked the combination of that 
 safe. It must have been some professional."
 
 THE FIRST CLEW 18$ 
 
 " You are right, Mr. Rover unless somebody 
 got the figures of the combination on the sly," 
 answered the sleuth; and a few minutes later he 
 and his fellow-officer left, promising to make a 
 report as soon as anything worth while was 
 brought to light. 
 
 Having gotten rid of the detectives and also 
 of the janitor and his family, the Rover boys 
 shut themselves in the inner office to discuss the 
 situation. They had requested the authorities te 
 keep the whole matter quiet for the present, and 
 this the detectives had agreed to do. 
 
 "Now, first of all, Dick, tell us: Will this 
 loss affect any of our other investments?" asked 
 Tom. 
 
 " Not for the present, Tom, but how we shall 
 stand later on if the securities are not recov 
 ered, I am not prepared to say." Dick's face 
 clouded. " You see, it is this way : We have our 
 investments in the West as well as those we went 
 into in Boston some time ago. We that is, 
 dad was going to take a loan on that mining 
 proposition. That would involve our putting up 
 some of those bonds say forty or fifty thou 
 sand dollars' worth as collateral security with 
 the banks. Now, if we don't get the bonds back, 
 dad will either have to cancel that loan or, other 
 wise, put up something else as security and
 
 190 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 .what else we can put up just now, I don't know. 
 It's a bad state of affairs." 
 
 " Oh, we've just got to get those bonds back! " 
 cried Sam, impulsively. "We've just got to!" 
 
 " Easy enough to say, Sam, but wishing them 
 back isn't going to bring them back," came from 
 Tom, grimly. 
 
 "If we only had a little more of a clew to 
 work on, we, ourselves, might try to get those 
 bonds back instead of relying on the detectives," 
 said Dick. " But when you haven't any clews, 
 how are you going to strike out?" 
 
 " We might try to find that strange man, who 
 ever he is," suggested Tom. " Although looking 
 for him would be a good deal like looking for 
 the proverbial pin in the haystack. I would 
 rather dig up the whole of the Atlantic seacoast 
 looking for Captain Kidd's treasure;" and he 
 smiled grimly.
 
 BARTON PELTER AGAIN 
 
 "WELL, Dick, any news?" 
 
 " No, Tom. It's the same old story." 
 
 " Haven't the detectives been able to locate that 
 fellow they thought might be guilty ? " put in 
 Sam. 
 
 " No, Sam. They told me up at headquarters 
 that all of the three former criminals one of the 
 detectives mentioned, were nowhere near New 
 York, so far as they could learn." 
 
 " Then if they haven't been near this city, that 
 supposition of theirs falls through," was Tom's 
 comment. " What do they propose to do next? " 
 
 " I don't think they know. Anyway, they 
 didn't give me any satisfaction;" and, hanging 
 up his hat, Dick sank into an office chair, look 
 ing much downcast. 
 
 Several days had passed, and during that time 
 
 the Rover boys had done their best to get further 
 
 dews concerning the robbery. From an old man 
 
 who kept an apple stand near the entrance of the 
 
 191
 
 IQ2 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 building, they had learned that the strange fellow 
 who had been seen by Kittie Donovan was a 
 man of perhaps forty years of age, with a clean 
 shaven face. But more than that the street mer 
 chant was unable to say. 
 
 "And there are thousands of men in New 
 York City who are about that age and who have 
 clean-shaven faces," had been Sam's comment on 
 learning this. " That clew won't get us any 
 where. Now, if the fellow had limped, or had a 
 crooked nose " 
 
 " Sure ! And a false tooth with two spots of 
 gold and a diamond in it, and all that sort of 
 thing," Tom had broken in. " Say, Sam, what 
 do you want, some clews made to order?" and 
 he had laughed grimly. 
 
 " I must confess, I am at my wits' end," said 
 Dick. 
 
 " What did Mr. Powell have to say about it? " 
 questioned Tom, for he and Sam had been out 
 hunting for clews when the lawyer had called. 
 
 "What could he say? He wasn't here when 
 
 I the bonds were taken. He asked me about our 
 
 1 other investments ; and he said if we got into 
 
 any financial difficulties through this loss, he 
 
 would aid us all he could." 
 
 " Bully for Songbird's uncle ! " cried Sam. 
 "He's as generous as Songbird himself."
 
 BARTON PELTER AGAIN 
 
 193 
 
 " What's bothering me is this," continued the 
 oldest Rover boy. " Sooner or later, if we don't 
 recover those bonds, we have got to let dad know 
 about the loss; and how he is going to take it, I 
 don't know." 
 
 " Oh, let us keep it from him just as long as 
 possible," broke in Sam, entreatingly. " Why, 
 Dick, you haven't any idea how run down he 
 is, and how nervous ! " 
 
 " Oh, yes, I have, Sam. And that is what ifi 
 worrying me. I don't know if we are doing 
 right to keep this from him." 
 
 " Before we tell him anything, let us consult 
 Uncle Randolph and Aunt Martha," said Tom. 
 "If they know the truth, that will lift a little 
 of the responsibility from our shoulders." 
 
 " I am not going to tell any of them at least, 
 not for a week or so longer," returned Dick. " I 
 am living in hope every day that we'll get some 
 kind of a clew." 
 
 It had rained hard the day previous, but now 
 the sky was clear. With but little to do in the 
 offices that afternoon after three o'clock, the 
 Rover boys took a wallc up Broadway from Wall 
 Street to where the Outlook Hotel was located 
 
 " It certainly is a busy city," was Tom's com- 
 vient, as they came to a temporary halt in front 
 of the post-office. "Just look at the stream of
 
 I 9 4 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 humanity and the cars and wagons, not to speak 
 of the automobiles." 
 
 "What takes my eye, is the size of so many 
 of these buildings," declared Sam. " Say, may 
 be an earthquake around here wouldn't do some 
 ' damage ! " 
 
 "And to think of the way the people travel!'* 
 broke in Dick. " They are down in the ground, 
 on the street, and up in the air," and he smiled 
 a little at the thought. 
 
 Walking past the post-office, the three youths 
 entered City Hall Park, crossing the same to 
 look at some of the bulletin boards put out by 
 the newspapers located on Park Row. 
 
 "Hello!" cried Tom, suddenly; and caught 
 each of his brothers by the arm. 
 
 "What now, Tom?" asked Dick, quickly. 
 
 " See that fellow over there, leaning against 
 the fence, reading a newspaper ? " 
 
 " Why, I declare ! It is Barton Pelter ! " ejac 
 ulated Sam. 
 
 "You mean Jesse Pelter's nephew the chap 
 you hauled out of the river?" questioned Dick. 
 
 " The same," returned Tom. " Say, I think 
 I'll go over and talk to him," he added, quickly. 
 
 "He may not want to talk to you, Tom," 
 interposed his younger brother. 
 
 "I'll risk it;" and so speaking, Tom stepped
 
 BARTON PELTER AGAIN 195 
 
 forward and advanced to where the other youth 
 was busy looking over the sporting edition pf 
 one of the afternoon sheets. 
 
 " What is it? I don't seem to remember you/* 
 said Barton Pelter, when Tom touched his arm. 
 
 " I am Tom Rover," was the reply. " This is 
 my brother Sam, and this my brother Dick;" 
 and Tom pointed to the others, who were com 
 ing up. 
 
 " Oh, is that so ! " returned Barton Pelter, and 
 put out his hand. " I am glad to see you," he 
 continued, somewhat hesitatingly. " Is this the 
 one who helped to pull me out of the river? " and 
 he nodded towards Sam. 
 
 "Yes." 
 
 " I am certainly very much obliged' to both of 
 you," continued the young man, and his face 
 showed that he meant what he said. " If it 
 hadn't been for you, I might have been drowned. 
 I suppose you er you er got my letter?" 
 
 " Oh, yes, and we understood it, perfectly," 
 returned Tom, hastily. " It's all right. We 
 ^didn't do so much, after all." 
 "I think you did a good deal," and Barton 
 Pelter laughed nervously. " You you are now 
 in business where my uncle used to be, are you 
 not?" 
 
 " We are," answered Dick. " By the way,
 
 196 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 what has become of your uncle?" he questioned, 
 curiously. 
 
 " I don't know, exactly. I think though he 
 is going East. Perhaps to Boston. How is . 
 business with you ? " the young man continued, 
 hastily, as if he wanted to change the sub 
 ject. 
 
 "Oh, business is all right enough," answered 
 Dick. And then he looked meaningly at his 
 brothers. 
 
 " The trouble with us is, we've been very un 
 fortunate," broke in Tom, before the others 
 could stop him. "We've just suffered a tre 
 mendous loss." 
 
 "Is that so? In what way?" 
 
 Before answering, Tom looked at Dick 
 " Shall I tell him? " he questioned, in a low tone. 
 
 "You might as well, since you have gone so 
 far," was the reply. " In fact, I don't know 
 that it will do much good to keep still any 
 longer." 
 
 " We've been robbed." 
 
 " You don't say so ! Did you lose much ? " 
 
 "We lost sixty- four thousand dollars' worth"' 
 of bonds," answered Sam. 
 
 "Oh, a bad business deal, I presume." And! 
 Barton Pelter smiled grimly. "That's the way; 
 it is in Wall Street. You are up one day, and
 
 BARTON PELTER AGAIN 197 
 
 down the next. That's the way it was with my 
 uncle." 
 
 " No, we didn't lose the bonds that way," an- 
 v swered Dick. "They were stolen." 
 
 " Stolen ! From where ? " 
 
 "From our office." 
 
 "Why, that's the worst I ever heard!" de 
 clared Barton Pelter, with interest. "Who was 
 it? Did some fellow sneak into your offices and 
 take them?" 
 
 " We don't know how the robbery took place,* 
 answered Tom. " My brother put the bonds in 
 a japanned box that was locked, and put the box 
 in the office safe one afternoon. The next morn 
 ing when he opened the safe, the box with the 
 bonds was gone." 
 
 "What's that!" exclaimed the listener, excit 
 edly. " You had them in a box, and put the box 
 in your safe? Do you mean the safe that was 
 in the offices when my uncle and Mr. Japson 
 had it?" 
 
 " Sure ! it's the same safe," answered Dick. 
 
 " Well, what do you know about that ! " gasped 
 f Barton Pelter. His face showed increasing in- 
 ! terest. " When was all this? " 
 
 "Just about a week ago." 
 
 " Haven't you any clews to the robbery ? " 
 
 "Nothing very much," answered Dick, before
 
 198 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 either of his brothers could speak. " A girl saw 
 a man leaving the building the evening of the 
 robbery, but who he was, she did not know." 
 
 " And you say the box was put in the safe my 
 uncle used to own?" went on the young man. 
 "Of course it was locked?" 
 
 "Yes." 
 
 " Was it er er was it er that is, did you 
 have the same combination on it that the lock 
 used to have ? " stammered the other. 
 
 " No. I had the combination changed." 
 
 " And you haven't got the least idea then who 
 took the bonds ? " questioned Barton Pelter. 
 
 " Not so far." 
 
 " It's strange. Say, that's a fierce loss ! I 
 couldn't lose that much;" and the young man 
 laughed nervously. 
 
 "Are you working in New York?" asked 
 Tom, following an awkward pause. 
 
 " I haven't anything to do just now, but I am 
 hoping to get a situation soon," answered Bar 
 ton Pelter. " I've got to be going now," he add 
 ed, and after a few words more, he made his way 
 to the elevated station at the entrance to the 
 Brooklyn Bridge. 
 
 " Evidently a pretty decent sort of a fellow," 
 was Dick's comment, as the three brothers 
 walked over to look at the newspaper bulletin
 
 BARTON PELTER AGAIN 199 
 
 boards. " It's too bad he has Jesse Pelter for 
 an uncle." 
 
 " That news about our robbery seemed to 
 
 astonish him," said Sam. "Did you hear him 
 
 ; ask about the combination on the safe? He 
 
 must have been wondering whether we suspected 
 
 his uncle or Japson." 
 
 "That isn't strange," was Tom's comment, 
 "when one knows what kind of rascals those 
 two men are." 
 
 With the shadow of the loss hanging over 
 them the Rover boys were in no mood to amuse 
 themselves. Had it been otherwise, they might 
 have gone to the theater or some concert, or pos 
 sibly to some moving picture show. But, as it 
 was, they spent most of their time at the offices 
 and the hotel, and in looking around for clews. 
 
 " I received two nice letters to-day," said Dora 
 that evening, when her husband and the others 
 appeared, and she held up the missives. " One 
 is from mamma, and she sends her best love to 
 all of you. The other is from your Aunt 
 Martha." 
 
 " And what does she say about dad ? " asked 
 Dick, quickly. 
 
 " She says there is no change in his general 
 condition, but that he continues to worry about 
 business matters. He wants to make sure that
 
 200 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 everything here, in New York City, is going 
 along all right." 
 
 " Poor, old dad ! " murmured Tom, and his 
 voice was full of sympathy. "We certainly 
 can't let him know the truth." 
 
 " Oh, not for the world, Tom ! " cried Dora. 
 
 "But what are we going to do if the bonds 
 are not found ? " questioned Dick. " He has got 
 to know it some time." 
 
 " Well, put it off as long as you can," returned 
 his wife. 
 
 " Oh, if we could only find those bonds ! " ex 
 claimed Sam. " We've ^wst got to do it ! Wa've 
 got t ! "
 
 CHAPTER XXI 
 
 DAYS OF ANXIOUS WAITING 
 
 ANOTHER week passed without bringing any 
 thing new to light concerning the missing bonds. 
 During that time the Rover boys received two 
 visits from the headquarters' detectives, and 
 were again subjected to innumerable questions. 
 
 "We're on a new tack," said one of the 
 sleuths. "I think we'll be able to report some 
 thing to you in a few days." 
 
 " You can't do it too quickly," returned Dick. 
 
 " Oh, I know that," answered the detective, 
 with a short laugh; and then he and his compan 
 ion backed themselves out. 
 
 " Say, Dick, I don't take much stock in those 
 fellows," was Tom's comment. " They are good 
 at talking, but it looks to me as if they didn't 
 know where they were at." 
 
 " Exactly the way I loolc at it ! " broke in Sam. 
 
 During that time the boys also received visits 
 'from several private detectives, all anxious to 
 take hold of the case, but none of them willing 
 
 2OI
 
 202 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 to do so without first receiving a generous re 
 tainer. 
 
 " I am not going to pay out anything in ad 
 vance," Dick told one of these fellows a shabby 
 looking chap. " You locate the bonds, and you'll 
 be well paid for it." 
 
 " I don't work unless I'm paid for it," snapped 
 the detective, and left the offices quite indignant. 
 
 " I suppose we could get a thousand detectives 
 on this case if we were willing to put up the 
 money," said Tom. 
 
 " It might pay to hire some first-class man," 
 ventured Sam, " but not that sort." 
 
 " I'll call up Mr. Powell and see what he thinks 
 of it," answered Dick. 'And a little later he was 
 in communication with Songbird's uncle over the 
 telephone. 
 
 " It wouldn't do any harm to put some first- 
 class man on the case," said the lawyer. "If you 
 wish me to do so, I'll put you in touch with the 
 best detective agency in the city." 
 
 As a result of this talk, the Rovers obtained the 
 address of a detective whose name is well-known 
 in every large city of the United States. This, 
 man called on them the following day, and went 
 over the case very carefully with the youths. He 
 examined the safe and the combination lock, and 
 then had a long talk with Kitty Donovan and her
 
 DAYS OF ANXIOUS WAITING 203 
 
 father and her mother, and also a talk with the 
 old man who kept the little fruit stand down 
 stairs. 
 
 " I'll do all I can, Mr. Rover," he said, when 
 he re-entered the offices, " but you mustn't expect 
 too much. This is certainly a mystery." 
 
 " Mr. Bronson is the most intelligent detective 
 I've seen yet," said Sam, after the man had de 
 parted. " He handles the case as if it was a strict 
 business proposition." 
 
 " That's what I like to see," declared Tom. 
 " The other kind of detective is good enough for 
 a dime or a half-dime story book, but he never 
 makes any success of it in real life." 
 
 It must not be supposed that now they were in 
 New York, Tom and Sam had forgotten the Lan- 
 ing girls. They had written to Nellie and Grace, 
 forwarding the letters to Cedarville because Hope 
 Seminary was on the point of closing for the sea 
 son. 
 
 " Letters for both of you ! " cried Dora, when 
 they and Dick appeared at the hotel one evening 
 after a rather strenuous day in the offices, where 
 all had been busy forming their plans for further 
 investments. 
 
 " Good for you, Dora ! " answered Tom, and 
 held out his hand eagerly. 
 
 " Now wouldn't you like to have it ? " she an-
 
 204 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 swered mischievously, holding a letter just out of 
 his reach. 
 
 " Where is mine ? " demanded Sam. 
 
 "Oh, I thought you wouldn't want that so I 
 tore it up," she answered, with a twinkle in her 
 eyes. 
 
 "If you don't give me that letter, Dora, some 
 thing is going to happen to you," went on Tom; 
 and now he caught her by the wrist. " You know 
 the forfeit a kiss ! " 
 
 " All right, take your letter, Mr. Can't- Wait," 
 she returned, and handed him the missive. 
 
 " But you said you had one for me ! " broke in 
 Sam. " Come now, Dora, don't be mean." 
 
 " Oh, Sam, it's only a bill." 
 
 " A bill ! You are fooling ! " And then as his 
 face fell, she did not have the heart to tease him 
 longer, and brought the letter forth from her 
 handbag. 
 
 As the lads had anticipated, the communica 
 tions were from Grace and Nellie. In them the 
 girls said that the session at the seminary was 
 over, and that the day previous they had returned 
 to their home on the outskirts of Cedarville. Both 
 had passed in their examinations, for which they 
 were exceedingly thankful. 
 
 " But they haven't found that four-hundred- 
 dollar diamond ring yet," said Sam, after he had
 
 DAYS OF ANXIOUS WAITING 205 
 
 finished his letter. " It certainly is a shame ! " 
 
 " It's as great a mystery as the disappearance 
 of our bonds," was Dick's comment. 
 
 "What has Nellie to say about it, Tom?" 
 questioned Dora, anxiously; for even though she 
 was married and away from them, her two cous 
 ins were as dear to her as ever. 
 
 " She doesn't say very much," answered Tom. 
 " No one has seen or heard anything about the 
 ring." 
 
 "But what of Miss Harrow? How has she 
 treated Nellie since the fire ? " 
 
 " She says Miss Harrow has not been very 
 well, and consequently did not take part in the 
 final examinations. Now the teacher has gone to 
 Asbury Park, on the New Jersey coast, to spend 
 the summer." 
 
 " Perhaps that mystery never will be solved," 
 said Sam. " It's a jolly shame, that's all I've got 
 to say about it ! " 
 
 After dinner that evening, as it was exceed 
 ingly warm, none of the young folks felt like 
 staying in the hotel. Dick proposed that they take 
 a stroll up Broadway. 
 
 " We can walk till we get tired," he said, " ancf 
 then if you feel like it, we can jump into a taxi 
 and take a ride around Central Park before we 
 retire."
 
 206 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 "That will be nice," returned Dora; and Tom 
 and Sam said it would suit them, too. 
 
 As usual, upper Broadway commonly called 
 
 .The Great White Way was ablaze with electric 
 
 lights. As the young folks strolled along, the 
 
 'great, flaring advertising signs perched on the 
 
 tops of many of the buildings interested them 
 
 greatly. 
 
 " I heard yesterday that some of those signs 
 cost ten thousand dollars and more," observed 
 Sam. " What a lot of money to put into them ! " 
 
 " So it is, Sam. But think of all the money 
 some firms spend in newspaper and magazine ad 
 vertising," answered Dick. 
 
 " Some day we'll have to do some advertising 
 ourselves," put in Tom. " That is, after we get 
 our business in first-class running order." 
 
 "And get our bonds back," added Dick. 
 
 " Oh, say, let's forget those bonds for just one 
 night ! " entreated Sam. " I haven't been able to 
 get a good night's sleep since I came here because 
 of them." 
 
 The portion of Broadway where they were 
 walking, is lined with innumerable theaters and 
 moving picture places. They had passed on less 
 than three blocks further, when Sam suddenly 
 caught Tom by the arm. 
 
 " Here we are, Tom ! " he exclaimed, some-
 
 DAYS OF ANXIOUS WAITING 207 
 
 what excitedly. " Here's that moving picture." 
 
 " So it is ! " returned Tom, and immediately be 
 came as interested as his younger brother. They 
 had come to a halt before a gorgeous moving 
 picture establishment, and on one of the bill 
 boards they saw exhibited a flashy lithograph, de 
 picting two men struggling in a rowboat with a 
 third man on the shore aiming a gun at one of the 
 others. Over the picture were the words : " His 
 Last Chance. A Thrilling Rural Drama in Two 
 Reels." 
 
 "What is it, Tom?" questioned Dora. 
 
 " Why, that's the moving picture play we told 
 you about the one that we got into at the Oak 
 Run railroad station," explained the youth. 
 " That picture you see there was taken along the 
 river bank back of our farm. Another picture 
 shows the railroad station at Oak Run, with old 
 Ricks in it, and still another ought to show the 
 railroad train with Sam and me on the back plat 
 form. Let us go in and see it." 
 
 " Why, yes, I want to see that by all means ! " 
 declared Dick's wife. " Won't it be funny to see 
 you boys in a moving picture ! " 
 
 "Well, I don't know about this/' returned 
 Dick, hesitatingly; and he looked rather quickly 
 at Tom. " Are you quite sure, Tom, that you 
 want to go into a moving picture show? " he went
 
 208 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 on. He had not forgotten how Tom had once 
 gone to a moving picture exhibition, and been 
 completely carried away by a scene of gold dig 
 ging in faraway Alaska, nor how his poor broth 
 er had for a time lost his mind and wandered off 
 to the faraway territory, as related in detail in 
 " The Rover Boys in Alaska." 
 
 " Oh, don't you fear for me, Dick ! " cried 
 Tom, hastily. " My head is just as good as it 
 ever was and able to stand a hundred moving 
 picture shows. Come on in, I'll get the tickets;" 
 and without waiting for an answer, Tom stepped 
 up to the little ticket booth and secured the neces 
 sary pasteboards.
 
 CHAPTER XXII 
 
 THE MOVING PICTURE AGAIN 
 
 THE moving picture theater was fairly well 
 filled, but the four managed to obtain seats close 
 to the middle of the auditorium. They had en 
 tered while a slap-dash comedy was being de 
 picted something that set the audience laughing 
 heartily. Then followed a parlor drama, which 
 was more notable for its exhibition of fashions 
 than it was for plot or acting. 
 
 "This sort of thing makes me tired!" was 
 Tom's comment. "I like to see outdoor life 
 much better." 
 
 Another one-reel comedy of life on the canal 
 followed the parlor drama, and then there was 
 flashed on the screen the words: "His Last 
 Chance." 
 
 " Here we are ! " murmured Sam, and sat bolt^ 
 upright with renewed interest, while Tom did 
 likewise. The first scene of the drama showed 
 the interior of a farmhouse sitting-room and 
 kitchen, and the boys easily recognized several of 
 209
 
 210 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS. 
 
 the men they had seen at the river and the rail 
 road station. There followed quite a plot and a 
 number of other scenes around the farm, and 
 also at a stone quarry which all of the lads recog 
 nized as being located at Dexter's Corners. Then 
 came a pretty love scene at the farmhouse, fol 
 lowed by a quarrel between some of the men in 
 an apple orchard. 
 
 " Say, that's Blinks' apple orchard, just as sure 
 as fate ! " exclaimed Dick, in a low voice. 
 
 " So it is ! " answered Sam. " Many's the time 
 we've got apples there ! " 
 
 The quarrel in the apple orchard was followed 
 by a fishing scene on the river not far from 
 Humpback Falls, where Sam once upon a time 
 had had such a strenuous adventure. Then of a 
 sudden came the quarrel in the boat followed by 
 the shooting. 
 
 " Say, that looks just as it did when we saw it 
 taken!" exclaimed Sam, enthusiastically. "This 
 moving picture business is a great thing, isn't 
 it?" 
 
 " It isn't just as we saw it," chuckled Tom. 
 "They didn't show how that fellow who went 
 overboard came up again and swam ashore." 
 
 " Oh, that would spoil the plot of the play," 
 answered his younger brother. 
 
 Other scenes in the drama were shown, one in
 
 THB MOVING PICTURE AGAIN 211 
 
 a barnyard full of cows being especially realistic. 
 Then came the scene inside the railroad station 
 at Oak Run, and all of the boys and Dora laughed 
 
 , heartily when they saw the look of astonishment 
 on old Ricks' face as he peered through his ticket 
 
 ' .window at the actor who had come in for a ticket. 
 " I'd give a dollar to have old Ricks here look 
 ing at himself," whispered Tom. " Wouldn't he 
 be surprised?" 
 
 "Oh, look! look!" exclaimed Dora, in a low 
 tone. " Sam and Tom, I do declare ! " 
 
 The scene had shifted suddenly, as do all scenes 
 in moving pictures. Now was shown the plat 
 form of the Oak Run railroad station. The train 
 was coming in, and there were Sam and Tom as 
 natural as life, dresssuit cases in hand, ready to 
 get aboard. The train stopped and some passen 
 gers alighted, and Tom and Sam climbed the steps 
 of the last car. 
 
 " And look ! Tom is waving his hand to some 
 one," went on Dick's wife. " Isn't it great ! " 
 As the train began to move away, one of the 
 
 ' leading actor*, m the drama was seen to rush 
 across the platform and grasp the rail of the last 
 car. As he was holding himself up, another of 
 the persons in the drama rushed after the train, 
 shaking his fist wildly; then the train, with Tom 
 and Sam and the moving picture actor on the
 
 212 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 back platform, disappeared from view, and in a 
 twinkling the scene shifted back to the farmhouse 
 once more. 
 
 " Well, we're movies' actors sure enough ! " 
 was Tom's comment, after they had seen the last 
 of the little drama and were out on Broadway 
 once more. " What do you think of us, Dora? " 
 
 " Oh, it was fine, Tom ! " she answered. " I'd 
 like to see it again." 
 
 " Well, they advertise it for to-morrow, too," 
 said her husband, " so you can go in the after 
 noon when we are at the offices." 
 
 "I'll certainly do it!" 
 
 " I shouldn't mind seeing this picture again 
 myself," said Sam. " If they have it to-morrow 
 night, let's come up, Tom." 
 
 "All right, I'm willing. I suppose they are 
 showing the thing all over the country." 
 
 The next day proved a very busy one for the 
 three Rover boys, and for the time being the 
 moving picture was completely forgotten. About 
 ten o'clock, Mr. Powell came to see them regard 
 ing an investment which Anderson Rover had 
 made during the time that Pelter, Japson & Com 
 pany were his brokers. This investment now 
 called for a further outlay of a little over seven 
 thousand dollars, and the boys had to find some 
 means of raising that amount.
 
 THE MOVING PICTURE AGAIN 
 
 213 
 
 " Now you see if we had those bonds handy, it 
 would be an easy matter to put some of them up 
 as collateral with some of the banks; but, as it is, 
 it is going to squeeze us," said Dick. 
 
 " And you have got to take care of that other 
 matter of twelve thousand dollars the middle of 
 next month; don't forget that," broke in the 
 lawyer. And then he added : "Of course, if you 
 want money to help you out " 
 
 " Thank you very much, Mr. Powell, but I 
 think I can manage it," returned Dick. 
 
 He and his brothers had talked their plans over 
 carefully, and had reached the conclusion that 
 they would not ask for outside assistance unless 
 it became absolutely necessary. They wanted to 
 show both their family and their friends that 
 they could " stand on their own bottom," as Dick 
 expressed it. 
 
 " You have no word in regard to the bonds ? " 
 questioned Mr. Powell, when he was ready to 
 leave. 
 
 "Not a word. We hired that detective you 
 recommended, but he said it was a difficult case 
 to handle, and that we must not expect too 
 much." 
 
 When the Rover boys returned late that after 
 noon to the Outlook Hotel, they found that Dora 
 had gone out and had not yet returned. She had
 
 214 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 left a note on her table stating that she was go 
 ing to look again at the moving picture in which 
 Sam and Tom had taken part. 
 
 " Oh, yes, we mustn't forget to go there to 
 night, Sam ! " cried Tom. " It's better than look 
 ing at yourself in the looking-glass, isn't it? " and 
 he grinned. 
 
 Six o'clock came, and then half-past, and still 
 Dora did not show herself. As the time went by 
 Dick began to get a little worried. 
 
 " That show ought to be out by this time," he 
 said to his brothers. " Generally those moving 
 picture places kind of run down between six and 
 seven o'clock. If they are continuous they throw 
 in some old stuff or a lot of advertising matter 
 just to fill in the time." 
 
 " Well, maybe she stopped on the way to do 
 some shopping," suggested Sam. " The stores 
 must prove a great attraction to her." 
 
 " She told me yesterday that she was rather 
 tired of shopping," answered the young husband. 
 " You see, she went at it pretty strong at the 
 start, so there isn't so very much left in the way 
 Off novelty. I think I'll go down and look for; 
 her;" and a minute later Dick left the apartment. 
 
 " It doesn't take much to worry him when it: 
 concerns Dora," remarked Tom, dryly. 
 
 " Well, it wouldn't take much to worry you if
 
 TH..E MOVING PICTURE AGAIN 215 
 
 it concerned Nellie," retorted his younger brother. 
 
 " That's true, Sam ; and the same would hold 
 
 good with you if it were Grace." And then Tom 
 
 '-dodged as Sam picked up a sofa pillow and threw 
 
 it at him. 
 
 The little French clock belonging to Dora was 
 just chiming out the hour of seven when the two 
 boys heard Dick and his wife coming through the 
 hallway. They were talking earnestly, and evi 
 dently the young wife was quite excited. 
 
 " Oh, such an experience as I've had ! " cried 
 Dora, as she came in and sank down into an easy 
 chair. 
 
 " Well now, try to calm yourself," said Dick, 
 soothingly. " It's all over now." 
 
 " What was it about? " demanded Tom. " Did 
 somebody hold you up, or try to steal your 
 purse?" 
 
 " Maybe an auto tried to run over you," sug 
 gested Sam. 
 
 " No, it was none of those things," answered 
 the young wife. " I've just had the strangest 
 experience ! " 
 
 " She met that gardener you spoke about the 
 fellow who lost his job at the seminary," ex 
 plained Dick. " That chap named Andy Royce." 
 "Why, where did you meet him?" exclaimed 
 Sam. " Did he know you? "
 
 216 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 " Yes, he knew me quite well. When I was 
 at Hope he used to do errands for me now and 
 then and I tipped him quite liberally, so he re 
 membered me," answered Dora. 
 
 " But I met him in the strangest way. He was 
 at the subway station arguing with the ticket man, 
 who insisted upon it that Royce had not put a 
 ticket in the box. He wanted the gardener to put 
 another ticket in, and Royce said he wouldn't do 
 it. They had a very warm dispute, and a police 
 man came up to see what it was all about. Then, 
 thinking that perhaps Royce didn't have any more 
 money with him he looked terribly shabby I 
 told him I would get another ticket. Then he 
 suddenly broke down and I thought he was going 
 to cry. I paid for another ticket, then the train 
 came along and we both got on board."
 
 CHAPTER XXIII 
 
 ON THE EAST SIDE 
 
 " IF Royce began to cry there must have been 
 something radically wrong with him," declared 
 Tom. " Dora, do you think he had been drink 
 ing? Sometimes when men drink they break 
 down and cry, you know." 
 
 " I don't know anything about that, Tom ; but 
 I do know that he acted the strangest. I asked 
 him if he was working, and he said no that he 
 had been unable to get a job of any kind. Then 
 I questioned him about why he had left Hope, 
 and he said it was because he could not get along 
 with some of the hired help and with Miss Har 
 row." 
 
 " Say ! " cried Sam. " Did he say anything 
 about that four-hundred-dollar diamond ring that 
 was missing?" 
 
 " Why, no, Sam. I didn't mention it, and he 
 didn't say anything about it either. Perhaps he 
 didn't know it was missing." 
 
 " Oh, he must know about it," broke in Tom. 
 " It was talked about all over the place." 
 217
 
 2:8 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 "Well, what happened next?" questioned 
 Dick. 
 
 " I talked to him for awhile, and I found out 
 that he was out of work and also out of money. 
 I felt sorry for him, and I offered to lend him 
 ten dollars," answered Dora. " I hope you don't 
 think I did wrong," she went on, anxiously. 
 
 " You meant well, Dora, I'm sure of that," was 
 Dick's quick reply, " but whether the money will 
 do this fellow Royce any good or not, is a ques 
 tion. If he is a drinking man, he'll drink it up 
 very quickly and that will be the end of it." 
 
 " Did he tell you where he was staying? " asked 
 Tom. 
 
 "Why, yes, he gave me a slip of paper with 
 his name and address written on it," answered 
 Dora. " You see, I asked him to do that because 
 I felt so sorry for him, and 1 thought that pos 
 sibly you might be able to get him something to 
 do ; " and she handed the slip of paper over to 
 her husband. 
 
 " ' The Golden Oak House/ " read Dick from 
 the slip. " I suppose it is one of those cheap 
 lodging houses on the East Side," he added. " I'll ! 
 keep this, although I don't see how we can help 
 Royce. And besides that I am not certain that 
 he deserves help. If he had remained strictly 
 sober he might have kept his job at the seminary.
 
 ON THE EAST SIDE 219 
 
 But I'll think it over," he added, hastily, as he 
 saw that Dora was much distressed. 
 
 " Did you see the moving picture again? " ques 
 tioned Tom, as all prepared to go downstairs for 
 dinner. 
 
 " Oh, yes ! " and the young wife brightened a 
 little. " It certainly is splendid, Tom ! All of 
 you ought to go and see it before they take it 
 away." 
 
 " All right, we'll do it ! " said Tom. " That is, 
 Sam and I will go. How about it, Dick? " 
 
 " Oh, I don't know," hesitated the older broth 
 er, with a look at Dora. 
 
 "You just go, Dick," she cried, quickly. "I 
 am going to stay here and write some letters. 
 You go with Tom and Sam and enjoy yourself ;' r 
 and so it was arranged. 
 
 The boys found the moving picture theater 
 pretty well crowded, and they had to take seats 
 almost in the rear. Tom and Sam were once 
 more enjoying the spectacle of looking at them 
 selves when they suddenly heard a young man 
 behind them utter an exclamation. 
 
 " Hello, I know those two fellows ! " 
 
 They looked around and saw sitting there Bar 
 ton Pelter. He was gazing at the play on the 
 screen with great interest. 
 
 *' Come to see us in the movies, did you ? "
 
 220 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 questioned Tom, as he leaned back and touched 
 Barton Pelter on the arm. " What do you think 
 of it?" 
 
 " Oh, so you are here ! " was the reply. " Say, 
 I didn't know you were movies' actors." 
 
 " We are not. We got into that picture quite 
 accidentally," explained Tom. And then, as the 
 scenes of the drama progressed, he and his broth 
 ers turned their attention to what was going on. 
 
 At the end of the photo drama there was a 
 short intermission, during which a number of 
 persons went out and an even larger number came 
 in. There was a seat vacated beside the Rovers, 
 and Barton Pelter took this. 
 
 " How are you fellows making out at your 
 offices ? " asked the young man. 
 
 " Oh, we are doing as well as can be expected," 
 answered Dick. " You know this sort of thing is 
 rather new to us." 
 
 " How about those missing bonds ; have you 
 located them yet?" 
 
 " No." 
 
 "That's too bad," and the young man's face 
 showed his concern. " Have you any idea where 
 they went to ? " 
 
 " Not the slightest in the world, Pelter. It is 
 a complete mystery," answered Tom. 
 
 "The loss of such an amount must hurt you
 
 ON THE EAST SIDE 221 
 
 a whole lot," ventured Barton Pelter, after a 
 slight pause. " It would ruin some folks." 
 
 " It does hurt us a whole lot," broke in Sam, 
 " Unless we get those bonds back or at least a , 
 part of them we are going to have pretty hard/ 
 sledding to pull through." 
 
 " It's a shame ! I wish I could do something 
 to help you, for what you did for me," returned 
 Barton Pelter; and his voice had a rather wist 
 ful ring in it. Then the theater was darkened 
 and the next photo drama began. 
 
 " Are you doing anything as yet? " questioned 
 Tom, when, at the end of this play, he saw Jesse 
 Pelter's nephew prepare to leave. 
 
 " I've got something of an offer to go on the 
 road as a traveling salesman for the Consoli 
 dated Cream Cracker Company," was the answer. 
 " It won't pay very much, but it will be better 
 than nothing;" and then the young man left. 
 
 Several days went by and the Rover boys put 
 in all their time at business. There was a great 
 deal to do in the way of protecting a number of 
 rather uncertain investments which Pelter, Jap- 
 son & Company had made for Mr. Anderson 
 Rover while they were his brokers. 
 
 "It's a mighty good thing that we got after 
 Pelter, Japson & Company when we did," was 
 Dick's comment. " If we hadn't, they would have
 
 222 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 put us in the worst kind of a hole, even if they 
 had remained honest. They had no more concep 
 tion of what constitutes a good business risk than 
 lias a baby." 
 
 " I do hope, Dick, that we make a success of 
 ,this," returned Tom. 
 
 " Oh, don't say we're going to make a fizzle of 
 it!" cried Sam. "We've just got to win out, 
 that is all there is to it ! " 
 
 " Right you are ! " 
 
 On the following Monday afternoon there was 
 but little for Tom and Sam to do at the offices, 
 and the former suggested to his younger brother 
 that they walk over to the East Side and visit 
 The Golden Oak House. 
 
 " I've always wanted to see how things look 
 over in that part of New York," declared Tom, 
 " and if we run into that Andy Royce I'm going 
 to question him and see if he knows anything 
 about that diamond ring." 
 
 " How would he know anything about that, 
 Tom ? He wasn't near the house when the ring 
 ;was lost. And besides, if he had taken the ring, 
 he wouldn't be so poverty-stricken. He could 
 pawn a four-hundred-dollar ring for quite some 
 money." 
 
 " I didn't say that he might have taken the ring, 
 Sam. But he was around the place, and he might
 
 ON THE EAST SIDE 223 
 
 have heard something said that would give us a 
 clew." 
 
 " Oh, that might be possible. Anyway, we can 
 question him, just as you said." 
 
 The walk to the East Side was quite a revela 
 tion to the Rover boys. Never had they seen 
 such a congestion of humanity. The stores, the 
 houses and the sidewalks seemed to be overflow 
 ing with people, while the streets were a jumble 
 of wagons, trucks and push-carts. Every conceiv 
 able sort of a thing seemed to be on sale, and they 
 were solicited to buy at almost every step. 
 
 "They seem to be mostly foreigners over 
 here," was Sam's comment. " I don't know as I 
 would care to come through here alone at night, 
 Tom." 
 
 " Oh, you'd be as safe here as on Broadway," 
 was the reply. "These people are poor, but 
 you'll find them just as honest as anybody." 
 
 The boys had with them the card that Andy 
 Royce had given to Dora, and it did not take 
 them long to find The Golden Oak House. It 
 was an old-fashioned, frame building located on 
 the corner of a narrow and exceedingly dirty 
 alleyway. Downstairs there were a saloon and a 
 pawnshop. The so-styled office and the sleeping 
 apartments were on the three floors above. 
 
 " Not a very inviting place," were Sam's
 
 224 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 words, as he looked the resort over. " Tom, do 
 you think we had better go in?" 
 
 " Oh, I don't think it will hurt us," was the 
 answer. " Come ahead ! " 
 
 Ascending the narrow and exceedingly dirty 
 stairs, the boys passed through a dingy hall to 
 where a glass door was marked " Office." Inside 
 they found a small counter and rail, behind which 
 a man in shirt-sleeves sat smoking a cigar and 
 reading a sporting paper. 
 
 " Is there a man stopping here named Andy 
 Royce ? " asked Tom, as the man dropped his 
 paper to look up at the newcomers. 
 
 " I think there is, but I don't believe he's in 
 now," was the answer. "Want to leave any 
 word for him? " 
 
 Tom thought for a moment. "Yes," he an 
 swered. " I will leave a message." And taking 
 out one of his cards, he wrote on it : " I'll call 
 here Tuesday afternoon at about five o'clock to 
 see you." 
 
 " Hope you've got work for that fellow. He 
 needs a job the worst way," said the hotel man, 
 as he took the card. 
 
 " I don't know about a job for him, but per 
 haps I can help him," answered Tom. And then 
 he and Sam left the place. 
 
 They had just reached the sidewalk when they
 
 ON THE EAST SIDE 225 
 
 beheld Andy Royce coming towards them. The 
 former gardener of Hope Seminary was partly 
 under the influence of liquor, and several chil 
 dren were annoying him by pulling at his coat 
 and calling him names. 
 
 " You go 'way an' leave me alone," mumbled 
 the man, 'And then, as he caught sight of the 
 Rovers, he tried to brace up. 
 
 " Hello, you here ! " he exclaimed. 
 
 "Yes, we want to talk to you, Royce," an 
 swered Tom. Then he motioned the children 
 away, and led the former gardener of the semi 
 nary towards the alleyway beside the hotel.
 
 CHAPTER XXIV 
 ANDY ROYCE'S CONFESSION 
 
 "WANT to talk to me, eh?" mumbled Andy 
 Royce. "What you want, anyhow?" 
 
 " See here, Royce ! what is the use of your 
 drinking like this ? " broke in Sam. " Is that the 
 way to use the money my brother's wife loaned 
 you?" 
 
 " I ain't been drinkin'," mumbled the man. 
 " That is, I ain't had much." 
 
 " You've had more than is good for you," put 
 in Tom. " A man like you ought to leave liquor 
 alone entirely." 
 
 " Maybe I would if I had a job," growled the 
 former gardener. " But when a man ain't got 
 no work an' no friends it's pretty hard on him;" 
 .and he showed signs of bursting into tears. 
 
 " See here, Royce, you brace up and be a 
 man ! " cried Tom. " Because you haven't any 
 position is no reason at all why you should drink. 
 You ought to save every cent of your money and 
 make it last as long as possible." 
 226
 
 ANDY ROYCE'S CONFESSION 227 
 
 " All right, just as you say, Mr. Rover," mum 
 bled the man. 
 
 It was evident to the youths that the man was 
 in no condition to think clearly. Evidently he 
 had been drinking more or less for a long while, 
 for his face showed the signs of this dissipation. 
 His clothing was ragged, and he was much in 
 need of a shave and a bath. Certainly he did not 
 look at all like the gardener he had been when 
 he had first come to Hope. 
 
 " See here, Royce, I want to ask you a few 
 questions," said Tom. " Do you remember about 
 that diamond ring that disappeared at Hope while 
 you were there ? " 
 
 "Eh? What?" stammered the former gar 
 dener. " Who said I knew anything about that 
 ring?" and he showed confusion. 
 
 " Did you hear anything about it at all ? " 
 asked Sam. 
 
 " Say, is this a trap? " mumbled the man. " If 
 it is, you ain't goin' to ketch me in it. Not much 
 you ain't ! " 
 
 ' " Look here ! If you know anything about this, 
 , Royce, you tell us," declared Tom, struck by the 
 man's manner. 
 
 " I ain't goin' to say nothin' ! I didn't steal the 
 ring ! " cried Andy Royce. 
 
 "But you know something about it, don't
 
 228 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 you?" declared Tom, sharply; and caught the 
 former gardener by the arm. 
 
 " Say, you lemme go ! I ain't goin' to tell you 
 a thing!" cried the man, in alarm. "You ain't i 
 goin' to trap me like this. I know wot I'm doin'. 
 Lemme go, I say ! " and he tried to break away. 
 
 " You're not going a step, Royce, until you tell 
 us the truth," declared Tom, now quite satisfied 
 in his own mind that the former gardener was 
 holding something back. 
 
 "If you took that ring you had better confess," 
 broke in Sam. 
 
 " I didn't take it, I tell you," muttered Andy 
 Royce. "You ain't goin' to get nothin' out o' 
 me! This is a put-up job! I won't stand for 
 it ! " And once again he tried to break away. 
 But each of the boys held him fast. 
 
 " I guess the best we can do is to call a police 
 man and have him locked up," declared Tom, 
 with a knowing look at his brother. He had no 
 intention of having the former gardener arrested, 
 but thought the threat would frighten the fellow. 
 And this was just what it did. At the mention' 
 of being locked up, Andy Royce's courage seemed 
 to leave him. 
 
 "No! No! Don't you do it! Please, gents, 
 don't have me locked up ! " he whined. " I didn'f 
 take the ring ! "
 
 ANDY ROYCE'S CONFESSION 229 
 
 " But you know what became of it," declared 
 Tom, sternly. "So if you didn't take it, who 
 aid?" 
 
 "No nobuddy took it," stammered Andy 
 Royce. 
 
 " But it's gone," came quickly from Sam. 
 
 " Well, if you've got to know the truth, I'll tell 
 you," growled the man, staring unsteadily at the 
 boys. " It's in Miss Harrow's inkwell." 
 
 " Miss Harrow's Inkwell ! " repeated Tom, in 
 credulously. 
 
 "Did you put it there?" questioned Sam. 
 
 " I did." 
 
 "Well, why in tHe world did you do that?" 
 asked Tom, and made no effort to conceal his 
 wonder. 
 
 "Why did I do it?" mumbled the man, un 
 steadily. "I did it to git Miss Harrow into 
 trouble. I knowed she was responsible for the 
 ring." 
 
 " Then you were in the office," declared Sam. 
 
 " Sure, I was there ! If I wasn't, how would I 
 ia-seen that ring? I was told that Miss Harrow 
 wanted to see me, an' I went to the office just at 
 the same time when she came down to the stables 
 where me and two of the other men had had a 
 quarrel. It wasn't my fault, that quarrel wasn't, 
 but them other fellers put it off on me and said
 
 230 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 'twas because I had been drinkin'," continued 
 Andy Royce, with a whine. " When I got to the 
 office there wasn't nobuddy around. I saw that 
 diamond ring layin' on the desk, and I picked it 
 
 )j 
 
 " You were going to steal it? " broke in Tom. 
 
 "No, I wasn't, Mr. Rover. I may drink a 
 little now an' then, but I ain't no thief," went on 
 Andy Royce. " I never stole anything in my life. 
 I knowed that ring, because I saw Miss Parsons 
 wear it more than once. I was mad at Miss 
 Harrow for the way she treated me, an' just out 
 of mischief I took the ring an' opened the ink 
 well an' dropped it in. It was in the inkwell that 
 had red ink in it, an' the ring went plumb out o' 
 sight." 
 
 " And you left the ring in the inkwell? " quer 
 ied Tom. 
 
 " Sure I did ! Then, not to be seen in the office, 
 I slipped out in a hurry, an' left the seminary by 
 the back door an' ran to the stables. Miss Har 
 row was there. She had told me that she was 
 goin' to discharge me if there was any more 
 trouble, so I knowed wot was comin'. Then I 
 quit, an' come away," concluded Andy Royce. 
 
 " Well, of all the things I ever heard of, this 
 takes the cake ! " was Sam's comment. 
 
 *' If this fellow's story is true, the ring ought
 
 ANDY ROYCE'S CONFESSION 231 
 
 to be in the inkwell yet," said Tom. " That is, 
 unless the well was washed out and put away for 
 the summer. In that case the person who cleaned 
 the well ought to have found the ring." 
 
 " Sounds almost like a fairy tale," went on 
 Sam. "I don't know whether to believe it or 
 not." 
 
 " It's the truth ! " cried Andy Royce. 
 
 " We'll believe it when we see the ring," re 
 turned Tom, grimly. " I guess the best thing you 
 can do, Royce, is to come with us." 
 
 " Please don't have me arrested ! I've told you 
 the truth, sure ! " 
 
 "If you'll come with us and behave yourself, 
 we won't have you arrested," answered Tom. 
 " But we are not going to let you get away until 
 we have found out if your story is true." 
 
 " We might telegraph to the seminary at once," 
 suggested Sam. " Do you know who is in charge 
 there during the summer? " 
 
 " Why, I heard Nellie say that Miss Parsons 
 took charge the teacher who left the ring with 
 Miss Harrow." 
 
 "Then why not telegraph to her?" 
 
 " We'll do it ! But this fellow has got to come 
 with us until we are sure his story is true." 
 
 Andy Royce demurred, but the boys would not 
 listen to him. They accompanied him to his room
 
 232 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 upstairs, and made him pack up his belongings 
 and pay his bill. Then, somewhat sobered by 
 what was taking place, the gardener accompanied 
 them downstairs and to the street. Here the boys 
 hailed a passing taxicab that was empty, and or 
 dered the driver to take them as quickly as pos 
 sible to the Outlook Hotel. 
 
 " It certainly is a queer story," said Dick, who 
 had just arrived from the office, " but it may be 
 true. People do queer things sometimes, espe 
 cially when they are under the influence of liquor. 
 He probably had a grudge against Miss Harrow, 
 and thought the disappearance of the ring would 
 get her into trouble, just as he said." 
 
 " Oh, I hope they do find the ring ! " cried 
 Tom. " It will be great news for Nellie." 
 
 It was arranged that Andy Royce should ac 
 company Dick and Sam to the smoking room of 
 the hotel, and remain there until Tom had tele 
 graphed to Hope Seminary and received a reply. 
 
 " You had better run upstairs and see Dora 
 first," suggested Dick, " and make sure as to who 
 is in charge at the seminary. If there are two 
 persons there, you had better telegraph to both of 
 them so that they can unite in looking for the 
 ring." 
 
 Dora was in a flutter of excitement when told 
 of what had occurred. She remembered about
 
 ANDY ROYCE'S CONFESSION 233 
 
 Miss Parsons, and said that there was also a 
 housekeeper named Mrs. Lacy in charge. Armed 
 with this information Tom sent off two tele 
 grams, each reading as follows : 
 
 " Look for missing diamond ring in Miss 
 Harrow's red-ink inkwell. If found, answer at 
 once. 
 
 "THOMAS ROVER, 
 " Outlook Hotel, 
 " New York City." 
 
 " They were mighty funny telegrams to send," 
 said Tom, when he rejoined his brothers in the 
 hotel smoking room. "Perhaps they won't know 
 what to make of them." 
 
 " I am afraid we'll have to wait quite a while 
 for an answer," returned Dick. 
 
 "Oh, I don't know. They can telephone the 
 messages up to the seminary from the telegraph 
 office." 
 
 " They'll find the ring just as I said unless 
 somebuddy cleaned out the inkwell and took it," 
 declared Andy Royce, who was rapidly sobering 
 up because of the turn of affairs. 
 
 As it was getting late, it was decided that Dick 
 should go to dinner with Dora as usual, while 
 Tom and Sam took the former gardener to a
 
 234 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 corner of the restaurant for something to eat 
 
 " I don't feel much like filling up," said Sam. 
 " I'm on pins and needles about an answer to 
 those messages you sent, Tom." 
 
 " Exactly the way I feel, Sam. But we'll have 
 to have patience, I suppose." 
 
 The meal at an end, Dora went upstairs, and 
 Dick rejoined his brothers and Andy Royce in 
 the smoking room. Tom had left word at the 
 hotel telegraph office that any message which 
 might come in for hirq must be delivered at once. 
 
 " Here comes a bellboy now ! " cried Dick, 
 presently. 
 
 "Mr. Rover! Mr. Rover!" cried the boy, 
 walking from one group of persons to another. 
 
 " Here you are ! here you are, boy ! " cried 
 Tom, leaping up ; and in another moment he had 
 a telegram in his hand and was tearing it open 
 to see what it contained.
 
 CHAPTER XXV 
 
 MORE TELEGRAMS 
 
 "WHO is it from, Tom?" 
 
 "Read it out loud!" 
 
 Such were the exclamations from Sam and 
 Dick as their brother scanned the telegram in 
 haste. 
 
 " Hurrah ! they've found it ! " broke out Tom. 
 " This is the best yet ! " 
 
 "Good!" 
 
 "Fine!" 
 
 "This is from Miss Clara Parsons," went on 
 Tom, " the teacher who owned the ring. Here, 
 you can read the telegram if you want to," and 
 he passed the sheet over. The message ran as 
 follows : 
 
 "Ring found in inkwell. Perfect condition. 
 Did Miss Laning put it there? 
 
 " CLARA PARSONS." 
 
 " Short and sweet, but it tells the story," was 
 235
 
 236 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 Dick's comment " Say, I'm mighty glad of this," 
 he added, and his face showed his pleasure. 
 "That clears Nellie, Tom. You'll have to let 
 her know at once." 
 
 " I sure will ! " exclaimed the brother. " But 
 say, did you notice what Miss Parsons wants to 
 know if Nellie put the ring in the inkwell? 
 Talk about nerve ! " 
 
 " You can't exactly blame her, Tom, because 
 she knew nothing of Royce's visit to the office; 
 and as you sent the message, and you and Nellie 
 are so intimate " 
 
 " Oh, I understand, Dick ; and I shan't blame 
 her. I'm too happy to blame anybody," and 
 Tom's face broke into a broad smile. " I'm going 
 to send a telegram to Cedarville this minute." 
 
 " Didn't I tell you gents the ring was there ? " 
 broke in Andy Royce. "I told you the truth, 
 didn't I?" 
 
 " You did, Royce," answered Dick. 
 
 "An* wot about it, are you goin' to lemme 
 go ? " questioned the former gardener, eagerly. 
 
 " Not just yet," broke in Tom. 
 
 "Why not? You can't hold me for stealin* 
 ;when there wasn't nuthin' taken." 
 
 " That is true, Royce, but we want you to sign 
 a confession as to just how that ring got in the 
 inkwell. If you don't do that, the seminary au
 
 MORE TELEGRAMS 237 
 
 thorities may still think it was placed there by 
 Miss Laning." 
 
 " Oh, I don't want to put nuthin' off on Miss 
 Laning's shoulders," answered the former gar 
 dener. "If you want a confession from me sor 
 as you can clear her, go ahead ! " 
 
 " Wait here until I've sent that telegram," Tom 
 said, hastily; and rushed off once more to the 
 telegraph office, where he sent the following to 
 Nellie: 
 
 "Ring recovered. Was hidden in inkwell by 
 Royce. We have gardener's confession. Hurrah ! 
 Will write particulars. 
 
 " TOM." 
 
 " I hope she gets that before she goes to bed 
 to-night," mused the youth. " If she does it will 
 make her sleep so much better." 
 
 There was a stenographer's office attached to 
 the Outlook Hotel, and late as it was, the young 
 lady was found at her typewriter, pounding out 
 a letter for a commercial traveler. r As soon as 
 this was finished, the stenographer was asked to 
 take down whatever !ffindy Royce might have to 
 tell. The former gardener was "Brought in, an'd 
 repeated the confession he ha3 previously made. 
 This was typewritten as speedily as possible, and
 
 238 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 then Andy Royce signed the confession in the 
 presence of one of the hotel clerks and a notary 
 who lived at the hotel. 
 
 " Now I think that fixes it," said Tom. " Miss 
 Parsons won't be able to go behind that confes 
 sion." 
 
 " Are you goin' to let me go now? " asked the 
 former gardener of Hope. 
 
 " Yes, you can go, Royce," answered Tom. 
 "But wait a minute. How much money have 
 you left of that ten dollars my brother's wife let 
 you have?" 
 
 For reply the man dove down in his pocket, 
 and brought out some change. 
 
 " Eighty-five cents." 
 
 "That's all?" 
 
 "Yes." 
 
 " See here, if I stake you with another ten 
 dollars, will you give me your word not to drink 
 it up?" 
 
 " I will, Mr. Rover, I will ! " exclaimed Andy 
 Royce, earnestly. 
 
 "All right, then, here's the money;" and Tom 
 brought out two five-dollar bills and placed them 
 in the man's hands. "Now look here, unless you 
 can find something to do, you come here and see 
 me again in a few days." 
 
 " But see here, Tom," interposed Dick, in a
 
 MORE TELEGRAMS 239 
 
 low voice, " I don't think we can use Royce in 
 anyway. kWhy not let him go? As a gardener 
 he is out of place in a big city like New York." 
 
 " I want him to stay here for two reasons/' 
 answered Tom. " In the first place I want him 
 on hand in case the authorities at the seminary 
 need him. In the second place, I am going to 
 put the matter squarely up to Miss Harrow. She 
 thought Nellie guilty, and she may have thought 
 Royce worse than he really was. Perhaps I can 
 get her to give Royce another chance. I think he 
 would be all right if he would only let drink 
 alone." 
 
 " The same old warm-hearted Tom as of old ! " 
 responded Dick. " All right, have your own way 
 about it." 
 
 After the former gardener had departed the 
 boys went upstairs to join Dora, and then Tom 
 and Sam sat down to write letters of explanation 
 to Nellie and Grace ; and these epistles were post 
 ed before the youths retired for the night. 
 
 " Oh, how glad Nellie must be to have this 
 weight off her shoulders ! " exclaimed Dora. " It 
 inust have been awful to be suspected of taking a 
 ring." 
 
 " I guess Miss Harrow will be relieved, too," 
 answered Tom. " I wonder where she is stop 
 ping in Asbury Park/'
 
 240 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 " I think I know," returned Dick's wife. " She 
 and some of the other teachers usually go to the 
 Claravale House." 
 
 " I'll take a chance and telegraph to her," went 
 on Tom. " It won't cost much and it may relieve 
 her mind. Those folks up at the seminary may 
 wait to send a letter." And going downstairs 
 once more, Tom wrote out another brief tele 
 gram, and asked that it be sent off immediately. 
 
 " If only we could clear up this mystery of the 
 missing bonds as easily as we did this ring busi 
 ness ! " came from Sam, when he and Tom had 
 said good-night to Dick and his wife. 
 
 " I'm afraid that's not going to be so easy, 
 Sam. Sometimes I think that we'll never hear 
 a word more about those bonds;" and Tom 
 heaved a deep sigh. 
 
 "Oh, but, Tom, if we don't get those bonds 
 back we'll be in a hole ! " cried the youngest 
 Rover, in dismay. 
 
 " We may not be in a hole exactly, Sam ; but 
 we'll have a tough job of it pulling through," was 
 the grim response. 
 
 Tom had worried more about the missing ring 
 than he had been willing to admit to his brothers, 
 and now that this was off his mind, he, on the 
 following morning, pitched into business with re 
 newed vigor. He and Dick had their hands full, 
 going over a great mass of figures and calcula-
 
 MORE TELEGRAMS 24* 
 
 tions, and in deciding the important question of 
 how to take care of certain investments. Sam 
 did what he could to help them, although, as he 
 frankly admitted, he did not take to bookkeeping 
 or anything that smacked of high finances. 
 
 " I was not cut out for it, and that is all there " 
 is to it," he declared. " But I ara willing to help 
 you all I can." 
 
 Sam had gone off on an errand, leaving his 
 brothers deep in their figures, when the office boy 
 announced a visitor. 
 
 " Mr. Mallin Aronson," said Dick, glancing at 
 the visitor's card. " Oh, yes, I've heard of him 
 before. He and father had some stock dealings 
 a year or so ago. Bring him in." 
 
 Mr. Aronson proved to be a small, dark-com 
 plexioned man, with heavy eyebrows and a heav 
 ily-bearded face. He bowed profoundly as he 
 entered. 
 
 " Mr. Richard Rover, I believe ? " he said, ex 
 tending his hand. 
 
 "Yes, Mr. Aronson. And this is my brother 
 Tom," returned Dkk. 
 
 "Very glad to know you;" and the visitor< 
 bowed again. "I presume you know what 
 brought me here/' he went on, with a bland smile. 
 
 " I can't say that I do," returned Dick. 
 
 "Your father is he not here?" 
 
 " No, he is at home sick."
 
 242 
 
 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 " Is that so ? I am very sorry to hear it Then 
 you are transacting his business for him? " 
 
 " Yes, my brother and I are running this busi 
 ness now." 
 
 "And yet you said you did not know why I 
 had called," continued Mr. Aronson, in apparent 
 astonishment. "That is strange. Did not your 
 father tell you about his investment in the Sharon 
 Valley Land Company ? " 
 
 " I never heard of the company before," re 
 turned Dick, promptly. 
 
 " I heard my father mention it," put in Tom, 
 " but I never knew that he had made any invest 
 ment in it." 
 
 " What ? How surprising ! " ejaculated the vis 
 itor. "He has something like fifteen thousand 
 dollars invested in that concern, for which I have 
 the honor to be the agent. He has another pay 
 ment to make on the investment, and that pay 
 ment falls due just a week from to-day. Some 
 time ago he asked me if that payment might not 
 be deferred. I put it up to the managers of the 
 company, and they have now sent me word that 
 the payment will have to be made on the day that 
 it falls due." 
 
 "And how much is that payment?" faltered 
 Dick. 
 
 " Twenty thousand dollars."
 
 CHAPTER XXVI 
 
 IN WHICH THE GIRLS ARRIVE 
 
 BOTH of the Rover boys stared blankly at the 
 visitor. His announcement had come very much 
 like a clap of thunder out of a clear sky. For 
 the moment neither of them knew what to say. 
 
 " I am sorry you did not know about this," 
 pursued Mallin Aronson, when he saw by their 
 looks how much they were disturbed. " Perhaps 
 your dear father was taken sick so quickly that 
 he did not have a chance to explain the situation." 
 
 " He hasn't been well for a long while, but I 
 thought he had turned over all his business affairs 
 to us," answered Dick. " It is queer that we have 
 no record of this Sharon Valley Land Company 
 investment," he added, turning to Tom. 
 
 " Have you gone over all the papers, Dick ? " 
 questioned the brother, quickly. 
 
 "The most of them. That is, all that I 
 thought were of any importance. There are a 
 great number that I haven't had time to look at 
 yet. You know how numerous father's invest 
 ments are." 
 
 243
 
 244 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 " If you have no record of the transaction here, 
 can you not ask your father about it ? " questioned 
 Mr. Aronson, smoothly. 
 
 " He is too sick to be disturbed, Mr. Aronson," 
 answered Dick. 
 
 " Well, if you care to do so, you can stop at 
 my office and look over the account there," went 
 on the visitor. 
 
 " And you say this twenty thousand dollars has 
 got to be paid a week from to-day ? " asked Tom. 
 
 " Yes, Mr. Rover. The management will grant 
 no extension of time." 
 
 " Supposing it isn't paid ? " questioned Dick. 
 
 At this suggestion Mallin Aronson shrugged 
 his shoulders and put up his hands. 
 
 " I am sorry, but you know how some of these 
 land company people are," he returned. " This 
 money must be paid in order to clear the land. If 
 it is not cleared the company has the right to sell 
 your father's interest to others. As I said before, 
 he has paid fifteen thousand dollars. What his 
 interest would bring if sold to somebody else, I 
 do not know." 
 
 " Probably not very much/* returned Dick, ' 
 quickly. " Probably some of the land company 
 people would buy it in for a song," he added, 
 bitterly. 
 
 " Well, Mr. Rover, that is not my affair," and
 
 245 
 
 Mr. Aronson shrugged his shoulders. " I came 
 in only to serve you notice that the twenty thou 
 sand dollars will have to be paid one week from 
 to-day." 
 
 " Where are your offices, Mr. Aronson? " 
 
 "You will find my address on the card," was 
 the answer. "If you wish any more information, 
 I shall be pleased to give it to you;" and then the 
 visitor bowed himself out. 
 
 It was a great blow, and the two youths felt 
 it keenly. Ever since the loss of the sixty-four 
 thousand dollars in bonds they had been strug 
 gling with might and main to cover one obliga 
 tion after another. To do this had taxed about 
 every resource that Dick could think of aside 
 from borrowing from friends without putting up 
 any security something the youth shrank from 
 doing. 
 
 " Say, Dick, this is fierce ! " exclaimed Tom. 
 "What are we going to do about it? " 
 
 " I don't know yet," was the slow reply. " I 
 can't understand why father didn't mention this 
 .investment to me." 
 
 " He must have 'ielt so sick ttiat he forgot all 
 about it. You don't Vnagine that there is any 
 thing wrong about it? " 
 
 "'Oh, no! I guess it is all straight enough. 
 Aronson must know that he couldn't get any such
 
 246 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 money out of us unless everything was as straight 
 as a string." 
 
 " Perhaps Mr. Powell could get the twenty 
 thousand dollars for us." 
 
 "Maybe he could. But that isn't the point.,,' 
 Tom. I told you before that we want to ' stand 
 on our own bottom.' Besides, it isn't a fair thing- 
 to ask any one to put up money like that without 
 offering good security." 
 
 " But we don't want to lose the fifteen thousand 
 dollars that father has already invested." 
 
 " I know that, too. It's a miserable affair all 
 around, isn't it ? " And Dick sighed deeply. 
 
 When Sam came back from his errand he 
 brought news that under ordinary circumstances 
 would have interested his brothers very much. 
 
 " I was coming through Union Square Park 
 when whom should I see on one of the benches 
 but Josiah Crabtree ! " he exclaimed. 
 
 " Crabtree ! " cried Tom. " Then he must be 
 out of the hospital at last! How did he look?" 
 
 " He looked very pale and thin, and he had a 
 pair of crutches with him," answered Sam. " I 
 didn't see him walk, but I suppose he must limp 
 pretty badly, or he wouldn't have had tha 
 crutches." 
 
 " Did you speak to him ? " questioned Dick. 
 
 " No. At first I thought I would do so, but he
 
 IN WHICH THE GIRLS ARRIVE 247 
 
 looked so down-and-out that I didn't have the 
 heart to say anything and perhaps make him feel 
 worse." 
 
 " Do you suppose he has any money ? " asked 
 'Tom. 
 
 " He didn't look as if he had. But you never 
 can tell with such fellows as Crabtree he was a 
 good deal of a miser." 
 
 " What a misspent life his has been ! " was 
 Dick's comment. " I am mighty glad that he 
 didn't get the chance to marry Mrs. Stanhope." 
 
 " Right you are, Dick ! " returned Tom. " He'd 
 make a hard kind of a father-in-law to swallow ! " 
 
 It did not take long for Dick and Tom to ac 
 quaint Sam with the new money problem that 
 confronted them, and the youngest Rover became 
 equally worried over the situation. 
 
 " I think we had better write to Uncle Ran 
 dolph and see if he can find out a little about this 
 land company affair from father without, of 
 course, worrying him too much," suggested Dick. 
 " There may be some loophole out of this trouble 
 ,' although I am afraid there isn't." 
 
 " All right, we'll do it," said Tom, and the let 
 ter was written at once, and sent to Dexter's 
 Corners with a special delivery stamp attached. 
 
 On the following afternoon when Tom and 
 Sam got back to the hotel, a surprise awaited
 
 248 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 them. Going up to the suite occupied by Dick 
 and Dora, the brothers found themselves con 
 fronted by Nellie and Grace. 
 
 " Oh, Tom ! " was all Nellie could say. And 
 then coming straight forward she threw feersel! 
 into his arms and burst into tears. 
 
 " Now now, don't go on this way, Nellie,** 
 he stammered, not knowing what to say. " It's 
 all right. They've got the ring and you are 
 cleared. What's the use of crying about it 
 now?" 
 
 "Oh, but but I can't help it!" sobbed the 
 girl. " You don't know how I have suffered ! I 
 couldn't sleep nights, or anything ! Oh, Tom ! it 
 was grand the way you got that gardener to 
 confess ;" and she clung to him tighter than ever. 
 
 " And to think he put the ring in the inkwell ! " 
 cried Grace. " What a ridiculous thing to do ! " 
 
 " He must have done it on the spur of the mo 
 ment," said Sam. "But say. I'm mighty glad 
 that affair is cleared up ! " he added, his face 
 beaming. 
 
 Then all of the young folks sat down, and 
 the story had to be told once more in all of its* 
 details. 
 
 " I just had to come on ! I couldn't stay home 
 after I got the telegram and the letter," explained 
 Nellie, " so I sent a telegram to Dora."
 
 IN WHICH THE GIRLS ARRIVE 249 
 
 " We planned to surprise you," put in Grace. 
 
 " And it is a surprise, and a nice one," returned 
 Sam. Soon Dick, who had been somewhat de 
 tained, came in, and then there was more excite 
 ment. 
 
 "Well, what about accommodations for the 
 girls ? " asked Dick, who never forgot the prac 
 tical side of matters. 
 
 " Oh, that is all arranged, Dick," answered his 
 wife. " I have a room for them, and as your wife 
 I am to be their chaperon ;" and she smiled bright 
 ly as she passed her hand over his forehead. 
 " Poor boy, with so much to do ! " she added, 
 affectionately. 
 
 It was a happy gathering, and for the time 
 being the Rover boys did their best to forget their 
 troubles. They had a somewhat elaborate din 
 ner, and then Tom and Sam took the newcomers 
 out for a walk up " The Great White Way." 
 Dick said he would remain at the hotel with his 
 wife, as he wanted to write some letters. 
 
 "Might as well let them have their fling," he 
 said, after the others had departed. " That's the 
 way we wanted it before we were married;" and 
 lie gave his wife a hug and a kiss. 
 
 Of course the girls from Cedarville had a great 
 deal to tell, and Tom and Sam had a great deal 
 to relate in return. The two couples strolled on
 
 250 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 and on, and it was near eleven o'clock before they 
 returned to the Outlook Hotel. 
 
 "And so you are going to be a real business 
 man, are you, Tom?" said Nellie, during the 
 course of the walk. 
 
 " I am going to try to be, Nellie," he answered. 
 " Of course it is something of a job for a fellow 
 who is full of fun to settle down. I need help." 
 And he looked at her wistfully. 
 
 " Oh, Tom, if you would only settle your 
 mind " 
 
 " There's no use in talking, Nellie, I won't be 
 able to settle down in the really-and-truly fashion 
 until I am married," retorted the fun-loving 
 Rover. " You have got to be the one to settle 
 me." 
 
 " Tom Rover, if you talk like that I'll box your 
 ears!" 
 
 " All right, anything you say goes, Nellie. Only 
 tell me, aren't we going to be married some time 
 this Fall or Winter?" 
 
 "Tom!" 
 
 "Well, aren't we?" 
 
 " Oh, maybe. But you come on ! We are ouV- 
 for a walk, and here we are standing stock-still 
 in the middle of the sidewalk with folks all 
 around us. Come on ! If you don't come I will 
 leave you;" and Nellie started on, dragging Tom 
 with her.
 
 "OH, TOM!" WAS ALL NELLIE COULD SAY. 
 The Rover Boys in Business, 
 
 fage 248
 
 CHAPTER XXVII 
 
 THE MYSTERY OF THE SAFE 
 
 DICK was at his desk sorting out his morning 
 mail. He was rather downcast, for the past two 
 days had brought no news regarding the missing 
 bonds. On the other hand, he had received word 
 from his uncle that the investment in the Sharon 
 Valley Land Company was a perfectly legitimate 
 one, and that Mr. Aronson's claim would have to 
 be met 
 
 "And how we are going to meet it, I don't 
 know," said Dick, in speaking of the matter to 
 his brothers. " It certainly is tough luck to have 
 these obligations pouring in on us at just this 
 time." 
 
 " Well, there is one bright spot in uncle's let 
 ter," returned Sam. " He says dad is feeling 
 somewhat better. I am mighty glad of that." 
 
 " I guess we all are," broke in Tom. " Just the 
 same, I agree with Dkk. The financial outlook 
 is mighty gloomy." 
 
 There were other letters besides business com- 
 251
 
 252 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 munications for the boys. Songbird had written, 
 and so had Spud; and Dick had likewise a long 
 epistle from Bart Conners, who in years gone by 
 had been the young major of the Putnam Hall 
 cadets. But just now Dick had no heart to read 
 these communications. He felt that he must give 
 his entire attention to the business in hand. One 
 letter in a plain envelope was in a handwriting 
 entirely unfamiliar to him. He cut open the en 
 velope hastily to see what it might contain. A 
 glance at the single sheet inside, and his face 
 showed his interest. 
 
 " Look at this, boys ! " he cried ; and then read 
 the following: 
 
 "'Look over your safe very carefully. You 
 may discover something to your advantage.' ' 
 
 There was no signature. 
 
 "Who sent that?" came from Sam and Tom 
 simultaneously. 
 
 " I don't know. It isn't signed." 
 
 " ' Look over your safe very carefully. You 
 may discover something to your advantage,' " re 
 peated Tom. "Say! that looks as if somebody 
 knew something about the robbery ! " he went on, 
 excitedly. 
 
 "We have looked over the safe a dozen times,"
 
 THE MYSTERY OF THE SAFE 253 
 
 returned Sam. " It hasn't furnished the slightest 
 clew." 
 
 " We'll go over it again," broke in Dick, who 
 had already left his desk and gone to the strong 
 box. He worked at the combination for a few; 
 moments, and pulled open the safe door. 
 
 " Maybe we ought to have a light here," sug- ' 
 gested Tom. "It is rather dark in this cor- * 
 ner." 
 
 " Wait, I can fix that," said Sam, and reaching 
 for a droplight that hung over the desk, the 
 youngest Rover commenced to unfasten the wire 
 by which it was held in position. By this means 
 he was able to shift the light so that it hung di 
 rectly over the opening of the strong-box. 
 
 " Nothing unusual about the door or the com 
 bination that I can see," said Tom, after all had 
 made a careful inspection. 
 
 "And the sides seem to be all right," added 
 Sam. " Maybe it's the back or the bottom." 
 
 " If it wasn't so heavy we might be able to 
 swing the safe around away from the wall," said 
 Dick. "But wait, hold that light closer, Tom,, 
 and I'll see if I can find out anything from the' 
 inside." 
 
 Dick was now on his knees and feeling around 
 the back of the safe with his hand. Presently he 
 found a crack, and inserting his fingers he gave
 
 254 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 a push. Much to his astonishment a portion of 
 the^ safe back slid upward. 
 
 "Hello, I've found something!" he ejaculated. 
 " There is a hole in the back of this safe ! " 
 
 "You don't say so!" cried Sam; and he and 
 Tom peered into the steel box. 
 
 Then Dick continued to work around with his 
 hand, and presently was able to slide another sec 
 tion of the safe back upward. He now found 
 that he could touch a piece of board which evi 
 dently took the place of some plaster that had 
 formed part of the office wall. 
 
 " There must be a small trap door there, lead 
 ing to some place outside," said the oldest Rover 
 boy. " We'll go into the hall and have a look." 
 
 It did not take the eager youths long to reach 
 the hallway of the building, and once there, all 
 three hurried to the spot where they thought the 
 opening might be located. Soon they came to the 
 little closet which the janitor had once mentioned 
 to them a small place in which was located a 
 sink, and also a number of brooms, brushes, and 
 cleaning cloths. 
 
 The closet was dark, but Dick had brought 
 along a box of matches, and a light was quickly 
 made. A corner containing some brooms and 
 cloths was cleaned out, and the boys soon lo 
 cated a piece of board about eight inches square,
 
 THE MYSTERY OF THE SAFE 255 
 
 covered with a sheet of tin painted the same color 
 as the wall. 
 
 " It's as plain as daylight ! " cried Tom. " The 
 thief didn't have to open the safe door at all. He 
 simply came in here, removed that board, slid up 
 the back section of the safe, and took out what 
 he wanted." 
 
 "And the fellow who did it " broke in 
 
 Sam. 
 
 " Was either Pelter or Japson," finished Dick. 
 
 "Then you think this letter came from " 
 
 Tom started to say. 
 
 "That young fellow whose life you saved 
 Barton Pelter," answered Dick. 
 
 " By the rudder to Noah's Ark, I think you are 
 right ! " burst out Tom. " Why, it's as plain as 
 the nose on your face ! Don't you remember how 
 worried Barton Pelter looked when we told him 
 the bonds were missing, and how he asked us at 
 the moving picture show if we had gotten them 
 back yet? More than likely he knew how this 
 safe was fixed he used to come here, you know, 
 to see his uncle " 
 
 " I believe you're right, Tom," came from Sam, 
 "because if he didn't do it, who did? " 
 
 " I think I can make sure of this," returned 
 Tom. " Let us go back to the offices." 
 
 Tom had taken possession of one of the desks
 
 256 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 in the place, and in one of the pigeonholes he had 
 placed a number of letters, including the one re 
 ceived while at college from Jesse Pelter's 
 nephew. This he now brought forth, and com 
 pared the handwriting with that of the letter just 
 received. 
 
 " It's the same hand," he affirmed. And after 
 &n examination the brothers agreed with him. 
 
 "If Barton Pelter wrote that letter we ought 
 to locate him without delay," was Sam's com 
 ment. " He may know just where the missing 
 bonds are." 
 
 " Or else where we can locate his uncle and 
 Japson." 
 
 " Wait a minute ! " cried Dick. " You forget 
 that Japson has been away from New York for 
 some time. The detective told me that, and said 
 it was positive. So that would seem to put the 
 thing off on Pelter's shoulders; and I think Pel 
 ter is just the man to do such a thing. You'll 
 remember how bitter he was against us when we 
 exposed him." 
 
 "Then let us locate Jesse Pelter without de 
 lay," broke in Tom. " It ought to be easy, unless 
 he is in hiding." 
 
 "If he's got our bonds he'll certainly do his 
 best to keep out of our way," returned Dick, 
 grimly. " I think the best we can do first of all
 
 THE MYSTERY OF THE SAFE 257 
 
 is to locate Barton Pelter and make him tell us 
 all he knows." 
 
 " He said he had a chance of a position as a 
 traveling salesman." 
 
 "Did he say for whom?" 
 
 " He mentioned ' The Consolidated Create 
 Cracker Company,' whatever that is." 
 
 " Let us call them up and find out," said Dick 
 
 By consulting the telephone directory, the boys 
 were soon in communication with the cracker 
 company in question. They were informed that 
 Barton Pelter had been taken on as a salesman 
 the day before, and had left that evening for a 
 trip through the Middle West. It was not known 
 on what train he had departed. 
 
 "Nothing doing here," said Tom. "They 
 don't even seem to know what town he is going 
 to stop at first." 
 
 "I think we had better call up Mr. Bronson, 
 and tell him about this and put him on the trail 
 of the Pelters," answered Dick. 
 
 The detective was as astonished as the boys had 
 been when he saw the hole in the back of the 
 safe. 
 
 "This is certainly one on me," he confessed, 
 frankly. "I looked that safe over very care 
 fully, too. I should have discovered that;" and 
 his face showed his chagrin.
 
 258 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 Then he was told about the Pelters and about 
 Japson, and he agreed with the Rovers that he 
 had best try to locate Barton Pelter and his uncle 
 (without delay. 
 
 " I'll put a man on the trail of the young fel- 
 
 : low who went West," he said, "and as soon as 
 
 he sends me any word regarding Jesse Pelter I'll 
 
 go after that fellow, and I'll also let you know; 
 
 what I'm doing;" and so it was arranged.
 
 JOSIAH CRABTREE ONCE MORE 
 
 WHEN the boys arrived at the hotel that even 
 ing the girls had much to tell them. Nellie had 
 received a letter from Miss Harrow, in which the 
 teacher had frankly begged her pardon for hav 
 ing suspected the girl of taking the diamond ring. 
 
 " It is a lovely letter," said Nellie. " I never 
 thought that she could humble herself in that 
 fashion." 
 
 " I've got an idea ; in fact, I've had it for some 
 time," came from Tom. " I had Royce in this 
 afternoon to see me. He is very anxious to get 
 work. I've half a notion to ask you to write to 
 Miss Harrow and see if they won't take the fel 
 low back at the seminary." 
 
 " I am willing to write such a letter, Tom," an 
 swered the girl. " And if they won't take Royce 
 back, perhaps I can get my father to give him 
 work at our farm; although I know he is more 
 of a gardener than he is a farmer." 
 
 But the most important news the two girls and 
 259
 
 26o THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 Dick's wife had to tell was that on a shopping 
 tour after lunch they had walked into Josiah 
 Crabtree. 
 
 " We came face to face with him in front of 
 a show window," explained Dick's wife. " I was 
 so startled for the minute that I did not know 
 what to say. Oh, Dick ! he was on crutches, and 
 he did look so pale and thin I couldn't help but 
 feel sorry for him ! " 
 
 " He has evidently suffered a great deal," put 
 in Grace. " In fact, he said as much. He seemed 
 to be utterly downcast. He didn't look like the 
 dictatorial teacher he used to be at all." 
 
 " What did he have to say ? " questioned Sam. 
 
 " Oh, he was quite confused at first, but he did 
 ask about Dora's mother if she was well and 
 then he said he understood that you three were 
 going into business together. He said he hoped 
 you would be successful." 
 
 " The idea of old Crabtree saying that! " burst 
 out Tom. " It's enough to make a fellow think 
 the end of the world is coming." 
 
 "Did he say what he was doing, or what he 
 proposes to do?" questioned Dick. 
 
 " He said he had received a tentative offer of 
 a position in a boys' school in Maine," answered 1 
 Nellie, "but he did riot know whether he was' 
 going to take it or not. My idea is that he is too
 
 JOSIAH CRABTREE ONCE MORE 261 
 
 poor to even go to Maine. And he had on such 
 an old, rusty, black suit ! " 
 
 "Say! Did he say where he was stopping?" 
 questioned Dick, eagerly, struck by a sudden idea. 
 
 " No, he did not." 
 
 " Too bad ! I'd like to see him as soon as pos 
 sible." 
 
 "Why, what's up now, Dick?" questioned 
 Sam. 
 
 " I want to ask him if he knows anything about 
 Jesse Pelter where the fellow has gone to." 
 
 " It isn't likely. I don't think those two parted 
 the best of friends." 
 
 " Most likely not. Still Crabtree may know 
 where Pelter keeps himself." 
 
 "I'll tell you what you might do, Dick," sug 
 gested Tom. " You might send Crabtree a couple 
 of letters, one addressed to the General Delivery 
 here, and another simply addressed to New York 
 City; then you'll run two chances of striking 
 him." 
 
 " I'll do that," answered the older brother; and 
 sent off the communications without delay. In 
 each of them he asked Josiah Crabtree to call at 
 his offices as soon as possible. 
 
 "Do you think you can make him open up if 
 fie comes?" questioned Sam. 
 
 "I think so that is if I make it worth his
 
 262 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 while. If Crabtree is down on his luck he will 
 most likely be willing to do anything for money." 
 
 Two days went by, and the boys waited anx 
 iously for some word from the detective in re 
 gard to the whereabouts of the Pelters. But no 
 word came in, and they were as downcast as ever. 
 In the meanwhile Dick, aided by the others, 
 stirred around as best he could in an endeavor to 
 take care of their finances. 
 
 " I've got the small things all taken care of," 
 Dick said to Tom and Sam, on the evening of the 
 second day. " But what I am going to do about 
 that twenty thousand dollars we must pay the 
 Sharon Valley Land Company, and that other 
 claim Mr. Powell spoke about, I don't know. It 
 looks to me as if we were going to get into a 
 hole, unless I'm able to get some of our friends 
 to help us out." 
 
 The one bright spot on the horizon was the 
 news received from home, which was to the effect 
 that their father's health was improving. He had 
 gone downstairs and walked around the garden, 
 and also taken a short ride in the automobile. 
 Moreover, his mind seemed to be much brighter, 
 than it had been for a long while past. 
 
 On the following morning, when the three 
 youths were at the offices discussing the situa 
 tion, Bob Marsh came in.
 
 JOSIAH CRABTREE ONCE MORE 263 
 
 " A man to see you," announced the office boy. 
 " A man on crutches named Crabtree." 
 
 " Show him in ! " exclaimed Dick. And then 
 he added hastily to his brothers in a lower tone: 
 " Now let me engineer this, please. I think I 
 know how to handle him." 
 
 " Go ahead, Dick," responded Tom; and Sam 
 nodded. 
 
 Josiah Crabtree hobbled in on his crutches, with 
 his hat in his hand. Evidently he was weak and 
 nervous. His thin face had lost much of its for 
 mer shrewdness and cunning, and he looked quite 
 downcast. 
 
 " Good morning, young gentlemen," he said, in 
 a somewhat cracked voice. " You sent me a let 
 ter. I just got it at the post-office." 
 
 " Sit down, Mr. Crabtree," returned Dick, and 
 offered the former teacher of Putnam Hall a 
 chair. 
 
 " Thank you." Josiah Crabtree sank down on 
 the seat, resting his crutches against his knee. 
 " You have the same offices that Pelter, Japson 
 & Company had, I perceive," he continued, allow 
 ing his eyes to rove around. 
 
 "Yes, Mr. Crabtree," answered Dick. "By 
 the way, do you know where Mr. Pelter is just 
 now?" 
 
 "You said you wanted to see me about some
 
 264 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 particular business," said the former teacher. 
 " Perhaps we had better get at that first" 
 
 "Well, I might as well admit, Mr. Crabtree, 
 
 that what I wanted to see you about is this. I 
 
 * 
 
 want to know if you can tell me where Mr. Jesse 
 Pelter is just now." 
 
 " Oh, is that all ! " And Josiah Crabtree's face 
 showed his disappointment. 
 
 " That is all at present" 
 
 " Humph ! Supposing I don't care to tell you 
 where he is?" 
 
 " Now see here ! " pursued Dick, earnestly. 
 "If I understand matters aright, Mr. Crabtree, 
 Jesse Pelter is no longer a friend of yours. When 
 you went to the hospital he practically deserted 
 you, isn't that right ? " 
 
 " It is ! " exclaimed the former teacher, bitterly. 
 " He left me in the lurch, and not only that, he 
 didn't give me the money that was rightfully com 
 ing to me." 
 
 " Exactly so ! Now then, why shouldn't you 
 help us to locate him? " 
 
 "Well er well er supposing I did helpj 
 you?" returned Josiah Crabtree, hesitatingly. 
 
 " If you will do that, Mr. Crabtree, I'll make it 
 well worth your while," responded Dick, quickly. 
 " I may as well admit to you that we wish to get 
 hold of Mr. Pelter as soon as possible. We want
 
 JOSIAH CRABTREE ONCE MORE 265 
 
 him to clear up a certain transaction. If you can 
 put me into communication with him to-day, I'll 
 give you fifty dollars." 
 
 At the mention of fifty dollars Josiah Crab- 
 tree's, eyes lit up. Evidently he had not seen that 
 amount of money for some time. 
 
 " You'll give me fifty dollars ? " he repeated. 
 
 "I will." 
 
 "There is no fooling about this, Rover?" 
 
 " Mr. Crabtree, did I ever deceive you? " And 
 Dick looked the former teacher squarely in the 
 eyes. 
 
 " I don't think you did, Rover. So you want 
 to find Jesse Pelter, and you'll give me fifty dol 
 lars if I'll help you do it? All right, I'll take 
 you up. I don't think Pelter is aware that I know 
 where he is, but I do ;" and Josiah Crabtree smiled 
 grimly. 
 
 "Where is he?" 
 
 " He told Japson that he was going down East, 
 most likely to Boston. But he didn't do any such 
 thing; he hung around New York for awhile and 
 then he went to Philadelphia, and he's down there 
 now, I am thinking, unless he took a boat for 
 Europe." 
 
 "What? Was he going from Philadelphia to 
 'Europe ? " broke in Tom. 
 
 " So I understood. Although why he didn't go
 
 266 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 from New York is a mystery the service is so 
 much better." 
 
 " Have you any idea where he is stopping in 
 Philadelphia ? " questioned Dick. , 
 
 " He usually stopped with a distant relative of, 
 his a man named Crowley Pelter." 
 
 " Then that's all I want to know for the pres 
 ent, Mr. Crabtree," announced Dick. "If we 
 can locate him I'll let you know and then the fifty 
 dollars will be yours." 
 
 " How soon are you going to look for the 
 man ? " asked the former teacher, curiously. 
 
 " At once," was Dick's quick reply. " Leave 
 me your address, and as soon as we hear anything 
 I'll let you know." And a few minutes later the 
 boys brought the interview to an end.
 
 CHAPTER XXIX 
 
 THE JAPANNED BOX 
 
 " Now to find out where Crowley Pelter lives ! " 
 said Dick. 
 
 The train carrying the three Rover boys from 
 New York to Philadelphia was rolling into the 
 big, smoky station. It was about two o'clock in 
 the afternoon, and the youths had dined on the 
 train while making the journey. They had left 
 the offices in charge of Bob Marsh, stating that 
 they would most likely be away for the rest of 
 the day. At first Dick and Tom had thought to 
 leave Sam behind, but the latter had insisted on 
 going along. It had been a two hours' run to the 
 Quaker City. 
 
 " Let's look at a telephone directory," suggest 
 ed Tom. 
 
 " Oh, you don't want to telephone to him, do 
 you?" queried Sam. "That might put Jesse 
 Pelter on his guard." 
 
 " We won't telephone, we'll simply look for the 
 address," answered his brother. 
 267
 
 268 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 But there proved to be no Crowley Pelter in 
 the telephone directory, so the boys had to consult 
 a regular directory. They found that the man 
 lived quite a distance out, in the Germantown 
 section. 
 
 " Let's hire a taxi, and get out there as fast as 
 we can," suggested Dick. Now that they were 
 actually on the trail of the missing broker he was 
 anxious to bring the pursuit to an end. 
 
 Outside the railroad station taxicabs were nu 
 merous, and the boys quickly hired one of the 
 best of the machines and gave the driver direc 
 tions where to go. 
 
 " And don't lose any time," ordered Dick. 
 
 " I'll run as fast as I dare," returned the chauf 
 feur. 
 
 The ride to Crowley Pelter's residence took a 
 good three-quarters of an hour. The place was a 
 small but well-kept one on a corner. 
 
 " I guess I had better go in alone," suggested 
 Dick. " If I need you I'll whistle or wave my 
 handkerchief;" and then he ran up the front 
 steps and rang the bell. A tall, angular woman, 
 wearing large spectacles, soon answered his sum 
 mons. 
 
 "Good afternoon," said Dick, politely. "Is 
 this Mr. Crowley Belter's residence?" 
 
 "Yes, sir."
 
 THE JAPANNED BOX 269 
 
 " I believe Mr. Jesse Pelter is staying here. 
 Can I see him? " went on Dick. 
 
 " Mr. Jesse Pelter was staying here, but he has 
 just gone he went about an hour ago." , 
 
 " Is that so ! " cried Dick. " Can you tell me , 
 where he went to ? " 
 
 "Well, I er I don't know," faltered the 
 woman, and eyed Dick sharply. 
 
 " I have a very important message for him," 
 Dick hastened to say. " I must see him at once." 
 
 " Oh, in that case you'll find him down at the 
 docks. He has engaged passage on the Princess 
 Lenida bound for Liverpool." 
 
 " And when does the Princess Lenida sail ? " 
 asked Dick, quickly. 
 
 " I don't know exactly. Either this afternoon 
 or to-morrow morning." 
 
 "And you are sure He has gone to the 
 steamer? " 
 
 " Oh, yes. He sent his baggage off this morn 
 ing, and he said tie would not be back." 
 
 " Thank you, Madam." And without another 
 word Dick turned and left the residence. 
 
 As he did this he saw a man he knew hurrying 
 along the street. The man stopped when he 
 caught sight of Dick and the two boys in the 
 taxi cab. 
 
 "Why, you here, Mr. Bronson?" cried Dick.
 
 2/0 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 " Hello ! how in the world did you fellows get 
 here ! " exclaimed the detective the Rovers had 
 hired but a short time before. " Are you on the 
 trail of Pelter, too ? " 
 
 "We are," answered Dick. "How did you 
 learn he had been here? " 
 
 " Had been ! Do you mean to say he has left ? " 
 
 " Yes. The woman who came to the door told 
 me he had left about an hour ago. He is going 
 to sail on the Princess Lenida for Liverpool 
 either this afternoon or to-morrow morning." 
 
 " Say, then we want to get after him at once ! " 
 cried the detective. 
 
 " I agree on that," answered Dick. He turned 
 to the chauffeur. " Do you know the dock from 
 which the Princess Lenida sails ? " he questioned. 
 
 " Sure I do ! I've been there many a time," 
 answered the taxicab driver. 
 
 " Then take us there just as quickly as you 
 can," said Dick. " Never mind the speed laws. 
 If you are held up we will pay the fine." 
 
 "We won't be held up not if I show this," 
 said the detective, and exhibited the badge pinned 
 to his vest. Then Dick and Mr. Bronson jumped 
 into the taxicab, and away the turnout went at 
 top speed back to the heart of the city. 
 
 " How did you get here? " questioned Tom, of 
 the detective while riding along.
 
 THE JAPANNED BOX 271 
 
 " As I said I would, I got into communication 
 with one of our men out West, and he went after 
 that Barton Pelter. He got him in Dayton, and 
 made him confess that he had sent that note to 
 you. Then he told our man that his uncle was .' 
 most likely here in Philadelphia; so I came on 
 at once to see if I could locate the man." 
 
 "If only we can catch him before he sails!" 
 cried Sam, 
 
 " Oh, we've got to do it ! " put in Tom. 
 Soon the taxkab reached the crowded thor 
 oughfares of Philadelphia. They made several 
 turns, crossing the track of the street cars, and 
 finally came to a halt near the river front. 
 
 "There's the dock you want," said the chauf 
 feur, pointing with his hand. 
 
 "Is that the Princess Lenidaf" questioned 
 Dick, quickly, indicating the upper works of a 
 steamer, which could be seen over the dock build 
 ings. 
 
 " I think so, sir." 
 
 " Come on, then ! " cried Tom. " Sam, you pay 
 the fellow, will you ? " 
 
 " All right ! " was the quick reply. And then 
 Tom and Dick hurried after Mr. Bronson, who 
 was already entering the dock building. 
 
 Had they been alone the Rovers might have 
 had some difficulty in gaining entrance to the
 
 272 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 dock; but the detective led the way, showing his 
 badge; and soon the party found themselves at 
 the gang-plank of the steamer. Here Sam re 
 joined them. 
 
 From the purser they learned that Jesse Pelter 
 had engaged stateroom Number 148. 
 
 "But I can't say if he is aboard or not," said 
 the steamer official. " You see, we are not to sail 
 until nine o'clock to-morrow morning. There 
 was some talk of sailing this afternoon, but we 
 have been delayed. Do you want me to send to 
 the stateroom for you ? " 
 
 " Oh, no, we'll go there ourselves," returned 
 the detective, quickly. " I don't want to alarm 
 him if I can help it." 
 
 " I guess you are after him," said the purser, 
 grimly. 
 
 " We certainly are ! " answered Tom. 
 
 It was an easy matter to locate stateroom Num 
 ber 148, which was on the main deck forward. 
 The entrance was in a narrow passageway, and 
 close at hand was a door opening on a narrow 
 walkway between the staterooms and the ship's 
 rail. 
 
 "Wait a moment," whispered the detective, 
 and stepped outside. He was now close to a shut 
 tered window of the stateroom engaged by Jesse 
 Pelter.
 
 THE JAPANNED BOX 273 
 
 From the room came a murmur of voices, and 
 without speaking further the detective motioned 
 for the Rover boys to join him beside the win 
 dow. Although the slatted shutter was up, evi 
 dently the glass of the window had been let down 
 its full length, for those outside could hear what 
 was said within with ease. 
 
 " That proposition is all right as far as it goes/* 
 they heard, in Jesse Pelter's voice. " But I can't 
 see, Haywood, where you ought to have fifty per 
 cent, of the returns." 
 
 "I do ! " answered somebody else evidently 
 the man called Haywood. " I'm running all the 
 risk, it seems to me." 
 
 " Not so very much of a risk," went on Jesse 
 Pelter. " Sixty thousand dollars' worth of those 
 bonds are unregistered." 
 
 "All very true. But for all you know the 
 numbers may be advertised as stolen. If so, I 
 may get pinched when I offer them." 
 
 "Not if you are careful and work the thing in 
 the right kind of a way," pursued the former 
 broker. 
 
 "Well, I'll tell you what I'll do," returned 
 Haywood. " I'll take a third and not a dollar 
 less. Now let us go over the bonds and check 
 them up," he continued. And then followed a 
 rustling of numerous papers.
 
 274 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 "Don't you think we have heard enough?" 
 whispered Dick, to the detective. 
 
 "All that is necessary, Mr. Rover," was the 
 answer. " Stand close by me," the detective con 
 tinued, " and be prepared to rush them the instant 
 the door is opened." 
 
 Having thus spoken, Mr. Bronson stepped back 
 through the passageway, and knocked sharply on 
 the stateroom door. 
 
 "Who's there?" came in nervous tones from 
 Jesse Pelter. 
 
 "A telegram for Mr. Pelter!" cried the de 
 tective, in a high-pitched, boyish voice. 
 
 " Oh ! " came from within ; and then the key 
 was turned in the lock, and the door was opened 
 several inches. 
 
 The next instant the detective threw his weight 
 against the barrier, and forced it back. He 
 leaped into the stateroom, and the three Rover 
 boys followed him. 
 
 "Hi, what does this mean?" cried Jesse Pel 
 ter, as he was forced backward against a wash- 
 stand. 
 
 " It means that your game is up, Pelter ! " cried 
 Tom. 
 
 " We've caught you just as we wanted to ! " 
 added Dick. 
 
 "And you're not going to get away either,"
 
 THE JAPANNED BOX 275 
 
 came from Sam, as he managed to close the state 
 room door and put his back against it. 
 
 Mr. Bronson had said nothing. He held the 
 former broker with one hand, and produced a 
 pair of handcuffs with the other. Then came a 
 double click, and Jesse Pelter found himself hand 
 cuffed. 
 
 " See here, you let me out of this ! " stormed 
 the man named Haywood. " I haven't done any 
 thing wrong. You let me go ! " And he started 
 for the door. 
 
 " Not much ! You stay where you are ! " cried 
 Tom, and gave the fellow a shove which sent 
 him sprawling backward over a berth. 
 
 In the meanwhile Dick's quick eyes had located 
 the japanned box partly filled with the missing 
 bonds. Other bonds lay on the berth and on the 
 floor. The oldest Rover boy lost no time in 
 gathering up the precious documents, and placed 
 them in the box. 
 
 " I tell you I want you to let me go ! " splut 
 tered Haywood. "I haven't done anything 
 wrong ! " 
 
 " See here, Grimes," broke in the detective, 
 sternly, "you sit right where you are. I know 
 you, and you ought to know me;" and the de 
 tective took a step forward and looked the man 
 full in the face.
 
 276 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 " Oliver Bronson ! " murmured the man who 
 had agreed to dispose of the stolen bonds. " How 
 did you get onto this game?" 
 
 " You'll find out about that later, Grimes." 
 
 " Is his name Grimes ? " questioned Tom. 
 
 " That's one of his names. He is also known 
 as Haywood, and likewise Slippery Peter. He 
 used to work in Pittsburgh and Washington ; but 
 I heard some time ago that he was trying his 
 games on in Philadelphia." 
 
 " See here, Rover, can't we er fix this little 
 matter up somehow?" faltered Jesse Pelter. 
 
 "We can, and we will in court," answered 
 Dick, coldly. 
 
 " Oh, but see here " 
 
 " Don't waste your breath, Pelter. We let you 
 go on those other charges, but we are not going 
 to let you go on this one," interrupted Dick. 
 " This was a downright steal, and you have got 
 to take the consequences. Mr. Bronson, what do 
 you want to do with them? " 
 
 " One of you had better call in a policeman," 
 returned the detective. "Then we'll take them 
 to headquarters. I think this is quite a catch," 
 he continued. " The authorities have been trying 
 to fasten something on Grimes for a long while." 
 
 "Humph! You haven't fastened this on me 
 yet," growled the sharper mentioned.
 
 THE JAPANNED BOX 
 
 277 
 
 "Don't worry. You'll get what's coming to 
 you," returned the detective. 
 
 Sam slipped out, and in a few minutes re 
 turned with a policeman. Then a call was sent in 
 for a patrol wagon, and in this the entire party 
 was taken to the police station. A formal charge 
 was entered against the two criminals, and they 
 were led away to separate cells. Then came sev 
 eral formalities before Dick and his brothers were 
 allowed to take possession of the japanned box 
 with its precious contents. The bonds were gone 
 over with care, and it was ascertained that not 
 one was missing. 
 
 " Oh, this is great ! " cried Tom, his face beam 
 ing. " I feel like dancing a jig." 
 
 " So do I," returned Sam. " Dick, don't you 
 think we had better send word to New York?" 
 
 " Oh, we'll take the next train back, Sam, and 
 surprise the girls," answered the oldest brother. 
 
 " I'll remain behind in Philadelphia, and take 
 charge of this case," said Mr. Bronson. "Now 
 that you have your bonds back, I suppose you'll 
 want to fix up some of those financial matters 
 that you mentioned." 
 
 "We certainly do," answered Diet. 
 
 And after a few words more, the boys bade 
 the detective good-bye, and hurried to take a 
 train back to the metropolis.
 
 CHAPTER XXX 
 
 " AND you got back all the bonds, Dick? How 
 splendid ! " 
 
 It was Dora who uttered the words, shortly 
 after the arrival at the Outlook Hotel of the three 
 Rovers. Dick had had the japanned box under 
 his arm, and now held it up in triumph. 
 
 " Yes, we've got them all back, and those that 
 don't go to the bank as collateral security for a 
 loan are going to a safe deposit box," answered 
 Dick. " I won't take any more chances with an 
 office safe." 
 
 " Especially not that office safe," put in Sam, 
 pointedly. 
 
 " And what are you going to do with Jesse 
 Pelter?" questioned Nellie. 
 
 " We are going to put him where he belongs 
 in prison," answered Tom. And it may be as 
 well to state here that in due course of time Jesse 
 Pelter and his partner in crime, Grimes, alias 
 Haywood, were tried and sentenced to long terms 
 278
 
 MRS. TOM ROVER-CONCLUSION 279 
 
 in prison. At this trial it was brought to light 
 that Barton Pelter had known about the hole in 
 the back of the safe, but had had absolutely noth 
 ing to do with the taking of the bonds. Jesse 
 Pelter was very bitter against his nephew for ex 
 posing him, but the Rovers told the young man 
 that he had done exactly right, and he said that 
 he thought so, too. As soon as the trial was over 
 Barton Pelter returned to the Middle West, 
 where he did fairly well as a traveling salesman 
 for the cracker company. 
 
 The next few days following the recovery of 
 the bonds proved busy ones for the Rovers. 
 Some of the bonds were put up at a bank as col 
 lateral security for a substantial loan, and with 
 this money Dick took care of the Sharon Valley 
 Land Company investment, and also the invest 
 ment brought to his attention by Mr. Powell. 
 
 " Now we are on the straight road once more ! " 
 declared Dick, after these matters and a number 
 of others had been cleared up. 
 
 " And I'm mighty glad of it/' returned Tom, 
 with a beaming face. " I think we all ought to go 
 off and celebrate. What's the matter with a trip 
 to Coney Island, or something like that? " 
 
 " Wow ! I thought he was going to suggest a 
 honeymoon trip for himself and Nellie," cried 
 Sam, mischievously.
 
 28o THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 " Say, young man, don't get so previous ! " re 
 torted Tom, growing red in the face. " Just tbe 
 same, that's coming a little later," he added, 
 quickly. 
 
 " Provided Nellie is willing," went on the 
 youngest Rover, teasingly. 
 
 " Oh, don't you worry about that, Sam. By 
 the looks of things you'll be in the same boat 
 some day." 
 
 " Well, a fellow might do worse," answered 
 Sam, coolly. 
 
 The days to follow were full of combined busi 
 ness and pleasure for the boys. When they were 
 not at the office they were with f.:e girls, and all 
 took numerous trips to various places of amuse 
 ment in and out of the metrr- olis. As was to 
 be expected, Tom was the life of the party, and 
 the way he "cut up" was "simply awful," as 
 Nellie declared. 
 
 " Well, I can't help it," was trie way the fun- 
 loving Rover explained his actions. " I've got to 
 let off steam or 'bust/" rnd then I 3 did a few 
 steps of a jig, finishing by catchir ^ Nellie tip iri 
 his arms and whirling her around in the air. 
 
 Of course the boys had lost no time in sending 
 word to the folks at Valley Brook Farm that all 
 business complications had been straightened out, 
 and that everything at the offices was running!
 
 MRS. TOM ROVER CONCLUSION' 281 
 
 smoothly. In return came back word that Mr. 
 Anderson Rover was feeling stronger than ever, 
 and hoped ere long to be well enough to visit the 
 pity. 
 
 "But I don't expect to do much in business," 
 wrote Mr. Rover. " I am going to leave that en 
 tirely to Dick and Tom. I understand that Tom 
 expects before a great while to get married, and 
 when that happens I want to form The Rover 
 Company, and take him and Dick in with me, 
 Sam, of course, to come in later, after La has 
 fink'-.ed r t collere, although he won't have to take 
 an active r r.rt unless he wishes to do so. My best 
 love to all of you, and may you have no more 
 trouble." 
 
 " Dear old dad ! " murmured Tom, when he 
 had perused this communication, and for a mo 
 ment his voice grc . v husky and his eyes moist. 
 
 Now that it had been definitely settled thai 
 Tom and ITellie were going to be married, Sam 
 wanted to Lacy,? if the date couldn't be set early 
 enough o t^t lie could be c:i hand before return 
 ing to Brill. This bolstered up Tom's plea for an 
 early ceremony, and it was decided that the wed 
 ding sHould come off the first week in September. 
 
 Then followed great preparations on the part
 
 282 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 of Nellie and the others. Mrs. Laning and Mrs. 
 Stanhope came down to New York, and numer 
 ous shopping tours were instituted, in which the 
 boys had no part Then the Lanings and Mrs. 
 Stanhope returned to Cedarville, and Tom and 
 Sam went back to the farm. 
 
 During those days, as busy as they were, Nellie 
 and Tom had not forgotten Andy Royce. Letters 
 .had been exchanged between the young folks and 
 those in authority at Hope Seminary, and at last 
 it was arranged that the gardener should be taken 
 back and given another chance. He promised 
 faithfully to give up drinking. 
 
 The Rover boys had also had several visits 
 from Josiah Crabtree. They had found out that 
 the former teacher of Putnam Hall was practi 
 cally down and out, and, although he was not de 
 serving of their sympathy, all felt sorry for him, 
 and so not only did they give him the fifty dollars 
 as Dick had promised, but they also presented him 
 with a new outfit of clothing. Then Josiah Crab- 
 tree departed, to accept the position as a teacher 
 which had been offered to him. 
 
 "Where are you going to live after you are 
 married, Tom?" questioned Sam. "Are you 
 going to the Outlook Hotel, too?" 
 
 "Not much, no hotel life for me!" returned 
 Tom. "Nellie and I talked it over with Dora
 
 MRS. TOM ROVER CONCLUSION. -383 
 
 and Dick, and we have taken an apartment to 
 gether on Riverside Drive, a pretty spot over 
 looking the Hudson River. We are going to keep 
 house together, and we'll all be ' as snug as a bug 
 in a rug/ ' 
 
 "Oh, that will be fine!" 
 
 " Some day, Sam, I suppose we'll be taking in 
 you and Grace," went on Tom, with a grin. 
 "Well, we'll do it even if we have to get a 
 larger apartment." 
 
 It had been decided that the wedding should 
 take place in the Cedarville Union Church a 
 little stone edifice where Dick and Dora had been 
 married, and which for years had been the church 
 home of the Lanings and the Stanhopes. Nellie 
 and Tom had a host of friends, and it was a 
 question how so many could be accommodated in 
 such a small building. 
 
 "Well, if they can't get in, they'll have to 
 stand outside," said Tom, when talking the mat 
 ter over. " We'll do the best we can." And then 
 the invitations to the affair were addressed and 
 sent out 
 
 As was to be expected, the wedding presents 
 were both numerous and costly, rivalling those 
 received by Dora and Dick. Mr. Anderson 
 Rover duplicated the silver service given to his 
 oldest son, and Dick and Sam joined in forward-
 
 284 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 ing a handsomely decorated dinner set As Uncle 
 Randolph and Aunt Martha had given Dick a set 
 of encyclopaedias, they sent other books to Nellie, 
 but not forgetting a specially-bound volume of 
 the uncle's book on scientific farming. In addi 
 tion to all this came a bankbook from Mr. An 
 derson Rover with an amount written therein 
 that was the duplicate of the amount he had pre 
 sented to Dora and Dick. 
 
 " I knew he'd do it, Nellie," said Tom, when, 
 with their heads close together, the pair looked 
 at the bankbook. " It's just like dad." 
 
 " It's too perfectly splendid for anything, 
 Tom!" returned the girl, her eyes beaming. 
 "When I get the chance I'm just going to hug 
 him to death ! " 
 
 Nellie and Grace had always been Mrs. Stan 
 hope's favorite nieces, and now that lady sent a 
 set of beautifully embroidered linen, some of 
 which had been in the Stanhope family for sev 
 eral generations. And to this gift Mr. and Mrs. 
 Laning added some cut glass dishes of the latest 
 design. Then came from Captain Putnam of the 
 * school which the boys had attended so many 
 years, a revolving bookstand, and with it a box 
 of books, each volume from some particular 
 youth who in the past had been a cadet at Putnam 
 Hall twenty- four volumes in all, each with a
 
 MRS. TOM ROVER CONCLUSION 285 
 
 name in it that brought up all sorts of memories 
 to Tom as he read it. 
 
 " One of the nicest gifts the Old Guard could 
 have given me ! " was Tom's comment. " It must 
 have been some job to get that set of books to 
 gether. Why, some of those fellows are miles 
 and miles away ! They are scattered all over the 
 United States." 
 
 Many of the students at Hope had remembered 
 Nellie, and even Miss Harrow sent her a small 
 water-color picture. From the boys of Brill came 
 half a dozen presents some useful and some 
 ornamental. Even Tom's former enemy, Dan 
 Baxter, who was now his friend, had not for 
 gotten him, and sent a pair of napkin rings, suit 
 ably engraved. Tom's own present to his bride 
 was a magnificent diamond brooch, which pleased 
 Nellie immensely. 
 
 And then came the great day, full of sunshine 
 and with a gentle breeze blowing from the West. 
 Tom and his family, including his father, who 
 now felt almost as strong as ever, were located 
 at the old Stanhope home with a number of their 
 friends, while many of Nellie's relatives and 
 friends were stopping with the Lanings at their 
 farm. Other friends of both the young folks 
 were located at the Cedarville Hotel. 
 
 To follow the time set by Dick and Dora, it
 
 286 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 had been decided to hold the wedding at high' 
 noon. As before, the church was decorated with 
 palms brought up from Ithaca. Soon the guests 
 began to assemble, until the little edifice was 
 crowded to its capacity. Captain Putnam was 
 there in full uniform, and with him over a score 
 of cadets. From Brill came at least a dozen col 
 legians led by Spud and Stanley. Even William 
 Philander Tubbs was on hand, in a full-dress suit 
 of the latest pattern, and with a big chrysanthe 
 mum in his buttonhole. There were several 
 bridesmaids led by Grace, while Sam was Tom's 
 best man. The wedding party was preceded by 
 a little flower girl, and a little boy beside her who 
 carried the wedding rings on a pillow. 
 
 Nellie was on her father's arm, daintily attired 
 in white charmeuse with her tulle veil trimmed in 
 orange blossoms, and her girl friends declared 
 that she was the prettiest bride they had ever seen. 
 The ceremony was a short one, and at the con 
 clusion Tom gave his bride such a hearty smack 
 that every one present had to smile. 
 
 " A fine wedding, don't you know ! " was Wil 
 liam Philander Tubbs' comment, when a number 
 of the guests were on their way to the Laning 
 home, in carriages and automobiles. 
 
 " Yes. And Tom has got a fine girl ! " an 
 swered Songbird,
 
 MRS. TOM ROVER-CONCLUSION 287 
 
 "Where's the poetry for the occasion, Song 
 bird?" queried Stanley. 
 
 " Oh, I am reserving that for the wedding din 
 ner," was the answer. And it may be mentioned 
 here that at the proper time the would-be poet 
 recited an original poem of half a dozen verses, 
 written in honor of the occasion. 
 
 " Say, Dick, we've got to give Tom a send- 
 off," whispered Sam to his big brother, after the 
 Laning home had been reached. 
 
 " We sure will give him a send-off ! " returned 
 Dick, who had not forgotten what had taken 
 place when he and Dora had departed on their 
 honeymoon. 
 
 " I wish I didn't have to go back to Brill," 
 went on the youngest Rover, rather wistfully, 
 and with a sigh. 
 
 "Oh, your term at college will soon come to 
 an end, Sam. You may have lots of fun." 
 What fun Sam did have, and what further befell 
 the boys will be related in the next volume of this 
 series, to be entitled "The Rover Boys on a 
 Tour; Or, Last Days at Brill College." 
 
 The wedding dinner, participated in by all the 
 relatives and a great number of friends, was a 
 huge success. An orchestra had been engaged 
 for the occasion, and after the meal there was 
 dancing by the young folks for several hours,
 
 288 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 both indoors and on the broad veranda of the 
 homestead. 
 
 " Where are you going on your wedding tour, 
 Tom? " asked Spud. 
 
 "We haven't decided yet," was the quick 
 reply. " We're thinking something of going to 
 the north pole, but we may go to the moon in 
 stead;" and at this answer there was a general 
 laugh. 
 
 " They are going to slip away if they can," 
 was Sam's comment to half a dozen of his 
 chums, a little later. " We'll have to be on our 
 guard." 
 
 All of the young folks had provided themselves 
 with rice, confetti, old shoes, and strips of white 
 ribbon with which to celebrate the occasion the; 
 ribbon being for the purpose of decorating the 
 ;young couple's baggage. Sam had also provided 
 a placard which read: "Are we happy? We 
 ore!" and this was nailed to Tom's trunk. 
 
 "Where are they?" 
 
 This was the cry that went up in the middle 
 of one of the dances. Tom had slipped off into 
 a side room, and Nellie had followed. Now both 
 of the young folks were missing. 
 
 "They are going out the back way!" cried 
 Dick. 
 
 " Everybody watch the stairs and the doors ! "
 
 MRS. TOM ROVER CONCLUSION 289 
 
 exclaimed Sam. " We mustn't let them get away 
 from us ! " 
 
 There was a general scramble, commingled 
 with shrieks of laughter as the young folks did 
 their best to locate the missing couple. Then of 
 a sudden came a wild toot from an automobile 
 horn. 
 
 " There they are ! " 
 
 " Come on, everybody ! " 
 
 There followed a wild scramble from the house 
 to the lane leading to the roadway. In the lane 
 was an automobile belonging to the Cedarville 
 garage, and run by a chauffeur. On the back seat 
 were Tom and Nellie, waving their hands gaily. 
 
 " Good-bye, everybody ! Sorry we have to 
 leave you so soon ! " yelled Tom. 
 
 " We'll be back some day ! Good-bye ! " added 
 Nellie. 
 
 "After them! After them! " yelled Dick and 
 Sam; and then all of the young folks hurried up 
 the lane, pelting those in the automobile with rice 
 and old shoes. 
 
 "We might go after them in another auto," 
 suggested Spud. 
 
 "You'll never catch that machine," returned 
 one of the Putnam Hall cadets. " That's the fast 
 est car around Cedarville. Tom knew what he 
 ;was doing when he hired it."
 
 290 THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 The automobile with the newly-married pair 
 had already reached the highway. Those left be 
 hind waved their hands gaily, and Tom and Nel 
 lie, standing up in the tonneau, waved in return. 
 Then with another loud toot of the horn the auto 
 mobile dashed onward, and disappeared around 
 a turn of the road. 
 
 " Well, good-bye to them, and may they be 
 happy ! " said Anderson Rover, who stood on the 
 veranda watching the departure. 
 
 " Yes, I think they deserve to be happy," an 
 swered Mrs. Laning, who stood beside him, wip 
 ing the tears from her eyes. "Nellie is a good 
 girl, and Tom is a good boy in spite of his liking 
 for fun. I do hope they get along in life!" 
 
 " Come on back and finish the dance," said 
 Sam to Grace. And then catching her arm 
 tightly, he whispered : " It is our turn next, 
 isn't it?" 
 
 " Maybe, Sam," she returned, in a low voice. 
 
 Already the band was striking up, and soon 
 the young folks had resumed their dancing; and 
 here for the time being we will leave them, and 
 say good-bye. 
 
 THE END
 
 Would you like to know what 
 became of the good friends you 
 have nude in this book? 
 
 Would you like to read other 
 stories continuing thek adventures 
 and experiences, r other books 
 cpite as entertaining by the same 
 author? 
 
 On the reverse side of the wrap 
 per which comes with this book, 
 yem wfll find a wonderful list of 
 stories which you can buy at the 
 same store where you got this book. 
 
 Don't throw away the Wrapper 
 
 Use it as a handy catalog of the books 
 you want some day to have, ^ut in 
 case you do mislay it, write to the 
 Tublishers for a complete catalog.
 
 THE FAMOUS ROVER BOYS 
 SERIES 
 
 By ARTHUR M. WINFIELD 
 
 (EDWARD STRATEMEYER) 
 Beautiful Wrappers in Full Color 
 
 No stories for boys ever published 
 have attained the tremendous popu 
 larity of this famous series. Since the 
 publication of the first volume, The 
 Rover Boys at School, some years ago, 
 over three million copies of these 
 books have been sold. They are well 
 written stories dealing with the Rover 
 boys in a great many different kinds 
 of activities and adventures. Each 
 volume holds something of interest to 
 every adventure loving boy. 
 
 A complete list of titles is printed 
 on the opposite page.
 
 FAMOUS ROVER BOYS SERIES 
 
 BY ARTHUR M. WINFIELD 
 
 (Edward Stratemeyer) 
 OVER THREE MILLION COPIES SOLD OF THIS SERIES. 
 
 Uniform Style of Binding. Colored Wrappers. 
 Every Volume Complete in Itself. 
 
 A/ THE ROVER BOYS AT SCHOOL 
 //THE ROVER BOYS ON THE OCEAN 
 //THE ROVER BOYS IN THE JUNGLE 
 j THE ROVER BOYS OUT WEST 
 ' THE ROVER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES 
 .'/ THE ROVER BOYS IN THE MOUNTAINS 
 4 THE ROVER BOYS ON LAND AND SEA 
 4 THE ROVER BOYS IN CAMP 
 // THE ROVER BOYS ON THE RIVER 
 /> THE ROVER BOYS ON THE PLAINS 
 '' THE ROVER BOYS IN SOUTHERN WATERS 
 /'THE ROVER BOYS ON THE FARM 
 / THE ROVER BOYS ON TREASURE ISLE 
 /' THE ROVER BOYS AT COLLEGE 
 /THE ROVER BOYS DOWN EAST 
 '/THE ROVER BOYS IN THE AIR 
 //THE ROVER BOYS IN NEW YORK 
 //THE ROVER BOYS IN ALASKA 
 "THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS 
 
 /THE ROVER BOYS ON A TOUR 
 
 /fTHE ROVER BOYS AT COLBY HALL 
 
 /THE ROVER BOYS ON SNOWSHOE ISLAND 
 
 TEE ROVER BOYS UNDER CANVAS 
 
 .THE ROVER BOYS ON A HUNT 
 
 /THE ROVER BOYS IN THE LAND OF LUCK 
 
 /TEE ROVER BOYS AT BIG HORN RANCH 
 
 JTHE ROVER BOYS AT BIG BEAR LAKE 
 
 THE ROVER BOYS SHIPWRECKED 
 
 /THE ROVER BOYS ON SUNSET TRAIL 
 
 ,THE ROVER BOYS WINNING A FORTUNE 
 
 GROSS-ET & DUNLAP, PUBLISHERS, NEW YORK
 
 WESTERN STORIES FOR BOYS 
 
 By JAMES CODY FERRIS 
 
 Individual Colored Wrapper* and Illustration* by 
 
 WALTER S. ROGERS 
 Each Volume Complete in Itself. 
 
 Thriflmg tales of the great west, told primarily for 
 boys but which will be read by aM who love mystery, 
 rapid action, and adventures in the great open spaces. 
 
 The Manly Boys, Roy and Teddy, are the sons of 
 an old ranchman, the owner of many thousands of 
 heads of cattle. The lads know how to ride, how to 
 shoot, and how to take care of themselves under any 
 and all circumstances. 
 
 The cowboys of the X Bar X Ranch are real cow 
 boys, on the job when required but full of fun and 
 daring a bunch any reader will be delighted to know. 
 
 THE X BAR X BOYS ON THE RANCH 
 THE X BAR X BOYS IN THUNDER CANYON 
 THE X BAR X BOYS ON WHIRLPOOL RIVER 
 THE X BAR X BOYS ON BIG BISON TRAIL 
 THB X BAR X BOYS AT THE ROUND-UP 
 THE X BAR X BOYS AT NUGGET CAMP 
 THE X BAR X BOYS AT RUSTLER'S GAP 
 THE X BAR X BOYS AT GRIZZLY PASS 
 THE X BAR X BOYS LOST IN THE RdCKIES 
 
 GROSSET & DUNLAP, PUBLISHERS, NEW YORK
 
 THE HARDY BOY'S SERIES 
 
 By FRANKLIN W. DIXON 
 
 Illustrated. Every Volume Complete in lUoif. 
 
 "THE HARDY BOYS are sons of a celebrated Ameri- 
 can detective, and during vacations and their off time 
 from school they help their father by hunting down clues 
 themselves. 
 
 / THE TOWER TREASURE 
 
 A dying criminal confessed that his loot had been secreted "in the 
 tower." It remained for the Hardy Boys to make an astonishing discovery 
 that cleared up the mystery. 
 
 ^THE HOUSE ON THE CLIFF 
 
 The honse had been vacant and was supposed to be haunted. Mr. Hardy 
 started to investigate and disappeared 1 An odd tale, with plenty of ex 
 citement. 
 
 THE SECRET OF THE OLD MILL 
 
 Counterfeit money was in circulation, and the limit was reached when 
 Mrs. Hardy took some from a stranger. A tale full of thrills. 
 
 THE MISSING CHUMS 
 
 Two of the Hardy Boys' chums take a motor trip down the coast. They 
 disappear and are almost rescued by their friends when all are captured. 
 A thrilling story of adventure. 
 
 HUNTING FOR HIDDEN GOLD 
 
 Mr. Hardy is injured in tracing some stolen gold. A hunt by the boya 
 leads to an abandoned mine, and there things start to happen. A western 
 story all boys will enjoy. 
 
 THE SHORE ROAD MYSTERY 
 
 Automobiles were disappearing most mysteriously from the Shore Road. 
 It remained for the Hardy Boys to solve the mystery. 
 
 THE SECRET OF THE CAVES 
 
 'When the boys reached the caves they came unexpectedly upon a queer 
 old h ermit. 
 
 THE MYSTERY OF CABIN ISLAND 
 
 A story of queer adventures'on a rockbound island. 
 
 'THE GREAT AIRPORT MYSTERY 
 
 ' The Hardy Boys solvelthelmystery of the disappearance of some valua 
 ble mail. 
 
 GROSSET & DUNLAP, Publishers, NEW YORK
 
 THE TED SCOTT FLYING STORIES 
 
 B-O FRANKLIN W. DIXON 
 
 ; Illustrated. Each Volume Complete in Itself. 
 
 No subject has so thoroughly caught the imagination of 
 yooogAnaerica as aviation. This series has been inspired 
 by recent daring feats of the air, and is dedicated to Liod- 
 berg, Byrd, Chamberlin and other heroes of the skies. 
 
 j OVER THE OCEAN TO PARIS ; 
 
 or Ted Scott's daring long distance flight. 
 /RESCUED IN THE CLOUDS; 
 
 or, Ted Scott, Hero of the Air. 
 
 OVER THE ROCKIES WITH THE AIR MAIL ; 
 
 or, Ted Scott, Lost in the Wilderness. 
 
 FIRST STOP HONOLULU ; 
 
 or, Ted Scott, over the Pacific. 
 THE SEARCH FOR THE LOST FLYERS ; 
 or, Ted Scott, Over the West Indies. 
 SOUTH OF THE RIO GRANDE ; 
 or, Ted Scott, On a Secret Mission. 
 /ACROSS THE PACIFIC; 
 or, Ted Scott's Hop to Australia. 
 
 THE LONE EAGLE OF THE BORDER ; 
 or, Ted Scott and the Diamond Smugglers. 
 
 FLYING AGAINST TIME ; 
 
 or, Breaking the Ocean to Ocean Record. 
 
 OVER THE JUNGLE TRAILS ; 
 
 or, Ted Scott and the Missing Explorers. 
 
 LOST AT THE SOUTH POLE; 
 
 or, Ted Scott in Blizzard Land. 
 
 THROUGH THE AIR TO ALASKA ; 
 r, Ted Scott's Search in Nugget Valley. 
 
 GROSSET & DUNLAP, Publishers, NEW YORK
 
 THE TOM SWIFT SERIES 
 
 By VICTOR APPLETON 
 
 Uniform Style of Binding. Individual Colored Wrappers. 
 Every Volume Complete in Itself. 
 
 Every boy possesses some form of inventive genius. Tom Swift 
 is a. bright, ingenious boy and his inventions and adventures mate 
 the most interesting kind of reading. 
 
 TOM SWIFT AND HIS MOTOR CYCLE 
 TOM SWIFT AND HIS MOTOR BOAT 
 TOM SWIFT AND HIS AIRSHIP 
 TOM SWIFT AND HIS SUBMARINE BOAT 
 TOM SWIFT AND HIS WIRELESS MESSAGE 
 TOM SWIFT AND HIS ELECTRIC RUNABOUT 
 TOM SWIFT AMONG THE DIAMOND MAKERS 
 TOM SWIFT IN THE CAVES OF ICE 
 TOM SWIFT AND HIS SKY RACER 
 TOM SWIFT AND HIS ELECTRIC RIFLE 
 TOM SWIFT IN THE CITY OF GOLD 
 TOM SWIFT AND HIS AIR GLIDER 
 TOM SWIFT IN CAPTIVITY 
 TOM SWIFT AND HIS WIZARD CAMERA 
 TOM SWIFT AND HIS GREAT SEARCHLIGHT 
 TOM SWIFT AND HIS GIANT CANNON 
 TOM SWIFT AND HIS PHOTO TELEPHONE 
 TOM SWIFT AND HIS AERIAL WARSHIP 
 TOM SWIFT AND HIS BIG TUNNEL 
 TOM SWIFT IN THE LAND OF WONDERS 
 TOM SWIFT AND HIS WAR TANK 
 TOM SWIFT AND HIS AIR SCOUT 
 TOM SWIFT AND HIS UNDERSEA SEARCH 
 TOM SWIFT AMONG THE FIRE FIGHTERS 
 TOM SWIFT AND HIS ELECTRIC LOCOMOTIVE 
 TOM SWIFT AND HIS FLYING BOAT 
 TOM SWIFT AND HIS GREAT OIL GUSHER 
 TOM SWIFT AND HIS CHEST OF SECRETS 
 TOM SWIFT AND HIS AIRLINE EXPRESS 
 TOM SWIFT CIRCLING THE GLOBE 
 TOM SWIFT AND HIS TALKING PICTURES 
 TO.vt SWIFT AND HIS HOUSE ON WHEELS 
 TOM SWIFT AND HIS BIG DIRIGIBLE 
 
 GROSSET & DUNLAP, Publishers, NEW YORK
 
 THE DON STURDY SERIES 
 
 By VICTOR APPLETON 
 
 Author of " The Tom Swift Series " 
 
 Every red-blooded boy will enjoy the thrilling adventures 
 of Don Sturdy. In company with his undes, one a big 
 game hunter, the other a noted scientist, be travels far and 
 wide into the jungles of South America, across the Sahara, 
 deep into the African jungle, up where the Alaskan volca 
 noes spout, down among the head hunteis of Borneo and 
 many other places where there is danger and excitement. 
 Every boy who has known Tom Swift will at once become 
 the boon companion of daring Don Sturdy. 
 
 S DON STURDY ON THE DESERT Of MYSTERY 
 DON STURDY WITH THE BIG SNAKE HUNTERS 
 DON STURDY IN THE TOMBS OF GOLD 
 DON STURDY ACROSS THE NORTH POLE 
 DON STURDY IN THE LAND OF VOLCANOES 
 DON STURDY IN THE PORT OF LOST SHIPS 
 DON STURDY AMONG THE GORILLAS 
 DON STURDY CAPTURED BY HEAD HUNTERS 
 DON STURDY IN LION LAND 
 DON STURDY IN THE LAND OF GIANTS 
 
 GROSSET & DUNLAP, Publishers, NEW YORK
 
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