"I'm about over it--although I haven't returned to work yet," answered
Kessler. "You see, those awful shocks, and being thrown into the lake
that way, kind of got on my nerves. My folks don't want me to go back
until I'm feelin' stronger."

"Have they resumed work at the shell-loading plant?" questioned Fred.

"They're startin' up to-day. One gang is clearin' up the wreckage,
while a number of the old hands are at work in the places that wasn't
damaged very much. And say! I've got something to tell you that I know
you'll be interested to hear," went on old Jed Kessler.

"What is that?" questioned Jack.

"I saw those two German-lookin' fellers again early this morning, when
I was on my way here to visit my brother who works on this farm."

"You did!" cried the two Rovers simultaneously.

"Where were they?" added Jack.

"They was down on the road that runs to Barlight Bay."

"Walking?" queried Fred.

"No, they was in an old wagon pulled by the sorriest lookin' nag I
ever set eyes on. They had the wagon piled high with packages."

"Were you sure they were the same men?"

"I think they was the same. Of course, I wouldn't like to swear to it
until I got a better look at 'em. They was just goin' past as I came
in from a side road, and as soon as they saw me they whipped up their
horse and started down the road in a cloud of dust."

"You ought to have stopped them," said Jack.

"How could I do that? I wasn't close enough to catch hold of the
horse. And besides that, what chance would an old feller like me have
against two husky men? More than likely, too, they was armed, while I
didn't have anything--not even a cane."

"But you should have notified the authorities," said Fred.

"Oh, I did that, knowing that they was on the lookout for those
fellers. I hurried to Rackville just as fast as I could, and called on
the justice of the peace and the town constable. Then they got busy
and telephoned to the next town and notified the police. They got a
gang of six or eight men lookin' for the men and the wagon, but up to
this afternoon they hadn't got any trace of 'em."

"Well, that certainly is interesting," remarked Jack. "You say you are
pretty sure they are the same fellows who were around the plant just
previous to the explosion?"

"Well, as I said before, I wouldn't like to swear to it until I got a
better look at 'em. But those two fellers on the wagon had the same
bushy black hair and whiskers and the same round faces. More than
that, they wore the same slouch hats that the other fellers had."

"Have you any idea what was in the packages in the wagon?" questioned
the young captain.

"Sounded to me as if it might be iron, or something like that. It
jangled just like hardware."

"It's queer they would be on that back road with such stuff," said
Jack slowly. "Did the folks at Rackville think they might live down
near the bay?"

"They said there wasn't any folks around there so far as they knew
that wore bushy black hair and black beards. They knew about everybody
who lives within several miles of here," answered Jed Kessler.

The two Rovers talked the matter over with the old man for a few
minutes longer, the foreman of the dairy also having his say. Then the
boys had to hurry back to the camp, to fulfill their duties as captain
and lieutenant.

As was to be expected, there was a certain amount of horseplay in camp
that evening to which those in charge turned something of a blind eye.

"We'll have to leave the boys let off steam a little," said Captain
Dale to the professors who had come with him. "I think they'll soon
settle down to regular routine."

But the excitement of getting ready for the encampment, and the long
tramp over the dusty roads, had tired all of the cadets, and it was
not long before the great majority of them were ready to retire. Only
a few, like Andy and Randy, wanted to continue the fun, but Jack and
Fred quickly subdued the twins.

"You'll have plenty of time for your jokes when we get into the
regular camp," said the young captain. "Now you had better get a good
night's rest, for we have a long hike before us for to-morrow--over
the Lookout Hills."

As members of Company C, Gabe Werner and Bill Glutts would have been
under the direct command of Jack and Fred. This was a thorn in the
side of the ex-lieutenant, and as soon as he had received word from
home that he must remain at the school for the period of the annual
encampment, he went to Captain Dale and asked to be transferred to
another company, and requested that Glutts be transferred also.

"I think I can understand your feeling, Werner," said Captain Dale
kindly. "I am very sorry that you refused to run for a lieutenancy
after your defeat. Which company would you like to go in--A or B?"

"If it's all the same to you, Glutts and I would like to go into
Company B."

"Very well. I'll have the necessary shifts made, and you can report to
the captain of that company before we start away." And so it was
arranged.

"The Rovers ain't going to get me under their thumb!" growled Werner
to Glutts. "I know they would like nothing better than to find all
sorts of fault and to get me into trouble."

This, of course, was not true, because both Jack and Fred had decided
to treat the defeated candidate with every consideration.

"But I'm glad they've been transferred," said Fred, when he heard the
news.

"You're not half as glad as I am, Fred," answered the young captain.

Jack and his two lieutenants occupied a tent together, while Andy and
Randy were under canvas with Gif and Spouter. The night was a pleasant
one, neither too hot nor too cold, and it was not long after the young
cadets had turned in before most of them were sound asleep. But not so
Gabe Werner and Bill Glutts.

During the halt at noon for lunch, the cronies had held an animated
conversation, and this talk had been continued after the battalion had
gone into camp for the night. The subject of their discussion had been
the question of getting square with Jack and Fred because of what had
occurred during the election. Werner attributed his downfall entirely
to the Rovers.

"I'll show 'em a thing or two before I get through with 'em!" he
asserted to his crony. "They can't walk all over me and get away with
it!"

"Well, Gabe, you know I'll be on deck to help you in anything you try
to put over on 'em," responded the wholesale butcher's son.

"Of course we'll have to be careful what we do," went on Werner. "We
don't want to run afoul of Captain Dale or any of the professors. If
we did they might set us some awful mean tasks to do while we were in
camp."

"Yes, we'll have to be on our guard and work on the sly."

Neither Werner nor Glutts were particularly brilliant in evolving
their scheme, but finally the ex-lieutenant hit upon something which
he thought would answer. Then he told his crony of what had occurred
to him.

"That's the talk!" cried Bill Glutts, his eyes gleaming wickedly.
"Let's go and do it this very night, just as soon as they are sound
asleep. My, won't there be some rumpus in the morning when they wake
up and find out what has happened!"




CHAPTER XVIII

ONE SURPRISE AND ANOTHER


Fred Rover was so tired that he closed his eyes in slumber almost as
soon as he touched his cot.

But not so the young captain. Jack was fatigued, but he was also
worried over some of the problems connected with his company, and
these he tried to solve as he lay there in the darkness.

As the cadets were to remain in this camp for but one night only,
nothing had been done toward putting any flooring in the tents. The
cots of the captain and the two lieutenants rested on the short grass
of the pasture. More than this, as the night was rather warm, one of
the tent flaps was left open for ventilation, and for the same purpose
a corner of the canvas in the rear was turned up.

As all of the cadets had tramped the distance from Colby Hall, no one
was called on that night to remain on guard. In place of this a
professor who had ridden over in an automobile agreed to sit up to
see that nothing was stolen by any outsiders who might have an idea of
doing such a thing.

But no outsiders appeared in view, all of the curiosity seekers having
left the pasture lot before it came time for the cadets to turn in. As
a consequence, the professor had nothing to watch, and soon grew
exceedingly sleepy. Sitting in the tonneau of an open automobile, he
presently began to nod, and then his head fell forward on his breast.

Jack had thought that he would soon drop to sleep, but the problems in
his mind worried him so that presently he found himself wide-awake in
spite of his fatigue.

"Confound it! why can't I go to sleep?" he murmured to himself. Then,
punching his pillow to freshen it up, he turned over and tried his
best to drop off.

He was just on the edge of dreamland when a sound from outside the
tent attracted his attention. At first he thought some night bird or a
bat might be flying around. But then came a low murmur of voices.

"Somebody is up," he thought. "Perhaps it is Professor Grawson taking
a walk around. He said he was going to keep an eye on things until
morning."

Jack lay perfectly still, and presently saw a ray of light shoot into
the tent from the rear. It was the gleam of a small pocket flashlight.
A thin silk handkerchief was over the end, so that the light was quite
dim.

"Sure this is the right tent, are you?" he heard, in a low tone.

"Yes, this is the place," was the reply, in the faintest of whispers.
"Keep quiet now, and if there is any alarm, run for your life."

On hearing these words, the young captain was puzzled for the time
being. But then he realized that the voices had a familiar sound, and
he smiled grimly to himself.

Slowly and cautiously Gabe Werner and Bill Glutts wormed their way
into the tent by way of the opening in the rear. Gabe had the
flashlight, and this he cast from one side to another, taking care,
however, that the rays did not fall into the face of any of the
officers.

Jack kept his eyes closed when the marauders looked at him. But as
they turned around he eyed them sharply. A line had been strung from
the front to the rear pole of the tent, and on this were a number of
hangers containing the three officers' uniforms and some of their
other belongings. Stepping up to the uniforms, the two from outside
looked them over quickly. Then Werner pointed to one uniform and to
another, to signify that these belonged to Jack and Fred.

Not a word was spoken by those who had come in to play their mean
trick on the Rovers. Silently each drew out his pocketknife and opened
one of the blades.

Werner's scheme, to which Glutts had agreed, was to cut all the
buttons from both uniforms and then slit the garments so that they
would be next to useless. Then they were going to take the other
belongings of the young captain and the lieutenant and throw them into
a muddy brook located in one corner of the pasture.

Watching the marauders as a cat might watch a mouse, Jack saw the
pocketknives opened and saw the two rascally cadets take hold of his
coat and that belonging to his cousin.

"No, you don't, you rascals!" he cried loudly, as he bounced off the
cot. "Leave those uniforms alone!"

The interruption came so unexpectedly that both Werner and Glutts were
dumbfounded. As Jack pounced on Gabe from the rear, Glutts, muttering
a cry of terror, plunged through the opening of the tent by which he
had come and fled down past the other nearby shelters at top speed.

"Let go of me!" hissed Gabe Werner, as he turned swiftly to find
himself in Jack's embrace.

The flashlight had dropped to the ground and rolled under one of the
cots. The young captain and the ex-lieutenant began to wrestle, and in
doing this fell over on the cot occupied by Lieutenant Blake just as
this lieutenant and Fred were awakening.

"Hi! what does this mean?" spluttered Tom Blake, as both Jack and
Werner came down on top of him.

The combined weight of the three brought the cot down with a crash. In
the meantime Fred had jumped up.

"Say, what's all this row mean?" he demanded quickly.

"Here is a fellow who was going to play a dirty trick on us!" shouted
Jack. "Grab him! Don't let him get away!"

He said this because in the tumble his hold on Gabe had been somewhat
lessened, and in the mix-up Werner was now endeavoring to slip out of
his grasp. All had fallen to the ground, and the ex-lieutenant kicked
out vigorously with his heavy shoes, landing one blow in Blake's
stomach, and the other on Jack's knee.

It was so dark in the tent that but little could be seen, and as Fred
made a leap forward he fell over somebody's legs and went down. Then
in the mix-up Blake got in the way, and both Jack and Fred grabbed
him, each by an arm, thinking he was the intruder.

"Give in!" cried Jack sternly. "If you don't, it will be the worse for
you."

"You've got the wrong man, Captain!" cried Blake. And then, as he was
released, he added: "Wait until I make a light so that we can see what
we are doing."

A lantern was hanging at the front of the tent, and, striking a match,
Blake lit this. In the meantime, however, Fred saw a form disappearing
through the hole in the back of the tent.

"There he goes!" he yelled to Jack.

"Stop him!"

This suggestion was unnecessary, for Fred was already crawling through
the opening. But, being aroused from a sound sleep so suddenly, he was
still somewhat dazed, and by the time he had got on the outside of the
tent and was on his feet, Gabe Werner was a good distance away and
running like a deer.

"Come back here!" shouted Fred, looking after the flying figure.

In a few seconds Fred was joined by Jack. By this time the hubbub
around the officers' tent had been heard by others, and even Professor
Grawson was awakened from his nap.

"What's the trouble here?" demanded the professor, leaping from the
tonneau of the automobile and hurrying in that direction.

"Two outsiders came into our tent," said the young captain.

"What did they want?"

"I guess they were going to play some trick. But I woke up and scared
them off."

"Do you wish to make any complaint, Captain Rover?" went on the
professor, as Blake came around with the lantern and some other cadets
began to gather.

"I don't think so--at least not to-night, Professor," answered Jack,
after a few seconds of rapid thinking.

"I hope they didn't do any damage," went on Professor Grawson.

"They didn't have time. Although in the struggle, when I tried to
catch one of them, we fell over one of the cots and broke it down."

"I see." The professor mused for a moment. "Well, perhaps you might
better let the matter rest," he continued. He was afraid someone would
ask him about himself, and then he would have to acknowledge that he
had been asleep instead of remaining on guard.

The excitement soon died away, the report being that some of the
cadets had been starting in for a little more horseplay, but that the
scheme had been nipped in the bud. Andy and Randy were on hand, and
asked Jack for some of the particulars.

"I'll tell you about it to-morrow," whispered the young captain. "But
mum is the word just now."

Returning to their tent after the excitement was over, the Rovers
assisted Lieutenant Blake to put up his cot, so that he could sleep
upon it. In doing this, Jack picked up the flashlight and the silk
handkerchief with which the end had been covered. In the struggle the
light had been turned off. Without saying anything about his find, the
young captain slipped the articles into his pocket.

Running as fast as his somewhat clumsy steps would permit, Bill Glutts
reached the tent which he and Werner occupied along with two of their
cronies, cadets who had asked them to join Company B just previous to
their leaving Company C. Glutts had run so fast that he could hardly
breathe, and he sank down on his cot gasping.

"You look to be in a hurry, Bill," remarked one of the other cadets,
who was awakened by the sudden entrance.

"Shut up--don't make a sound!" whispered Glutts, half savagely. "If
you do you'll get the whole bunch into trouble."

While trying to regain his breath and to undress, Glutts kept his ears
wide open, and presently heard Gabe Werner approaching. Then the
ex-lieutenant dove into the tent, quickly tying the flaps behind him.
Without saying a word, he began to pitch off his clothing.

"Gee, I'm glad they didn't catch you, Gabe," muttered Glutts, in a
hoarse whisper.

"They did! But I gave 'em a couple of kicks they won't forget! And
then I ran for it."

"Do you suppose they recognized you?"

"I don't think so. The minute we went down the light went out."

"We sure did make a botch of that job," grumbled the wholesale
butcher's son.

"How was I to guess that they'd be awake watchin' us?" retorted the
ex-lieutenant. "When I looked into the tent I thought the whole bunch
was fast asleep. But shut up now--they may be coming this way, and we
want to do the innocent act."

"It's me for that," chuckled Glutts, and, having finished undressing,
he turned over on his cot and commenced to snore. And in this Gabe
Werner soon followed his example.

Both waited impatiently for five minutes or more. Then, as nothing
came to disturb them, both breathed more freely.

"I guess they missed us," whispered Glutts.

"It looks like it, Bill. But, say! I just thought of something," went
on Werner, and the tone of his voice showed his dismay.

"What's wrong now?"

"In the struggle I dropped that flashlight and the silk handkerchief I
had tied over it."

"Gee, that's too bad! Did either of the things have your name or
initials on it?"

"No."

"Well, that's good. You haven't got to admit that you own 'em."

"That's all right, Bill, but that flashlight and the handkerchief cost
money," grumbled Gabe Werner.

After that there was silence, but it was a long while before either of
the rascally cadets could get to sleep. Both were bitterly
disappointed over the failure of their scheme to do Jack and Fred an
injury, and both wondered whether they would be found out.




CHAPTER XIX

AT CAMP BARLIGHT


There was so much to do in the morning, getting breakfast, taking down
the tents and packing them in the motor trucks, and doing other
necessary things, that the Rovers got no opportunity to talk over the
stirring events of the night before. As officers Jack and Fred had
many duties to perform.

Jack and Fred noticed that Gabe Werner and Bill Glutts were in their
usual places in the company ahead of them. Once or twice they caught
the ex-lieutenant and his crony gazing at them furtively, but to this
they paid scant attention. Both were satisfied that these two
unworthies were the guilty parties.

"I'm sure they are the ones," said Jack to Fred and the twins, when
they had come to a halt at the roadside for the noon-day meal and the
cadets had some time to themselves. The story had been told to Andy
and Randy, who had listened with much interest.

"What did you do with the flashlight and the handkerchief?" questioned
Andy.

"I've got them both in my pocket."

"Are you going to return them?" asked Randy.

"I don't see what else to do. I don't care to carry them about, and I
don't care to give them up to Captain Dale or any of the professors. I
wouldn't want Werner and his crowd to think we are squealers."

The matter was talked over among the Rovers and Spouter and Gif, who
were let into the secret. Spouter looked the flashlight over, and was
certain that it belonged to Gabe.

"I was down in Haven Point when he bought it," he said. "I was
thinking of getting one of them myself, so I looked them over pretty
carefully."

"I've got an idea!" cried Andy. "Just let me have those things, and
I'll see to it that Werner and Glutts get them back--and with a
vengeance."

"What's the scheme?" questioned his twin eagerly, while the others
listened, being equally curious.

"I'll put each of them in a real, nice, comfortable, little package,"
answered Andy, with a grin. "And then to-night, if I can get the
chance, I'll put one in Werner's cot and the other in Glutts's."

"What do you mean by a 'real, nice, comfortable, little package?'"
questioned Fred.

"Oh, a package that he'll feel when he lies down on it. Something that
he won't be apt to overlook," returned Andy innocently.

"Wow! that's the stuff," cried Randy eagerly. "Let's have those
things, Jack. We'll fix 'em up O. K."

"Well, you take care that you don't get caught at it," answered the
young captain, and then passed the flashlight and the silk
handkerchief over to the twins.

The cadets were now among the Lookout Hills, and after the lunch hour
they had a long hike over two more of the hills. On the top of the
last of these, they paused to rest and to look around them. A grand
panorama burst upon their view, stretching many miles in all
directions. Directly ahead, through a somewhat dense forest, they
could see Barlight Bay, the waters of which sparkled brightly in the
sunshine. Off to the northeast were some cleared fields, and this spot
was pointed out to them as that where the camp was to be located. To
the southeast, beyond the timber and a series of jagged rocks, was
another cleared space stretching for several miles, and this was
dotted by numerous low buildings and tents.

"That must be Camp Huxwell!" exclaimed Jack, as he looked at the
buildings and tents.

"It is," announced Captain Dale, who was standing near. "If you care
to look through my fieldglasses, Captain Rover, you will be able to
see the camp quite distinctly."

"I'll be pleased to do that," answered Jack quickly, and took a good
look through the glasses. Nearly everybody wanted to look, and Captain
Dale good-naturedly allowed them to pass the fieldglasses around.

"It's not quite so close to our camp as I thought it was going to be,"
remarked Fred disappointedly. "There's a wide belt of rocks and timber
between."

Barlight Bay, opening up on the rolling Atlantic, was shaped very much
like a half moon. Within the semicircle there were two smaller bays,
on the lower one of which was located Camp Huxwell, while on the upper
one was to be established Camp Barlight. Between these two minor bays,
as stated before, was a series of rocks and cliffs broken by a thick
forest, with here and there patches of dense undergrowth.

"I'd like to take a tramp through those woods some time while we are
in camp," said Jack. "It might be lots of fun."

"Oh, sure! We'll take more than one walk that way," answered Fred.
"And don't forget, we want to go over to Camp Huxwell."

The climb to the top of the last of the hills had tired a good many of
the cadets, and they were glad that the remainder of the march would
be downward instead of upward. Soon they were once more on the way,
and reached the site of Camp Barlight about four o'clock in the
afternoon.

The motor trucks had preceded them, and as the work of getting the
place into shape had been proceeding for over a week, the sights to be
seen were decidedly interesting. At one end of the grounds there were
three long rows of platforms. Upon each platform a tent was to be
erected. To one side was a much larger platform, and over this had
already been erected a large mess tent, made quite substantial by
means of a wooden frame. This mess tent had behind it the cooking
quarters.

The opposite end of the camp site had been leveled for a parade
ground, and here a tall flagpole had been erected, from the top of
which floated the Stars and Stripes in all of their glory.

"Oh, see how close we are to the water!" exclaimed Randy. "That looks
mighty good to me. I'm going in swimming at the first opportunity."

The cadets were allowed to rest for half an hour, and then they were
set to work to erect the tents and otherwise get the camp in order. A
few of the lads grumbled at the work to be done, but the most of them
were cheerful and obliging.

[Illustration: THEY WERE SET TO WORK ERECTING THE TENTS. _Page 199_]

Down at the water's edge there was one spot where there was a wide,
sandy beach, and here several small tents had been put up for use as
bathing houses.

"Any one who cares to do so can take a dip in the bay just before
supper," announced Captain Dale, after the work of putting up the
tents had come to an end. "But don't stay in longer than fifteen
minutes."

Away rushed about half of the cadets, the Rovers among them. They lost
no time in divesting themselves of their uniforms and getting into
their bathing trunks, and then there was another rush to see who could
be the first in.

"Wow, but it's cold!" exclaimed Fred, as he ran in up to his knees.

"Cold!" exclaimed another cadet. "Gee, it's icy!"

"This is the way to go in!" cried Jack, and, rushing in part way, he
took a plunge and disappeared from sight.

Almost immediately a score of cadets followed him. Then came a wild
plunging and swimming about, those in the water sending the spray
flying over those who were too afraid to enter. There was a good deal
of horseplay, but every one enjoyed himself immensely.

Following the evening meal the cadets were told they could do as they
pleased until nine o'clock, but must not leave the confines of the
camp. Many of the lads were too tired to do much of anything, and so
sat around, taking it easy and talking over the prospects.

"Don't forget that we have got to fix up things for Werner and
Glutts," whispered Andy to his brother, when it was almost time to
retire.

"Right you are!" returned Randy. "Come on--let's slip away while the
others are not noticing."

The first move the twins made was in the direction of the cooking
quarters of the camp. Watching their chance, they entered a tent where
the stores were kept, and soon found what they were looking for--a
sack filled with onions.

"All we want is two good juicy ones," whispered Randy, and these
onions were quickly procured.

After this the two boys wandered down to the edge of the forest, and
there picked up a number of sharp sticks and stones, placing these in
two dirty towels they had procured at the cook's quarters. Then they
retired to a corner of the woods where no one could observe them and
went to work to finish what they had in mind to do.

It was about an hour after this when taps was sounded and all the
cadets were supposed to turn in for the night. Previous to this Andy
and Randy had rejoined their cousins.

"We've got 'em fixed, all right enough," whispered Randy. "Don't you
fellows want to see the fun?"

"Can't do it--not as captain of this company," answered Jack promptly.

"If we got caught we'd have to do a lot of explaining," added Fred.

"Well, that's where it pays to be a private," chuckled the fun-loving
Rover. "Never mind, Randy and I will tell you all about it to-morrow,
and we'll also tell you something else."

The twins, along with Spouter and Gif, occupied a tent together; and,
as luck would have it, this was almost in a direct line with the tent
assigned to Werner and Glutts and two of their cronies. Watching their
chance, the twins stole out of their own quarters and hurried over to
the side of the tent occupied by their enemies.




CHAPTER XX

FIRST DAYS UNDER CANVAS


"Gee, but I'm tired!" Andy and Randy heard Glutts grumble. "I'll bet
I'll be stiff all over to-morrow morning."

"It was too much of a hike over those hills," answered Werner, yawning
and stretching himself. "I'll bet I'm getting a blister on my left
heel."

"Huh! I'll bet your left heel isn't any worse than my right shoulder
from carrying that gun," growled the wholesale butcher's son. "That
old piece of iron weighs about a ton."

"Say, will you fellows shut up and get to bed?" grumbled one of the
other cadets in the tent.

"That's it!" came from the fourth occupant. "Do your visiting in the
morning. With your monkeyshines last night, I'm all tired out now."

Werner and Glutts wished to remonstrate, but did not dare, fearing
that more might be said concerning the escapade of the night before.
They undressed as quickly as possible, blew out the light, and then
each threw himself on his cot.

"Cats and dogs! what in thunder is this?"

"Say! who put these rocks in my bed?"

"Something stuck me right through the back!"

"And I got stuck, too! Gee, this is the worst yet!"

Such were some of the exclamations from Werner and Glutts as they sat
up and then bounced off of their cots. Then, in a rage, the
ex-lieutenant and his crony began to accuse the others in the tent of
having played a trick on them.

"We didn't do anything of the sort," growled one of the cadets.

"You fellows make me tired," howled the other. "If you don't shut up
and settle down I'm going to ask to be put in another tent."

"I'm going to light up and see what that confounded thing in my cot
is," growled Bill Glutts.

Something had stuck him in several places on his back, and he felt
anything but comfortable. Werner was rubbing himself and saying things
under his breath that were far from complimentary. The lantern was
lit, and both made an inspection of their cots. Each found a bundle
tied up in a thin, dirty towel.

"Rocks and sticks!" cried Gabe Werner, in deep disgust. "Hang the
luck, anyway!" He took up the bundle and gazed at it closer. "Well,
what do you know about this?"

"What is it?" questioned his crony.

"Here is a card! What do you know about this?" and he looked at a bit
of pasteboard on which had been scrawled:

"_Returned with the compliments of the Rovers._"

"You might know they'd try to get back at us," remarked Glutts.

"I'll fix 'em--you see if I don't!" and, in a rage, Gabe took up the
bundle which had been placed on his cot and threw it with all his
force to the back of the tent It struck a pole, and from inside came a
crash.

"Hello, you've broken something!" cried Glutts. "Maybe it's a bottle.
I wouldn't put it past 'em to put one in there, thinking you might get
cut with it."

To this Werner did not reply. A sudden thought had come to his mind,
and hastily he picked up the bundle, now somewhat torn, and opened it.
In the midst of the sticks and stones lay his flashlight, bent and
with the glass broken.

"Huh! that's a fine way to treat your own property," remarked Glutts,
with malicious humor. "Why didn't you examine the bundle before you
threw it away?"

"Aw, you shut up! You make me tired! Go on and look in your own
bundle."

The wholesale butcher's son did so, and there found another card from
the Rovers. This was pinned fast to the silk handkerchief, which was
neatly folded.

"Well, anyhow the handkerchief is all right," said Glutts consolingly,
as he passed it over.

"I ought to make 'em pay for that broken flashlight," grumbled Werner.

"I think I see you doing it," came with a laugh from the other.
"You'll pocket your loss and say nothing about it."

"We've got to get square with the Rovers for this."

"I agree with you there. But now I guess we had better go to bed and
try to get some sleep;" and then the two turned in once more.

Andy and Randy, crouching low at the side of the tent, had, of course,
taken in all that was said and done. Each was on a broad grin as they
stole back to their own quarters.

"Wasn't it rich?" chuckled Andy. "I had the greatest desire in the
world to burst out laughing."

"I could hardly keep still," returned his twin. "When Gabe threw his
own flashlight away and busted it I nearly exploded."

"But wait until to-morrow--oh, boy!" cried Andy.

Both of the fun-loving youths slept soundly that night, but each was
up early, and they lost no time in acquainting their cousins and
Spouter and Gif and a few of the others with what was likely to happen
next.

As was usual with them, Werner and Gabe were late in getting up, so
they had to hustle in order not to be late at roll call. Then they
hurried back to their tents to get their mess kits, for this camp was
conducted on real military lines when it came to eating. Each cadet
had been provided with his own kit, including a big covered cup,
plate, and knife, fork and spoon.

"Now watch!" cried Randy to his chums. "I think you'll see something."

"And maybe you'll smell something," added Andy, slyly.

The cadets formed in a long line to be served by the cook and his
helpers. Glutts was behind Werner, and the Rovers and their friends
got close by, but not too close, being warned by the twins to keep a
respectable distance.

As they came up to receive their food, both Werner and Glutts opened
their kits, and as they did this a powerful, penetrating smell filled
the air around them.

"Hello! what in blazes have you got in your kits?" cried one of the
cook's helpers, who was ready to serve them.

"Why, I ain't got----" began Werner, and then stopped short. The smell
coming from his mess kit was sickening, and it made his eyes water
until the tears ran down his cheeks.

"It's onions!" yelled Glutts. "It's chopped-up onions!"

"Gee, what a smell!" came from another cadet.

"Say, who opened up the onion factory?"

"Somebody shut the cover down before we faint!"

Such were some of the cries that arose as the odor of the chopped-up
onions floated out on the morning air. In the meanwhile Werner and
Glutts stood there in helpless fashion, holding their mess kits at
arm's length. Both were red-eyed, and looked as if they were weeping
copiously.

"Say, if this is a joke, it's a mighty poor one!" stormed the cook,
stepping forward with a big ladle in his hand. "You chase yourselves
and get out of here!" And he flourished the ladle so threateningly at
the pair that Werner and Glutts ran as if for their lives. They did
not look where they were going, and so dashed headlong into Professor
Grawson, who was coming forward to get his own breakfast, for he had
decided to rough it with the students.

"Here, here! What is this?" exclaimed the professor, as some of the
chopped-up onions flew over his clothing. "My, what an awful smell!
What are you young gentlemen eating?"

"We're not eatin' this stuff!" exclaimed Glutts. "Somebody played a
joke on us. They filled our mess kits with onions."

"Ah, I see." Professor Grawson held his nose and stepped back several
feet. "Please do not come any closer. Raw onions are very healthful,
so I understand, but I never cared for them."

"We don't want 'em either. I hate 'em!" roared Werner. "Come on--let's
go over to the water tank and wash up," he added to his crony; and
then rushed away.

By the end of three days the cadets felt quite settled at Camp
Barlight. Everything had been put in the best of order, and drills and
other exercises had been held daily. Captain Dale was teaching the
cadets a new bayonet exercise, and one afternoon he had an officer
come over from Camp Huxwell to show the students some of the fine
points in handling a bayonet. This was decidedly interesting,
especially to Jack, and he did his best to imitate what the regular
military instructor had done.

"No use of talking, when it comes to fighting the Huns our men have
got to be pretty quick," was the young captain's comment.

"I hope we see some of those exercises when we get over to Camp
Huxwell," returned Fred.

During those first days in camp the boys did not forget to write long
letters to the folks at home, and also to the girls at Clearwater
Hall, telling of how they were settled down. They invited the girls to
call at the camp before going home, and a couple of days later came
back word that the girls would do this, paying the visit in a touring
car.

"It will be mighty nice to have all of them here for a day," said
Jack. "We can show them all around the camp and let them look at our
exercises. And maybe we can have a little picnic in the woods, too."

"That would suit me right down to the ground," answered Fred.

To give the camp a truly military aspect, Captain Dale instituted a
regular guard, both night and day. The cadets were given a password,
and it was understood that no one could get into the camp without
giving this.

"Well, it's my turn to go on guard to-night," announced Randy one
evening at supper time. "And I must say, I don't like the outlook
much. It looks to me as if it was going to rain."

"Well, you'll have only four hours of it, Randy," answered Jack. "That
isn't so very long. What time do you go on?"

"Twelve o'clock. Then I am to relieve Ned Lowe."

Randy retired early, and was awakened about half past eleven o'clock.
Then he dressed, got a cup of the hot chocolate that one of the cook's
helpers had ready for the sentries, and then went out to join the
detail which was to go on guard from midnight until four o'clock in
the morning.

The post which Ned Lowe had covered, and which was turned over to
Randy, lay on the far side of the camp, not a great distance from
where the cliffs overlooked the bay. It was a lonely spot,
particularly on a night like this, when the sky was overcast and a
rising wind was moaning through the branches of the trees.

"See any ghosts to-night, Ned?" said Randy to Ned Lowe jokingly, as he
relieved that sentry.

"Well, I saw something, Randy," was the unexpected reply. "I've been
trying to make up my mind for the last half hour what it was."

"Saw something! What do you mean?"

"I think I saw somebody sneaking through the woods over yonder," said
Ned Lowe, pointing into the forest. "I shouted out, but no one
answered, and then the figure--or whatever it was--vanished."

"Oh, say! you must be seeing things," returned Randy lightly. "Just
the same, I'll keep my weather eye open," he added. "Maybe some of the
other cadets were out, and tried to play a trick on you."

"No, I don't think it was one of our cadets," said Ned Lowe. "I think
it was a stranger. But what he was doing around here at this time of
night is a mystery to me."

"Maybe he was a tramp, and thought he could get a chance to steal
something," ventured the fun-loving Rover, sobering down.

"Maybe. I guess you had better keep your eyes wide open," said Ned
Lowe, and then turned away and left Randy alone on the post.




CHAPTER XXI

STRANGE NOISES


Left to himself Randy tramped up and down slowly along the post
assigned to him. The distance was several hundred feet, and at either
end he met another guard. One of these was Codfish, and it must be
admitted that the sneak of Colby Hall was thoroughly scared.

"I don't like this at all," Codfish declared, when he and Randy met.
"There's a terrible wind sighing through those trees."

"Have you seen anybody?" questioned Randy.

"I thought I did, but I'm not sure whether it was some person or an
animal."

"When was that?"

"Nearly an hour ago."

"Maybe it was the same person Ned Lowe thought he saw," went on Randy.
"He called out, but nobody answered."

"If I see anybody again, I'll shoot off my gun and call the corporal,"
announced Codfish.

His whole manner showed that he was much disturbed. His post was
along the edge of the wood beyond where Randy was stationed, but the
latter saw that the sneak never walked very close to the trees and
brushwood.

The time dragged heavily, and Randy heaved a sigh when he looked at
his watch and found that it was only one o'clock.

The young cadet, as was the custom with many of the lads, had supplied
himself with a thin cake of sweet chocolate, and to help pass the time
he munched on bits of this. Then it commenced to rain, the scattering
drops making quite a noise on the trees and fallen leaves.

Fortunately Randy had brought his raincoat with him. It hung on a bush
about midway between the ends of his post, and, turning, he hurried to
get the garment. He was just in time to see a figure sliding away
between the bushes. This figure had confiscated the raincoat only a
few seconds before.

"Come back here!" yelled Randy, in justifiable anger. "Come back, I
say, or I'll fire at you!"

"Fire, and be hanged!" came in a somewhat familiar voice. Evidently
the speaker knew that Randy's rifle contained only blank cartridges.

Randy's blood was up, for he felt certain the raincoat had been taken
by one of his fellow cadets, probably Werner or Glutts. Leaping
forward, he cleared some low bushes at a bound, and then made after
the figure skulking along among the trees.

"Drop that raincoat or I'll crack you on the head with my gun!" he
roared, as he drew closer to the fleeing fellow.

"Keep back, or it will be the worse for you, Randy Rover!" cried the
other cadet, and now Randy recognized the voice of Gabe Werner quite
distinctly.

The fun-loving Rover did not reply to Werner. Instead he hurried on
faster than ever, coming so close presently that he was able to reach
the ex-lieutenant with his gun. He swung the weapon by the barrel, and
the stock caught Werner a severe blow on his right shoulder.

"Ouch!" yelled the big cadet, and his right arm dropped to his side
and the raincoat slipped to the ground.

"You're a fine rascal to steal my raincoat," remonstrated Randy,
raising his gun as if to give the ex-lieutenant another blow.

"Aw! can't you take a joke? You Rovers didn't think anything of
smashing my flashlight."

"You did that yourself, throwing it against your tent pole," answered
Randy.

"Huh! who told you that?"

"Never mind who told me--I know it's the truth. Now, after this, Gabe
Werner, you leave my things alone!"

"Bah! don't talk to me, Randy Rover. If it wasn't that you have nearly
broken my right shoulder, I'd give you the licking you deserve."

"And for two pins, Gabe Werner, I'd report you for being absent from
camp without leave," retorted Randy. "Now you get back to your tent
just as fast as you can."

"Rats! don't you talk to me," growled the ex-lieutenant. Nevertheless,
he turned and walked through the woods toward the encampment, and then
lost no time in hurrying to his tent.

Randy slipped on his raincoat, and then resumed his duty as a
sentinel. Back and forth he tramped, occasionally exchanging a word or
two with Codfish or with the guard at the other end of his post. Thus
two hours more dragged by. For half of that time it rained steadily,
and if his feet did not get wet, they at least got very damp. Then,
however, the shower passed on, and presently the morning stars shone
forth.

Randy was watching for the first streaks of the coming dawn and
congratulating himself that his lonely vigil would soon come to an
end, when an unusual sound broke upon his ears. From a distance came a
curious clank! clank! followed by another sound that seemed to be the
rattle of several chains.

"Hello! where does that come from?" he asked himself. "Somebody must
be getting to work pretty early in the morning."

The noises kept up for a minute or two, and then abruptly ceased. The
young cadet listened for quite a while, and then resumed his tramp.
But a little later the strange clanking and rattle of chains was
continued, and once more he halted, trying to locate the direction of
the sounds.

"Must come from somewhere in the woods," he reasoned, and he thought
this rather strange, for he was of the opinion that this portion of
the forest was entirely uninhabited.

Several times after that he heard the strange clanking, and every time
it was followed by a rattle as of chains. Then came a sharp tapping,
as of a hammer on steel, and with this a curious humming sound, as if
some big blowing machine was in action.

"Maybe it's an airship, or something like that," he said to himself.
"That humming sound may be the propellers going around. Maybe they had
an accident and had to come down for repairs."

It lacked ten minutes of the time for the new sentry to go on duty
when Randy, who had come to a halt to learn if the curious clanking
was still taking place in the woods, saw a movement behind some trees
at a distance.

"Must be either an animal or a man," he said to himself.

With strained eyes he watched the location, and presently saw two
slouch hats moving behind the top of some brushwood. Then for a brief
instant he caught sight of the forms of two men as they disappeared in
the distance.

"I wonder if those were the two men who were making all that noise?"
he mused.

At such a distance it had been impossible for him to note anything of
the features of the men. Both wore dark clothing and dark slouch hats,
but beyond that he made out nothing concerning them.

When the corporal of the guard came along to change the detail, Randy
said nothing about the attempt of Gabe Werner to deprive him of his
raincoat, but he did mention the sounds he had heard in the woods, and
also the appearance of the two men.

"Oh, I guess they were a couple of lumbermen," remarked the corporal,
in an offhand way. "They occasionally come here, I suppose, to get a
stick of timber." And not thinking it of any importance, he dismissed
the matter from his mind.

It was not until after the morning drill that Randy got a chance to
speak to his brother and his cousins, telling them of the encounter
with Werner.

"I supposed he would try to get square!" cried Jack. "I'm mighty glad
he didn't get away with it."

Then Randy told of hearing the strange clanking noises and also the
sounds of chains rattling and of some big blower in motion.

"That's certainly curious," remarked Jack. "From what Captain Dale
said, I thought these woods had no one in them. In fact, I supposed
they belonged to the government and were a part of the Camp Huxwell
reservation, and that all outsiders were to be kept out."

"I thought the blowing sound might be an aeroplane's propellers," went
on Randy. "I was thinking a machine might have been disabled and come
down, and the fellows on board might be trying to make repairs."

"They couldn't come down safely between those trees and on those
rocks," cried Andy. "They'd break their necks!"

"Well, I certainly heard something, and I saw two men."

"Say, did those two fellows look anything like the two Germans Jed
Kessler spoke about?" queried Randy's twin quickly.

"I don't know about that. I only got a glance at 'em, and they were a
long way off. All I know is that they were dressed in very dark
clothing and wore dark slouch hats."

"I think it might be a good thing to mention this to Captain Dale,"
said Jack thoughtfully. "The authorities are very anxious to get on
the track of those two men who were seen around the ammunition plant.
It won't do any harm to have this matter investigated." And then he
and his cousin sought out the old West Pointer for that purpose.

Captain Dale listened attentively, and nodded his head several times
while Randy was speaking.

"You are right, Captain Rover," he said to Jack. "And I'm glad that
you brought your cousin here to tell me this. I'll go over to town
this morning and report to the authorities. Of course there may be
nothing in it, but as you remarked, it is a clue that should not be
overlooked. Those two men with the wagon load of stuff certainly
disappeared somewhere in this vicinity, and I know the forest is
supposed to be a part of the government reservation, and no strangers
would be permitted to go into it and cut down any trees. More than
that, the strange sounds heard by your cousin Randy make it look as
if something unusual was being done there."

"Would there be any objection to our going into the woods and taking a
look around?" questioned Randy.

"Not the least, Rover. But I think you had better go slow, because if
those men we are looking for are really there, and they know the
authorities are after them--well, that may make them very desperate,
and you may get into serious trouble."

"Oh, I guess we could take care of ourselves," answered Randy quickly.
"Of course, Jack and I wouldn't go alone. We would take quite a bunch
with us. There is generally safety in numbers, you know," and he
grinned.

"All right, you may go if you want to. Only take good care of
yourselves."

So the matter was arranged, and in less than half an hour later the
four Rovers, accompanied by Spouter, Gif, and Walt Baxter, set off
into the forest.




CHAPTER XXII

AT THE RIFLE RANGES


It did not take the cadets long to reach the place where Randy said he
had noticed the two strangers. Here, to the surprise of the Rovers and
their chums, they discovered a faint trail leading north and south
through the forest.

"The men must have been following this footpath," remarked Fred. "Now
then, Randy, which way were they headed?"

"They were headed north," was the reply.

They found that following the footpath was by no means easy. It led in
and out among big trees and around various clumps of bushes, and more
than once they found themselves in a hollow where going was
exceedingly treacherous. Then in spots they had to climb over the
rough rocks.

"Hello, here is something!" cried Jack presently. "Now, what in the
world is it?" he went on, as he held up an object he had picked from
between two of the rocks.

It was a curiously-shaped bar of steel, about a foot and a half long,
round at one end and flattened at the other, with several square holes
punched through the latter end.

"Looks like a piece of machinery of some kind," said Spouter, after
the thing had been passed around for examination. "You know, Randy,
you may be right, after all, and that may be a piece from an
aeroplane," he added, looking the bar over critically.

Carrying the bar of steel, Jack continued along the footpath, followed
by the others, and a few minutes later emerged on a much larger trail.
Here were the marks of wagon tracks, and also horses' hoofs.

"Hello, this proves that a wagon came this way!" cried Fred.

"Maybe it was the one those Germans were riding in," added Andy.

"Oh, I wouldn't want to say that," returned Jack. "This may be a
regular thoroughfare through this corner of the forest."

They followed the wagon tracks, and soon found that the road, came to
an end among some rocks overlooking Barlight Bay. Then they came back
and walked in the other direction, and presently emerged on the
highway along which they had marched on their way to the camp.

"That ends it, as far as following this trail is concerned," said
Jack. "Those men could go to almost anywhere from here."