While Japson was speaking Pelter had stepped back into the garret. Now
he came again to the window, at the same time whispering to his
companion.

"Hello, Dixon!" he called, as if to somebody behind Tom.

As was but natural, the youth below turned quickly, thinking some
friend of the broker's had appeared. The moment Tom turned, Pelter
hurled something down at him. It was an old wooden footstool, and it
struck the youth squarely on the head. Down went poor Tom in the
grass, senseless.

"Now is our time!" exclaimed Pelter. "Quick, with that other rope!"

A second rope, also made from sections of a blanket-- but stronger
than the first-- was produced. As the lower end struck the ground,
Pelter commenced to slide down, closely followed by his partner.
Evidently they were both willing to risk their lives in an effort to
escape. The thought of going to jail filled them with grim terror.

Reaching the ground, neither of the men hesitated an instant over what
to do next. The man who owned the place knew it thoroughly, and he
turned in the direction of the barn, and his partner went after him.
They crossed a back lot, and then, coming to a side road, took to
that, running as fast as their wind and strength permitted.

In the meantime Dick, hearing Crabtree groaning, came down in the
sitting room to look at the sufferer. The man was still flat on his
back.

"Oh, my leg!" he groaned. "Oh my leg! Can't you get a doctor?"

"Perhaps,-- later on," answered Dick.

"Oh, Rover, I never thought I would come to this!" whined the
criminal. "Oh, the pain!"

"We'll do what we can for you, Crabtree. You had better lie still for
the present."

Dick listened in the hallway. As nobody seemed to be at the garret
stairway, he ran outside, to learn how Tom was faring.

"Tom! Tom! What happened to you?" he cried, in horror, when he beheld
his brother on the ground. Then he saw the footstool and a cut on
Tom's head and understood what had occurred. The dangling rope told
the rest of the story.

"They have gotten away!" he groaned. "And after all our efforts to
hold them prisoners until help came! Too bad!"

He wanted to go after the brokers, but just now his concern was
entirely for his brother.

He turned Tom over and then ran for some water. When he returned Tom
was just opening his eyes.

"Dick! Some-- something hi-- hit me!" gasped the hurt one.

"They threw that wooden footstool at you, Tom. I'm afraid you're badly
hurt."

"Am I? I-- I feel mighty queer," returned Tom, and then he closed his
eyes again.

Dick was now more alarmed than ever. He carried his brother to the
dining room, and laid him on some chairs, with a doubled-up blanket
from a bed for a pillow. He washed Tom's head and bound it up as best
he could. Once or twice the injured youth opened his eyes for an
instant, but he did not make a sound.

"It was a fearful blow,-- it must have been!" thought Dick. "I hope
they didn't crack his skull!"

Josiah Crabtree was still groaning in the next room, but Dick paid
little attention to the man. Nor did he think of the rascals who had
escaped. All his thoughts were centered on Tom.

"If I only knew where to get a doctor," he mused. Then he ran out of
the house by the front door and looked up and down the road.

A carriage was approaching, containing three men. As it drew closer
Dick saw that one of the men wore a shining badge on his coat and
carried a policeman's club.

"Want me here?" he cried, on catching sight of the youth.

"Are you a policeman?"

"I am."

"Then come right in."

The policeman and the other two men followed Dick into the house. The
youth took them first to where Josiah Crabtree lay.

"There is a man who escaped from the jail at Plankville. He tried to
get out of a garret window and had a fall. I guess his leg is broken."

"If that's the case, he won't need much watching from me," replied the
policeman, grimly.

"The other two rascals who were with him got away, after hitting my
brother with a footstool and hurting him quite badly. Here he is. Can
I get a doctor anywhere around here?"

"Doctor Martin lives up the road about half a mile," said the man who
had driven the carriage.

"Will you get him for me, just as soon as you can?"

"I will," said the man, and went off at once after the physician.

While he was gone Dick told his story to the policeman and the other
man, who was a local constable. Both listened with interest, and said
they would make a hunt for Pelter and Japson.

"They may go back to New York," said Dick. "If they do, telephone down
there to have them arrested." And he gave the address of the brokers'
offices.

It was about half an hour later when Doctor Martin, and elderly
physician, arrived. Dick escorted him at once to where Tom lay, still
in a semi-conscious state.

"A bad case, I am afraid," said the doctor, after a brief examination.
"His skull may be fractured. We had better get him to the hospital at
once!"

  CHAPTER XXVI

 DICK TAKES THE REINS

It was long after dark before an ambulance could be brought to the old
house. Tom was still unconscious, in fact he had not even opened his
eyes for the past half hour. Dick's heart was filled with fear. Was it
possible that his brother, so full of fun and high spirits, was so
badly hurt that he was going to die?

"No! no! Not that!" groaned poor Dick, and sent up an earnest prayer
to heaven that Tom might be spared.

The doctor had said that Josiah Crabtree's leg was broken in two
places, above and below the knee. The physician had done what he could
for the sufferer, and Crabtree was to be removed to the hospital after
Tom was taken there.

Neither the policeman nor the constable had come back to the house, so
Dick did not know whether or not the brokers had been captured. To
tell the truth, he hardly thought of the men, so anxious was he
concerning Tom's condition.

"Can I go to the hospital with you?" he asked, when they were about to
take Tom away.

"If you wish, Mr. Rover," said the ambulance doctor. "Hop up on the
seat with the driver." And Dick did so.

It was a drive of several miles and during that time Dick said but
little. Once Tom roused up, to murmur something about his head, but
that was all.

As soon as the hospital was reached, Tom was placed in a private room,
Dick asking for such accommodations.

"Do your best for my brother," said he, to those in attendance. "Don't
let money stand in the way. I'll see that all bills are paid."

"We'll have the best doctor we can get for your brother," answered the
physician in attendance, and then he sent for a specialist.

After that there was nothing to do but to wait. Dick went down to the
office and called up the Outlook Hotel in New York by telephone. He
found that Sam had just arrived there with his father, and told his
younger brother of what had occurred.

"Don't worry father too much about it," said he. "Maybe it will all
come out right in the end-- anyway I hope so." And then he told Sam to
get the police to watch the offices of Pelter, Japson & Company, and
also look out for Belright Fogg.

Before the specialist arrived to care for Tom, the ambulance came back
with Josiah Crabtree. The former teacher of Putnam Hall showed his
cowardly nature by groaning dismally every time he was moved. He was
placed in a public ward, and those in attendance were told that he was
an escaped prisoner and must not be allowed to get away again, under
any circumstances.

"He won't try it himself for a good many weeks," said one of the
doctors, grimly. "Those breaks are had ones. He'll be lucky if he gets
over them."

At last the specialist came and took charge of Tom. For over an hour
Dick waited for a report on his brother's condition. When the
specialist came to the youth he looked unusually grave.

"Your brother's case is a peculiar one, Mr. Rover;" said he. "I do not
find any crack in the skull. But he has received a great shock, and
what the outcome of that will be I cannot say."

"You don't think he will-- will die?" faltered Dick, hardly able to
frame the words.

"Hardly as bad as that, Mr. Rover. But the shock has been a heavy one,
and he will need close attention for some time. I will come in again
to-morrow morning and see him."

"Well, do your best," said Dick, brokenly,

"I always do that," answered Doctor Garrison, gravely.

There were no accommodations for Dick at the hospital, so he found a
room at a hotel several blocks away. From the hotel he sent another
telephone message to Sam, telling him what the specialist had said.
Then he asked Sam if he would come up.

"If you'll do that I can go down and help father," he added.

"All right-- I'll come up to-night or first thing in the morning,"
said Sam.

It was eight o'clock in the morning when the youngest Rover boy
appeared. He was as anxious as Dick concerning Tom, and both waited
for the specialist to appear and report. Tom had regained
consciousness for a few minutes, but that was all.

"He is no worse," reported Doctor Garrison. "I hope to see him
improved by this afternoon. I will call again about three o'clock."
And then he left directions with the nurse as to what should be done.

"This is terrible, Dick!" murmured Sam, when the brothers were alone,
in the room at the hotel. "Poor Tom! I can't bear to see him lay as he
does!"

"I feel the same way, Sam," answered Dick. "But I think I ought to go
down to New York and help father with his business affairs. He isn't
well enough to do anything alone."

"That's true, Dick; and this news about Tom has upset him worse than
ever."

A little later they separated, Sam promising to send word both to New
York city and to Valley View farm as soon as there was any change in
Tom's condition. Dick hurried to the railroad station and a little
later got a train that took him to the Grand Central Depot.

The youth found his father at the rooms in the Outlook Hotel, he
having promised to remain there until Sam returned, or Dick arrived.
Mr. Rover looked much careworn, and Dick realized more than ever that
his parent was in no physical or mental condition to transact
business.

"You ought to return to the farm and rest, Father," said he, kindly.

"I must fix up these papers first, Dick," was the answer. "But tell me
about poor Tom! Oh, to think that those villains should strike him
down that way!"

"They are desperate and will stop at nothing now," answered the son.

Then he told as much as he could about his stricken brother. Anderson
Rover shook his head sadly.

"I am afraid he will never get over it, Dick!" he groaned.

"Let us hope for the best, Father," answered the son, as bravely as he
could.

Then he questioned his father about the investments in the Sunset
Irrigation Company and in the lands out west, and soon the pair were
going over the matters carefully.

"I think we need the services of a first-class lawyer-- one we can
trust absolutely," said Dick.

"But where can you find such a lawyer?" asked the father.

"Oh, there must be plenty of them." Dick thought for a moment. "One of
my best chums at Putnam Hall and at Brill was John Powell-- Songbird.
You know him. He has an uncle here, Frank Powell, who is a lawyer. The
family are well-connected. Perhaps this Frank Powell may be the very
man we need. I can call him up on the telephone and find out."

"Do as you think best, Dick," sighed Mr. Rover. "From now on I shall
leave these business matters in your hands. I realize that I am too
feeble to attend to them properly."

Dick lost no time in communication with Mr. Frank A. A. Powell, as his
name appeared in the telephone book. When the youth explained who he
was the lawyer said he would be glad to meet the Rovers. His office
was not far from the Outlook Hotel, and he said he would call at once,
Dick explaining that his father was not feeling very well.

Mr. Powell's coming inspired Dick with immediate confidence. He was a
clean-cut man, with a shrewd manner but a look of absolute honesty.

"My nephew has often spoken of you," he said, shaking hands with Dick.
"I shall be pleased to do what I can for you."

"It's a complicated case," answered Dick. "My father can tell you
about it first, and then I'll tell you what I know, and show you all
our papers."

A talk lasting over an hour followed. The lawyer asked many questions,
and studied the various documents with interest.

"From what I can make out, Mr. Rover, that concern-- Pelter, Japson &
Company-- are a set of swindlers," said he, at last. "If I were you
I'd close down on them at once, and with the heaviest possible hand.
To give them any leeway at all might be fatal to your interests."

"Do as you think best,-- with Dick's advice," returned Mr. Rover. "I
am going to leave my business affairs in his hands after this," he
added.

"Then we'll go ahead at once!" cried the lawyer. "I will draw up the
necessary papers and you can sign them. We'll get after that whole
bunch hot-footed!"

"And don't spare them," added Dick, thinking of poor Tom. "They
deserve all that is coming to them."

"And they'll get it," said the lawyer, briefly.

  CHAPTER XXVII

 DAN BAXTER GIVES AID

The next morning was a busy one for Dick. He visited the lawyer's
office at an early hour and then went to the police station.

"We are watching those offices in Wall Street," said the officer at
the desk in the station. "But so far neither Pelter nor Japson has
shown himself. The clerks say they are out of town one in Boston and
the other in Philadelphia, but can't give any addresses."

"Well, don't let up on the watch," replied Dick. "We want to get them
if it can possibly be done. I may have another charge to make against
them," and he told of how Tom had been struck with the footstool and
was now in the hospital.

"They sure must be rascals," returned the man at the desk. "Well, we'd
do all we can. But maybe they've cleared out for good."

Towards noon came a telephone message from Sam to the hotel. Dick had
just come in and he answered it.

"Tom is a little better," said the youngest Rover. "He is conscious
and has asked about dad and you. He has taken a little nourishment,
too."

"What does the doctor say about the case?" questioned Dick, anxiously.

"He said it is a strange case and that he will watch it closely. I
heard him say to the nurse to watch Tom very closely."

"Why, that he was so low?"

"No, that he might go out of his mind. Oh, Dick, wouldn't that be
awful!" and Sam's voice showed his distress.

"You mean that he might go-- go insane, or something like that?"

"Yes,-- not for always, you understand, but temporarily."

"Well, all they can do is to watch him, Sam. And you keep close by, in
case anything more happens," added Dick, and then told his brother of
what had been done in the metropolis towards straightening out the
business tangle.

Mr. Powell was to see some people in Brooklyn regarding the land deal
in which Anderson Rover held an interest, and he had asked Dick to
meet him in that borough at four o'clock. At three o'clock Dick left
the Outlook Hotel to keep the engagement.

"You had better stay here until I get back, in case any word comes in
about Tom," said he to his father.

"Very well, Dick; I shall be glad of the rest," replied Anderson
Rover.

He had already given the particulars of how he had been kidnapped
while on his way to meet Japson. The broker had come up accompanied by
the disguised Crabtree, and he had been forced into a taxicab and a
sponge saturated with chloroform had been held to his nose. He had
become unconscious, and while in that condition had been taken to some
house up in Harlem. From there he had been transferred to the Ellen
Rodney on the evening before the boys had discovered his whereabouts.

"They treated me very harshly," Mr. Rover had said. "Mr. Crabtree was
particularly mean."

"Well, he is suffering for it," Dick had answered. "Sam telephoned
that his leg was in very bad shape and the doctors thought he would be
a cripple for life."

To get to Brooklyn Dick took the subway, crossing under the East
River. He did not know much about the place, but had received
instructions how to reach the offices where he was to meet Mr. Powell
and the others.

There was a great rush on the streets, owing to a small fire in the
vicinity. Dick stopped for a minute to watch a fire engine at work on
a corner, and as he did so, somebody tapped him on the shoulder.

"Dick Rover! of all people!" came the exclamation. "What are you doing
in Brooklyn?"

Dick turned quickly, to find himself confronted by a tall, heavy-set
youth, dressed in a business suit.

"Dan Baxter!" he cried. "How are you?" and he shook hands.

As my old readers well know, Dan Baxter was an old acquaintance of the
Rover boys. When at Putnam Hall he had been a great bully, and had
tried more than once to get the best of our heroes. But he had been
foiled, and then he had drifted to the West and South, and there the
Rovers had found him, away from home and practically penniless. They
had set him on his feet, and he had gotten a position as a traveling
salesman, and now he counted the Rovers his best friends, and was
willing to do anything for them.

"Oh, I'm pretty well," answered Dan Baxter, with a grin. "My job
agrees with me."

"What are you doing, Dan?"

"Oh, I'm still selling jewelry-- doing first-rate, too," added the
former bully, a bit proudly.

"I am mighty glad to hear it."

"How are you and the others getting along, Dick?" went on Baxter
curiously. "Thought you were at Brill College."

"I'm here on business," and Dick gave the other a brief account of
what had happened.

"Sorry Tom got hurt and hope he will come out all right," said Dan
Baxter, sympathetically. "But who are those men you mentioned?"

"A firm of brokers; named Pelter, Japson & Company."

"What!" ejaculated Dan Baxter. "Did you say Japson?"

"Yes, Dan. Do you know him?"

"Sure I do. He used to be in a jewelry firm in Albany. They tried to
stick our firm-- but we shut down on 'em. But that isn't all, Dick. I
saw Japson to-day-- not two hours ago."

"You did? Where?" And now Dick was all attention.

"I visited a-- er-- a lady friend of mine. She lives in an apartment
house near Prospect Park. I might as well tell you that some day we
are going to be married. Well, when I was coming out of the place I
saw Japson go in-- he and two other men."

"Dan, show me that place-- and do it as quickly as possible!" cried
Dick. "Come on-- don't tell me you can't. I'll pay you for your time!"
And Dick caught the other youth by the arm.

"I'll do it willingly, Dick, and there won't be any time to pay for,
even if it takes a week!" cried Dan Baxter. "I am glad to be able to
do you a favor, indeed I am!" And he gazed admiringly at the oldest
Rover boy. "Just you come with me."

Dan Baxter led the way to the nearest elevated station and they ran
upstairs to the platform and soon boarded a car bound for the vicinity
of Prospect Park.

"The young lady lives in the Nirwick Apartments," explained Baxter.
"It is a big place, with elevator service. I don't know to which
apartment Japson went, but maybe the elevator man can tell us."

"Describe the other two men to me, if you can, Dan."

The young traveling salesman did so, and Dick came to the conclusion
that one of the men must have been Pelter. The identity of the third
was a mystery.

"Maybe it was that Belright Fogg," thought the youth. "Well, I'll soon
find out-- if they are still at the apartment house-- and I hope they
are."

At last the elevated train reached the proper station and Dick and
Baxter alighted. The latter led the way for a distance of two blocks.

"There is the apartment," said Baxter, pointing the building out. "If
you want those men arrested, hadn't you better call a policeman or
two?"

"I can do that later,-- after I have spotted them," answered Dick.

A colored man ran the elevator. He had often seen Dan and knew him.

"The gentlemen you mean went up to the fourth floor-- to the apartment
that was rented last week."

"May I ask who rented it?" asked Dick.

"A lawyer, sah-- a Mr. Fogg. He's got a queer first name."

"Belright?"

"That's it, sah; Belright Fogg."

"Just as I thought," murmured Dick "They didn't go out, did they?"

"I don't think they did. I didn't see 'em, and I don't think they
would go downstairs without using the elevator, although they could
use the stairs."

"Which apartment is it?"

"On the fourth floor-- the apartment in front, on the right," answered
the elevator man.

"I'll go up," said Dick. He motioned Baxter to one side. "Dan, will
you go out and get a policeman or two, just as quickly as you can?" he
whispered.

"I will," returned the young traveling salesman, and hurried out on
the street again.

Dick stepped into the elevator and in a few seconds was deposited on
the fourth floor of the apartment house. He walked to the front and to
the right, and stopped in front of one of the doors. From the room
beyond came a murmur of voices. He listened intently. The voices were
those of Pelter, Japson and Fogg.

  CHAPTER XXVIII

 THE CAPTURE

With bated breath Dick knelt at the door and applied his ear to the
keyhole. At first he could hear only indistinctly, but gradually he
caught the drift of the conversation between the rascally brokers and
the former railroad lawyer.

"Then you want me to date those papers a week back?" he heard Belright
Fogg ask.

"That's it," answered Pelter.

"And remember, we signed them just before we went to the West," added
Japson.

"And remember also that you saw us take a train at the Grand Central
Depot," went on Pelter.

"Oh, I'll remember that," returned the lawyer, with a sly chuckle.
"And I'll remember also that I got two telegrams from you-- one from
Chicago and one from Detroit." And he laughed again.

"That alibi ought to fix us up," remarked Japson. "Anyway, it will set
the authorities to guessing."

"It will help, provided that fellow, Crabtree, doesn't squeel," said
Pelter. "He gave his word, when we were in the garret, that he would
keep mum, no matter what happened. But if he was badly hurt he may
have told everything."

"Fogg, you must try to see him in the hospital," said Japson. "Tell
him it will do no good for him to tell anything, and that, if he keeps
mum, we will remain his friends and do all we possibly can for him."

"You are piling a lot of work on my shoulders," grumbled the lawyer.
"And shady work, too. What do I get out of this?"

"You know what I promised you," answered Jesse Pelter.

"A thousand isn't enough. Just look at the risk I am running."

"Well, if you help us to clear ourselves, we'll make it two thousand
dollars," cried Japson. He paused a moment. "Quite a swell apartment,
Fogg."

"It's good enough."

"Why can't we stay here for a day or two?" questioned Japson.

"I-- er-- suppose you could," answered the lawyer, with some
hesitation. "But don't you think you would be better off out of the
State, or in Canada?"

"That's what I say!" cried Pelter. "Canada for mine. I've been wanting
to visit Montreal and Quebec. Now is our chance."

"All right, whatever you say," answered Japson. "Maybe we would be
safer out of the country until this matter blew over. Hang the luck!
It was too bad to have Rover get away from us as he did. If we could
have held him back a couple of days longer that land and maybe those
stocks would have been ours."

"He's got some smart sons, that man," observed Fog. "I know, for I
once ran up against them," and he told about the biplane incident.

"They are altogether too smart," growled Pelter. "I'd like to wring
their necks for 'em!"

"Well, we'll turn the trick on 'em yet," said Japson. "Remember, the
game isn't ended until the last card is played."

"That's right," thought Dick. "And it won't be long before I play the
last card!"

"After this affair is a thing of the past, I am going after those
business interests of the Rovers," went on Jesse Pelter. "They are
pretty well tangled up-- they got so while Rover was sick. I think we
can make something out of them yet."

"Not if I know it," murmured Dick, to himself. "You are a first-class
fellow to put in jail-- you and the others, too!"

The talk in the apartment went on, covering the things Belright Fogg
was to do while Pelter and Japson were in hiding in Canada. The
unscrupulous lawyer was to produce a power of attorney dated some days
before, so that he might act in place of the brokers. He was also to
do his best to help the brokers prove an alibi when accused of the
abduction of Anderson Rover.

"I'm getting dry," remarked Japson, presently. "Fogg, haven't you got
something to drink, and some cigars?"

"Sure I have," answered the lawyer, and Dick heard him leave the
apartment and go into a dining-room.

While Dick was listening at the door he also kept his ears open for
the return of Dan Baxter. Presently he heard the elevator come
upstairs, and then there sounded a low whistle-- a whistle Dick had
heard many times while he was a cadet at Putnam Hall.

Eagerly the oldest Rover boy tiptoed his way down the corridor. Baxter
came forward to meet him, accompanied by two policemen, and the
elevator man, who wanted to know what the trouble was.

"The two brokers are in that room," whispered Dick, pointing to the
door of the apartment. "They are planning to skip out to Canada and
leave their affairs in the hands of the lawyer who has rented this
apartment. He is almost as much of a rascal as any of them, for he is
to take their power of attorney dated some days back, and is going to
try to prove an alibi for them. I heard 'em arrange the whole thing."

"The rascals!" murmured Baxter. "Glad you cornered 'em, Dick."

"You helped, Dan-- I shan't forget that," returned Dick, warmly.

"What do you want us to do?" asked one of the policemen.

"I want all three men arrested," answered Dick. "I'll make a charge
against them. Don't let 'em get away. They'll do it if it's possible."

"All right, but you must come along to make the charge," answered the
bluecoat.

"All right."

"Please don't make no more row in the house than you can help," put in
the elevator man. "This is a swell apartment and we don't like rows. I
didn't know that lawyer who took this apartment was a crook."

"We'll do the job as quietly as possible," answered the second
policeman, who chanced to know the elevator man.

"Dan, I think you can help me out," suggested Dick. "You might go to
the door and call out that there is a telegram for Belright Fogg.
Then, when he opens the door, push into the room and we'll follow."

"Want me to help?" asked the elevator man, who was becoming
interested.

"If you will," said Dick. "You can guard the stairs-- so they can't
run down that way."

"I'll do it."

Without further delay Dan Baxter walked to the door at which Dick had
been listening. He chanced to have an old telegram envelope in his
pocket and this he produced. He knocked loudly on the portal.

"Who is there?" cried the lawyer, in a somewhat startled voice, and
Baxter heard several chairs shifted back as the occupants of the
apartment leaped to their feet.

"Telegram for Mr. Fogg-- Belright Fogg!" drawled Dan, in imitation of
an A. D. T. youth.

"A telegram, eh?" muttered the lawyer. "Wonder what is up now?"

He came to the door and unlocked it cautiously. He was going to open
it only a few inches, to peer out, but Baxter threw his weight against
the portal, sending the lawyer backwards and bumping into Jesse
Pelter.

"Hi, what's this?" stammered Belright Fogg. "What do you mean by----"

He got no further, for at that instant Dick came into the apartment,
closely followed by the two policemen.

At once there was a wild commotion. Pelter and Japson let out yells of
alarm, and both tried to back away, into the next room. But Dick was
too quick for them and barred their progress.

"Let me go!" yelled Pelter, and tried to hurl Dick to one side. Then
Japson struck out with his fist, but the oldest Rover boy dodged.

"So that's your game, is it?" cried Dan Baxter, as he saw the attack.
"Two can play at that!" And drawing back, the young traveling salesman
hit Japson a blow on the chin that bowled the broker over like a
tenpin.

In the meantime Dick had grappled with Pelter and was holding the
rascally broker against the wall. One of the policemen already held
Fogg, who was trembling from head to foot in sudden panic.

"Surrender, in the name of the law!" said the bluecoat. And he made a
move as if to draw a pistol.

"I-- I sur-- render!" gasped Belright Fogg, and up went his hands,
tremblingly.

The other policeman produced a pair of handcuffs and in a twinkling
they were slipped upon Japson's wrist. Then the bluecoats turned
towards Pelter.

"You shan't arrest me!" yelled that broker, savagely, and with a
wrench, he tore himself from Dick's grasp and started through the
rooms to the rear of the apartment.

  CHAPTER XXIX

 BROUGHT TO TERMS

"Stop him!"

"He must not get away'"

Such were some of the cries that echoed through the apartment as Jesse
Pelter ran for the rear room.

He knew there was a fire escape there and thought he might reach the
ground from that.

But Dick was at his heels, determined that the broker should not
escape if he could possibly prevent it.

The window to the fire escape was open, for a maid in the kitchen had
just set out some cooked dish to cool.

Pelter made a leap for the window, nearly scaring the maid into a fit.
She screamed loudly, and as she did so Dick made a wild leap and
caught Pelter by the foot.

"Let go, Rover!" yelled the broker, hoarsely.

"I won't! You are not going to get away, Pelter."

There was a struggle, and the broker aimed a blow at Dick's head. Then
the oldest Rover boy suddenly caught the rascal by the neck and banged
his head vigorously against the window casing.

"Ouch! Don't!" groaned the broker. "Oh, my skull is broken!"

"Then keep still," answered Dick, grimly, and he continued to hold the
man. Soon one of the policemen came up, and then, much against his
will, the head of the firm of Pelter, Japson & Company was handcuffed
like his partner in crime.

"You'll suffer for this, Rover; see if you don't!" growled Jesse
Pelter, after the excitement was over. "I have done nothing wrong, and
I can prove it. This is all a plot on the part of you and your family
to get our firm into trouble."

"You can do your talking when you are in jail," answered Dick,
briefly. "I know what I am doing."

"Maybe you got Crabtree to hatch up a story against us," came from
Japson.

"Never mind what Crabtree confessed," said Dick. "You'll get what is
coming to you, never fear."

"I guess I had better send in a call for the patrol wagon," said one
of the policemen. "Can you watch 'em, Jake?"

"Sure," answered the second bluecoat. "I guess the young fellows will
help."

"I will," said Dick.

"So will I," put in Dan. He turned to Dick. "I'm mighty glad to be of
service to you. It kind of helps to-- to-- pay off old scores, eh?" he
faltered.

"Yes, Dan; you are doing us a great service, and I shan't forget it,"
returned Dick, with warmth.

A number of tenants in the apartment house had been alarmed by what
was going on, and among them were the girl Baxter was engaged to
marry, and her mother. Dan quickly explained matters to them, and
introduced Dick, and the latter told of the service Baxter had done.
Then the police patrol wagon came along, and the prisoners and the
others went below.

"Maybe I had better go to headquarters with you," suggested Dan to
Dick.

"Yes, you'll have to go," put in one of the policemen.

The ride was not a long one, and as soon as the prisoners were brought
in, Dick explained the situation and asked that the authorities in
Brooklyn communicate with those in New York. This was done, and then
Pelter, Japson, and Fogg were held for a further hearing.

"Can't we get bail?" demanded the lawyer.

"Certainly, if you wish," was the reply. And then the amount was
fixed, and the prisoners sent out a messenger, to see if they could
not get somebody to go on their bail bonds.

Dick's parting with Baxter was very cordial. The oldest Rover boy
realized that the former bully of Putnam Hall was greatly changed and
that he had done him a great service.

"I wish you all kinds of luck, Dan," he said. "You've got a nice
position and a fine girl, and you ought to do well."

"Do you like her, Dick?" and Dan blushed a little. "We expect to be
married soon."

"Well, I am going to be married myself before long."

"Is that so? Good enough! I guess I know the girl," and Dan grinned.

"You do, Dan."

"Give her my best regards, and tell her I think she is getting the
best fellow in the world!" said Baxter, and shook Dick's hand. And
thus the two former enemies parted.

Dick had already called up Mr. Powell on the telephone, telling the
lawyer of what had occurred. Now he engaged a taxicab to take him to
the place which he had started out to visit when coming to Brooklyn.
It was rather late, but the lawyer had persuaded the people he had
come to see to wait.

An interview lasting over an hour followed. The lawyer had already
explained many things, and now Dick told of others.

"You have opened our eyes, Mr. Rover," said one of the men present,
when Dick had finished. "We rather suspected Pelter, Japson & Company
and we were bewildered by what your father proposed to do. Now all is
perfectly clear, and, if you wish us to do so, we'll stand by your
father to the end."

"Thank you very much!" cried the youth, in delight.

"Your father is not very well, you say," said another of the men. "In
that case----"

"I am going to transact his business for him, after this," answered
Dick. "He is going to place it in my hands."

"You are rather young, Mr. Rover. But the way you handled those
brokers shows you can do things. I wish you success."

"I shall rely upon Mr. Powell for assistance," said Dick.

"And I'll do what I can," put in the lawyer.

When Dick got back to the Outlook Hotel it was quite late. But he had
telephoned to his father, so Mr. Rover was not alarmed. The youth
found his parent smiling pleasantly.

"Good news all around!" cried Anderson Rover.

"Then you've heard from Sam?" asked Dick, quickly.

"Yes, he sent in word about an hour ago. Tom is doing very well, and
the specialist says he will soon be himself again."

"That's the best news yet!" cried Dick, and his face showed his
relief.

"Yes, it is even better than this news you sent me-- that Pelter and
Japson have been captured."

"Well, I am mighty glad we rounded up those rascals," said the son.

"So am I."

"Did Sam say anything about Crabtree?"

"He said Crabtree was about the same. The doctors are doing what they
can for him. But he will most likely be a cripple for life."

"That's bad. But he has nobody to blame but himself."

After that Dick had to sit down and tell his father the details of all
that had occurred. Then he got a late supper, and some time after that
he and his parent retired. The youth was thoroughly tired out, but
happy.

The next few days were as busy as those just past had been. Dick and
his father ran up to where Tom lay in the hospital. They found the
sufferer had come to his senses. Sam and a nurse were with him.

"Oh, I'll be all right again, in a few days!" cried Tom, with a brave
attempt at a smile. "I guess I fared better than old Crabtree. They
tell me he'll limp for life."

"Limp for life!" cried Dick.

"That is what they say."

"What a terrible affliction!" murmured the oldest Rover boy. "But he
has nobody to blame but himself."

"Tom, are you quite comfortable here?" asked Mr. Rover, anxiously.

"Oh, yes, they do all they can for me, Dad," was the answer.

"We must send you home as soon as we can."

"Well, I'll be willing to go," returned Tom. He thought of the quiet
farm, and of his Aunt Martha's motherly care, and gave a deep sigh.

"He can be moved in four or five days-- the doctor said so," put in
Sam. "I've figured it all out. We can take him to the train in an
auto, and I'll see that he gets to Oak Run all right. There Jack can
meet us with our own machine, and the rest will be easy."

"I can go along," said Dick.

"It won't be necessary, Dick," said Tom "You stay in New York and get
Dad's affairs straightened out."

The matter was talked over, and it was at length decided that Sam
should remain with Tom and take him home, while Mr. Rover and Dick
returned to the city.

Four days later the youngest Rover got permission from the specialist
who had attended Tom to take him home. An easy-riding automobile was
procured, and in this the two brothers drove to the nearest railroad
station. A compartment in a parlor car had already been engaged, and
Tom was placed in this and made as comfortable as circumstances
permitted. The ride was a long and tedious one for the youth, and by
the time he had made the necessary changes to get to Oak Run he was
pretty well exhausted, and had a severe headache.

"Poor boy!" murmured the hired man, who had brought the family touring
car to the station.

"Dis am de wust yet, de werry wust!" came from Aleck Pop, who had come
along. Both men aided Sam in getting Tom into the car, and then Jack
started for Valley Brook farm, running the machine with the greatest
possible care.

Aunt Martha stood on the piazza ready to receive the boys, and when
she beheld Tom's pale face the tears streamed down her cheeks.

"My boy! My poor boy!" she cried. "Oh, what a terrible happening!" And
she bent over and kissed him.

"Oh, don't worry, Aunt Martha; I'll soon be myself again," answered
Tom, as cheerfully as his spirits permitted.

"I've got the front room all ready for you," went on the aunt. And she
led the way into the house and to the apartment in question. Here the
sufferer was put to bed, and his aunt did all in her power to make him
comfortable. The local doctor had already been notified, and soon he
appeared, to read a note written by the city specialist and listen to
what Sam had to tell him. Then he took charge and said Tom must be
kept very quiet.

"It shall be as you say, Doctor," said Mrs. Rover. And after that, for
a number of days, nobody but the members of the family was allowed to
go in and talk to the youth.

In the meantime, Dick and his father had several interviews with their
lawyer, and also with a lawyer who represented Pelter, Japson, and
Belright Fogg. The brokers and Fogg were anxious to hush matters up,
and promised to do whatever was wanted by the Rovers if they would
drop the case against them.

"I think we had better arrange matters, Dick," said Mr. Rover, with a
sigh. "I am tired of fighting. If they will do the fair thing all
around, let them go."

"Just as you say, Father," replied Dick. "But they must give up
everything that belongs to us."

"Well, you can see to it that they do-- you and Mr. Powell," answered
Anderson Rover. "I am going back to the farm to rest, and after that I
think I'll travel a little for my health."

"All right, Dad. But-- but----" Dick stammered and grew red. "You--
er-- you won't go away until after my wedding, will you?"

"No, Dick, I'll stay home until after you and Dora are married,"
answered Mr. Rover, with a quiet smile.

  CHAPTER XXX

 MRS. DICK ROVER-- CONCLUSION

"The day of days, Dick!"

"Right you are, Sam! And what a perfect day it is!"

"Oh, I had this weather made to order," came from Tom Rover, with a
grin.

"How do you feel, Tom?" questioned his big brother kindly, as he
turned away from the window to look at the lad who had been hurt.

"Oh, I'm as chipper as a catbird with two tails!" sang out the
fun-loving Rover. But his pale face was not in keeping with his words.
Tom was not yet himself. But be wasn't going to show it-- especially
on Dick's wedding day.

All of the Rovers had come up to Cedarville and they were now stopping
at the home of Mr. Laning, the father of Grace and Nellie. As my old
readers know, the Stanhopes lived but a short distance away, and
nearby was Putnam Hall, where the boys had spent so many happy days.

Dora had left Hope as soon as it was settled that she and Dick should
be married, and she and her mother, and the others, had been busy for
some time getting ready for the wedding. Nellie and Grace were also
home, and were as much excited as Dora herself, for they were both to
be bridesmaids. The girls had spent several days in New York,
shopping, and a dressmaker from the city had been called in to dress
the young ladies as befitted the occasion.

Tom was to be Dick's best man, while Sam was to head the ushers at the
church-- the other ushers being Songbird, Stanley, Fred Garrison,
Larry Colby, and Bart Conners. A delegation of students from Brill--
including William Philander Tubbs-- had also come up, and were
quartered at the Cedarville Hotel.

The wedding was to take place at the Cedarville Union Church, a quaint
little stone edifice, covered with ivy, which the Stanhopes and the
Lanings both attended and which the Rover boys had often visited while
they were cadets at Putnam Hall. The interior of the church was a mass
of palms, sent up on the boat from Ithaca.

Following the sending out of the invitations to the wedding, presents
had come in thick and fast to the Stanhope home. From Dick's father
came an elegant silver service, and from his brothers a
beautifully-decorated dinner set; while Uncle Randolph and Aunt Martha
contributed a fine set of the latest encyclopaedias, and a
specially-bound volume of the uncle's book on scientific farming! Mr.
Anderson Rover also contributed a bank book with an amount written
therein that nearly took away Dora's breath.

"Oh, Dick, just look at the sum!" she cried.

"It sure is a tidy nest egg," smiled the husband-to-be. "I knew dad
would come down handsomely. He's the best dad ever was!"

"Yes, Dick, and I know I am going to love him just as if I was his own
daughter," answered Dora.

Mrs. Stanhope gave her daughter much of the family silver and jewelry,
and also a full supply of table and other linen. From Captain Putnam
came a handsome morris chair, and Songbird sent in a beautifully-bound
volume of household poetry, with a poem of his own on the flyleaf. The
students of Brill sent in a fine oil painting in a gold frame, and the
girls at Hope contributed an inlaid workbox with a complete sewing
outfit. From Dan Baxter, who had been invited, along with the young
lady to whom he was engaged, came two gold napkin rings, each suitably
engraved. Dan had written to Dick, saying he would come to the wedding
if he had to take a week off to get there, he being then in Washington
on a business trip.

The wedding was to take place at high noon, and long before that time
the many guests began to assemble at the church. Among the first to
arrive was Captain Putnam, in military uniform, and attended by about
a dozen of the Hall cadets. George Strong, the head teacher, was also
present, for he and Dick had always been good friends. Then came the
students from Brill, all in full dress, and led by William Philander
Tubbs, bedecked as only that dudish student would think of bedecking
himself.

The Lanings and Mrs. Stanhope came together and the Rovers followed
closely. Soon the little church was packed and many stood outside,
unable to get in. The organ was playing softly.

Suddenly the bell in the tower struck twelve. As the last stroke died
away the organ peeled forth in the grand notes of the wedding march.
Then came the wedding party up the middle aisle, a little flower girl
preceding them. Dora was on her uncle's arm, and wore white satin,
daintily embroidered, and carried a bouquet of bridal roses. Around
her neck was a string of pearls Dick had given her. The bridesmaids
were in pink and also carried bouquets.

Dick was already at the altar to meet his bride, and then began the
solemn ceremony that made the pair one for life. It was simple and
short, and at the conclusion Dick kissed Dora tenderly.

The organ pealed out once more, and the happy couple marched from the
church, everybody gazing after them in admiration.

"A fine couple," was Captain Putnam's comment. "A fine couple, truly!"

"Yes, indeed!" echoed George Strong. "I wish them every happiness."

"A perfectly splendid wedding, don't you know!" lisped William
Philander Tubbs. "Why, I really couldn't run it off better myself!"

"It was all to the merry!" was Stanley's comment. "She's a dandy girl,
too-- wish I had one half as good."

"Dick Rover deserves the best girl in the world," was Songbird's
conclusion. "He is the finest fellow I know, barring none."

"I suppose you'll get up a poem about this, Songbird," suggested one
of the other students.

"Perhaps," was the answer, and the would-be poet smiled in a dreamy
fashion.

"It seems only yesterday that the Rover boys came to the Hall,"
remarked Captain Putnam, to one of his friends. "My, how the years
have flown!"

"But they are still boys-- at least Tom and Sam are," was the ready
reply. "And Tom is just as full of sport as he ever was-- I don't
believe he'll ever settle down."

"Time will tell. But with all his fun he is a good lad at heart-- and
that is what counts."

"Right you are, Captain Putnam. I wouldn't give a rap for a lad who
didn't have some fun in his make-up."

"All of them had plenty of fun while they were at my school. They cut
up a good deal sometimes. But I liked them all the better for it,
somehow," concluded the captain, with a twinkle in his eyes.

Carriages and automobiles were in waiting, and Dick and his bride,
along with their relatives and many friends, were quickly whirled away
to the Stanhope home. Here followed numerous congratulations,
interspersed with not a few kisses. Mrs. Stanhope's eyes were still
full of tears, but she smiled at her newly-made son-in-law.

"It's all right, Dick!" she whispered. "I'm not a bit sorry. But-- but
a woman can't help crying when she sees her only girl getting
married."

"You are not going to lose Dora," he answered, tenderly. "You are
going to get a son, that's all."

A long table had been spread, from the dining-room to the
sitting-room, with another table in the library, and soon a grand
wedding dinner was in progress. Dora sat at her husband's side, and
never did a pair feel or look more happy. Close at hand was Tom,
paying his attentions to Nellie, and at the smaller table Sam was
doing his best to entertain Grace. Mr. Anderson Rover sat beside Mrs.
Stanhope, and not far away were the others of the families.

"Well, they are married at last," said Mr. Rover to Mrs. Stanhope. "I,
for one, am well satisfied. I think they will get along well
together."

"Yes, Mr. Rover, I think they will get along finely," answered Mrs.
Stanhope. "I liked Dick from the first time I met him-- and Dora--
well, there was nobody else after he came into view," and she smiled
faintly. Then her eyes traveled over to where Tom and Nellie were
talking earnestly, and his followed. "I think that is another pair,"
she whispered.

"I shouldn't wonder," was the reply. "But they can wait a while. Tom
is rather young yet."

"He looks rather pale."

"Yes, that blow he received on the head was a severe one. I am worried
about it," went on Mr. Rover, soberly.

It had been arranged that Dick and Dora should depart on a honeymoon
trip to Washington late that afternoon. The dinner over, the rooms
were cleared, and the young folks enjoyed themselves in dancing, an
orchestra having been engaged for that purpose.

"How perfectly happy they all seem to be!" remarked Aunt Martha to
Anderson Rover, as they sat watching the dancing.

"Yes," he answered. "I trust that nothing happens to make it otherwise
after this."

"Oh, something is bound to happen to those boys!" murmured the aunt.
"You simply can't hold them in!" And something did happen, and what is
was will be related in the next volume of this series, to be entitled:
"The Rover Boys in Alaska; Or, Lost in the Fields of Ice." In that
book we shall learn how Tom suddenly lost his mind and wandered away
from home, and what strenuous things happened to Dick and Sam when
they went after their brother.

But for the time being all went well. The young folks danced to their
hearts' content, and Tom kept them roaring over the many jokes he had
saved up for the occasion. His head ached a good deal, but he refused
to let anybody know about it.

Then came the time for Dick and Dora to depart. An auto was at the
door, gaily decorated with white ribbons, and bearing on the back a
sign painted by Tom which read, "We're Just Married." Another auto was
in the backyard, to take some of the guests to the steamboat dock.

"Good-bye!" was the cry, as the pair came down the stairs, ready for
the trip. "Good-bye and good luck!" And then came a generous shower of
rice and several old shoes. Dora kissed her mother for the last time
and she and Dick hurried to the auto. Away they went, and the other
auto after them, Tom and Sam and some others tooting horns and the
girls shrieking gaily.

"To the steamboat dock, I suppose," said the driver of the auto, to
Dick.

"Not much!" cried the newly-married youth. "Here is where we fool
them. Straight for Ithaca, and as fast as the law allows!"

"I get you," replied the chauffeur, grinning.

"We want to catch the seven-forty-five train for New York," went on
Dick.

"We'll do it, sir," was the answer, and then the auto driver turned on
the speed, made a whirl around a corner of the road, and in a minute
more was on the way to Ithaca, with the second car far behind.

"Hello! he's given us the slip!" cried Sam, in dismay.

"Never mind, let them go!" whispered Grace.

"Yes, we've had fun enough," added Nellie. "Oh, what a grand wedding
it has been!" she added, with a sigh. And then, when Tom squeezed her
hand, she blushed.

In the other automobile, Dora and Dick sat close together on the back
seat. Under the robe her hand, the one with the wedding ring upon it,
was clasped tightly within his own.

"Glad?" he whispered.

"Perfectly," she answered.

 THE END