Before the boy could arise to his feet the two men were rushing
upon him, Buddy with a stick and the tall man with something which
he had drawn from his pocket. It was a sand-bag, a favorite weapon
used in our large cities by footpads.




CHAPTER X

SETTLING DOWN AT THE HALL


"It's a boy!" cried the tall, slim man.

"One of the boys!" came from the tramp known as Buddy.

"You don't say!"  The tall man turned to Tom.  "How did you get
here?"

"Walked," answered Tom as calmly as he could, although this is not
saying much, for he realized that the pair before him were
desperate characters and that he was no match for them.

"Have you been spying on us?" demanded the fellow called Nolly.

"I've been spying on this man," answered Tom, pointing to the
other fellow.  "He stole my brother's watch.  What have you done
with it?"

"Never stole a watch in me life!" returned Buddy quickly.

"I say you did, and it will do no good to deny it."

"If you say I stole any watch I'll--I'll knock yer down," cried
Buddy fiercely.

And he rushed at Tom and aimed a blow at the boy's head with his
stick.

Nolly also ran forward with his sand-bag; and seeing this, Tom
leaped back, and was soon making tracks as fast as his legs could
carry him.

The two men did not pursue him far.  Instead, they turned and ran
in the opposite direction.

Tom hurried on until he came within sight of a large farmhouse.
Reaching the front door, he used the brass knocker vigorously.

Soon an upper window was raised, and the head of a middle-aged man
was thrust out.

"Who is there?" he demanded.

"I want help, sir," answered Tom.  "I am a pupil at Putnam Hall,
and I have just spotted a fellow in this neighborhood who robbed
my brother of a gold watch."

"Is that so!"

"Oh, papa, is it one of the boys Grace and I were telling you
about?" came in the voice of Nellie Laning.  "Aren't you Tom
Rover?"

"Yes.  This must be Mr. Laning."

"Yes, my boy, I am John Laning," answered the farmer.  "I will be
down in a moment.  We are in the habit of retiring early."

In a few minutes Tom was let into the house, and he told his story
to John Laning, his wife, and the two girls, all of whom listened
with interest.

Then a hired man was aroused, and the two men and the boy hurried
to where the campfire had been located.

But, as stated before, Buddy and Nolly had made good use of their
time, and no trace of them was to be found.

"They have skipped out," said Mr. Laning.

"To look for them will be worse than looking for spiders in a corn
stack.  I suppose you'll be getting back to Putnam Hall now?"

"If it is all the same, I would like to engage a room at your
farmhouse for the night," answered Tom, and told his tale.

At the mention of Josiah Crabtree's name John Laning's face grew
dark.

"I don't wonder you had a row with that man," he said.  "I know
him only too well.  You can stay at my house if you will, and it
shall not cost you a cent."

"Hullo, here is luck!" thought Tom, and thanked the farmer for his
offer.

When they got back to the farmhouse Tom's story had to be told to
Grace and Nellie, while Mr. Laning went off to prepare a room for
the youth.

"Oh, Josiah Crabtree!" cried Nelly.  "Why, don't you know he is
trying to court our Aunt Lucy?"

"Your Aunt Lucy?  Who is she?"

"Dora Stanhope's mother.  Dora's father is dead, you know."

"Great Caesar!" burst from Tom; "I hope Dora never gets him for a
stepfather!"

"So do all of us, Tom; but I'm afraid he has made quite an
impression on Aunt Lucy.  She is rich; and my own idea is that
Josiah Crabtree is after her money."

"He's none too good for it," was Tom's blunt comment.

The girls and the lad chatted together for half an hour, and then
all retired for the balance of the night.

"They're awfully sweet," thought the boy, "these two, and Dora
too."

He slept soundly, and did not arise until after seven.  On coming
below he found a hot breakfast awaiting him, to which it is
perhaps needless to state he did full justice.

While he was talking to the girls, and finishing up at the same
time, Mr. Laning came in.

"Thought I would tell you that Captain Putnam just drove down the
Hall road on his way to the school," he announced.

"Then I'll get back at once," said Tom, and bade the various
members of the family good-by.  "Hope we meet again soon," he
whispered to the girls, and this made both blush.

Mr. Laning would have driven the lad to the academy, but Tom
declined the offer and set off on foot.  It did not take him long
to cover the distance, and he entered the grounds as unconcernedly
as though nothing out of the ordinary had happened.

"Hullo!" cried several cadets as they noticed him.  "Where did you
come from?  Mr. Crabtree has been looking all over for you."

"I don't wish to see him.  I wish to see Captain Putnam?  Where is
he?"

"Gracious, but you're a cool one!" remarked one of the cadets.
"The captain is in his office, I think."

"Will you please show me to the place?"

"Certainly."

The office was a finely furnished apartment just off the main
classroom.  Tom knocked on the door.

"Come in," said a cheery voice, and the boy calmly entered to find
himself confronted not only by Captain Putnam, but likewise by
Josiah Crabtree.

"Ah!  Here is the young reprobate now!" cried Crabtree, as rushing
up, he grasped Tom by the arm.

"You will kindly let go of my arm, Mr. Crabtree," said Tom
steadily.

"You shan't run away again!"

"That's true--now Captain Putnam is here."

"So this is Thomas Rover," said Captain Victor Putnam, with
something like a twinkle in his clear eyes.  "Rover, I have heard
a rather serious report about you and your brother Richard."

"What kind of a report, if I may ask, sir?"

"Mr. Crabtree says you have been impudent to him, and that when he
locked you in the guardroom for breaking the rules you attacked
him and knocked him down."

"He attacked me first.  If anybody attacked you, wouldn't you be
apt to knock him down if you could?"

"That would depend upon, circumstances, Rover.  If a man attacked
me on the street I would certainly endeavor to defend myself to
the best of my ability.  But you must remember that you are a
pupil here, and Mr. Crabtree is one of your masters, appointed by
me."

"I am not a pupil yet, sir--although I hope to be very soon."

"Why, what do you mean?" demanded Victor Putnam, and now his voice
grew stern.  Many a boy would have flinched, but Tom had
determined to say just what he thought of Crabtree, and he stood
his ground.

"I mean just this, Captain Putnam.  I came to Putnam Hall with the
best intention in the world of doing my duty as a pupil and
becoming a credit to your institution.  I hadn't a thought of
breaking a rule or being impudent.  Before I entered your grounds
I thought of a big fire cracker I had in my pocket, and just for
the fun of the thing set the cracker off, as a sort of farewell to
the outdoor life so soon to be left behind."

"Captain Putnam, are you going to listen to such tomfoolery?"
interrupted Josiah Crabtree.

"I believe I have a right to tell my story," answered Tom.
"Unless that right is granted, I shall leave the Hall, go back to
my guardian, and tell him that I refuse to become a pupil here."

"You are a pupil already," snarled Crabtree.

"I am not--and that is just the point I am trying to make," went
on Tom to the owner of Putnam Hall.  "As soon as the firecracker
went off, this man rushed up  and demanded an explanation.  He was
going to lock up my brother first, but I said I had fired the
cracker, and so he compelled me to go to the guardroom with him.
I was locked in and treated to bread and milk for supper, and he
wanted to steal the keys of my trunk and valise from me."

"Steal!" ejaculated Josiah Crabtree.

"That is what it amounted to, for the keys, and boxes are my
property."

"Mr. Crabtree merely wanted to see that your baggage contained
nothing improper," put in Captain Putnam.  "There are certain
things we do not allow boys to bring into the institution."

"Then he had a right to keep my baggage out until I was properly
enrolled as a pupil.  I did not bring in the trunk and bag
myself."

At this Captain Putnam began to smile.

"I see the point you are trying to make, Rover.  You are trying to
prove that you were placed under arrest, so to speak, before you
were under our authority here."

"Exactly.  I will leave it to you, Captain Putnam, if I was really
a pupil when Mr. Crabtree hauled me off to the guardroom."

At this plain question the face of the owner of the Hall became a
study.

"You make a very fine distinction, Rover," he answered slowly.

"Perhaps so, sir; and I do it because I want to begin right here.
If I am to be handicapped at the start of my career, what is the
use of my trying to make a record for myself?" and Tom looked the
master of Putnam Hall full in the face.

Without a word Captain Putnam held out his hand.  "Thomas, you
have considerable spirit, but I think your heart is in the right
place, and I am willing to try you.  Supposing you enroll as a
pupil now, and we let bygones be bygones?"

"With all my heart, sir!" cried Tom, glad to have the whole affair
settled so easily.

"Why, are you going to let the--the young rascal go?" demanded
Josiah Crabtree, in amazement.

"I'm not a rascal, Mr. Crabtree."

"Yes, you are!"

"Mr. Crabtree, I have decided to drop the matter," put in Captain
Putnam, in a tone which admitted of no dispute, and the head
assistant fell back abashed.  "Rover says he wishes to make a
record for himself, and I am inclined to help him.  He starts his
term free and clear of all charges against him--and his brother
whom you have locked up shall do likewise.  Kindly call Mr.
Strong."

"It is a--a most unusual proceeding," growled the head
assistant.

"Perhaps, but we will talk that matter over at another time."

Josiah Crabtree went out; and in a minute George Strong appeared,
and Tom was turned over to him, to sign the roll of the academy
and to join Sam, Fred, and the others in the class room over which
Mr. Strong presided.

"Hullo, you're back," whispered Sam, but no more could be said
until recess, when Tom told his story in detail.  In the meantime
Dick was released.

"So you met the fellow who stole my watch!" cried the elder
brother.  "I wish you had got the timepiece."

"So do I, Dick."

Dick had been captured by Josiah Crabtree just as he was vaulting
the iron fence around the guardroom window.  The head assistant
had locked him up in the apartment Tom had occupied, and there
Dick had remained all night.

"Oh, Crabtree is a terror!" said Dick later on.  "I hope Dora
Stanhope's mother never marries him."

"I'll wager neither of you have heard the last of Crabtree, even
if we are not in his classes," remarked Sam.  "He will watch for a
chance to get even, mark my words."

"I don't doubt it, Sam," answered Tom.  "But let him come on.  I
intend to do my duty as a cadet, and I am not afraid of him."




CHAPTER XI

A ROW IN THE GYMNASIUM


For several days matters moved along smoothly with the Rover boys.
In that time their chums, Frank Harrington and Larry Colby,
arrived, and these, with Fred, made up the "Metropolitan Sextet,"
as they called themselves--the sole occupants of dormitory No.
6.

Next to this dormitory was apartment five, occupied by Dan Baxter,
Mumps, and six others of the bully's cronies.  The two apartments
were connected by a door, but this was nailed up.

So far there had been no open rupture between Baxter and Dick, but
there was trouble "in the air," and it was bound to reach a climax
sooner or later.

Fortunately for Dick and his brothers, Captain Putnam had cadet
uniforms to fit them, and the three were now dressed in true
military style.  The other boys had to wait until uniforms could
be made for them.

The first day at Putnam Hall was spent in assigning the newcomers
to the various classes, according to their knowledge.  On the
second day the three Rover boys were placed in the awkward squad,
to learn the military drill.

The squad was presided over by Corporal Mark King, a youth who was
cut out to be a soldier, although his father was a sea captain.

"Now then, line up!" he called out to the newcomers.  "All of you
will please toe that crack in the floor; now turn out your toes
like this, and put your shoulders back, hands with the palms to
the front."

His instructions were followed to the letter, for all were anxious
to learn as fast as possible.

"Now the first thing to remember is to say nothing, but obey orders
promptly," exclaimed the corporal. "When an order is given the first
part is a warning, while the conclusion is the time when that order
must be executed. For, instance, I tell you 'Eyes right!' I say
'Eyes,' and you get ready to move your eyes; I add 'Right,' and you
instantly turn them to the right, and keep them there. Now we'll try.
Eyes--right! Great smoke! number four, you turned them to the left! Now
again: Eyes--right! Good! Eyes--front! That's first-class. Now:
Eyes--left! Eyes--front! That couldn't be better."

And so it went on for an hour, during, which the boys learned not
alone how to use their eyes, but also to "left face," "right
face," "front face," and "about face"--that is, to turn directly
to the rear.  Then they learned how to
mark time "with their feet, starting with the left foot."

"Tomorrow you shall learn how to march," said Corporal King when
the drilling was over.  "And then each of you will get a gun and
go through the manual of arms."

"Will we learn how to shoot?" asked Tom.  "I can shoot a little
already."

"We have target practice once a month, and during the annual
encampment," concluded the corporal.

"I wish that encampment was already at hand!" sighed Sam.  He
imagined that life under a tent would just suit him.

As soon as the boys "got the run" of the institution they began to
feel at home.  They made friends rapidly, especially when it
became known that Sam was a fine runner and Tom a capital baseball
player.  There were several baseball teams in the school, and they
frequently played matches on Saturday afternoons.

The gymnasium pleased Dick as much as it did his younger brothers,
and nearly every day, he spent a quarter of an hour or more in the
building, using one apparatus or another, for the building was
fitted up with rings, parallel bars, wooden horses, pulling
machines, and other paraphernalia of athletic usage.

One afternoon Dick had just begun to use a set of parallel bars
when Dan Baxter sauntered in, accompanied by Mumps and two other
cronies.

There were very few cadets in the building at the time, and Baxter
came directly to Dick.

"I guess we can settle that little affair now," muttered the
bully, and slapped Dick on the cheek.  "That for interfering with
my doing on the boat."

Being on the bars, Dick could not ward off the blow, but he
immediately sprang down, and with flushed cheeks leaped in front
of Baxter.

"You seem very anxious to fight," he said in a low, steady voice.
"You can, therefore, take that for a starter!"  And hauling off
with his right fist, he struck Dan Baxter fairly and squarely upon
the nose, causing the blood to spurt and sending the bully to the
floor like a shot.

If ever there was an individual taken by surprise it was the bully
of Putnam Hall.  He had not anticipated such a sudden and
determined resistance, and for several seconds he lay still, too
dazed to move.  In the meantime his friends sprang forward, but
Dick waved them off.

"My fight is with Baxter," he said.  "I want you to keep your
hands out of it."

"You hit him when he wasn't prepared," blustered Mumps.

"And he hit me when I was not prepared.  Stand back!"

And Dick made such a show of being ready to attack Mumps that the
toady fell back in great alarm.

In the meanwhile Dan Baxter arose, and tried to stop the flow of
blood with his handkerchief.  "I'll get even with you, Rover!" he
growled behind the stained cloth.

"At any time you please, Baxter," returned Dick.  "But don't you
take me off my guard again, or I'll have no mercy on you."

"Do you dare to meet me in a fair, standing up fight?" demanded
the bully.

"I certainly do."

"All right, then.  Next Saturday afternoon at three."

Dick bowed.  "Where?" he questioned.

"In the patch of woods behind the cornfield."

"All right."

"Mums is the word, fellows," said Baxter to his cronies.  "You
will keep this to yourself, Rover, won't you?"

"How many do you expect to bring to the fight?"

"Only the four fellows who are here."

"Very well; I will bring a like number."

"Want to tell everybody, don't you?"

"No, but I think I am entitled to fair play; and that means that I
must have as many friends there as you have."

"All right," grumbled Baxter, but he evidently did not like the
arrangement.  A moment later he hurried off, to do what he could
to prevent his nose from swelling.

Dick told only his brothers and his chums of what had occurred,
but the news leaked out that a fight was on, and Saturday
afternoon found at least twenty cadets in the secret and on their
way to witness the "mill," as those who had read something about
prize-fighting were wont to call the contest.

Now, lest my readers obtain a false impression of my views on this
subject, let me state plainly that I do not believe in fights,
between boys or otherwise. They are brutal, far from manly, and
add nothing to the strength of one's character.  It is well enough
to know how to defend one's self when occasion requires, but such
occasions occur but rarely.

But I have set out to relate the adventures of the Rover boys, in
school and out, and on land and sea, and I feel I must be truthful
and tell everything just as it happened, not only in this volume,
but in all those which are to follow; and, consequently, I shall
tell of the fight as the particulars were related to me by Sam
Rover, Fred Garrison and others--details which I am certain are
correct.

The spot was a sheltered one, and on the edge of the woods two
spies were posted, to warn the contestants should Josiah Crabtree
or any of the other teachers appear, for fighting was against the
rules of Putnam Hall, and neither Dick nor Baxter wanted to be
caught.

Both came to the spot promptly, and, without preliminary talking,
took off their coats, collars, ties, and caps.  A ring was formed,
and Dick stepped forward and faced Baxter.

The bully was several inches taller than his opponent and at least
fifteen pounds heavier.  His nose was a bit swollen, and there was
a sneer upon his coarse face.

"Rover, if you wish to apologize to me you can do so, and save
yourself a thrashing," he remarked.

"I can take care of myself, Baxter.  Perhaps you would like me to
make a similar proposition to you.  If so, let me say it is too
late; I came here to give you a well-deserved thrashing, and I
mean to stick to my determination."

"Phew, but we talk big!" muttered Mumps.

"You keep your oar out, Mumps," put in Tom. "If you don't I'll give
you a hiding, just as soon as Dick is done with Dan."

"Will you?  Maybe you'll be the one to catch it," muttered Mumps.
Nevertheless, he said no more.

"Are you ready?" asked the boy who acted as timekeeper.

"I am," said Dick.

"So am I," returned Baxter, and hurled himself at his opponent
without a second's delay.

He had expected to catch Dick napping, but he found himself
mistaken.  A blow aimed at Dick's face was well parried, and in
return Dick hit Baxter heavily on the shoulder.

"Hurrah!  Score one for Dick!" cried Larry Colby.  "That's right,
old man, keep at him."

"Keep cool, Dan!" put in Mumps.  "You can polish him off at your
leisure."

The blow on the shoulder staggered Baxter, and he fell back, to
become more cautious; and then the two boys began to circle around
and around, each looking for a favorable "opening."  At last
Baxter thought he saw what he wanted, and struck out again, and
Dick was hit on the cheek.

"That's the way, Baxter!" came the cry.

"That was a teaser!  Give him another!"

Again Baxter launched out, and now Dick was hit on the arm.  He
slipped to one side, and struck out like lightning, and the bully
caught it in the neck, something which, spun him around like a
top.

"Another for Dick!" cried Frank Harrington.  "Keep it up!"

Again the two boys faced each other.  But only for an instant.
With a savage cry Baxter sprang upon Dick as if to fairly tear him
apart.  One blow landed upon Dick's arm and a second on his chest.

"It's Baxter's fight!  Baxter is still king of this school!"

"You might as well give it up, Rover; he's too many for you!"

So the cries ran on, while the bully, encouraged by his success,
renewed his efforts; and an additional blow sent Dick to the
ground in a heap.




CHAPTER XII

FAIR AND FOUL FIGHTING


As Dick went down, Tom and Sam uttered cries of chagrin and
horror.  The eldest Rover had been struck on the chin, and the
blood was flowing from a deep scratch.

"Get up!  Get up, Dick!" cried Tom.  "Don't say you are beaten!"

"Yes, yes; get up and go at him!" added Sam.

The urging was unnecessary, as Dick was already scrambling up.
Dan Baxter made a dash at him, intending to strike him while he
was down, but a fierce look from Tom stopped him.

"You'll fight fair, Baxter," were Tom's words.

"Yes, he'll fight fair," repeated Dick, throwing back his head as
if to collect himself.  "Fellow-students, Dan Baxter is not fit to
be a pupil at this academy."

"Why not?" came in a chorus.

"He is not fighting me fairly."

"What do you mean?" blustered Mumps.

"Don't find fault because he knocked you down," added another of
the bully's cronies.

"I say he is not fighting fair," repeated Dick stoutly.  "He has
something in each hand."

At this unexpected announcement Dan Baxter started back and
changed color.  Then of a sudden he placed both hands into his
trouser pockets.

"He is putting the things out of sight!" cried Tom, who saw
through the bully's intentions.

"Come, Baxter, show us what you had."

"I didn't have anything," growled the bully.  "If you say I had
I'll punch your head off.  This is only a ruse to, let Dick gain
time to get his wind."

"That's it!" cried Mumps.  "Go at him, Dan, and finish him!"

"Baxter daren't turn out his pockets," said Sam, "Do it if you
dare."

"There is what I have in them," answered the bully, pulling a
trunk key from one pocket and some small change from the other.
"Perhaps you'll say I was fighting with these in my hands."

"Turn the pockets, out!" demanded Dick.

"Yes, turn 'em out!" added Fred, and a dozen others took up the
cry.

"I won't do it," growled Baxter, but it was plain to see that he
was growing uneasy.  "I'm a gentleman, and I can whip Rover with
ease, and do it fairly, too!"

While he was speaking Larry Colby had come up behind him.  Ere
Baxter could stop the movement, Larry pushed his hand into one of
the bully's pockets and turned it out.  A jagged stone as big as a
walnut dropped to the ground.

"There, see that!" cried Larry.  "For shame, Baxter!"

"I didn't have the stone--you placed it there!" blustered the
so-styled king of the school.

"Didn't you though?" said Fred Garrison, who had also come up
behind Baxter, and he quickly hauled another stone from the other
pocket.

"That is how he scratched me," said Dick.  "I was sure he had
something in his hand."

"It's a put-up job!" howled Baxter, growing red in the face.  "If
you want to continue the fight, come on!" and he squared off
again.

"That's the talk!" said Mumps.  "Let both show their hands!
Perhaps Rover has some stones, too!"

Both opened their palms, then doubled up their fists.  Baxter was
the first to strike out.  But, as quick as lightning, Dick dodged
the blow and landed vigorously upon the bully's chest.  Before
Baxter could recover, Dick struck out again, and the bully caught
it straight in the left eye.

"Oh!" he yelled in pain, and put his hand up to the injured optic,
which began to grow black rapidly.  Then he struck out wildly half
a dozen times.  He was growing excited, while Dick was as calm as
ever.  Watching his opportunity, Dick struck out with all his
force, and Baxter received a crack on the nose which caused him to
fall back into the arms of Mumps.  As that nose had been struck
heavily in the gymnasium, it was decidedly tender, and Baxter
roared with pain.

"Have you had enough?" demanded Dick, coming up to him.

Yes--Baxter had had more than enough; but he did not wish to
acknowledge it.  He made a sign to Mumps previously agreed upon,
and Mumps raised his cap as a signal to one of the spies set on
guard.

"Stop the fight!" cried the guard instantly.  "Somebody is
coming!"

"Nonsense--nobody is coming!" said the other spy, but Baxter
would not listen to him.

"I'm not going to be caught--I'll finish this some other time,"
he said to Dick, and hurried away with Mumps and his other
friends, leaving Dick the victor beyond question.

"I knew you could do it!" cried Tom, as he fairly hugged his elder
brother.

"I'll wager he won't bother you again."

"No, indeed!" put in Sam; and Fred and the others said the same.
That was the first and last time that Dan Baxter fought any of the
boys openly, but he was their bitter enemy in secret; we shall
learn in this and other volumes.

As soon as Baxter had retreated, Dick and his brothers hurried to
a near-by brook, where the elder Rover took a wash, and tried by
other means to remove the traces of the contest from his person.
He had a slight swelling on the scratched chin, but that was all,
and inside of an hour felt quite like himself once more.

With Baxter it was very different, and the Sunday following he
asked to be excused from attending church services in the Hall,
saying he had fallen on some rocks and hurt his face.  On hearing
this, Captain Putnam came to see him.

"Sorry to hear this, Baxter," he said.  "Do you think you need a
doctor?"

"No, sir; I'll be all right in a few days."

"Where did you fall?"

"Down by the brook, while we were playing tag."

"Indeed!  Well, you want to be more careful in the future," was
Captain Putnam's advice, and then he left Baxter.  If he suspected
anything he did not let on.  To a certain extent he believed in
letting boys fight out their own battles.


The Rover boys had come to Putnam Hall in the fall, and now summer
sports were cast aside among the pupils, and football and hare and
hounds became the rage.

As we know, Sam was an excellent runner, and hare and hounds just
suited him.

"We must ask the captain to let us take a long trip next Saturday
afternoon," he said; and the boys went to the owner of Putnam Hall
in a body and obtained permission.

It was decided that Sam and Fred should be the hares, while Larry
Colby was to be leading hound.  As Frank Harrington had a trumpet
he was made whipper-in.  Captain Putnam supplied the boys with a
package of old copying books, and these were cut up into small
bits and stuffed into two pillow cases loaned by Mrs. Green.

The start was made on a clear but frosty afternoon.  The hares
stood on the parade ground, with the hounds, to the number of
thirty, behind them.  George Strong had consented to start them
off.  The hares were to be given three minutes start of the little
scholars and five minutes start of the big boys.

"All ready?" asked the second assistant of Putnam Hall, as he took
out his watch.

"All ready," answered Sam and Fred.

"Then go!"  And away went the two boys straight for the cornfield,
dropping bits of paper as they sped along.  They leaped the fence
in the rear, crossed the brook, and then started along a path
leading through the woods beyond.

"We mustn't dream of letting them catch as," remarked Sam, as he
ran on, with Fred directly behind him.  "I wonder where this path
leads to?"

"The top of the mountain, so Mr. Strong told me.  He said there
was another path coming down to the westward."

On and on they went along the path until they came to a narrow
mountain road.  Here they met a farmer carting a number of logs in
his wagon, and stopped him to ask a few questions.

"Yes, that road will take you right up to the top," he said.  "But
you want to be careful and not make a wrong turn, or you may get
lost."

"I'm not afraid of being lost," said Fred with a light laugh; and
on they sped again, as rapidly as ever, for Fred was as good a
runner as Sam, and the pair worked very well together.

At the top of the first rise of ground they came to a spot that
was somewhat bare, and here they halted to look back.

"There are the small fellows!" cried Sam, pointing with his
finger.  "And the big ones am not far behind."

"They are speeding along in good shape," was Fred's comment. "Come
on, before they spot us!"  And they hurried up the next hill.
Here they encountered a number of rocks, and were brought to a
halt several times to determine which was the best path to pursue.

"By jinks! the farmer was right--we are getting lost!" said Sam
presently.

"Where is the path?"

"I think it is to the right."

"And I think it is to the left."

At this both lads looked at each other, then burst out laughing.

"It can't be in both directions, Fred."

"That's true, and I am sure I am right."

"All right, we'll try it," and they did, but it was a good ten
minutes before the path came into view again, and meanwhile the
first of the hounds drew dangerously close.

But the game was by no means over, as we shall see.




CHAPTER XIII

WHAT THE GAME OF HARE AND HOUND LED TO


"What a glorious view!"

It was Sam who uttered the words.  The top of the mountain had
been reached at last, and the boys were feasting their eyes on the
grand panorama spread on all sides.

"How beautiful the lake, looks!" said Fred.

"And how far one can see!"

"It's a pity we didn't bring a pair of glasses with us, Fred.
But, say, I'm hungry."

"So am I.  Let us eat that lunch at once and then start on the
return."

Each had brought a sandwich along, and these were soon consumed
and washed down with a drink of cold water from a spring not far
away.  Then on they went, over the top of the mountain, and along
a path which they thought would bring them around its western
base.  It was now four o'clock, leaving them two hours in which to
get back to Putnam Hall.

About a third of the distance down the mountain side had been
covered, and Sam was slightly in advance, when suddenly he uttered
a cry of alarm.

"Look out, Fred!"

"What is it?"

"A snake!"

"Where?"

"Over yonder! And he is coming for us!"

Sam was right; it was a snake--an angry looking reptile all of
six feet long, and as thick as Sam's wrist.  It hissed savagely as
it advanced, first upon Sam and then upon Fred.

If there was one thing which could fill Fred Garrison full of
terror it was a snake, and the yell he gave would have outmatched
that of an Indian on the warpath.

"Save me!" he screamed.  "Don't let him touch me!"
"Jump back!" cried Sam, and leaped himself.  Then, seeing a tall
rock handy, he sprang upon it, and here Fred joined him.

Now, it happened that the snake had its home under the rock, and
the movement of the lads made it more angry than ever.  With a
fierce hiss it came for the rock and disappeared underneath, out
of the range of their vision.

"It's gone under the rock!" panted Fred.  He was so agitated he
could scarcely speak.

"I know it," returned Sam.  "I wonder if it means to crawl up
here?"

"Oh, don't say that, Sam. I--I--can't we hit it with
something?"

"I  haven't a thing but the bag of paper."

"Neither have I.  Oh, what shall we do?"

"Perhaps, we had better stay here until the others come up."

"Do you think the snake will keep quiet that long?"

"I'm sure I don't know."

Very much disturbed, the two boys peered over the edge of the
rock.  They were not versed in the different species of reptiles,
and knew not but that the one at hand might be poisonous.

"I see his tail!" cried Fred with a shiver.

"He is moving around as if getting ready to come out."

"I wonder if I can grab him by the tail?" mused Sam.

"Grab him?  Oh Sam!"

"I've heard you can catch them by the tail, snap them, and make
their heads fly right off."

"Gracious, I wouldn't attempt it!"

While Fred was speaking the tail of the snake came up on the side
of the rock.  Setting his teeth, Sam bent down and made a reach
for the slippery thing, and caught it tight.

With a hiss the snake raised its head, its diamond-like eyes
shining like twin stars.

"You'll be poisoned!" shrieked Fred, when whack! Sam gave the
body of the reptile a swing and brought the head down with great
force on the edge of the rock.

One blow was enough, for the head was mashed flat.  Then Sam threw
the body into the bushes, there to quiver and twist for several
hours to come, although life was extinct.

Fred was as white as a sheet as he leaped to the ground.  "I
couldn't have done that for a million dollars!" he declared.
"What a splendid nerve you have, Sam."

"My father told me how to catch a snake in that way," exclaimed
Sam.  "But hurry, or the hounds will overtake us.  I can hear them
coming."

"Your father must have been equally brave, then," answered Fred,
as they started off on, a run.  "By the way, have you heard
anything of him yet?"

"Not a word, Fred."

"Don't it make you feel bad at times?"

"Does it, Fred!  Why, some nights I can't go to sleep for thinking
of where he may be--dead in the heart of Africa, or perhaps a
captive of some savage tribe."

"Have they ever hunted for him?"

"Several have gone out, but no traces are to be had.  Dick, Tom,
and I are in to hunt for him, though, as soon as our Uncle
Randolph will permit it."

"That's an idea.  But you may have to go right into the jungles
for him."

"I don't care if we have to go to the top of the North Pole, if
only we find him," answered Sam with quiet determination.

Inside of half an hour the bottom of the mountain was gained, and
then they struck out along a road which presently took them within
sight of the Stanhope homestead.

"I wonder if we have time to call on Dora?" mused Fred.  "It would
be a scheme to leave our paper trail right through their garden."

"Glorious!" burst from Sam, caught by the idea.  "I am certain
Dora Stanhope will appreciate the sport."

It did not take them long to reach the garden around the
farmhouse; and, running up the path, they ascended a side porch.

As they did so two forms appeared around the house.  One was Mrs.
Stanhope, wearing a shawl over her shoulders and a bonnet on her
head, and the second was Josiah Crabtree!

"Old Crabtree!" murmured Sam, and then of a sudden he pulled Fred
out of sight behind some lattice-work inclosing one end of the
porch.

"We must hurry, my dear, or we may be too late," Josiah Crabtree
was saying; and now the boys noted that he was conducting the lady
toward a carriage standing by the horse block.

"I--I--had we not better wait until next week, Josiah?"
questioned Mrs. Stanhope timidly.  She was a pale, delicate woman
of forty, of a shrinking nature, easily led by others.

"No, my dear, there is no use in waiting."

"But Dora--?"

"You must not mind what your daughter says, my dear.  When we are
married she will easily become reconciled to the change, mark my
words."

"Gracious, old Crabtree is going to marry her!" whispered Sam.
"Poor Dora!"

"She wants me to wait," continued the lady.

"And you ought to wait, mother," came in Dora's voice; and now she
too came into sight, but without a hat or wraps.

"Mr. Crabtree wishes very much to have the ceremony performed this
afternoon, Dora dear."

"If he wants to marry you, why can't he do it openly--at home or
in our church?"

"He is averse to any display."

"It seems to me it is a very sneaking way to do," answered Dora
coldly.  "When you and papa were married the wedding was well
attended, so I have been told."

"Your father and myself are different persons, Miss Dora,"
interrupted Josiah Crabtree stiffly.  "I prefer a quiet wedding,
and no time is better than the present.  I shall at once resign my
position at Putnam Hall and come to live here."

Dora Stanhope's lip curled in scorn.  She saw through Josiah
Crabtree's motives, even though her mother did not.

"If you wish to marry my mother, why do you not make preparations
to support her?" she said.

"Dora!" cried Mrs. Stanhope pleadingly.

"I mean what I say, mother.  He intends to marry you and then make
you support him, out of the proceeds of this farm."

"You are entirely mistaken," interrupted Josiah Crabtree.
"Perhaps you do not know that I am worth, in bank stocks and in
bonds, between twenty and thirty thousand dollars."

"I would like to see the stocks and bonds," said the girl.

"So would I," whispered Fred to Sam.  "I'll wager he isn't worth a
thousand dollars all told although they say he is a good deal of a
miser."

"Dora, do not insult Mr. Crabtree.  If you wish to come along and
see the ceremony performed, put on your things..."

"I do not wish to go."

"Very well, then; you had best return to the house."

"It is a shame!" cried the girl, and burst into tears.

"We will be back by seven o'clock," said Josiah Crabtree, and led
the widow down the garden path to where the carriage was standing.

"I wish I could stop this wedding," whispered Sam to his chum.

"I am with you on that," returned Fred.

"Creation, here come the hounds!  Just the thing!"

He looked at Sam, and his chum, instantly understood.  Leaving the
porch at a bound, they ran across the garden.

"Hurrah! we have you!" yelled Larry Colby, as he rushed up,
followed by Tom, Dick, and a dozen of the other big cadets.

"Quick, this way!" cried Sam.  "Do you see that carriage?"

"Of course we do," answered Tom.

"It contains Mrs. Stanhope and old Crabtree.  They are going to
drive off and get married against Dora Stanhope's wishes."

"Phew!" came in a low whistle from the eldest of the Rover Boys.

"We ought to stop this affair," went on Fred.

"Old Crabby is going to get married!" came in a shout.  "Come on,
let us go along!"

And pell-mell went the boys after the carriage, which had just
turned from the horse-block with the teacher and Mrs. Stanhope
inside, and a farmhand named Borgy on the front seat.




CHAPTER XIV

JOSIAH CRABTREE IN DIFFICULTY


Dora Stanhope had witnessed the approach of the boys, and now she
came out into the garden again and confronted them.  She blushed
prettily upon seeing Dick and several others with whom she was
acquainted.

"I understand that Mr. Crabtree is about to be married," said Dick
in a low tone.

"Yes, he insists on marrying my mother this afternoon.  He has
been at her about this for several months," answered Dora between
her sobs.

"Evidently you oppose the marriage."

"I--I hate Mr. Crabtree!" came almost fiercely.  "He is--is
nothing like my poor dead papa was."

"I believe you, Dora," answered Dick.  "I don't see what your
mother can find in him to like.  We hate him at the academy."

"I know it--and I imagine Captain Putnam is preparing to get rid of
him, for I heard he was corresponding with a teacher in Buffalo--one
who has been head master in a military academy out in that vicinity."

"Indeed!  I hope we do get clear of him--and I wish you could
get clear of him too."

"It doesn't seem as if I could," sighed Dora.  "He has wound my
mother right around his finger, so to speak.  But what are those
other boys going to do?"  And she pointed to the balance of the
cadets, who were following closely upon the wheels of the
carriage, which had turned into the highway leading to Cedarville.

"I'll go after them and see," said Dick, and turned to leave.
Then he came to a halt and turned back.  "Dora, I am awfully sorry
for you," he whispered.  "If I can ever do anything for you, don't
hesitate to call on me."

"I'll remember that, Dick," she replied gratefully, but never
dreamed of how much she would one day require his aid.

When Dick joined the crowd he found it on all sides of the
carriage, shouting and hurrahing wildly.  At first Josiah Crabtree
pretended to pay no attention, but presently he spoke to the
driver, and the turnout came to a halt.

"Students, what does this unseemly conduct mean?" he demanded
harshly.

"Why, Mr. Crabtree, is that you!" exclaimed Frank Harrington in
pretended surprise.

"Yes, Harrington.  I say, what does it mean?"

"We are out playing hare and hounds, sir."

"But you are following this carriage."

"Oh, no, sir, we are following the paper scent, sir," answered
Larry Colby, and pointed to the pieces of paper, which Fred
Harrison was slyly dropping just in front of the horses.

"Then our carriage is on the trail," sighed Josiah Crabtree.  "It
is very annoying."

"Oh, it doesn't bother us much, sir," answered Frank coolly.

"Bother you!  It is myself and Mrs. Stanhope to whom I referred.
Make the hares take another course."

"Can't do that, sir, until we catch them."

"But why must you keep so close to this carriage?"

"I don't know, sir.  Perhaps it is the carriage which is keeping
close to us."

Josiah Crabtree looked more angry than ever.  He spoke to the
driver, with a view to increasing the speed of the team, but Borgy
had entered into the spirit of the fun at hand, and he was,
moreover, a great friend of Dora, and he shook his head.
"Couldn't do it sir," he said.  "I wouldn't want to run the risk
of winding them."

"Do you mean to say they cannot outrun these boys?" demanded the
head assistant at Putnam Hall.

"Hardly, sir--the lads is uncommonly good runners," answered
Borgy meekly.

"I will show you how to manage them!" ejaculated Josiah Crabtree,
and stepped over to the front seat.

"Oh, Josiah, be careful!" pleaded Mrs. Stanhope.

"I know how to drive horses, so don't worry," answered Crabtree,
and took up both reins and whip.  Before Borgy could stop him he
had given one of the horses a smart cut on the flank.

The steed was a spirited one and not used to the whip, and
scarcely had the lash landed than he gave a wild leap into the
air, came down, and broke into a mad run, dragging his mate with
him.  A second later the carriage struck a stone, bounced up, and
Borgy was pitched out, to land in the midst of some bushes growing
by the roadside.

The bolting of the team proved almost fatal to the boys in front,
who scattered just in time to let horses and carriage pass them
with lightning-like speed.  Then the cadets gathered together and
stared blankly at one another.

"It's a runaway!"

"Serves old Crabby right, for hitting the horse!"

"Yes, but he and the lady may be killed!"

Such were some of the cries.  As soon as they could recover, the
whole party made after the carriage, now disappearing around a
bend.

"They'll never get around the next turn alive!" said Captain Harry
Blossom, who was running beside Tom.  Soon Dick joined the pair.

In the meantime Josiah Crabtree was filled with terror over the
sudden turn of affairs.  He dropped the whip and tugged first at
one rein and then the other.

"Whoa! whoa!" he cried in a hoarse whisper.  "Whoa!"

But instead of slackening their speed, the team moved on faster
than ever, the carriage rocking violently from side to side.

"We will be killed!" moaned Mrs. Stanhope.  "Oh, why did I not
take Dora's advice and have a regular wedding, as she proposed!"

"I will--will stop them!" panted Crabtree.  "Whoa, you brutes,
whoa!"

"Whoa, Peter; whoa, Jack!" added Mrs. Stanhope timidly.

For an instant the horses seemed to take notice of the lady's
voice, but only for an instant; then they went on as fast as ever,
around another bend, and down a rocky stretch, lined on either
side with trees and bushes.

Suddenly there came a crash, as a wheel came off the carriage.
Then came a second crash and Mrs. Stanhope was hurled forth among
some bushes.  But the turnout continued on its way, Josiah
Crabtree clinging to the wreck, until at last he too was hurled
forth, to fly up among some tree branches and remain there for the
best part of ten minutes.

When the crowd of cadets reached Mrs. Stanhope they found the lady
unconscious and evidently suffering from a broken arm.  Several of
them, including Dick, Tom, and Sam, did what they could for her,
while others ran off to find Josiah Crabtree and to summon a
doctor.

It was several minutes before the head assistant at Putnam Hall
could be helped out of the tree.  He came down in fear and
trembling, so overcome he could scarcely stand.

"How--how is Mrs. Stanhope?" was his, first question.

"We don't know," answered several of the cadets, and Josiah
Crabtree hobbled back to find out.

The shades of night had long fallen when Mrs. Stanhope was
conveyed to her home, and a doctor was brought from Cedarville and
the Lanings were informed of what had happened.  The doctor said
that a rib as well as the left arm had been fractured, and that
the lady must be kept quiet for at least two months.  At once Dora
set about doing what she could for her mother, and Nellie Laning
remained at the homestead to assist her.  No one seemed to care
about Josiah Crabtree, and he was allowed to hobble back to Putnam
Hall on foot.

"It was the fault of those boys," he muttered to himself.  "I'll
get even with them, see if I don't!"

But his chances of "getting even" while at the academy were
speedily nipped in the bud by Captain Putnam, who did not say
anything on Sunday, but interviewed the head assistant early on
the day following.

"It is perhaps needless for us to go into the details of what has
occurred, Mr. Crabtree," said the owner of the Hall.  "Your
contract with me comes to an end next month.  I will pay you in
full tomorrow and then I wish you to remove yourself and your
belongings from this place."

"You--you discharge me!" cried the teacher in astonishment.

"I do.  I have long been dissatisfied with your conduct toward my
pupils, and I am now satisfied that you are not worthy of the
position with which I entrusted you."

At this Josiah Crabtree's face fell, for he had hoped to keep his
place at Putnam Hall until his marriage to Mrs. Stanhope was
assured.  Now there was no telling when that marriage would occur,
and in the meantime it was not likely he could get another
position.

"I think I ought to have more notice than this."

"You deserve no notice--since you were about to marry on the
sly, so to speak, and, most likely, leave me when your contract
came to an end without allowing me time to make other
arrangements."

"I would have given you at least two weeks time."

"And I am giving you three weeks pay, which you do not deserve.  I
do not think we need to prolong the discussion," and Captain
Putnam turned away.

The departure of Josiah Crabtree was hailed with satisfaction by
all of the pupils excepting Dan Baxter.  Strange to say, a strong
friendship had sprung up between the bully and the hot-tempered
school teacher.  Baxter was the only one who shook hands when
Crabtree left.

"I hope we meet again, Mr. Crabtree," he said.  "I like you, even
if the others don't."

"And I like you, Baxter," answered Josiah Crabtree.  "I shall
remember you."

And Josiah Crabtree did remember the bully in a manner which was
strange in the extreme.




CHAPTER XV

DAN BAXTER'S MONEY


After the departure of Josiah Crabtree from Putnam Hall, George
Strong became the leading assistant, and another teacher named
Garmore took second place.

Garmore was a Yale man, and soon became as favorably known as
Strong, so the pupils had nothing more to find fault with, so far
as their instructors went.

As has been noted before, there were several baseball teams among
the boys.  As it grew too cold for baseball, these teams gave up
this sport, and a good number of the lads took up football.

In this sport, Sam, being a good runner, felt very much at home,
and soon he was at the head of one of the teams, playing center.
Tom was also on the team, playing quarterback.

Not far from Putnam Hall was another academy kept by a certain
gentleman named Pornell. The pupils at Pornell's were also great
football players, and one day they sent over a challenge that the
Putnams, as they were dubbed, should play them a match for the
championship of the township in which both seats of learning were
located.

The challenge was brought, by Peleg Snuggers, who had gone over to
Pornell's on an errand for Captain Putnam.

"It's for you," said Snuggers, handing the communication to Sam.
The youthful captain of the eleven broke open the letter and read
it aloud:

"PORNELL ACADEMY, November 18, 189-

"To the Putnam Hall Football Team:  We hereby challenge you to a
game of football for the championship of the township of
Cedarville, the game to be played Thanksgiving afternoon next at
two o'clock, at our grounds or at your own, as you may elect.  We
would prefer to play on our grounds, as we have a  grandstand,
one-half of which will be reserved for your friends, if you
will come over.

"PORNELL FOOTBALL TEAM,

"Per Harry Ackerson, Capt. and Secy."

"They certainly mean business," said Tom, who was in the crowd,
listening to the reading of the challenge.  "I go in for accepting
it."

"So do I," said Larry, who played halfback.

"And I," put in Fred, who was on the right end.

The members of the football team were all at hand, and it did not
take long to find out each was in favor of the game, and then the
matter was laid before Captain Putnam.

"Want to play football with Mr. Pornell's lads, eh?" smiled the
captain.  "All right, I know of no healthier sport, rightly
conducted.  You shall play them, and on their grounds if you wish.
But, mind you, no neglecting lessons for the sake of practicing
between now and Thanksgiving!"

The pupils promised to neglect nothing, and went off with a
hurrah.

Soon Peleg Snuggers was on his way to the rival academy with the
following answer to the challenge:

"PUTNAM HALL, November 19, 189-

"Pornell Football Team: We hereby accept your challenge to play a
game of football for the championship of the township on
Thanksgiving afternoon next at two o'clock.  As you have a
grandstand we will play on your grounds.  In return for the use of
half of your stand on this occasion the senior class of our
academy will put up a silver cup as a trophy, said trophy to go to
the club winning the game, and to belong to that club which shall
during matches to be arranged in the future win the cup three
times.