"A man drove up to the ferryboat office and tried to hold up Mr. Harrity. But
a passenger came into the office and the fellow ran away."
As the officer paused, Frank gave Chief Collig a brief account of the wrecked
blue sedan near the Morton farm.
"I'll send some men out there right now." The chief pressed a buzzer and
quickly relayed his orders.
"It certainly looks," Joe commented, "as if the man who stole Chet's car and
the fellow who tried to hold up the ferryboat office are the same person!"
"Did you notice the color of the man's hair?" Frank asked Mr. Harrity.
Smuff interrupted. "What's that got to do with it?"
"It may have a great deal to do with it," Frank replied. "What was the color
of his hair, Mr. Harrity?"
"Dark brown and short cropped."
Frank and Joe looked at each other, perplexed. "You're sure it wasn't red?"
Joe asked.
Chief Collig sat forward in his chair. "What are you driving at, boys? Have
you some information about this man?"
"We were told," said Joe, "that the guy who stole Chet's car had red hair. A
friend of ours saw him."
"Then he must have turned the jalopy over to someone else," Chief Collig
concluded.
At this moment a short, nervous little man was ushered into the room. He was
the passenger who had gone into the ferryboat office at the time of the
attempted holdup. Chief Collig had sent for him.
The newcomer introduced himself as Henry J. Brown of New York. He told
of entering the office and seeing a man run away from the ticket window with
a revolver in his hand.
"What color was his hair?" Frank asked eagerly. "Did you notice?"
"I can't say I did," the man replied. "My eyes were focused on that gun. Say,
wait a minute! He had red hair. You couldn't miss it! I noticed it after he
jumped into the car."
Oscar Smuff looked bewildered. "You say he had red hair." The detective
turned to Mr. Harrity. "And you say he had dark hair. Somethin' wrong
somewhere!" He shook his head in puzzlement.
The others were puzzled too. Frank asked Mr. Brown to tell once more just
when he had noticed the red hair.
"After the fellow leaned down in the car and popped his head up again," the
New Yorker replied.
Frank and Joe exchanged glances. Was it possible the red hair was a wig and
the thief had put it on just before Mr. Brown had noticed him? The boys kept
still-they didn't want any interference from Smuff in tracking down this clue.
Harrity and Brown began to argue over the color of the thief's hair. Finally
Chief Collig had to rap once more for order. "I'll send out an alarm for both
this holdup man and for Chet's car. I guess that's all that can be done now."
Undaunted by their failure to catch the thief, the Hardy boys left police
headquarters with Chet Morton. They were determined to pursue the case.
"We'll talk with Dad tonight, Chet," Frank promised. "Maybe he'll give us
some leads."
"I sure hope so, fellows," their friend replied as they climbed onto the
motorcycles.
The same thought was running through Frank's and Joe's minds: maybe this
mystery would turn out to be their first case!
CHAPTER III
The Threat
"YOU'RE getting to be pretty good on that motorcycle, Frank," Joe said as
the boys rode into the Hardy garage. "I'm not even scared to ride alongside
you any more!"
"You're not scared!" Frank pretended to take Joe seriously. "What about
me-riding with a daredevil like you?"
"Well," Joe countered, "let's just admit that we're both pretty good!"
"It sure was swell of Dad to let us have them," Joe continued.
"Yes," Frank agreed. "And if we're going to be detectives, we'll get a lot of
use out of them."
The boys started toward the house, passing the old-fashioned barn on the
property. Its first floor had been converted into a gymnasium which was used
after school and on week ends by Frank and Joe and their friends.
The Hardy home, on the corner of High and Elm streets, was an old stone
house set in a large, tree-shaded lawn. Right now, crocuses and miniature
narcissi were sticking their heads through the light-green grass.
"Hello, Mother!" said Frank, as he pushed open the kitchen door.
Mrs. Hardy, a petite, pretty woman, looked up from the table on which she
was stuffing a large roasting chicken and smiled.
Her sons kissed her affectionately and Joe asked, "Dad upstairs?"
"Yes, dear. He's in his study."
The study was Fenton Hardy's workshop. Adjoining it was a fine library
which contained not only books but files of disguises, records of criminal
cases, and translations of thousands of codes.
Walking into the study, Frank and Joe greeted their father. "We're reporting
errand accomplished," Frank announced.
"Fine!" Mr. Hardy replied. Then he gave his sons a searching glance. "I'd
say your trip netted you more than just my errand."
Frank and Joe had learned early in their boyhood that it was impossible to
keep any secrets from their astute father. They assumed that this ability was
one reason why he had been such a successful detective on the New York
City police force before setting up a private practice in Bay-port.
"We ran into some real excitement," Frank said, and told his father the
whole story of Chet's missing jalopy, the wrecked car which they suspected
had been a stolen one also, and the attempted holdup at the ferryboat office.
"Chet's counting on us to find his car," Joe added.
Frank grinned. "That is, unless the police find it first."
Mr. Hardy was silent for several seconds. Then he said, "Do you want a little
advice? You know I never give it unless I'm asked for it." He chuckled.
"We'll need a lot of help," Joe answered.
Mr. Hardy said that to him the most interesting angle to the case was the fact
that the suspect apparently used one or more wigs as a disguise. "He may
have bought at least one of them in Bay-port. I suggest that you boys make
the rounds of all shops selling wigs and see what you can find out."
The boys glanced at the clock on their father's large desk, then Frank said,
"We'll have time to do a little sleuthing before closing time. Let's go!"
The two boys made a dash for the door, then both stopped short. They did not
have the slightest idea where they were going! Sheepishly Joe asked, "Dad,
do you know which stores sell wigs?"
With a twinkle in his eyes, Mr. Hardy arose from the desk, walked into the
library, and opened a file drawer labeled "W through Z." A moment later he
pulled out a thick folder marked WIGS:
Manufacturers, distributors, and retail shops of the world.
"Why, Dad, I didn't know you had all this information-" Joe began.
His father merely smiled. He thumbed through the heavy sheaf of papers, and
pulled one out.
"Bayport," he read. "Well, three of these places can be eliminated at once.
They sell only women's hair pieces. Now let's see. Frank, get a paper and
pencil. First there's Schwartz's Masquerade and Costume Shop. It's at 79
Renshaw Avenue. Then there's Flin
t's at Market and Pine, and one more:
Ruben Brothers. That's on Main Street just this side of the railroad."
"Schwartz's is closest," Frank spoke up. "Let's try him first, Joe."
Hopefully the boys dashed out to their motorcycles and hurried downtown. As
they entered Schwartz's shop, a short, plump, smiling man came toward
them.
"Well, you just got under the wire, fellows," he said, looking up at a large
old-fashioned clock on the wall. "I was going to close up promptly tonight
because a big shipment came in today and I never have time except after
business hours to unpack and list my merchandise."
"Our errand won't take long," said Frank. "We're sons of Fenton Hardy, the
detective. We'd like to know whether or not you recently sold a red wig to a
man."
Mr. Schwartz shook his head. "I haven't sold a red wig in months, or even
rented one. Everybody seems to want blond or brown or black lately. But you
understand, I don't usually sell wigs at all. I rent 'em."
"I understand," said Frank. "We're just trying to find out about a man who
uses a red wig as a disguise. We thought he might have bought or rented it
here and that you would know his name."
Mr. Schwartz leaned across the counter. "This man you speak of-he sounds
like a character. It's just possible he may come in to get a wig from me. If he
does, I'll be glad to let you know."
The boys thanked the shopkeeper and were about to leave when Mr.
Schwartz called, "Hold on a minute!"
The Hardys hoped that the dealer had suddenly remembered something
important. This was not the case, however. With a grin the man asked the
boys if they would like to help him open some cartons which had arrived and
to try on the costumes.
"Those folks at the factory don't always get the sizes marked right," he said.
"Would you be able to stay a few minutes and help me? I'll be glad to pay
you."
"Oh, we don't want any money," Joe spoke up. "To tell you the truth, I'd like
to see your costumes."
Mr. Schwartz locked the front door of his shop,
then led the boys into a rear room. It was so filled with costumes of all kinds
and paraphernalia for theatrical work, plus piles of cartons, that Frank and
Joe wondered how the man could ever find anything.
"Here is today's shipment," Mr. Schwartz said, pointing to six cartons
standing not far from the rear entrance to his shop.
Together he and the boys slit open the boxes and one by one lifted out a
king's robe, a queen's tiara, and a Little Bopeep costume. Suddenly Mr.
Schwartz said:
"Here's a skeleton marked size thirty-eight. Would one of you boys mind
trying it on?"
Frank picked up the costume, unzipped the back, and stepped into the
skeleton outfit. It was tremendous on him and the ribs sagged ludicrously.
"Guess a fat man modeled for this," he remarked, holding the garment out to
its full width.
At that moment there was a loud rap on the front door of the store. Mr.
Schwartz made no move to answer it. "I'm closed," he said. "Let him rap."
Suddenly Frank had an idea. The thief who used wigs might be the late
customer, coming on purpose at this hour to avoid meeting other people.
Without a word to the others, he dashed through the doorway into the store
and toward the front entrance.
He could vaguely see someone waiting to be admitted. But the stranger gave
one look at the leaping, out-of-shape skeleton and disappeared in a flash. At
the same moment Frank tripped and fell headlong.
Mr. Schwartz and Joe, hearing the crash, rushed out to see what had
happened. Frank, hopelessly tangled in the skeleton attire, was helped to his
feet. When he told the others why he had made his unsuccessful dash to the
front door, they conceded he might have a point.
"But you sure scared him away in that outfit," Joe said, laughing. "He won't
be back!"
The boys stayed for over half an hour helping Mr. Schwartz, then said
good-by and went home.
"Monday we'll tackle those other two wig shops," said Frank.
The following morning the Hardy family attended church, then after dinner
Frank and Joe told their parents they were going to ride out to see Chet
Morton. "We've been invited to stay to supper," Frank added. "But we
promise not to get home late."
The Hardys picked up Callie Shaw, who also had been invited. Gaily she
perched on the seat behind Frank.
"Hold on, Callie," Joe teased. "Frank's a wild cyclist!"
The young people were greeted at the door of the Morton farmhouse by
Chet's younger sister Iola, dark-haired and pretty. Joe Hardy thought she
was quite the nicest girl in Bayport High and dated her regularly.
As dusk came on, the five young people gathered in the Mortons' kitchen to
prepare supper. Chet, who loved to eat, was in charge, and doled out various
jobs to the others. When he finished, Joe remarked, "And what are you going
to do, big boy?"
The stout youth grinned. "I'm the official taster."
A howl went up from the others. "No workee, no eatee," said Iola flatly.
Chet grinned. "Oh, well, if you insist, I'll make a little side dish for all of us.
How about Welsh rabbit?"
"You're elected!" the others chorused, and Chet set to work.
The farmhouse kitchen was large and contained a group of windows in one
corner. Here stood a large table, where the young people decided to eat. They
had just sat down when the telephone rang. Chet got up and walked out in
the hall to answer it. Within a minute he re-entered the kitchen, his eyes
bulging.
"What's the matter?" Iola asked quickly.
"I-I've been th-threatened!" Chet replied.
"Threatened!" the others cried out. "How?"
Chet was so frightened he could hardly speak, but he managed to make the
others understand that a man had just said on the telephone, "You'll never
get your jalopy back. And if you don't lay off trying to find me or your car,
you're going to get hurt!"
"Whew!" cried Joe. "This is getting serious!" Callie and Iola had clutched
their throats and were staring wild-eyed at Chet. Frank, about to speak,
happened to glance out the window toward the barn. For an instant he
thought his eyes were playing tricks on him. But no! They were not. A figure
was sneaking from the barn and down the lane toward the highway.
"Fellows!" he cried suddenly. "Follow me!"
CHAPTER IV
Red Versus Yellow
BY THE time the Hardy boys and Chet had raced from the Mortons' kitchen,
the prowler was not in sight. Thinking he had run across one of the fields, the
three pursuers scattered in various directions to search. Joe struck out
straight ahead and pressed his ear to the ground to listen for receding
footsteps. He could hear none. Presently the three boys met once more to
discuss their failure to catch up to the man, and to question why he had been
there.
"Do you think he was a thief?" Joe asked Chet. "What would he steal?"
"Search me," the stout boy replied. "Let's take a look."
"I believe he was carrying something, but I couldn
't see what it was," Frank
revealed.
The barn door had not been closed yet for the night and the boys walked in.
Chet turned on the lights and the searchers gazed around.
"Look!" Frank cried suddenly.
He pointed to the floor below the telephone extension in the barn. There lay a
man's gray wig.
"The intruder's!" Joe exclaimed.
"It sure looks so," Frank agreed. "And something must have scared him. In
his hurry to get away he must have dropped this."
Frank picked up the wig and examined it carefully for a clue. "No identifying
mark in it. Say, I have an idea," he burst out. "That man phoned you from
here, Chet."
"You mean he's the one who threatened me?"
"Yes. If you know how, you can call your own telephone number from an
extension."
"That's right."
Chet was wagging his head. "You mean that guy bothered to come all the
way here to use this phone to threaten me? Why?"
Both Hardys said they felt the man had not come specifically for that reason.
There was another more important one. "We must figure it out. Chet, you
ought to be able to answer that better than anybody else. What is there, or
was there, in this barn to interest such a person?"
The stout boy scratched his head and let his eyes wander around the building.
"It wouldn't be any of the livestock," he said slowly. "And it couldn't be hay
or feed." Suddenly Chet snapped his fingers. "Maybe I have the answer.
Wait a minute, fellows."
He disappeared from the barn and made a bee-line for the garage. Chet
hurried inside but was back in a few seconds.
"I have it!" he shouted. "That guy came here to get the spare tire for the
jalopy."
"The one you had is gone?" Frank asked.
Chet nodded. He suggested that perhaps the man was not too far away. He
might be on some side road changing the tire. "Let's find out," he urged.
Although the Hardys felt that it would be a useless search, they agreed to go
along. They got on their motorcycles, with Chet riding behind Joe. The boys
went up one road and down another, covering the territory very thoroughly.
They saw no parked car.
"Not even any evidence that a driver pulled off the road and stayed to change
a tire," Frank remarked. "No footprints, no tool marks, no treads."
"That guy must have had somebody around to pick him up," Chet concluded
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