“Cease firing!” cried Fred at last, as he dug some of the snow out of his left ear. “If this is going to be a snowballing contest, all right; but I thought we were out to do some hunting.”
“Fred surrenders, and the war is over!” cried Jack.
“Hoist the milk-blue flag and call it off!” burst out Andy gleefully. “Throw the snowballs into the ice-cream freezer and season to taste!”
After that the four young hunters packed up their belongings and saw to it that the campfire was completely extinguished. Then they continued on their tramp in the vicinity of the Rick Rack River.
“I’m getting tired of hanging around this watercourse,” said Fred finally. “I believe the reports of our guns have driven all the remaining game away. Why can’t we strike off into the woods yonder and come in on the other side of Haven Point?”
They noted the position of the sun with care, and then struck off at right angles to the river. Soon they found themselves going up hill and presently struck a lumberman’s trail leading down in the direction of the town. Here, however, after two hours of hunting, they failed to find any game whatever.
“We didn’t improve things by coming over here,” grumbled Andy.
“Now I guess we had better be thinking of getting back to the school,” said Jack, as he consulted his watch. They had been told that they must return in time for the evening meal.
“All right, I’m ready to go,” came from Fred. “Gosh! I wish I had a horse to ride, or something.” The many miles of tramping had wearied him greatly.
“My left foot is beginning to hurt me a little,” put in Randy. “I slipped on the rocks this morning when we were carrying that old Uncle Barney. I didn’t think much of it at the time, but now it’s growing quite lame.”
“You can walk on it, can’t you?” questioned Jack anxiously.
“Oh, yes, I can walk; but I can’t go any too fast—or any too far, either.”
The boys had done their best to keep track of where they were going, and now they turned in what they thought was the direction of Haven Point. But, as my young readers may have heard, it is an easy matter to lose one’s sense of direction in the woods, and before they knew it, they found themselves in a locality that was entirely strange to them.
“We don’t seem to be getting much closer to town,” announced Fred presently. “I don’t see a farmhouse of any sort in sight.”
They had gone but a short distance when they stirred up several more rabbits, and had the pleasure of bringing two of the creatures down. Then they came to a small clearing, and beyond this some farm fields.
“Now we must be getting to somewhere,” announced Randy; and a few minutes later a turn of the road brought them in sight of a farmhouse. Here they saw a farmer coming from a cowshed with a pail of foaming milk, and accosted him.
“Sure, you’re on the road to Haven Point,” answered the farmer, in reply to their question. “It’s about two miles and a half from here. But do you want to go to the Point or to Colby Hall?” he went on, noticing their uniforms.
“We want to get to the Hall—and by as short a route as possible,” answered Jack.
“Then the best thing you lads can do is to come right through my lane here and go across the back field. Then you will come out on the road that runs from the Hall to Carwell. I guess you know that?”
“Oh, yes; we know that road,” returned Randy.
The cadets thanked the farmer for his information, and lost no time in following his directions. Soon they came out on the other highway, and then started forward as rapidly as their somewhat weary legs would permit.
When they reached the vicinity of Colby Hall Jack found, by again consulting his watch, that they were almost three-quarters of an hour late.
“Let’s see if we can’t slide in without any of the teachers seeing us,” suggested Andy.
“Oh, I don’t know that we’ve got to do that, Andy,” returned Jack. “We haven’t done anything wrong.”
“Well, we are late, and you know some of the teachers won’t stand for that.”
“We had permission to go hunting, and we couldn’t help it getting lost up there in the woods,” answered his twin.
They were just about to enter one of the side doors of the Hall, when it was flung open and they found themselves confronted by one of the younger teachers, accompanied by Professor Lemm. They stepped to one side to let the teachers pass.
“Yes, as I remarked before, Tompkins, unless you have strict discipline in that class——” Asa Lemm was saying, when, of a sudden, he happened to glance at the cadets and recognized the Rovers. “What are you doing here? Where have you been?” he demanded, coming to an abrupt halt.
“We’ve been out hunting, sir,” answered Jack.
“Hunting, eh?” And as was usual with him, Asa Lemm drew down the corners of his mouth.
“We had permission from Colonel Colby to go,” put in Randy.
“Ah, well, in that case——” Asa Lemm paused for a moment. “Did he say you could stay out as late as this?” he added suddenly.
“We had permission to stay out until supper time,” answered Jack.
“Don’t you know it is an hour after that time now, Rover?”
“Three-quarters of an hour, Professor. We might have been on time, only my cousin here slipped on the rocks and hurt his ankle, and that has delayed us a little.”
“Humph! always some excuse! You boys have got to learn to be on time. You’ll never get through life unless you are punctual. I shall mention the fact of your being late to Colonel Colby. Now go in at once, and if you are too late to get anything to eat, it will be your own fault;” and thus speaking, Asa Lemm moved on with the other teacher.
“Oh, but he’s the sourest old lemon that ever grew!” was Andy’s comment.
“You never said anything truer than that, Andy,” answered his twin.
CHAPTER VII
AN UNEXPECTED MEETING
“Say, fellows, did you ever hear this song?”
It was Ned Lowe who spoke. He sat in one of the rooms belonging to the Rovers. On his knee rested a mandolin which he had been strumming furiously for the past ten minutes.
“Sure we’ve heard it, Ned!” cried Andy. “What is it?”
“For gracious sake, Ned! why don’t you let up?” cried Fred, who was in the next room trying his best to study. “How in the world is a fellow going to do an example in algebra with you singing about good times on the old plantation?”
“That is right, Ned. Why don’t you sing about good times in the classroom when Asa Lemm is there?”
“Gee Christopher! what’s the use of your throwing cold water on this camp meeting?” came from Walt Baxter, who sat on the edge of the bed munching an apple.
“Really, it’s a shame the way you young gen tlemen attempt to choke off Ned’s efforts to please this congregation!” exclaimed Spouter Powell, who sat in an easy chair with his feet resting on the edge of a chiffonier. “Now, when a man’s soul is overflowing with harmony, and beautiful thoughts are coursing through his cranium, and he is doing his utmost to bring pleasure——”
“Wow! Spouter is at it again! Somebody choke him off!” cried Randy, and catching up a pillow, he threw it at the head of the cadet who loved to make long speeches.
“Say, fellows, why won’t some of you let me get a word in edgeways?” came from Dan Soppinger, who stood with his back against the door leading to the hall. “I’ve been wanting to ask you a question for the last ten minutes. Who of you can tell me the names of the fifth, tenth, and fifteenth presidents of our country?”
“Oh, baby!” wailed Andy, throwing up his hands in comic despair. “Dan is worse than either Spouter or Ned.”
“I thought you were going to put a padlock on that question box of yours, Dan,” remarked Fred.
“I�
��ll bet there isn’t one of you can answer my question,” retorted Dan Soppinger.
“Sure! I can answer it!” returned Andy readily. “What was that question? Who was the first laundryman in Chicago?”
“No; I said, who were the fifth, the tenth, and the fifteenth——”
“Oh! I remember now—the fifth, tenth and fifteenth discoverers of the North Pole. That’s easy, Dan. The fifth was Julius Cæsar, the tenth, Benjamin Frank——”
“See here! I didn’t say a word about the North Pole discoverers!” ejaculated the Human Question Box. “I said the fifth, tenth and fifteenth——”
“Men to find out how to manufacture oleomargarine out of pure butter,” finished Andy. “Now that’s a purely scientific problem, Dan, not an ordinary question. You want to take three pounds of oleomargarine and divide them by two pounds of unadulterated butter, then——”
“For gracious sake! has that boy gone crazy?” cried Dan Soppinger in despair. “I come over here and ask an ordinary question in history——”
“How do we know it’s an ordinary question in history?” broke in Randy. “The five, ten and fifteen sounds like a problem in higher arithmetic.”
“Say, Dan, just forgive me for what I said, and I’ll send you the answer day after yesterday on a postal card,” announced Andy mournfully. “And I’ll prepay the postage, too. Now, be a good boy, Son, and run along, and maybe some time papa will buy you a lemon stick,” and at this remark there was a general laugh, in the midst of which Dan Soppinger threw up his hands, turned and left the room.
It was several days after the hunting expedition, and the Rover boys had settled down once more to their studies. This was the off hour in the evening, and, as was usual, a number of their friends had dropped in to see them.
“Only three weeks more to the winter holidays,” announced Gif presently. “What are you fellows going to do with yours?”
“We haven’t decided yet, Gif, any further than that we’re going home,” answered Jack.
“If you feel like it, you had better come and pay me a visit. I know my folks would be only too glad to have you.”
“And we’d be glad to have you come down to New York and stay with us, Gif,” was the reply.
During the days that had gone by since the hunt, the Rover boys had had several little differences with Professor Lemm. The teacher had spoken to Colonel Colby about their coming in late, but the master of the Hall had passed this matter over as being of no importance, somewhat to Asa Lemm’s chagrin.
“Oh, how I love that man!” had been Andy’s comment.
The weather had remained clear, but on Thurs day of that week came another fall of snow, and by Friday this was in good condition for sleighing.
“I wonder if we can’t get up a sleighing party for Saturday afternoon and take out some of the girls from Clearwater Hall?” said Jack.
“We ought to be able to get some sort of box-sled down at the Haven Point livery stable,” answered Randy. “Suppose we call the liveryman up on the ‘phone and see what he has to say, and then call up the girls?”
This was done without delay, and, as a result, it was arranged that the liveryman should call at the school early Saturday afternoon for the four boys and some of their chums, bringing with him a large box-sled drawn by four horses. Then the boys were to get the girls, and all were to take a ride until the supper hour. It was arranged that the four Rovers should go on the ride, and also Spouter Powell, Gif Garrison, Fatty Hendry, and some others.
“Of course, Fatty, we really ought to make you pay double price,” remarked Andy to the fat boy, when the arrangements were being made.
“Nothing doing,” grunted Fatty. “I don’t weigh a bit more than Spouter or Gif.”
“Oh, no, not at all—only about sixty pounds more!” remarked Gif.
Some of the girls attending Clearwater Hall had stated that they wished to do a little shopping in Haven Point before going on the ride, and so all had promised to meet the boys in front of the moving picture theater, which was a resort well-known to all of them.
“Now if the weather only remains good, we ought to have a peach of a time,” announced Randy, after all the arrangements had been settled.
The weather remained good, and promptly on time the liveryman drove up to the entrance of the Hall with his big box-sled, which he had filled with straw and robes. Into the sled piled the boys, Fatty Hendry perching himself up on the front seat beside the driver.
Some of the lads had provided themselves with tin horns, and they set off on the trip with a grand flourish, a number of the cadets left behind gazing after them wistfully. But these lads were not utterly disconsolate, for the reason that skating and coasting were now both very good around the school.
The horses pulling the box-sled were fine animals, and in a short space of time they jangled merrily into Haven Point, the boys blowing their horns loudly to attract attention.
In the meantime, Ruth Stevenson and May Powell, accompanied by Alice Strobell, Annie Larkins, and some of their chums from Clearwater Hall, had arrived in the town and gone to several of the stores on various errands. Then, a few minutes before the time appointed for meeting the cadets, they hurried over in the direction of the moving picture theater.
Several of the girls went into a drugstore close to the theater, leaving Ruth and May standing on the sidewalk, looking at the various gaudy billboards which were displayed there. The girls were discussing the picture of a well-known moving-picture actress, when suddenly Ruth felt some one touch her arm. Turning, she found herself confronted by a tall, heavy-set youth, rather loudly dressed, and accompanied by another boy, wearing a fur cap and fur-lined overcoat.
“Excuse me, but this is Miss Ruth Stevenson, I believe?” said the big youth, with a broad smile on his coarse face.
Ruth was not at all pleased by being thus addressed, for she had recognized the fellow as Slugger Brown, and also recognized Nappy Martell. Nappy raised his cap and bowed pleasantly, both to her and to May.
“We just got back to Haven Point,” said Slugger Brown smoothly. “Been away a short while, you know.”
“And we thought we would go into the movies before going back to school,” put in Nappy Martell. “Were you going in, too? If you were, let’s go in together. I’ll get the tickets,” and he opened his coat to thrust his fingers into his vest pocket and bring forth a small roll of bills.
“Thank you, we are not going into the theater,” answered May stiffly. She did not like either Slugger or Nappy, and was sorry the pair had shown themselves.
“How about it?” broke out Slugger, taking hold of Ruth’s arm in a decidedly familiar way. “Let’s go in. You’ve got time enough.”
“Thank you, but we have something else to do, Mr. Brown,” responded Ruth icily.
“You can’t do much outside on a cold day like this,” went on the bully. “Come on in—I’m sure it’s nice and warm in there, and they’ve got some dandy pictures. Come ahead.”
“Sure!” broke out Nappy. “I’ll get the tickets,” and he took several steps toward the ticket booth.
“Thank you, but I said I didn’t want to go with you,” said May, quite loudly and with flashing eyes.
“We pick our company when we go anywhere,” added Ruth, giving Slugger Brown a look which would almost have annihilated any ordinary boy. But the bully was proof against anything of that sort.
“Oh, you needn’t get on your high horse about it, Ruth Stevenson,” he sneered. “Some day maybe you’ll be glad to go to a show with me.”
“If you won’t go, I guess there are other girls just as good, and maybe better,” added Nappy Martell, not knowing what else to say.
It was at this moment that the big box-sled containing the cadets hove into sight. With a flourish, the driver drew up to the curb with the boys tooting loudly on their tin horns, but thi
s salute came to a sudden end when the lads caught sight of their former schoolmates.
“Look who’s here, will you!” ejaculated Randy.
“Slugger Brown and Nappy Martell,” murmured Fred.
“Say, they are talking to Ruth and May!” broke in Andy.
To all this Jack said nothing. But he lost no time in leaping to the pavement and walking up to the girls, who came forward to greet him.
“Oh, I’m so glad you got here!” exclaimed Ruth in a low voice, and she looked at Jack appealingly and then let her eyes rove in the direction of the bully and his crony.
“Those boys are just too horrid for anything!” murmured May, by way of explanation.
“What did they do?” demanded Spouter of his cousin, he having quickly followed Jack from the sled.
“They almost insisted upon it that we accompany them into the movies!”
“Why, they hardly know you!”
“That’s true, Dick. And I think it was awful of them, the way they came up.”
“That Brown boy caught me by the arm, and he had no right to do that,” said Ruth to Jack. “I don’t want a thing to do with him.”
“You get into the sled, girls, and we’ll tend to Brown and Martell,” announced Spouter, and the tone of his voice showed his anger.
The girls did as bidden, being assisted by the others; and, in the meantime the remaining girls came from the store and also got into the sled. Spouter and Jack strode across the pavement, and caught Slugger Brown and Nappy Martell just as they were on the point of dropping their tickets into the ticket box.
“Come here a minute. I want to talk to you,” said Spouter, catching Martell by the arm.
“And I want to talk to you,” added Jack, as he detained Slugger Brown.
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