The driver of the auto-stage was at the town pump getting a drink of water. He looked at the three Rovers curiously as they confronted him.

"Did I have a passenger that stuttered?" he repeated in answer to their question. "I sure did have such a fellow. Why, he stuttered wo'se than any man I ever heard. And he whistled too. Awful funny. Why, I had all I could do to keep from laughin' in his face."

"We want to find that man very much and right away," announced Dick. "Will you let us know where you let him off?"

"That's a funny thing, mister," announced the auto-stage driver. "You see, after we left Stockbridge I didn't have nobody in but that man. He paid me the fare to this place before I started. Then when we was about half-way here I looked around in the back of the stage and, by gum! he was gone."

"Gone!" came from the three Rovers.

"Yes, sir, he was gone. I looked back and there he stood on the side of the road. As soon as he saw that I saw him, he waved his hand to me and disappeared."

CHAPTER XXIII

"That's the place. He jumped off at a spot where the bushes are pretty thick, and there are three trees standin' close together just back of the bushes."

"I think I know that place," said Dick. "There is a small white cottage on the hillside just behind it."

"You've struck it," answered the stage driver. "I reckon as how he was goin' to call on somebody at the cottage. But why he didn't ask me to stop is a mystery. Why! he might have broken a leg gettin' off that way."

"That man is a criminal, and he did it to throw you off his track," announced Sam. "Do you know what I think?" he continued to his brothers. "I think Blackie Crowden must have gotten on to the fact that we were at Fernwood, and made up his mind to clear out as soon as possible. Then he got afraid that we might question folks, including this stage driver, and so jumped from the auto-stage to throw us off his trail, provided we should follow the stage."

"I guess you have struck the nail on the head, Sam," answered his oldest brother. "But come on, let us see if we can find some trace of him." And in less than a minute more they had turned their machine around and were heading for the spot mentioned to them by the stage driver.

It was only a short run, and soon they halted beside the bushes hedging in three tall trees. Eagerly they looked around in all directions, but not a soul was in sight.

"I'm going up to the farmhouse," announced Sam.

"And I'll go with you," added Dick. "Tom, you stay down here and take a look around. If you see anything of him blow the auto horn three times."

At the farmhouse the two Rovers found themselves confronted by an elderly man and his wife, who looked at them rather curiously.

"No, there hasn't been anybody around here so far as I know," announced the farmer. "We haven't had a visitor for several days."

"I was out to the well about five minutes ago," put in his wife, "and if anybody had come up to the house or the barn I'd have seen him."

"The fellow we are after is a criminal," explained Dick, "so if you don't mind we'll take a look around for him."

"A criminal!" cried the farmer. "Say, that's bad! Certainly look around all you please, and I hope if he is anywhere near you'll catch him. I'd go around with you myself, only I can't very well on account of this rheumatism of mine."

The two Rovers walked around the cottage and the out-buildings but found not the least trace of Blackie Crowden. Then, rather crestfallen, they returned to the automobile.

"Perhaps there's some mistake and it wasn't Crowden at all," was Sam's comment.

"Well, it was a man who stuttered, anyway, and the general description fitted Crowden," answered his brother.

When they reached the automobile, they found Tom gazing curiously at a piece of newspaper which he had picked up from the ground. It was rather crumpled, as if it had been used for wrapping purposes.

"See anything of him, Tom?" asked Dick.

"No," was the answer. "But look here. Do either of you recognize this print?" He held out the paper, which was the lower half of a newspaper page. Part of this was devoted to reading matter and the rest to advertisements.

"Why, sure! I know that paper," cried Dick. "See that advertisement of The Russel Department Store and that advertisement of Betts' Shoe Store? That's a part of the Knoxbury Weekly Leader."

"That's just what it is!" ejaculated Sam. "Where did you get that paper, Tom?"

"Found it right here beside the bushes. It looks as if it had been used to wrap something in."

"Then that proves two things," announced Dick, flatly. "One is that the man who stutters was really Blackie Crowden, for who else could have been here with something wrapped in a Knoxbury newspaper? And the other thing is that he did as the stage driver said—left that stage somewhere near here."

"Right you are, Dick," returned his youngest brother, "but that doesn't answer the question—where is he now?"

"I think he got on to the fact that we were in Fernwood, and that it was his business to get out just as quickly as he could," said Tom. "And if that is true it is more than likely that he is a good distance away from here by now and keeping to side roads where he thinks he will not be followed."

"But what brought him to Fernwood in the first place?" questioned Sam.

"Give it up. Of course, he may have friends or relatives here. But I don't know how we are going to find out the truth about that, and what good will it do us if we do?"

A half hour was spent in that vicinity, the boys tramping up and down the road and through the fields and woods looking for some trace of the missing man. Then they returned to Fernwood.

"I'm going down to the post-office to post our letters," announced Dick. "I'll see if the postmaster knows anything about Crowden."

The postmaster of Fernwood was a young man and glad enough to give what information he could when he heard what Dick had to say.

"Yes, that man was here several times," he remarked. "He seemed very anxious to get some letters, and he posted several letters himself, although whom they were addressed to I don't know."

"You haven't any idea where he was stopping?"

"Not the slightest." And this was all the postmaster could tell them.

"No use of our staying here any longer," announced Tom, when the boys had rejoined the others at the hotel. "I guess Crowden just came to this out-of-the-way place to get and send mail."

"Don't you think he'll come back, thinking there'll be some letters for him?" questioned his wife.

"We'll take care of that," was the reply. "We'll notify the local authorities and also the postmaster, so if Crowden turns up again he'll be arrested at once;" and this matter was attended to before they left the town.

Chester Waltham grumbled somewhat because the Rovers had not taken him along on the trip to Riverview, but the three brothers paid little attention to this, although Sam showed that he was rather anxious because of the way in which Grace stood up for the brother of her seminary chum.

It had been planned that the tour from Valley Brook to the west should be taken through Ashton, so one morning a few days later found the whole party in the old college town.

"Too bad that Brill and Hope are both closed for the season," remarked Dora. "We might have met some of our old friends."

"Well, it doesn't make much difference to me," grinned back Sam. "It seems like only yesterday since I graduated."

"I am glad my school days are over," announced Ada Waltham. "I never did care for studying."

Before proceeding farther, the Rovers had decided to call on the Sandersons, so they went away from the hotel at Ashton, leaving the Walthams behind. A letter had been sent ahead to Minnie, so she was not much surprised at their arrival. Her appearance, however, shocked them greatly. From looking round and ruddy her face had taken on a pale and careworn look.

"We are having all sorts of bad luck this year," she said, in answer to an inquiry of Dora, and while the boys had gone off to find Mr. Sanderson, who was at the barn. "First came the loss of that money. Then father was taken sick, and now he tells me that the crops this year are not going to be nearly as good as usual."

"That is certainly too bad, Minnie," said Dora, sympathetically. "I wish we could do something to help you." She paused for a moment. "I suppose you hear from Songbird occasionally?"

"Oh, yes, he writes to me regularly. He is hard at work, and last week he sent father a check for one hundred dollars. This, of course, is a good deal of money for the poor fellow to scrape together, but it isn't much towards four thousand dollars."

"It certainly is too bad about the crops not being good," said Nellie, who, being the daughter of a farmer, knew exactly what such a calamity means to the average man who depends on the soil for his living.

"Father wouldn't mind it so much if it was not for this interest on the mortgage. You see he had expected to pay the whole amount off and that, of course, would stop the interest. Now he has to pay the usual amount, two hundred and forty dollars a year, which, you see, is twenty dollars a month. It worries him a good deal."

"Did you say Songbird sent him a hundred dollars?" questioned Grace, curiously.

"Yes. It was money he had earned and some that his folks had given him. I am glad to say father didn't think much of accepting it at first," added Minnie, her face brightening a little. "But poor John urged it, so that at last he took it and sent it over to the bank."

"Then I suppose Songbird and your father are on fairly good terms now," remarked Dora.

"No, I am sorry to say that is not true, Dora. At first father seemed to get over it, but lately he has been as bitter as ever. You see, his sickness, and the bad crops, and the interest money to be paid on the mortgage, worry him a great deal, and he takes it all out on poor John. He sticks to it that John should have been more careful while he was carrying such a large amount." Minnie turned her face away and two tears stole down her cheeks. "It's a shame—an awful, burning shame! But what in the world am I to do?"

"It surely is too bad, Minnie," said Dora, kindly, placing her arm around the girl's waist, while Nellie and Grace looked on sympathetically. "If we could help you at all we would do it. We have some news of Blackie Crowden, and the others have gone out to tell your father about it," and then she related what had occurred during the stop at Fernwood.

"Oh! if only they could find that fellow and get back the money!" sobbed Minnie. "But maybe the most of it has been spent," she added, dolefully.

"Oh, let us hope not!" cried Nellie. "He couldn't spend any such amount as that in so short a time."

"He might if he drank and gambled it away," put in her sister. "Oh, wouldn't it be too bad if they did catch this Blackie Crowden and then found that he had squandered all that money!"

CHAPTER XXIV

"Better not talk to me about that young man," declared Mr. Sanderson, drawing down the corners of his mouth. "He may mean well enough, but he's not my kind, and I've told Minnie she had better stop having him call and also stop writing to him."

"Oh, Mr. Sanderson! I think you are doing our chum an injustice," cried Sam. "It wasn't his fault that he was robbed of that four thousand dollars."

"Humph! That's as how you look at it," grumbled the farmer. "I've said what I think, and I'll stick to it." And nothing that the Rovers could say would alter his decision in this matter.

"Oh, I'm so sorry for Minnie I really don't know how to express myself," were Dora's words, when the party were once more on the way to the Ashton hotel. "If her father compels her to give up Songbird it will just about break her heart."

"I don't believe she's the one to give up Songbird," answered Sam. "She isn't that kind of girl," and he looked at Grace. But her eyes at that moment were turned in another direction. He followed the look and saw that she was gazing at Chester Waltham, who, with his sister, had driven their car to meet the others.

"There is one thing about this whole matter that worries me," said Dick, "and that is that when they catch this Blackie Crowden—and I think they'll land on the fellow sooner or later—most of the money may be gone. There will be some satisfaction in placing such a rascal behind the bars, but that won't give Mr. Sanderson his cash back nor lift that mortgage."

"We've just got news and we thought we would let you know about it," cried Ada Waltham, as the runabout came to a standstill close to the other automobiles. "There is to be a grand festival at Larkinburg this evening, and if it is not necessary to stay in Ashton to-night we might as well go to that place and attend the festival. I received a letter at the Ashton post-office from two girls who used to go to Hope, and they are to be at the affair, and they write that it will be well worth attending."

"Oh, yes, let us go to Larkinburg by all means!" cried Grace. "I know the two girls—Jennie Cross and Mabel Stanford. The festival will certainly be well worth while if they say so."

"Let me see—how many miles is it to Larkinburg?" questioned Tom.

"Only sixty, so we can make the run with ease if we start directly after lunch," answered Chester Waltham.

The matter was talked over for a few minutes, and as a result it was decided to go ahead and make the town mentioned in ample time to attend the festival.

"They are going to have a concert and some outdoor tableaux, with refreshments," said Grace. "Ada was telling me all about it."

"Well, that will be much better than staying in Ashton doing nothing," returned Dora. "And, besides, we must be getting along on our trip. Dick says we are really a day behind in our schedule."

During the stop at the Ashton hotel for lunch, Chester Waltham had been very attentive to Grace and had asked her if she did not wish to change places with his sister on the run to Larkinburg; but she had declined, offering some excuse which was far from satisfactory to the young millionaire.

"I thought you were going to put in part of this tour with me," he had said, rather reproachfully. "Besides, if you will come in with me it will give Ada a chance to visit with the others."

"Well, I'll ride with you some time," Grace had answered. "I want Ada to have as good a time as any of us."

The long hours spent on the road had proved rather tiring to Mrs. Stanhope and Mrs. Laning, and when Larkinburg was reached they were glad enough to rest in a comfortable room which Dick engaged for them.

"You young folks can go to the festival," said Mrs. Stanhope, with a smile. "We are going to stay here and go to bed early;" and so it was arranged.

The festival was held in a large grove bordering a beautiful stream and located some distance from the center of the town. As soon as our friends had arrived they had called up the two former students of Hope, and it had been decided that these girls, along with their escorts, should join the others and all should attend the festival together.

"We can easily pack the whole crowd in our three cars," announced Dick.

"I can't carry any extra people in my runabout," complained Chester Waltham. "Of course, one of the fellows might stand on the running board, but——"

"We'll take them, don't worry," answered Sam. "We've got some vacant seats, you know, and four extra won't count."

The girls from Hope were a jolly pair and so were the two young men who accompanied them. All got in the Rovers' machines, and away they went, followed closely by the Waltham runabout. A parking space had been set aside, and there our friends found themselves surrounded by machines of all sorts, and a jolly, laughing crowd numbering several thousands of people.

"Oh, how pretty!" burst from Grace's lips, as they strolled toward the place where the concert and the tableaux were to be given.

A stage had been constructed among some trees and bushes with a background of the river, and here scores of lamps and lanterns twinkled forth. The seats were placed along a sloping bank, and soon the whole crowd was gathered to listen to the opening number of the concert.

As soon as the machines were parked Chester Waltham, almost ignoring his sister, had devoted his attention to Grace, doing this while Sam was busy talking over some matters with his brothers. Waltham had walked over to the seats with Grace beside him, and now he saw to it that she was placed where he could talk to her with ease. This, of course, did not particularly suit Sam, but he was helpless in the matter and so made the best of it.

The concert was a fine one and the tableaux, which were interspersed between the various musical numbers, were intensely interesting.

"Certainly well worth attending," was Tom's comment, when that portion of the festival came to an end amid a loud clapping of hands.

"And now for some refreshments," announced Dick. "Come on, let us hurry or the tables may all be filled," for some long tables decorated with lanterns had been set under the trees at one side of the grove.

"My! but it is rather chilly here," was Grace's comment, when they were moving toward the tables. "I feel positively cold."

"Didn't you bring your jacket?" questioned Sam.

"Yes, but I left it in the auto."

"I'll go and get it," he returned, and ran off to procure the garment. He found that more machines had come in, and it was some little while before he could locate their automobile and pick out the jacket.

In the meanwhile, Chester Waltham, leaving his sister with the other girls from Hope, had gone on with Grace and seated her at one of the tables, with the others of the party opposite. There was but one vacant seat left next to Grace, and this the young millionaire appropriated.

"I don't know what Sam will do when he gets here," remarked Grace, anxiously.

"Oh, I guess he'll find a seat somewhere," answered Chester Waltham, coolly.

The youngest Rover was rather surprised on getting back to find every seat filled and the young millionaire sitting beside the girl who was so dear to his heart, but he made no comment. He helped Grace don the jacket, and then stood back until there was a vacant seat at a table some distance away.

"I think it was rather mean of Chester Waltham to appropriate that seat," whispered Nellie to Dora while they were being served.

"I think so myself, Nellie," was the low reply.

At last the festival came to an end, and all those in the crowd prepared to go home.

"I hope you enjoyed your refreshments," said Sam, rather coolly, as he came up to Grace's side.

"Why, yes, I enjoyed them very much," answered the girl. She looked at him rather pointedly. "Didn't you think the sandwiches and cake and other things were very nice?"

"Nice enough," he grumbled. "Come on, let us get back to the hotel, I'm as tired as a dog," and he started to walk away, leaving the others to follow him.

His words and the manner in which they were spoken rather nettled Grace, and she walked toward the automobiles in silence, with the others in front and behind her. But Chester Waltham remained at her side, and as they approached the machines he caught her by the arm.

"Say, Grace, come on and take a ride with me," he half whispered. "It's a beautiful night. Come on, you don't want to go back to the hotel yet."

"But what about Ada?" she questioned.

"Oh, she can take your place in one of the other autos, can't she?"

"I—I—suppose so," faltered Grace. She hardly knew how to go on. She did not wish particularly to take a ride with Waltham, and, at the same time, she was hurt over the way Sam had spoken to her.

"See here, Sis," cried the young millionaire, "I am going to take Miss Laning back in my runabout. She says you can take her place with the Rovers."

"Oh, all right, Chester," answered the sister. "Hope you have a nice time of it," she added to Grace.

There was a large crowd down among the automobiles, and our friends had all they could do in the semi-darkness to get their machines out on the road in safety.

"Where is Grace?" demanded Sam, as some of the others came up to him. He had just turned on the lights of both cars.

"She is going to ride back with Chester," answered Ada Waltham. "You'll have to let me ride back with you," and she laughed lightly.

"Oh, all right. Come ahead," returned the youngest Rover. He spoke as lightly as he could. He did not wish to let the others know his true feelings. There was a strange bitterness in his heart, and for the moment he wished that he had never come on this tour.

CHAPTER XXV

"Oh, yes, Nellie, we'll get back. It wouldn't be fair to go off and leave mother and Mrs. Stanhope alone."

When they reached the hotel at Larkinburg the Rovers expected to find the Waltham runabout in the garage, and they were consequently somewhat surprised when they saw no sign of the machine.

"We certainly couldn't have passed them on the road," observed Dick. He turned to his youngest brother. "You didn't see them, did you?"

"No. They went on ahead," answered Sam, shortly; and his manner of speech showed that he was thoroughly out of sorts.

Having placed the touring cars in the care of the garage keeper, the Rovers joined the others on the piazza of the hotel. Then Dora slipped upstairs to see if her mother and Mrs. Laning were all right. She found both of them sleeping soundly, and did not disturb them.

Sam could not content himself with sitting down, and so lounged around in one place and another, and finally said he would go inside and write a letter to the folks at home. He was still writing when Tom came in to join him.

"Sam, did Chester Waltham say anything about where he was going to take Grace?" asked Tom, as he sat down beside his brother.

"No, he didn't say a word to me," was the short reply, and Sam went on writing.

"Did Grace say anything?"

"No."

Tom said nothing for a moment, drumming his fingers on the writing table. At last he heaved something of a sigh.

"Seems to me if they were going on a long ride they might have said something to us about it," he observed. "Nellie is rather worried."

"Oh, I guess they've got a right to take a ride if they want to," came rather crossly from Sam. He finished his letter with a flourish, folded it, and rammed it into an envelope which he quickly addressed.

"Oh, of course, but——" Tom did not finish, and as Sam, after stamping his letter, arose, he did the same. "I wonder if we had better stay up for them."

"I think I'll go to bed."

"Sam!" and Tom looked sharply at his younger brother.

"Well, what's the use of staying up?"

"A whole lot of use, Sam Rover, and you know it. If I were you I wouldn't let Chester Waltham ride over me."

"Who says I am letting him ride over me?" retorted Sam; and now his manner showed that he was quite angry.

"I say so," answered Tom, bluntly. "If you have got half the sand in you that I always thought you had, you wouldn't stand for it. All of us know how matters were going on between you and Grace. Now to let this fellow step in, even if he is a young millionaire, is downright foolish. If you really care for Grace it's up to you to go in and take her."

"Yes, but suppose that she cares for Waltham and his money more than she cares for me?" asked Sam, hesitatingly.

"Do you think Grace is the kind of a girl to be caught by money, Sam?" and now, as the two were in a deserted part of the hallway, Tom took his brother by both arms and held him firmly.

"N—no, I—I can't say that exactly," faltered Sam. "But just the same, why does she favor him at all?"

"Maybe it's because you haven't been as outspoken as you ought to be. It's one thing for a girl to know what you think of her, but just the same the average girl wants you to tell her so in plain words. Now, it may not be any of my business, but you know that I want you to be happy, and that I am unusually interested because of Nellie. It seems to me if I were you I'd go to Grace the first chance I had and have a clear understanding."

"I—I can't go to her now. She's out with Waltham," stammered Sam.

"Then hang around until they get back and see to it that you have a chance to talk with her before she goes to her room," returned Tom; and then, as some other people came up, the conversation had to come to an end.

A half hour passed and Ada Waltham excused herself. "Chester and Grace must be having a fine ride," she observed on retiring, "otherwise they would have returned by this time."

"Maybe they had a breakdown," observed Dick. "I've been told that some of the roads around here are far from good."

"Oh, don't say that!" cried the girl. "Chester hates to have to make any repairs when he is alone. Time and again he has run to a garage on a flat tire rather than put another one on himself."

Another half hour dragged by, and now Dora turned to whisper to Dick.

"Don't you think we had better retire?" she asked. "I never supposed Grace was going to stay out as late as this."

"No, we'll stay up," he answered. "Nellie has told Tom that she isn't going to bed until her sister gets back, so it won't do for us to leave them here on the piazza alone."

"Mr. Rover! Telephone call for Mr. Rover!" came the announcement from a bellboy, as he appeared upon the piazza.

"Which Mr. Rover?" demanded Sam, eagerly.

"The party said any of 'em would do," answered the bellboy.

"I'll go," said Sam, eagerly, before either of his brothers or their wives could speak.

"All right, Sam. I'll follow in case you want me or any of the others," answered Tom.

The telephone booths were located in the lobby of the hotel, and Sam was quickly shown to one of them. While he talked Tom stood by, but caught only a few words of what was said.

"Hello!"

"Oh, is this you, Sam?" came over the wire in Grace's voice. "I'm so glad! I have been trying to get somebody for the last ten minutes but they couldn't give me the hotel connection."

"Where are you?" questioned the youth. "Has anything happened?" for the tone of the girl's voice indicated that she was very much agitated.

"Oh, Sam! I want you or some of the others to come and get me," cried Grace. "The runabout has broken down, and I don't think Mr. Waltham can fix it. And we are miles and miles away from Larkinburg!"

"A breakdown, eh? Why, sure, I'll come and get you, Grace. Where are you?"

"I am at a farmhouse on the road between Dennville and Corbytown—the Akerson place. If you come, take the road to Dennville and then drive toward Corbytown. We'll hang a lantern on the stepping block, so you will know where to stop."

"All right, Grace, I'll be there just as soon as I can make it," answered Sam; and then he added quickly: "You weren't hurt when the breakdown happened, were you?"

"Not very much, although I was a good deal shaken up. Mr. Waltham had his face and his hand scraped by the broken wind-shield."

"Well, you take good care of yourself, and I'll start right away," returned the youngest Rover, and after a few words more hung up the receiver.

It did not take Sam long to acquaint the others with what had occurred, and then he ran down to the hotel garage to get out one of the touring cars.

"Don't you think I had better go along?" asked Tom. "Chester Waltham may be in a fix and need assistance. And, besides, they may both be more hurt than Grace said."

"Yes, I guess you'd better come," answered his brother. And soon, having received directions from the garage keeper as to how to get to Dennville, the pair were on the way.

"How did Grace seem to be when you spoke to her?" questioned Tom, as Sam ran the car as rapidly as the semi-darkness of the night permitted.

"She seemed to be all unstrung," was Sam's thoughtful reply.

"Then the accident may have been worse than she admitted, Sam."

"I hope not, but we'll soon see." And then, as a straight stretch of fairly good road appeared before them, Sam turned on the power and the touring car sped onward faster than ever.

Inside of half an hour they reached Dennville, a sleepy little town, located in the midst of a number of hills. All the houses were dark and the stores closed up, and not a soul was in sight. They ran into the tiny public square and there found several signboards.

"Here we are!" cried Sam. "Corbytown four miles this way," and he pointed with his hand.

"We'll look at the other signboards first to see whether there is another road," answered his brother. But there was only the one, and so Sam turned the touring car into this, and they sped forward once more, but now at a reduced rate of speed, for the road was decidedly hilly and far from good.

"What possessed Waltham to take such a road as this," remarked Tom, after they had passed a particularly bad spot.

"Don't ask me!" was the reply. "It's no wonder he had a breakdown if he took this road on high speed."

They were going up a long hill. At the top a large and well-kept farm spread out, and, beyond, the hill dropped away on a road that was worse than ever.

"Hello! there's a light!" cried Tom, as they approached the house belonging to the farm.

"I see it," answered his brother; and in a few seconds more they ran up to the horse-block and brought the touring car to a standstill, Sam, at the same time, sounding the horn.

But the summons was unnecessary, for their approach had been eagerly looked for by Grace, and hardly had the machine come to a standstill when she flew out of the farmhouse to meet them.

"Oh, I'm so glad you've come!" she burst out. "If you hadn't, I don't know what I should have done!" She was somewhat hysterical and on the verge of tears.

"Are you sure that you're not hurt, Grace?" asked Sam, quickly; and as he spoke he caught her by one hand and placed an arm on her shoulder.

"I—I don't think I am hurt, Sam," she faltered, and then looked rather tearfully into his face. "But it was an awful experience—awful!" and then as he drew a little closer she suddenly burst into a fit of weeping and rested her head on his shoulder.

CHAPTER XXVI

"The poor girl was dreadfully shook up," put in Mrs. Akerson. "She just went on somethin' terrible. I had all I could do to quiet her at first."

"Didn't the young man come here with her?" questioned Tom.

"No. She said she had left him down on the road with the machine. She said he was all worked up over the accident."

"I should think he would be," returned Tom, and said no more on the subject. Yet he thought it very strange that Chester Waltham had not accompanied Grace to the farmhouse and thus made certain that help was summoned.

Tom and his brother had entered the sitting-room of the farmhouse. Next to it was a lit-up dining-room and to this Sam and Grace had walked, the latter between her sobs telling of what had happened.

"Oh, Sam, it was dreadful!" cried Grace. "Mr. Waltham was so reckless. I couldn't understand him at all. When I said I would ride with him I supposed we were going right back to the hotel. But on the way he said it was too fine a night to go in yet, and begged me to go a little farther, and so finally I consented. Then he drove the car on and on, ever so many miles, until we reached Dennville."

"But if you didn't want to go that far, Grace, why didn't you tell him?"

"I did—several times. But he wouldn't listen to me. Of course, I didn't want to act rude, and when I told him to turn back he only laughed at me. Then, when we got to Dennville, and I told him that I positively would not go any farther, he said, 'Oh, yes, you will. We are going to have a good, long ride. I am going to make you pay up in full for not riding with me before.'"

"The mean fellow!" murmured Sam. "I'd like to punch him for that."

"Oh, but, Sam! that wasn't the worst of it," went on the girl; and now she blushed painfully and hung her head. "Then he started up on this side road and he ran the car as fast as ever. I was dreadfully scared, but he only laughed and told me to enjoy myself, and when the car bumped over some stones, and I was thrown against him, he put his arm around me and—and he did his best to kiss me!"

"What!"

"But I didn't allow it. I pushed him away, and when he laughed at me I told him that if he tried it again I would box his ears. Then, just after we had passed this place, he reached over and caught hold of me and tried to pull me toward him. Then I boxed him, just as I had said I would. That made him furious, and he put on a burst of speed, and the next minute there was a terrible bump and a crash, and both of us were almost thrown out of the car. The wind-shield was broken and also, I think, the front axle, and he was scratched in several places. Oh, it was awful!" And again Grace hid her face on Sam's shoulder.

"Well, it served him right if he got hurt and if his runabout was ruined," was the youth's comment. He drew Grace closer to him than ever. "Then you didn't really care for him?" he whispered.

"Oh, Sam, Sam! how can you ask such a question?" she murmured.

"Because I didn't know. I thought—— You see, he—he is a millionaire, and——"

"Why, Sam Rover! do you think that money would make any difference to me?" and now she raised her face to look him full in the eyes.

"I am mighty glad to know it hasn't made any difference," he returned quickly; and then caught and held her tight once more.

"I suppose you young men are goin' back to help the fellow with his busted machine," remarked Mr. Akerson to Tom.

"I—I suppose so," returned Tom, slowly, and then looked toward Sam and Grace.

"Oh, I don't want to go back!" cried the girl, quickly. "I want to return to the hotel in Larkinburg."

"All right, I'll take you back, Grace," answered Sam. "If you say so, we'll leave Waltham right where he is."

"I think it would be the right thing to do, Sam, under ordinary circumstances," was the reply. "But then we mustn't forget about Ada. She will be greatly worried if I come back and let her know that we left her brother out here on the open road with a broken machine."

"I'll tell you what we'll do, Grace. You stay here and Tom and I will go down and see what Waltham has got to say for himself." He turned to the people of the house. "She can stay here a little longer, can't she? We'll make it all right with you."

"Certainly she can stay," answered Mr. Akerson. "And there won't be anything to pay outside of the telephone toll, and that's only twenty cents."

"Please don't stay too long," implored Grace, as the two Rovers hurried away.

"Not a minute longer than is necessary," returned Sam.

On the way down the hill to where the accident had occurred Sam gave his brother the particulars of the affair, not mincing matters so far as it concerned Chester Waltham.

"I was thinking that that was about the way it would turn out," was Tom's dry comment. "With so much money, Waltham thinks he can do about as he pleases. I reckon now, Sam, you are sorry you didn't talk to Grace before."

"I sure am, Tom!" was the reply, and Sam's tones showed what a weight had been taken from his heart. "I'm going to fix it up with Grace before another twenty-four hours pass."

"That's the way to talk, boy! Go to it! I wish you every success!" and Tom clapped his brother on the shoulder affectionately.

Even though all the lights were out, it did not take the two Rovers long to locate the disabled runabout, which rested among some stones on the side of the highway. As Grace had stated, the wind-shield was a mass of smashed glass, and the front axle had broken close to the left wheel.

"They can certainly be thankful they didn't break their necks," was Tom's comment, as he walked around the wreck.

"Waltham doesn't seem to be anywhere around here," returned Sam. "Wonder where he went to?"

Both looked up and down the highway, and presently saw a figure approaching from down the road. It proved to be Chester Waltham. He was capless and walked with a limp.

"Hello! Who are you?" challenged the young millionaire, and then as he drew closer he added: "Oh, the Rovers, eh? Did Grace get you on the 'phone?"

"She did," answered Sam, and then added sharply: "You've made a nice mess of it here, haven't you?"

"Say, I don't want any such talk from you," blustered the rich young man. Evidently he was in far from a good humor.

"I'll say what I please, Waltham, without asking your permission," continued the youngest Rover. "You had no right to bring Miss Laning away out here against her wishes. It was a contemptible thing to do."

"You talk as if you were my master," retorted Chester Waltham. "This isn't any of your affair and you keep out of it."

"We are perfectly willing to keep out of it if you say so, Waltham," broke in Tom. "We came down here merely to see if we could help you in any way. But I see your front axle is broken, and you will have to get the garage people to help you out with that."

"Where's Grace?" asked the young millionaire. The subject of the broken-down runabout did not seem to interest him.

"She is up at the farmhouse on the hill," answered Tom.

"And we are going to take her back to the Larkinburg hotel in our auto," added Sam.

"Oh, all right, then, go ahead and do it."

"Do you want to ride with us?" questioned Tom.

"I don't know that I do. I'll stay here and take care of my runabout. If you'll tell my sister that I'm all right, that is all I want."

"Very well, just as you say," answered Tom. He took his brother by the arm. "Come on, Sam, there is no use of wasting time here."

"I'll be with you in a minute, Tom," was the younger brother's reply. "You go on ahead, I want to say just a few words more to Waltham."

"No use of your getting into a fight, Sam," returned Tom in a low voice.

"There won't be any fight unless he starts it."

Tom walked slowly up the road, and Sam turned back to where Chester Waltham had settled himself on the mud-guard of the broken-down runabout.

"See here, Waltham, I want to say a few words more to you," began Sam, and his tone of voice was such that the young millionaire leaped at once to his feet. "I want to warn you about how you treat Miss Laning in the future."

"To warn me!" repeated Chester Waltham, not knowing what else to say.

"Exactly! Up at the farmhouse she told me all of what took place between you. She was all unstrung and quite hysterical. Now this won't do at all, and I want you to know it. After this if you are going to travel with us you've got to act the gentleman and treat her like a lady."

"Humph!"

"No 'humph' about it. I mean just what I say. If you don't behave yourself and don't treat her like a lady I'll—I'll——"

"Well, what will you do?" sneered Chester Waltham.

"I'll tell you what I'll do," and now Sam shook his finger in the young millionaire's face. "I'll give you the soundest thrashing you ever had in your life!"

"Ah! do you mean to threaten me?"

"I certainly do."

"When it comes to a thrashing, maybe two can play at that game," observed the young millionaire; but it was plainly to be seen that Sam's decided stand had disconcerted him.

"All right, Waltham, I'll be ready for you. But remember what I said. We came out here to have a good time, and I am not going to allow you to spoil it for Miss Laning or for anybody else."

"Humph! you make me tired," sneered the rich young man. "Go on, I don't want to be bothered with you any longer. The whole bunch of you is too namby-pamby for me. I think my sister and I could have a much better time if we weren't with you."

"As far as you personally are concerned, you can't leave us any too quickly to suit me," returned Sam.

"Is that so? Well, I guess you can call it off then so far as my sister and I are concerned. But if you think, Rover, that you have seen the last of this affair you are mistaken," went on the young millionaire, pointedly. "You think you are going to run things to suit yourself, don't you? Well, I'll put a spoke in your wheel—a spoke that you never dreamed of! You just wait and see!" and then Chester Waltham turned back and sat down once more on his wrecked runabout, leaving Sam to walk up the road to rejoin Tom in a very thoughtful mood.

CHAPTER XXVII

"I guess it will be a good job done if we part company with the Walthams," remarked Dick, after the subject had been discussed for some time. "He is not of our class, even if he has money."

"I feel rather sorry for his sister," added Dora. "Although once in a while she shows the same haughtiness of manner that Chester displays. It's too bad, too, for they might be really nice company."

With so much excitement going on, it was small wonder that the Rover party did not come downstairs that morning until quite late. Sam was the first to show himself, he being anxious to know how Grace had fared.

"Here is a letter for your brother, Mr. Rover," said the clerk at the desk, when Sam approached him. "It was left here by that Mr. Waltham."

"Hand it over," returned the youth, and then added: "Did Mr. Waltham bring his wrecked runabout to the garage here?"

"No, sir, he just came here, got his sister, paid his bill, and went off."

"Oh, I see." Sam could not help but show his surprise. "I'll take this letter to my brother," he added, and hurried off.

The communication was a short one, yet the Rovers and the others read it with interest. In it Chester Waltham said that in consideration of the way he had been treated by some members of the party he considered it advisable for his sister and himself to continue their tour separately. He added that he trusted Miss Laning did not feel any ill effects because of the breakdown on the road.

"And just to think that Ada went off without saying good-bye!" cried Grace, when she saw the letter. "I didn't think she would be quite so mean as that."

"Probably she took her brother's part. She usually did," returned her sister. "Well, I think we are well rid of them."

"So do I," put in Tom. "Personally I don't care if we never see them again."

"He said he was going to put a spoke in our wheel," mused Sam. "I wonder if he'll dare to do anything to harm us?"

"Oh, it's likely he was talking through his hat," returned Dick; but for once the oldest Rover was mistaken.

Now that our friends were by themselves there seemed to be a general air of relief. The only one of the party who was rather quiet was Grace, but Sam did everything he could to make it pleasant for her, and before nightfall she was as jolly as ever.

The run during that day was through a particularly beautiful section of the country, and about one o'clock they stopped in a grove and partook of a lunch which had been put up for them at the Larkinburg hotel. Then they moved forward once again, with Dick and Tom at the steering wheels of the cars.

"Still seventy-three miles to go if we want to make Etoria to-day," announced Dick, after consulting the guide book. "I'm afraid that will be quite a ride for you ladies," he added, turning to Mrs. Stanhope and Mrs. Laning.

"Oh, yes, let us go on to Etoria by all means," pleaded Sam.

"Any particular reason for going to that city?" asked Tom, quickly.

"Yes, I've got a reason, but I'm not going to tell you," returned his younger brother. And then, as both Dick and Tom looked at him questioningly, he blushed and turned away.

"Oh, go ahead. I think I can stand it," said Mrs. Stanhope, with a smile.

"I am getting used to traveling," declared Mrs. Laning. "It's much more comfortable than I at first supposed it would be."

Nightfall found them still ten miles from Etoria and Dick asked the others if they wished to stop anywhere along the way for supper. All declared, however, that they would rather keep on until the city was reached.

"They tell me that they have got a dandy hotel there—something new," said Sam. "We ought to get first-class accommodations there."

Etoria was a city of some fifty thousand inhabitants, with a long main street brightly lighted up. The new hotel was opposite a beautiful public park, an ideal location. Sam seemed to be in unusual haste to finish his supper, and immediately it was over he asked Grace if she would not take a walk with him.

"We are going to do up the town, so don't worry if we get back a little late," he told Mrs. Laning, and then whispered something in her ear which made her smile and gaze at him fondly.

They pursued their way along the main street of the town, and while doing so the youngest Rover kept his eyes on the various shops that were passed. At last they came to a large jewelry establishment and here he brought the girl to a halt.

"It's open!" he cried. "That's what I call luck! I was afraid they would all be closed."

Grace looked at the store, and at the display of jewelry in the window, and then looked at Sam.

"I guess you know what it's going to be, Grace," he said rather tenderly, and looked her full in the eyes. "I want you to have just as good a one as Dora or Nellie."

"Oh, Sam! I—I don't understand," she stammered.

"It's an engagement ring. We are going in here and see what sort of rings this man has got. It looks like a reliable place."

"Oh, Sam!" and now, blushing deeply, Grace clung to his arm. "An engagement ring?"

"Sure! You ought to have had it long ago, then maybe we wouldn't have had any trouble."

"There wasn't any trouble, Sam—at least, I didn't make any trouble," she repeated; and then, as he caught her arm and dragged her into the shop, she murmured: "Oh, I—I feel so funny to go into a store for a thing like that! Don't you think I had better wait outside?"

"You can if you want to, after the jeweler has measured your finger, Grace. But what's the use of being so backward? As soon as we get back home you are going to be Mrs. Sam Rover, so you might as well get used to such things first as last."

Fortunately for the young couple it was a very elderly man—quite fatherly in appearance—who came to wait on them.

"A diamond ring?" he queried. "Why, certainly, I'll be pleased to show everything we have;" and then he measured Grace's finger, and brought forth several trays of glittering gems.

Grace would have been satisfied with almost any of the rings, but Sam was rather critical and insisted upon obtaining a beautiful blue-white diamond which was almost the counterpart of the stone Dick had bestowed upon Dora.

"Now you've got to promise to have this engraved by eight o'clock to-morrow morning," said the youngest Rover to the jeweler. "We are on an automobile tour and we can't wait any longer than that." And thereupon the shopkeeper promised that the order should be duly filled.

"Oh, Sam, how extravagant you are!" murmured Grace, when the pair were returning to the hotel. "Why, that ring cost a dreadful lot of money." Her eyes were shining like stars.

"It isn't a bit too good for such a girl as you," he declared stoutly, and then gave her hand a squeeze that meant a great deal.

When they left Etoria the next morning Sam had the engagement ring tucked safely away in his pocket. He had confided in Dick, and the oldest Rover managed it so that that noon they stopped at a large country hotel and obtained the use of a private dining-room. This, Sam had decorated with flowers, and just before the meal commenced he slipped the engagement ring upon Grace's finger.

"Oh, Sam! Oh, Grace!" shrieked Nellie when she saw the sparkling circlet on her sister's finger.

"Oh! so that's what's going on, is it?" cried Dora, joyfully. "Grace, allow me to congratulate you," and then she kissed the girl and immediately afterward kissed Sam. Numerous other kisses and handshakes followed, and for the time being Sam and Grace were the happiest young people in the world.

"Let us send telegrams home, announcing the affair," suggested the youngest Rover, after the meal was at an end. "I know dad, as well as Aunt Martha and Uncle Randolph, will be glad to hear of it."

The telegrams were quickly prepared and sent off. In the messages Sam notified those at home where the touring party would be for the next ten days.

After that several days slipped by quickly. The tourists had covered a good many miles and were now approaching the Mississippi River. The weather had been ideal, and not a single puncture or blowout had come to cause them trouble. Sam and Grace were much together, and, as the youngest Rover declared, "were having the time of their lives."

"It's queer I don't get more word from New York," remarked Dick one evening, when they had reached a city which I shall call Pemberton. "Dad acknowledged that telegram of Sam's, but he didn't say a word about that Lansing deal or anything about the Bruno bonds."

"Well, let us hope that no news is good news," returned Tom. "Anyway, I'm not going to worry until I know there is something to worry about."

That evening came word from Valley Brook, stating that everything was going along well at the farm and that Mr. Anderson Rover was confining himself closely to business in New York.

The Mississippi was crossed, and then the tourists headed in the direction of Colorado Springs. It was their intention to make the Springs the turning point of the trip, with a side trip by the cog railway to Pike's Peak. They would return by the way of Denver. Some days later found them in Topeka, where they had decided to rest up for a day or two. During that time only one short telegram had come from Mr. Anderson Rover, stating that the Bruno bonds had been sold at a fair profit, but that the Lansing deal was still uncertain.

"We stand to win or lose quite a lot of money on that Lansing deal," Dick explained to Sam. "It's rather a peculiar affair. The whole thing is being engineered by a Wall Street syndicate."

On the morning of the second day in Topeka, when Sam and Grace and some of the others had gone shopping, Dick heard one of the bellboys call his name.

"Telegram," he said to Tom. "I hope this is from dad and that it contains good news."

The telegram proved to be what is known as a Night Letter, and its contents caused the two Rovers much astonishment. The communication ran as follows:

"Have been following up the Lansing deal closely. Affairs are getting rather clouded and I am afraid we may lose out. A new opposition has appeared, a combination headed by your former friend, Waltham. He is still in the West but his agents are working against us. He has also bought controlling interest in the Haverford deal. Evidently means to hit us as hard as possible. Will know more in a day or two and will let you know at once of any change in affairs.

"Anderson Rover."