Jack had now fully recovered his strength and both boys kept up a rapid gait until more than half the distance to Putnam Hall had been covered. Then, of a sudden, the young major called a halt.
“What’s the trouble?” demanded his chum.
“Somebody is coming! Maybe some of the teachers!”
Both of the cadets leaped from the roadway to some convenient bushes. It was after hours and they well knew that to be caught by Captain Putnam or any of his assistants would mean severe punishment. Jack might even be reduced to the ranks, something that would have hurt the major’s feelings exceedingly.
A whistle arose on the air, a peculiar whistle, thrice repeated. Pepper answered it at once, and he and Jack stepped back to the roadway. In a moment they were confronted by Andy Snow and Stuffer Singleton.
“Did you get it?” demanded Andy, eagerly.
“What kept you so long?” added Stuffer. “We made up our minds something had gone wrong and we were coming to find out.”
“Something did go wrong,” burst out Pepper. “Somebody locked us in the belfry.” And then he and his chum told their story.
“It must have been Ritter and his crowd,” declared Stuffer. “None of us did it. I was with Dale and the others all the time, and Andy was on his errand for Captain Putnam.”
“If I was certain it was Ritter I’d give him a piece of my mind!” declared Jack. “It was a mean piece of business on his part—after what I did for him a few weeks ago. He might have been expelled from this school if I had not asked the captain to give him another chance.”
“Oh, you can’t rely on Ritter,” came from the cadet who loved to eat. “Why, yesterday, I had an extra piece of pie hidden in a closet, to eat after lessons, and he came along and gobbled it down! He ought to have the daylights hammered out of him!”
“Well, we got the clapper anyway,” said Pepper, grimly. “And it’s up to you, Stuffer, to treat to that ice-cream, and for Dale to find that apple pie that was promised.”
“I’ll keep my promise the first time we go to town, never fear,” answered Stuffer. “But just now I think the best thing all of us can do is to sneak into the school and get to bed, before we are found out.”
“And before Ritter plays some more of his dirty tricks,” added Andy.
The four cadets walked in the direction of the school, but before arriving at the campus turned into a side road bordering the lake.
“No use of going in by the regular entrance,” said Jack. “We’d be sure to be spotted—especially if Ritter or his cronies have told one of the teachers that we are out.”
“I know where Snuggers keeps his key to the kitchen door,” said Andy. “Maybe I can get that.” He referred to Peleg Snuggers, a general utility man around Putnam Hall, who divided his time between the school building and the stables.
“Where is the key?” asked Pepper.
“On a nail in the washshed. I saw him put it there one evening.”
“Then we had better go in by the back way—if we can get the key,” said Stuffer.
With caution the boys skirted the edge of the lake. As they passed the boathouse they heard a murmur of voices. They were about to set off on a run, thinking some teachers were in the building, when Jack called a halt.
“It’s Reff Ritter talking!” he cried, in a low voice, and a few seconds later there issued from the boathouse the forms of the school bully and his two particular cronies, Gus Coulter and Nick Paxton. As soon as the three saw the other cadets they started to walk away rapidly.
“Stop, Ritter! I want to talk to you!” cried Jack, in a low but steady tone.
“What do you want?” snapped back Reff Ritter, coming to a halt and wheeling around. It was after hours, so he did not take the trouble to salute the young major.
“I want to talk to you,—and I want to talk to Coulter and Paxton, too.”
“What about?” and now the seven students came together close to the side of the boathouse. “Don’t give me any of your long-winded speeches, Ruddy, for I am sleepy and want to get to bed.”
“Ritter, you and your gang played a mean trick on me and Ditmore to-night.”
“Did we?” sneered the bully.
“You did.”
“I don’t know what you are talking about.”
“Yes, you do.”
“Maybe you think you weren’t seen near the church?” put in Pepper, meaningly.
“Say, who—er—who saw us?” faltered Coulter.
“Ha, so you admit you were at the church!” cried Jack.
“Coulter, can’t you hold your jaw?” demanded Reff Ritter, angrily.
“Ritter, answer me straight,” said Jack, in a determined voice. “Were you at the church to-night or not.”
“Well, since you want to know so badly, I was,” answered the bully. “Now then, what of it?”
“You fastened the trap door of the belfry, did you?” put in Pepper.
“I did.”
After the frank confession of the bully of Putnam Hall that he had fastened the trap door of the church belfry, there was a moment of intense silence. He faced Jack and Pepper with a sickly grin on his face.
“It was a joke on you all right enough,” he continued. “You were lucky to get away as quickly as you did. What did you do,—force the trap door open in spite of the bolt?”
“Ritter, I think you are about the worst boy that ever came to this school,” said Pepper.
“Oh, you needn’t preach to me, Ditmore.”
“I wouldn’t say so much if you had played that trick on me alone,” went on The Imp calmly. “But to play it on Jack—after all he did to save you from being expelled—well, it’s beyond me. I guess you don’t know what a conscience is.”
“If you are going to talk to me like that I’ll smash you one in the jaw!” fired back the bully. “I know what I am doing, and it’s not for you to teach me manners.”
“Do you know that Jack came close to losing his life at the church and all because you locked us in the belfry?” added Pepper.
“Humph! What are you trying to do, scare me? It didn’t hurt you to be locked in.”
“Ritter, you listen to me,” broke in the young major, and now his voice was so cold and uncompromising that all in the crowd held their breath. “You admit that you locked us in the belfry, don’t you? You know what it would have meant for me if I had been caught there, and you know what it would have meant for the school. It was mean, dirt mean. I thought you were going to turn over a new leaf—be like the rest of the fellows. Now—well, I think I’ll teach you a lesson.”
“Me, a lesson?” faltered Reff Ritter.
“Exactly. I made a mistake when I didn’t let Captain Putnam expel you. The whole school would have been better off for it. Take off your jacket and cap.”
“Why?”
“Because I am going to give you a sound thrashing—and do it before we go to bed.”
“Humph! Want to fight, eh?”
“No, I didn’t say anything about a fight, I said I was going to give you a sound thrashing.”
“If you fight we’ll all be caught!” cried Nick Paxton, in alarm. “Put it off till to-morrow.”
“Yes, let us get to bed!” added Coulter. “I won’t say a word about your being at the church.”
“You bet you won’t—not unless you want a big licking,” cried Pepper.
“Mum’s the word on this, remember that, everybody,” cried Andy.
“Remember it—or take the consequences,” came from Stuffer.
While the others were talking Jack had shed his cadet jacket and his cap and thrown them on a nearby bench. He faced Ritter so determinedly that the bully backed away several steps.
“I want you to know——” began Ritter.
“Get ready, if you are going to,” returned the young major. And then as Ritter put up his fists and stuck out his chin he leaped forward and caught the bully by one wrist. The grip was like that of steel and he whirled the fellow around bodily.
“Take that!” roared Ritter and struck out wildly. Jack dodged the blow with ease.
Then, with the quickness of lightning, the young major “sailed into” his opponent. He hit Ritter a sharp blow in the right cheek and followed this up by one on the nose. Then the pair clinched, and he got the bully’s head under his arm and poked Ritter a hard one in the eye and a heavy one in the mouth that loosened several teeth.
“Le—let me g—g—go!” spluttered the bully.
“I’ll let you go when I am done with you!” returned Jack. “I am going to teach you a lesson you won’t forget in a hurry.”
“Break away!” cried Gus Coulter. “Fight him fair, Ruddy.”
“This isn’t a fight—I am merely giving him the thrashing he deserves,” answered the young major. “You keep out of it—or I’ll serve you the same,” he added, so sharply that Coulter stepped back in alarm.
How badly Jack might have damaged Ritter it is hard to state. He was thoroughly aroused and anxious to give the bully a “dressing down” he should never forget. But in the midst of the excitement a cry of alarm arose from Paxton, who had been looking anxiously towards the school building.
“Cheese it!” he called out. “Somebody is coming!”
“It’s old Crabtree!” exclaimed Stuffer. “Boys, we have got to leg it, unless we want to get caught,” he added, as the tall and angular form of the teacher was seen to emerge from the school building.
Jack had no more desire to be caught than anybody else and he quickly relinquished his hold on the bully and picked up his jacket and cap. Ritter was so dazed that he staggered for a second when let alone.
“Yo—you just wait, Jack Ruddy!” he muttered. “Just wait! I’ll get even, if it takes a lifetime to do it!”
“I’ll finish the thrashing some other time, Ritter,” answered the young officer, and then he and his chums ran in one direction while the bully and his cronies ran in another.
“Stop! stop!” came in the harsh, dictatorial voice of Josiah Crabtree, and he came rushing over the campus, cane in hand. “Stop, whoever you are!”
Fortunately for the cadets the moon, which had been shining clearly, now went under a heavy cloud, leaving the campus in darkness. The gloom was disastrous for the teacher, for in his hurry he did not see a low bench bordering the path. He bumped into the bench heavily, lost his balance, and went sprawling on his chest and face.
“Hi! hi! who did this? Who upset me?” he screamed wrathfully. “Stop, you young rascals! If you don’t stop I’ll have you all expelled!”
He picked himself up after an effort and got back his wind, but by that time all of the cadets were out of sight. The Ritter contingent went to an angle of the school building, where hung a rope running up to a dormitory. Jack, Pepper and Stuffer followed Andy to the washshed and there secured the key left by Peleg Snuggers.
“Hurry up, Andy,” cried Pepper, who was looking back to see if they were being followed. “Remember, old Crabtree is on the warpath!”
The kitchen door was quickly opened, the key being left in the lock, and up a back stairs sped the four cadets, Pepper leading the way.
“Wait a minute!” whispered The Imp, when the upper hallway was gained.
“What do you want?” questioned Stuffer.
“Here is the bell clapper. Crabtree is out of his room, and we might—”
“Hurrah! just the thing!” cried Andy. “Give it to me, Pep. You have done enough for one night.”
“I’ll go with Andy,” put in Stuffer. “You and Jack go to bed.”
And while the young major and his chum sped for their dormitory Andy and Stuffer ran down a side hall leading to the apartment occupied by Josiah Crabtree. As expected, the door was unlocked and they quickly stepped inside the room.
“I’ll put it in his bureau drawer, among his shirts,” said Andy. “He’ll be sure to find it to-morrow.”
“Oh, say, I’ve got an idea!” cried the lad who loved to eat. “But it will rob me of my candy,” he added woefully.
“What is the idea, Stuffer?” asked Andy, who was placing the bell clapper between the teacher’s dress shirts in the bureau.
“I’ve got this molasses candy with me. Supposing I put some of it in the bed? He might——”
“Have sweet dreams!” finished the acrobatic youth. “Good! Spread the candy out well, Stuffer. It’s a bit hard, I know. But the heat of old Crabtree’s body will fix it all right!”
The bell clapper disposed of, the two cadets spread the molasses candy, which was in thin, flat form, in the bed, between the sheets. Then they turned down the light as they had found it, and hurried forth and to their quarters. As they did this they heard a door below slammed shut and locked.
“Crabtree is coming in!” announced Pepper, who was on the watch. “I’ll wager he is as mad as a hornet for not catching us!”
Some of the other cadets had been told about what was going on, and at several dormitory doors heads peeped forth. But then sounded a peculiar whistle, coming from Emerald Hogan.
It was a signal that the teacher was coming around, inspecting the dormitories. Every cadet understood, and there was a wild scramble to put out the lights and leap into bed.
The only lad who did not escape was Gus Coulter. In the semi-darkness he ran into another cadet and was knocked flat. Before he could get up and reach his bed the door opened and Josiah Crabtree appeared. The light was burning brightly, for it was Coulter’s duty that week to put it out.
“Coulter, stand up!” cried the teacher, wrathfully, and the cadet arose sheepishly.
“What are you doing out of bed this time of night?” demanded Josiah Crabtree.
“I—er—I got up to—er—to get a drink,” answered the youth, stammeringly.
“Indeed!” was the sarcastic rejoinder. “And do you dress every time you want a drink?”
At this question there was a snicker from one of the beds. Josiah Crabtree whirled around to find out who was laughing at him. But every boy lay as if sound asleep.
“Who was laughing, I demand to know!” cried the teacher.
There was no answer.
“Coulter, were you outside a few minutes ago?” went on Josiah Crabtree.
“Me?” asked the cadet, in apparent astonishment. “I just got out of bed.”
“And dressed to get a drink of water, eh?”
Well, I—er—I didn’t feel well and I thought I might need a doctor. But I am better now.”
“Humph! a likely story,” growled the teacher. “I will attend to your case later.” And off he hurried, to find out, if possible, if any students in the other dormitories were up.
When he reached the room used by Jack and his friends he found the young major on his back snoring lustily. All the other boys seemed to be sleeping soundly, and their garments were hung up with care and their shoes placed exactly as the regulations of the school required. The teacher did not know that under the covers some of the boys had not yet taken off their socks and dress shirts, and that the shoes at Pepper’s chair were an extra pair and not the ones The Imp had been wearing all day,—those foot coverings being still on his feet.
Having looked around carefully, Josiah Crabtree retired and continued his inspection of the sleeping rooms. As soon as he was out of sight and hearing Pepper sat up and so did his chums.
“Just escaped and no more,” said Dale Blackmore. “Well, a miss is as good as four miles.”
“Sure, an’ somebody would have been caught had he looked at Pep’s feet!” came from Emerald. “Nixt toime take off your shoes, me b’y, ’tis safer.”
“I hadn’t time,” answered Pepper. “But I’ll take them off now,” he added. “Walking around the Hall at night in my socks is good enough for me.”
The boys had been told of what had been done with the sticky candy, and all waited impatiently for Josiah Crabtree to retire. Presently they heard the teacher enter his room, closing and locking the door after him.
“Now for a little more fun!” whispered The Imp. “Come on, but don’t make any noise!”
One after another the cadets stole out in the dimly-lit hallway and tiptoed their way to the teacher’s apartment. Listening at the door they heard Josiah Crabtree disrobe, put out the light, and crawl into bed.
“Now just wait!” whispered Stuffer. “There will be something doing in a few minutes, mark my words!”
With bated breaths the cadets awaited developments in the room occupied by the dictatorial Josiah Crabtree. They were not long in coming.
They heard the teacher turn over several times in bed. Then came a few seconds of silence and then a snort of disgust.
“What is this stuff?” they heard Josiah Crabtree mutter. “Is it glue, or what? I’m stuck full of it! It must be another trick of those confounded boys!”
Then the teacher bounced up out of bed. The sheets came up with him, and as he started to move toward the light, so that he might illuminate the scene, he got tangled up and fell to the floor with a crash, taking a stand full of books with him.
“Oh!” he groaned. “What is the matter with me, anyway? I am all tangled up! That must be glue, and I am full of it! Oh, those boys!” And then the lads heard him roll over and over in the darkness, trying to get out of the snarl of sticky bed sheets. Pepper burst out laughing, for he could hold in no longer.
“Hi, you young rascal, who are you?” roared the irate teacher. “What do you mean by treating me in such a fashion?”
“I hope you are having a sweet time of it, Professor!” called out Stuffer, in a deep bass voice.
“The candy is yours, for nothing!” added Pepper. “But don’t eat too much, it may give you indigestion.”
“Wait till I get hold of you!” cried Josiah Crabtree. “I’ll have you expelled from Putnam Hall!”
He arose to his feet at last and started towards the door. But by the time he had it open the cadets had fled and he found the hall deserted.
“The villains!” he murmured. “Oh, wait till I catch them! Just wait!”
“What is the trouble, Mr. Crabtree?” came in a voice from a side hall, and Captain Putnam appeared, attired in a dressing gown and slippers.
“The cadets—some of them have been playing tricks on me,” spluttered the teacher.
“Indeed! What sort of tricks?”
“They put molasses candy in my bed. I am stuck full of the sticky stuff!”
“Who did it?”
“I don’t know. But I am going to find out!” was the savage answer. “Some of them were out skylarking to-night and I went after them, but I didn’t catch them.”
“This skylarking at night must stop,” said the master of the Hall. “If you find out who is guilty, report to me,” and he went back to his room.
Safe in their dormitories, the cadets lost no time in disrobing and getting to bed. Some of them expected an immediate inspection, but it did not come. Josiah Crabtree visited a bathroom, to clear himself of the sticky candy, and by the time he had cleaned up it was too late to go after the boys who had played the joke.
“Mum’s the word, all around!” said Andy, after things had quieted down.
“Reff Ritter and his cronies may give us away,” said Pepper.
“If they do they had better look out!” answered one of the big students. “We want no tale-bearers in this school. I’ll warn them.” And, early in the morning he did so. It was a good move, for Coulter and Paxton were preparing to send a note to Captain Putnam, exposing Pepper, Jack and their chums.
“You do anything of the sort and you’ll catch it good and hot!” said the big student. “Remember, we haven’t forgot how you acted during the rebellion. If you don’t behave yourselves we’ll make it so uncomfortable for you that you’ll want to go home.” And then, in fright, Coulter and Paxton tore the note up.
By noon it was known throughout Cedarville that the church had been visited and the clapper of the bell taken. Some folks attributed the trick to the Pornell students, some to the Putnam Hall cadets, and still others to some village lads. A deacon of the church went to Pornell Academy and demanded the clapper, and got into a warm row with Doctor Pornell.
“My students are young gentlemen, they would not do such a thing!” cried the head of the academy, wrathfully. “It is an outrage to accuse them.”
“They weren’t any too good to paint the church porch red,” returned the deacon, pointedly. “If they have the clapper I want it.”
At this remark Dr. Pornell subsided and made some inquiries, but, of course, the clapper was not found.
It was not until evening that Josiah Crabtree went to his bureau drawer, to get out a clean dress shirt. He was still in a bad humor over the candy affair, and he hauled forth a shirt with no gentle hand.
The next instant he let out a cry of commingled pain and astonishment for the clapper had rolled from the shirt and fallen on his toes. He danced around on one foot, trying to nurse the other.
“Another trick!” he howled. “Oh my toes! The big one must be smashed to a jelly! And what is that iron thing?”
He nursed his foot for several minutes and then picked up the clapper and turned it over.
“A bell clapper! Ha! is it possible! It must be! The clapper belonging to the church! I must inform Captain Putnam of this at once!”
Down the stairs he hobbled as well as his injured foot permitted. He found the master of the school just preparing to take a drive.
“I have found it, sir!” cried the teacher. “It was hidden, where do you suppose? in one of my bureau drawers!”
“Found what?” asked Captain Putnam.
“The bell clapper belonging to the Union church.”
“Is it possible?” And now the Captain’s face took on a look of concern, for one of the church members had asked him about the clapper during the afternoon.
“I knew some of the boys were up to mischief last night,” went on Josiah Crabtree. “We ought to find out who is guilty.”
“You are right.”
“What of this bell clapper?”
“I’ll return it to the church at once.”
“And when will you investigate?”
“To-morrow morning, as soon as the school session begins,” answered Captain Putnam. “Give me the clapper. I’ll return it myself.” And the article was placed in his charge and he drove off with it. He left it at the home of the church sexton, and it was that evening restored to its original position in the belfry.
“We are in for trouble to-morrow,” said Pepper, late that evening, as he came in from a visit to the school library.
“On account of the clapper?” asked Jack.
“Yes. Captain Putnam is going to conduct a strict investigation to-morrow morning, as soon as school opens.”
“What will you do if he questions every cadet?” asked Dale.
“I’ll face the music,” answered Jack promptly.
“What do you think he’ll do if he finds out you took the clapper?” questioned Fred Century.
“I don’t know, I’m sure. Cut off our holidays perhaps,—or reduce me to the ranks.”
“I don’t want my holidays cut,” said Pepper. “And to have Jack’s official position taken from him would be too mean for anything.”
All of the boys who had had a part in taking the clapper and putting it in Josiah Crabtree’s room were very much worried although they tried not to show it. It was one thing to play a joke and quite another to take the consequences.
“How Reff Ritter and his crowd will laugh if we are found out and punished,” said Pepper to his intimate chums.
“If they laugh too loud I’ll punch ’em,” answered Andy.
“I believe what the captain does will depend upon what the church folks do,” put in Joe Nelson. “If they raise a big row he’ll have to investigate pretty thoroughly. It might be a good thing to smooth matters over with the church people.”
“And how would you do that?” asked Pepper.
“Oh, you might explain that it was only a bit of boyish fun, done on a dare—and you might propose to give the church an extra donation if the matter was dropped. I think Deacon Pelham would drop the matter if the extra donation was made—and he’s the head man in the church just now.”
“Deacon Pelham!” cried Fred Century. You mean Isaac Pelham, who lives up the lake shore near Grape Creek?”
“Yes.”
“Why, I know him well. I took him out in my boat once,—when he was in a great hurry to get a doctor from across the lake. He was very thankful and wanted to pay me for my services, but I told him I wasn’t running the Ajax for money. That was when I was a student at Pornell.”
“Then you are the one to go to Deacon Pelham and smooth matters over,” cried Stuffer. “Go ahead, Fred; it may aid Pep and Jack a good deal.”
“Fred needn’t to do it unless he feels like it,” said the young major of the Hall battalion.
“I’ve got a plan,” came from Dale. “Fred needn’t to mention any names, only state that some of the boys would like to hush the matter up and also want to make a contribution.”
The matter was talked over, and presently it was decided that Fred should pay the deacon a visit, accompanied by Dale. They carried with them a “contribution” amounting to six dollars.
“Might as well go on bicycles,” suggested Dale, and got out his machine. Fred used a machine belonging to Pepper, and as the road was good the distance to Deacon Pelham’s home was quickly covered. They found the deacon coming in from a day of labor in a distant field.
“How do you do, Deacon Pelham,” said Fred politely.
“Why, bless my soul, it’s Fred Century!” cried the deacon smiling. “How do you do!” And he held out his hand. “Who’s this with you, another young sodger, I suppose.”
“Yes, sir, my fellow cadet, Dale Blackmore.”
“Come into the house. My wife will be glad to see you—she’s much better than when I had to hurry for a doctor that time,” added the church man.
“We haven’t much time to spare, Mr. Pelham,” said Fred. He lowered his voice. “We came on a little business.”
“Is that so? What do you want?”
“You once said if you could do me a favor you would,” continued the owner of the Ajax.
“So I will.”
“I came to see you about that bell clapper that was brought back to the church this afternoon.”
“Ah!” Deacon Pelham’s face became a study. “Did you take it?”
“No, sir.”
“Glad to hear it. It was a scandalous piece of business. But what do you know about it?”
“I know that some of the cadets of Putnam Hall wish to hush the matter up. It was only a little joke and——”
“A very bad joke, my boy.”
“Perhaps, but they thought that if you’d drop it they would make the church a contribution of this.”
Fred drew out the money—six new crisp one-dollar bills.
“Hum! Six dollars, eh? Well—er—the church needs money that is sure.”
“It will pay for the cut rope and more, sir. It was only a joke. If you’ll drop it, it will save some cadets a lot of trouble,” went on Fred earnestly. “All you’ve got to do is to send word to Captain Putnam that the matter has been adjusted. You’ll do that for me, won’t you Mr. Pelham?”
At first the deacon was obdurate, but in the end he weakened. The church was in a poor way and needed every dollar it could get. As head of the committee he promised to drop the matter, and wrote a note to that effect and signed it. Then Fred gave him the money.
“But, mind you, no more jokes,” said the deacon, as the cadets departed.
“Not that kind anyway,” answered Fred, and off he sped on his bicycle, with Dale beside him.
“It was easier than I thought,” said Dale. “Now to get that note to Captain Putnam in secret before he starts his investigation.”
“I guess that note will do the business—and we’ll never be suspected.”
It was Reff Ritter who spoke and he addressed Gus Coulter and Nick Paxton. The three cronies were in a wing of the school, out of sight and hearing of the other pupils.
“What did you put in the note?” asked Paxton with interest.
“Oh, I wrote in a disguised hand and stated that I knew the cadets had banded together to keep mum about the bell clapper and the only way for Captain Putnam to get at the bottom of the affair was to ask each officer and private, starting from the major down. I put the note on the captain’s desk and he must have it by now.”
“Good!” chuckled Paxton. “If he starts in by questioning Ruddy he’ll soon get at the bottom of the matter, for the major won’t dare to tell a falsehood.”
“And more than likely he’ll lose his position,” put in Coulter. “I hope he does.”
“He ought to lose it,” answered Reff Ritter. Not for a moment did he give Jack credit for the good turn he had done him.
While the three lads were talking Captain Putnam had entered his office and taken up the note. He read it with interest and his brow contracted.
He was much disturbed, for since the open rebellion of the cadets, when they had refused to be starved into submission by Pluxton Cuddle, he had made the students promise not to band together in secret against the discipline of the school. Ritter knew this, and this was why he sent the note.
“I cannot permit this,” murmured the head of the school to himself. “I must make a complete investigation to-morrow,—and the guilty parties must be made to suffer.” And then he held a conference with Josiah Crabtree and George Strong. Crabtree was in favor of punishing nearly everybody, but George Strong, with his usual goodheartedness, counseled moderation.
“It most likely was merely a thoughtless prank,” said Mr. Strong. “The cadets meant no harm. Bell clappers, as you know, have been taken by students from times immemorial.” And at this Captain Putnam had to turn away with a smile, for in his younger days he himself had assisted at the removal of, not a clapper, but the bell of the boarding school he had attended.
“We’ll see in the morning,” said Captain Putnam, and there for the time being the matter rested.
It must be confessed that Jack, Pepper and their chums were somewhat worried that night, and the young major slept but little. Fred and Dale had reported the interview with Deacon Pelham and had seen to it that the note got into Captain Putnam’s hands.
Early in the morning Pepper was out on the campus when he saw Captain Putnam appear. A moment later one of the stablemen brought up the captain’s black horse and the head of the Hall vaulted into the saddle in true military style and was off.
“He’s in a hurry,” thought Pepper, and he wondered where the master of the school was going. He watched the captain turn into the lake road and then uttered a low whistle.
“I’ll bet a button he is going to visit Deacon Pelham!” he murmured. “Maybe he wants to learn if that note was genuine.”
The roll of the drum soon summoned all of the cadets to the campus, and with Jack at the head of the battalion, they went through the manual of arms and then marched around the Hall and into the messroom. Jack and Pepper both put on a bold front, yet each felt far from easy.
“They’ll catch it—just wait!” whispered Ritter to Coulter. “Before noon they’ll wish they had let that clapper alone!”
After breakfast the cadets went to chapel. The services here were almost over when Captain Putnam came in and took his place on the platform.
“Now you’ll hear something drop!” said Ritter gleefully, to his cronies.
“Ritter, stop your talking!” said George Strong, who was near.
“I—er—I only wanted the window closed,” stammered the bully. “I feel cold.”
“Couldn’t you close it yourself?”
“Coulter was right there—I thought he could do it.” Then the window was closed, and the conversation came to an end.
“I have a few words to say to you young gentlemen,” said Captain Putnam, coming to the front of the platform. His eyes swept the auditorium and Jack and Pepper felt something cold run up and down their backbones. “As you all know, the clapper of the bell of the Union Church was taken night before last, and the deed was done by some cadets of this institution.”
The captain paused, and the silence was so intense that the ticking of the clock could be plainly heard.
“The taking of the clapper was a foolish prank, and it was an equally foolish prank to place it where it was found,” continued Captain Putnam. “Yesterday I resolved to make a thorough investigation and punish the offenders.”
“Quite right, eminently proper,” murmured Josiah Crabtree.
“I heard, too, that a plan had been put through by you cadets to stand together—that everybody was to keep mum, as it is called. This you know is a violation of the agreement made after the—er—the unfortunate affair which—er—led to a rebellion among you.”
“I didn’t hear of that,” murmured one of the cadets.
“Nor I,” added another.
“What did you say, Farhaven?” asked the captain quickly.
“I didn’t hear of any agreement to keep mum,” replied the cadet addressed.
“Nor did I,” put in Bob Grenwood, the quartermaster of the battalion.
“Nor I,” came from several others.
At these words the captain’s face showed relief.
“All who have not agreed to band together will raise their hands,” said the captain loudly, and instantly nearly every cadet raised his hand.
“This is really gratifying,” went on Captain Putnam, with almost a smile on his face. “To my mind, to take the clapper was bad enough, but to band together to overthrow the discipline of the school would be much worse. I am glad to learn you young gentlemen have not done such a thing.”
Again the head of the school paused, and the boys wondered what was coming next.
“Now, to return to the clapper. I have received a communication from one of the officers of the church and he had made an earnest request that the whole matter be dropped. The church has the clapper back, and the ones who took it have expressed their regrets over the affair, and have made the church a donation which had been gratefully received. Under the circumstances, I am going to leave this matter in the hands of yourselves.”
“Wonder what he means by that?” murmured Dale to Andy.
“All in favor of dropping the matter will rise. Those wishing to see the culprits punished will remain seated,” went on Captain Putnam.
Almost instantly three-quarters of the cadets arose to their feet. More followed, until but half a dozen remained seated. These were Reff Ritter, Coulter, Paxton, and their cohorts.
“Get up, you fellows!” cried Bart Conners, captain of Company B. And somewhat shamefacedly Ritter and the others got up. The bully realized that his plan to have Jack and Pepper punished had fallen through.
“Three cheers for Captain Putnam!” cried Dale and before the head of the school could interfere, the cheers were given with a will. Then came a cheer for the teachers.
“I’ll wager old Crabtree doesn’t like this,” whispered Andy to Joe Nelson, and he was right. Josiah Crabtree felt very much put out, for he had expected to see somebody punished, not only for putting the clapper in his bureau drawer but also for placing the molasses candy in his bed.
“I have another important announcement to make,” said Captain Putnam, after order and quietness had been restored. “As you know, we were to go on the term encampment two weeks from to-day. I have arranged to have some alterations made to this school by carpenters and masons, and they wish to start the work next week. Consequently, I am going to start the encampment next Tuesday—that is, we’ll leave the Hall on that day.”
“Hurrah!” came from the cadets, for they looked forward to the encampment with much pleasure. During that time there would be no studies.
“I have arranged for an outing up at Lake Caboy,” continued Captain Putnam. “The spot will be not far from the Caboy River with its magnificent falls, and will be ideal in every respect. I camped there once some years ago, and I know the fishing is good and also the swimming.”
“That suits me!” cried Pepper. He was much relieved to think the clapper affair had been dropped.
“I have hired a tract of land over a hundred acres in extent,” went on Captain Putnam. “We’ll go out as we did before, taking all our tents and our camping outfit with us.”
“And how long will the encampment last?” asked Jack. He was as much relieved as Pepper over the outcome of the clapper affair.
“At least two weeks, Major Ruddy, and perhaps longer—if the carpenters and masons do not finish up here in time. I do not want the students to come back here until the alterations are complete. To-morrow I shall announce more of the details. The students will now go to their classes as usual.”