A FRIEND IN NEED
"Do you want me to let you into a secret?" Pee-wee said. "I know where
there's a stolen automobile. Maybe you'd like to help me take it back to
its owner, hey? If you do you'll get an honourable mention in our
troop-book. I was carried away in it by two thieves who didn't know I
was in the car, because I was disguised, sort of, under the buffalo
robe. Do you want to help me foil them?"
The manual training teacher seemed interested but a bit incredulous. He
looked Pee-wee over and said, "what's all this?"
"Maybe you don't believe me but it's true," Pee-wee said. "Do you know
how to run a car?"
"Anything from a flivver up," said the stranger.
"Shh," said Pee-wee, "this one is away, way up. It's a super six
Hunkajunk, it belongs to a man where I live, in Bridgeboro, New Jersey."
"Well, what are you doing here?" the manual training teacher asked.
"I was kind of kidnapped accidentally. They did it but they didn't know
it. They've got pistols and blackjacks and things and I heard them talk
about stealing. I bet I'd have heard a lot more only my head was under
the buffalo robe. If you'll help me we can circum--what do you call
it--you know--circum--"
The teacher did not know. But his interest was aroused at this whispered
tale of armed bandits and of a big stolen car. Pee-wee completed the
tale in breathless excitement. He told all, from the beginning. "They
locked it in," he concluded, "and went away; but one of the doors, the
big one, was locked on the inside and I opened it. Anybody can take the
car out. Those men have gone away across the lake. If you'll drive it to
Bridgeboro you can stay at my house and have breakfast and I'll tell Mr.
Bartlett that you helped me, and gee whiz, they'll thank you a lot.
Maybe you know about scouts because manual training teachers know a lot
about scouts on account of scouts making bird-houses and all things like
that, and so maybe you know about good turns. That'll be a peach of a
good turn. And if I tell about it you'll get a kind of a medal from our
troop with your name on it. What's your name? Mine's Walter Harris, but
the fellows in my troop call me Pee-wee, but I should worry about them.
Will you help me? What's your name?"
"Mr. Swiper," said the stranger, rather thoughtfully; "let's go and look
it over."
He was certainly considering the proposition and Pee-wee accompanied him
back to the lake, keeping up a running fire of enthusiastic
encouragement and representing to him the delight and self-satisfaction
of circumventing a pair of scoundrels. "They've got pistols and
everything," he said as a clincher, "and if they'd steal a car they'd
kill somebody, wouldn't they?"
"Seventy pistols is a good many," said Mr. Swiper, incredulously.
"Sure it is," said Pee-wee excitedly; "it's more than Jesse James had. I
guess they belong to a big band of thieves, hey? Maybe they've got
a--a--a haunt on the other side of that lake, hey? Now you can see it's
good to go to the movies, hey? Because we could never circum--foil them
if I hadn't, hey? They drove it right away from in front of the theater.
Anyway," he added excitedly as he trotted along, "I'm glad I met you
because now I don't have to wake up the police or anything, hey? And I
bet Mr. and Mrs. Bartlett will be surprised when they see us bringing it
back, won't they? I'll show you where we have our meetings."
Mr. Swiper was not carried off his feet by Pee-wee's excited talk. He
was thoughtful and preoccupied.
"That's one thing I have no use for--thieves," Pee-wee said. "Gee whiz,
I never took a ride with thieves before. But anyway it's going to be all
right now. We'll just toot the horn in front of the house when we get
there, hey? And I'll say--I'll say--'Here's your car Mr. Bartlett.' And
then I'll introduce you to him, hey? And I bet he'll--anyway, you
wouldn't take anything, would you? Money or anything like that?"
"Don't insult me," said Mr. Swiper.
"I didn't mean it," Pee-wee said apologetically; "scouts are like that,
they won't take anything for a service, but eats don't count, you can
take eats. But I mean money----"
"Don't speak of money again," said Mr. Swiper.