A STRANGE HAPPENING
"What d'ye think of that?" gasped Lanky, when he felt able to speak.
"They're the kindest gentlemen I ever met," laughed Frank; "we only
asked for a lift to town, and they've gone and made us a present of the
whole rig."
"Say, mebbe they forgot something back there?" suggested the other,
scratching his head as he tried to solve the mystery connected with
the panic of the two occupants of the buggy, and their precipitate
flight down the road over which they had so recently come, and in the
direction of Clifford.
"One thing seems sure; they ran as if frightened," said Frank,
seriously.
"Now what are we going to do about it?" queried his chum. "Have we got
the nerve to get in here and drive away with another man's rig? Say, I
bet you they took us for a couple of highwaymen trying to hold them up!
They never even let me finish what I was going to say. I remember now
I did hold out my hand after that driver let fly at me with his old
whip. Perhaps they thought I was aiming a pistol!"
Lanky's voice took on a vein of awe. Evidently the peculiar adventure
had made a deep impression on the tall boy.
"That was just what I thought," remarked Frank.
"And if we take the buggy now they'll get us arrested for stealing it.
I'm tired enough to want to ride, but I guess I'm not that leg weary.
Come on, Frank, and let's get along. This sort of thing gets on my
nerves. Let's cut for home."
"Wait. I haven't quite done figuring it out yet. I've got a sort of
notion that there's something crooked about those two chaps," returned
the other, declining to move, even when Lanky pulled at the sleeve of
his coat.
"Crooked! Whatever do you mean by that? It's us that look like pirates,
holding two honest farmers up on the king's highway. Crooked! See here,
Frank, open up and let me see what notion you've got surging around in
that brain of yours."
"How do you know they were honest farmers? Did they look like it? You
heard them shouting out to each other as they galloped down the road,
dodging as if they expected to have a shower of bullets follow after
them? Well, stop and think of it, did it sound like the language of
two honest tillers of the soil?" demanded Frank, as he turned his
companion around so that they faced each other again.
"Now, you're just hitting the nail right on the head. You make me
think, and my dad says that's the best thing that can ever happen to
any boy. They seemed to have too large a vocabulary of tough words to
be just plain countrymen. Crooked! That sounds like rascals, thieves
perhaps! Oh! I see now what you're getting at, Frank. You mean that
perhaps those fellows who ran away have stolen this rig somewhere, and
were afraid we might be officers about to arrest them!"
"Fine head you've got, my boy. That's just what I meant. And I'll tell
you what came into my mind like a flash. You remember that we saw Chief
Hogg, the head of the Columbia police, and two of his men, on the road
when we were rowing up the river this evening?" and Frank's voice
pointed the question with emphasis.
Lanky slapped his hand down on the other's arm.
"Sure you're the greatest one ever to guess things! Of course that's
what they were up to. Got a tip over the 'phone from some town above
that these horse thieves might be expected along, and came out to meet
'em part way. In that case, I agree with you that we ought to accept
the chance of a ride."
He climbed into the buggy as he spoke. Frank meanwhile seemed to be
feeling under the seat as if bent on learning whether there could be
anything there that should be investigated.
"Look here what I've found," he said, presently.
"An old leather bag, I declare. So one of them was on his travels, eh?
What's that you're doing, Frank? Say, hold on, do you think it's wise
to open a man's bag that way, and squint inside? What ails you?" and
Lanky bent down, trying to see better, as he heard his companion utter
an exclamation of surprise.
"The bag's got a lot of stuff in it, watches and things!" Frank said,
in a low voice.
"Whew!" ejaculated his chum, glancing around nervously as he spoke;
"say, this thing's getting thicker all the time! It isn't horse
stealing after all. Frank, I remember now hearing my dad talking about
the robbery of a jewelry store up at Fordham only two days ago. Do you
think them men could have been the ones, and this is the boodle?"
Lanky was so excited that he lost all control of rules of grammar.
Even his voice had taken on a husky tone, and his hands were trembling
violently as he clutched the arm of his chum.
"I honestly believe that's just what it means. You see they were afraid
of being held up at any minute, and the shock frightened them. But
they may come back! If they suspected that it was only a couple of
schoolboys here, they'd chase us off."
"Then for goodness sake jump in, and let's whip up the horse. They
might be mad enough to do something terrible to us," whispered Lanky,
excitedly.
"Wait. Here's a newspaper, and I'm going to empty out everything that's
in the old bag, and roll it up. Here, chuck that away alongside you on
the seat," and as he spoke Frank pushed the package into the hands of
his chum.
"I get on to the idea. You mean to fill the bag with stones, and leave
it there under the seat. Then if they try to steal it again they'll
get sold. But be quick about it Frank. Oh! I thought I heard some one
speak, back here on the road! Jump up, and let's go along," whispered
Lanky.
Frank confessed to more or less nervousness himself about that time. He
realized that the men might recover from their recent panic, and return
to investigate why no pursuit had been attempted.
"I guess I'll take your advice this time, Lanky, and climb in. Now
cluck to the horse, and off we go," he remarked, suiting his actions to
his words.
Lanky made all sorts of encouraging sounds with his lips, and also
jerked the lines in the endeavor to encourage the horse to start into a
run.
"What ails the beast?" he grumbled, as his labor seemed next door to
wasted, for the horse would only start upon a slow moving run, that
seemed like a snail's pace to the anxious lad.
"The poor beast is dead tired, that's the truth. Those scamps must have
driven him a long way around, trying to escape. And I guess they were
using the whip on him when we bounced out on them," remarked Frank.
"Just so, and that accounts for his having the whip so handy at that
time. Say, he nearly took me in the eye with the lash; if I hadn't been
such a good dodger he'd got me sure. Wish I had that whip right now!"
mused Lanky, as the horse settled down into a jog-trot again.
"The fellow must have thrown it away when he jumped, expecting you were
going to shoot. I didn't think to look for it. Finding that other stuff
kind of took my mind off things, you see. Oh! well, this is some better
than walking, you're bound to admit, partner?" Frank continued.
"It's all right, if only we don't get a sudden shove from them land
pirates. I keep thinkin' I hear 'em sailing along in our wake all the
while. Wish we'd just happen on some other craft cruising toward home."
"That's right, Lanky, talk like a regular old salt," said Frank.
"Baseball is on a back seat just now, and boating has the floor. Every
boy's heart in Columbia turns toward the Harrapin, with the glorious
Fourth just a day off, and all that fun coming on. We're all going
to be water ducks, for a while at least. We want to forget about the
victories we've won, and only keep the race ahead in mind. That's the
one we want to get, you see. 'The mill will never run again with the
water that is past,' or words to that effect."
"My idea to a fraction, Frank. Tip us your fin on that, messmate.
Listen! wasn't that a shout behind us?" clutching hold of the other's
sleeve instead of his hand.
"Don't be so nervous; that was only an honest watchdog barking over at
Stroud's farmhouse beyond the maple grove. If those fellows did follow
after us I don't believe they'd likely whoop out like that," remarked
Frank, rebukingly.
"Why, what d'ye think they'd do?" demanded Lanky, uneasily.
"Oh, probably hold us up and take the rig away; or if they still
believed that we were officers they might try to steal the bag out from
under the seat. It could be done easily enough from behind the buggy,
you know."
"Ouch! I felt something touch my leg then!" whispered Lanky, drawing
himself up as far as he could, and thrusting his feet well forward.
"Imagination again, old fellow. That's a wonderful brain you've got.
The bag is still safe under the seat, so you see no one grabbed you. I
wonder if it would pay us to stop a minute."
"What for, Frank? I hope you haven't got any fool notion now that you
want to try and capture those two burglars; because I won't stand for
it, never!"
"Shucks! what do you take me for? All I thought of doing was to cut
a switch by the roadside, which we could use to send the old nag on
a little faster; but since you are so shy about it we'll drop the
subject. Give me the lines, and let's see if I can coax a little more
speed out of Lazybones."
Lanky gladly released the reins; but it might be noticed that he did
not allow his feet to trail under the buggy seat again. Imagination or
not, he meant to keep clear of any entanglement in case one of those
desperate men reached in to lay hold of that old leather traveling bag.
"Get up, Dobbin!" said Frank, slapping the lines on the back of the
slow-going animal, and awakening him from his trance, so that for a
dozen yards he actually set a smart pace; but only to fall back again
into the regular jogging movement.
"He isn't lazy, but tired to death. Guess we better let the poor beast
take his time, or he may drop in the shafts," grunted Lanky, noticing
these things.
Every minute he was peering out from the upraised hood of the buggy.
"See anything, Sister Ann?" asked Frank, mockingly.
"I thought I did just then. Looked like a shadow alongside the road;
but I guess I must have been mistaken," replied the other, in a tense
voice.
"Cut it out, Lanky. You're like the youngster that took to seeing
things in the night, all kinds of terrible monsters. It's nonsense, I
tell you. Better be putting your mind on how it'll feel to row in that
brand-new eight-oared shell to-morrow. As for me I can hardly wait for
morning to come, to see that darling boat."
Frank was evidently desirous of quieting the nerves of his excited
companion; and went about it in this way. They had passed over nearly
half a mile since coming so unexpectedly into possession of the buggy,
and ere long the outlying houses marking the confines of Columbia would
be bobbing up in view.
"Frank!" suddenly whispered Lanky, hoarsely.
"Well, what's the matter now? Anybody been nipping you on the legs
again?" asked the one who held the reins, and with a touch of satire in
his voice.
"There's a man!" continued Lanky.
"Where do you mean, ahead of us?" asked Frank, suddenly interested in
spite of his pretense of unconcern.
"Yes, standing under that tree there. I saw him move!"
The weary horse had dropped back into a shuffling walk, and Frank made
no effort to coax or influence him to mending his ways, for he knew it
was useless.
"Huh! a stump, more than likely!" he remarked, at the same time
searching with his own eyes to see if what Lanky said might be true.
"Perhaps it was, but sure I thought the thing moved. Oh! yes, I'm
seein' things all right; but who wouldn't after the funny way we came
into possession of this fine outfit. I wonder now if we could get into
town without anybody grabbing us? We're a fine pair of birds to be
brought into the light, I don't think," and Lanky laughed harshly as he
spoke aloud.
"There it is again, Frank," he immediately added, starting back, and
pointing along the road.
The other had also noticed something that seemed to flicker, very like
a lighted cigar, and at the same time he undoubtedly scented tobacco
smoke, which betrayed the presence of some human being near by.
He started to pull in the horse, while Lanky lent valiant assistance,
for he had instinctively clutched hold of the lines.
"Oh!" he mouthed, as he saw a dark figure striding forward.
Frank did not show signs of alarm, for he seemed to have partially
guessed what was coming.
"Whoa!" he called to the horse that was only too willing to stop;
and then the two boys heard a gruff voice, very full of authority,
exclaiming:
"Hold up, there! Both of you are under arrest!"