THE MINSTREL SHOW
Ned, Bob and Jerry, hearing this talk, wondered greatly. What could it
mean?
“Come down out of there!” cried Mr. Martin. “Come down out of my
haymow, and tell me what you mean! What are you after, anyhow?”
“We want to catch that crooked-nosed man,” answered Jerry. “We didn’t
tell you before, but we think he is a thief.”
“Well, I come pretty near _knowing_ you are!” was the grim retort.
“Come down here!”
There was no choice but to obey, and rather puzzled as to what it all
meant, and why Pug Kennedy should come to make such an accusation, the
three chums slid to the barn floor from the haymow. They might miss
their chance of catching the crooked-nosed man, but it could not be
helped.
“There! What’d I tell you?” exclaimed Pug, pointing to Ned, as the
chums faced the now angry farmer. “If those aren’t egg stains I’ll
never eat another bit of chow!”
Too late Ned realized what his accidental slipping into the hen’s nest
meant. The evidence was damaging against him. The whites and yolks of
the eggs dripped from his hands, and there were stains on his uniform.
“Ha! Caught you, didn’t I?” exclaimed the farmer. “Now you’ll pay for
this!”
“We’re perfectly willing to pay for the damage we accidentally did to
your eggs,” answered Ned. “I believe I broke half a dozen, possibly
more. But it was while I was crawling around, trying to get the
crooked-nosed man, who was escaping.”
“It’s a good story, but it won’t wash,” laughed Pug Kennedy. “They were
after your eggs, farmer, and that’s the truth.”
“I believe you, and I’m much obliged to you for telling me. It isn’t
the first time I’ve been robbed by soldiers out on a hike, and I said
the next time it happened I’d complain. I’m going to. You’ll come with
me before your officers, and see what happens.”
“Oh, that’s all nonsense!” exclaimed Jerry. “We admit we broke some of
your eggs by accident, and we’re willing to pay, and pay well for them.
We didn’t intend to steal!”
“I should say not!” chimed in Ned, wiping his hands off on some hay.
“I don’t know what you might do,” was the answer. “I only know what
I see--egg stains. You might have sneaked into the barn if I hadn’t
seen you. And when I did notice you, you told me some story about a
crooked-nosed man to make it sound natural.”
“But there is a crooked-nosed man,” insisted Bob.
“Course there is,” said the farmer. “I admit that. But he isn’t such an
unusual man. For all I know you may have seen him driving in with my
wagon--he’d been to town--and you made up that story about wanting to
see him.”
“Yes, we did see him driving,” admitted Bob. “And then we thought----”
He stopped. He realized that appearances were against him and his
chums, and that any explanation they might make, especially after Ned’s
mishap with the eggs, would seem strange.
“First I thought you were all right, and really did want to see my
hired man,” went on the farmer. “But when this other soldier came and
said he’d seen you go into my barn, and had heard you talking about
getting eggs for a good feed, why, I realized what you were up to.”
“Did he tell you that yarn about us?” asked Jerry, looking at Pug.
“He did. And it’s the truth.”
“Well, it isn’t the truth, and he knows it!” cried Ned. “He’s taking
this means of getting even because of what he thinks we did to him. All
right! Let it go at that. We’ll go before the officers with you. We’re
not afraid! We’ll tell the truth.”
“You’d better!” declared Mr. Martin. “You wait till I hitch up and I’ll
take you back to camp. This soldierin’ business is all right, and I’m
in full sympathy with it. But it isn’t right to rob farmers, and your
officers won’t stand for it.”
“We didn’t intend to rob you,” said Jerry. “And while you are acting
this way that man, who may be a desperate criminal, is escaping. If
you are bound to take us before our officers, at least look after the
crooked-nosed chap.”
“Oh, I can lay hands on him when I want him,” said the farmer, and then
Ned, Bob and Jerry realized how futile it was to argue with him.
“It’s too bad!” murmured Bob, as they drove back to the camp in the
wagon, Pug declining to accompany them, saying he would walk.
“Yes, it is tough,” agreed Jerry. “Just when we were about to get hold
of Crooked Nose! If he’s the one you think he is, Bob, he’ll take the
alarm and skip.”
“That’s what I’m afraid of. Hang Pug, anyhow! What’s his game?”
“Maybe he made the accusation against us to cover up some trick of his
own,” suggested Ned, in a low voice so the now unfriendly farmer would
not hear. “Pug had some object in coming away from camp, and it wasn’t
to follow us, for he didn’t know what we were going to do.”
“I don’t believe he did,” assented Jerry. “But he must have followed
us, and when he saw us go into the barn he made up his mean mind to
make trouble for us.”
This was the only explanation the boys could think of, and they had to
let it go at that.
The three chums had to stand no little chaffing and gibing when they
were brought back to camp in practical custody of the farmer. It was
not uncommon for the lads, on hikes and practice marches, to raid
orchards and hen roosts, and punishment was always meted out to the
offenders, while payment for the damage done was taken from their pay,
and their comrades jumped to this as the explanation of the present
predicament of Ned, Bob and Jerry.
“But this accusation is unjust!” said Ned, when they were taken before
their captain. “It’s all a mistake.”
“Well, let’s hear about it,” said the officer somewhat wearily, for
there had been several cases of raids on this march.
Thereupon Mr. Martin told his story of having been informed by Kennedy
of the alleged intentions of the motor boys. And he told of having seen
them slide down from his haymow, one of them bearing unmistakable
evidence of eggs on his person.
“I know it looks queer,” said Ned.
“It certainly does,” agreed the captain, grimly.
But he was a just man and he listened to the boys’ story. He seemed
somewhat surprised at the mention of the crooked-nosed man, but he made
no comment, and when all was said he gave his judgment.
It was to the effect that as the boys had affirmed on their honor as
soldiers and gentlemen that they were telling the truth, he could not
but believe them. At the same time it was evident that they had done
some slight damage, and had put the farmer to some inconvenience in
bringing them back to camp, and it was only fair that they should pay.
Having already offered to make payment, they were very willing to do
this.
So the incident was ended, and the farmer, convinced that he was in the
right, and jingling in his pocket a good price for the broken eggs,
went back to his home.
So, much to their regret, the boys lost trace of Crooked Nose, or Jim
Waydell, as the farmer had called him. They could not look for the
suspect again that night, and the next morning they had to march away
with their comrades.
“But when we get back to camp we’ll take a day or so off on furlough
and come back here and see if we can land him,” declared Bob. “We’re
not sure enough of his identity, on such casual glances, to cause his
arrest on mere information. We’ve got to get him ourselves and find out
more about him.”
“We’re with you!” said Jerry, heartily.
The practice march was a success from a military standpoint, though it
showed up some weak spots in the organization. But that was one of the
objects.
For several days after the return of the army there were light drills
to enable the boys to recover from the strenuous exercise. Then one
evening Bob, in a state of some excitement, came hurrying into the Y.
M. C. A. quarters, looking for Ned and Jerry.
“What’s up now?” they asked. “Have you seen Crooked Nose again?”
“No, but our company’s going to give a minstrel show, and the committee
has asked me if we three will take part in it.”
“A minstrel show?” repeated Jerry.
“Yes, black up and everything!” exclaimed Bob. “It’ll be fun! Let’s do
it!”