CAPTAIN PUTNAM INVESTIGATES
"Reff Ritter has been knocked out!"
"My, what blows they were!"
"Well, he brought it on himself," said Pepper.
"That's what," added Fred. "He struck Jack after Jack told him he didn't
believe in fighting."
"He couldn't save himself because he was too close to the wooden horse,"
came from Coulter, who felt bound to stick up for his crony. "It wasn't
fair to run him up against the horse."
"Coulter, a poor excuse is worse than none," answered Dale.
"Ritter was knocked out fair and square," came from Bart Connors.
While the talking was going on, Paxton had rushed off for water. Now he
returned with a pailful and a sponge, and commenced to bathe the fallen
one's face. Ritter soon opened his eyes and gave a groan.
"Le--let me al--alone," he muttered.
"Get up, Reff," said Paxton. "Go for him again."
"I--I can't," mumbled the bully, and now it was seen that two of his
front teeth were loose. He stared around in a helpless fashion. Paxton
put some more water on his face.
"Has he had enough?" demanded Jack, stepping up.
"You go away," answered Coulter, surlily.
"You wouldn't hit him when he's down, would you?" snapped Paxton.
"I asked you if he had enough. If he has, I'm going for a sail."
"I'll--I'll finish this some other time," mumbled Ritter, as he glared
at the young major.
"No, Ritter, you'll finish it now if you finish it at all," answered
Jack, coldly. "You started this fight, and now you must take the
consequences. Get up, if you want to go at it again."
"I don't want to fight--now."
"Then you acknowledge yourself beaten?"
"No, I don't."
"Then get up. I don't want to wait here all afternoon for you."
"He has all he wants," said Pepper. "He won't get up."
"It's your fight, Ruddy," cried Joe Nelson.
"So it is," put in half a dozen cadets.
"Ritter is beaten and he knows it," added Harry Blossom, the first
lieutenant of Company A.
"I--er--I won't fight any more now," mumbled the bully. He got up slowly
and then, staggering to a bench, sank down heavily upon it. Evidently
his punishment at Jack's hands had been heavy.
"Boys! Boys! what is the meaning of this?"
It was a loud and harsh voice from the doorway of the gymnasium that
startled all of the assembled cadets. The next instant Josiah Crabtree,
the head teacher, strode in.
"Skip, Jack, here is old Crabtree!"
"Run for it, Reff!"
"I demand to know what is going on here?" went on Josiah Crabtree, in
his high-pitched voice. "Who is fighting?"
There was no reply. The assembled cadets looked at each other. No one
felt like saying a word.
"Ritter, have you been fighting?" went on the head teacher, noticing the
bully's condition.
"I was--er--that is, Ruddy attacked me, and I--er--I defended myself,"
stammered the defeated one.
"Ruddy? Do you mean Major Ruddy?" questioned Josiah Crabtree, in
astonishment.
"Yes, sir."
"Mr. Crabtree, what Ritter says is untrue!" burst out Jack. "He hit me
first."
"But you have been fighting? You, the major of the school battalion!
Disgraceful!"
"Wouldn't you fight if somebody slapped you in the face?" demanded Jack,
hotly.
"You know the rules, Ruddy--and as major you ought to be the first to
obey them."
"I am willing to do that, sir. But I won't allow anybody to slap me in
the face."
"I didn't slap him," put in Ritter.
"Yes, you did," came from Pepper.
"It is true--I saw it," added Fred.
"So did I," added a cadet named Brown.
"If you were struck, Major Ruddy, it was your duty to report the
occurrence at the office," said Josiah Crabtree, loftily. "Such actions
as these will most likely cost you your command."
"Oh, what a shame!" burst out Pepper.
"Ditmore, I want no words from you!" roared the head teacher, savagely.
"But it wouldn't be fair to make Jack suffer for something like that,"
went on Pepper, bound to stick up for his chum.
"Ha! you dare to talk back to me, Ditmore! Go to your room at once, and
stay there until to-morrow morning."
"But, Mr. Crabtree----"
"Not another word. Go to your room. And you, Ruddy and Ritter, report to
me and to Captain Putnam at the private office at once."
There was no help for it, and with an angry look on his face, Pepper
left the gymnasium and walked over to the school building.
"I'll report as soon as I have washed up, Mr. Crabtree," said Ritter,
sullenly.
"So will I," added Jack.
"I'll give you both ten minutes, no more!" snapped the teacher, and then
he strode from the gymnasium as swiftly as he had entered it.
As soon as Josiah Crabtree had departed a lively discussion commenced
between the followers of the young major and of Reff Ritter. Only a few
had seen the start of the quarrel and knew that it had been provoked
entirely by the bully.
"I'm afraid I am in for it," said Jack, dismally, to Fred. "Ritter will
do his best to make out that it was all my fault."
"Well, I can testify that Ritter hit you first, and Pepper and Brown can
do so, too," answered Fred.
"Reff will get Coulter and Paxton to back him up."
"But they weren't on hand when the quarrel started."
"That is true--but they'll stick up for Reff, see if they don't."
"I sincerely trust that Captain Putnam doesn't take away your majorship,
Jack."
"If he does that, I'll--well, never mind what I'll do."
"If he did it to me, I'd feel like leaving."
"I was going to say that. But I'll not do anything hastily," answered
the young major, and heaved a deep sigh.
"Want me to go along?"
"No, since Crabtree didn't ask any one. But I wish you'd hang around, so
I can call on you."
"I'll go to the library."
"All right--and take Brown, if he'll go."
Jack washed up and brushed his uniform, and then made his way to Captain
Putnam's private office. He found that Reff Ritter had hurried and
gotten ahead of him, and was telling his story, both to the head of the
school and to the first assistant teacher. Ritter's mouth, nose and one
eye were swollen, and he looked anything but happy.
"You may remain in the hallway until I call you, Major Ruddy," said
Captain Putnam, when Jack appeared, and the young major had to go
outside, closing the door after him.
The telling of Reff Ritter's story took some time, and he was asked
several questions by Captain Putnam and Josiah Crabtree. He said that he
had just been getting ready to take some gymnastic exercise when Jack
and some of his chums had come in and begun to talk about his father,
saying that they had heard he was dishonest.
"Ruddy said he knew my father was dishonest," went on Reff Ritter. "That
made me mad and I ran out of the dressing-room and told him he ought to
be ashamed of himself, that my father was as honest as anybody. Then he
got on his high-horse and told me to shut up or he would knock me down.
I told him it was a shame for him to speak so of my father. Then he got
mad and all of a sudden he jumped at me and hit me in the mouth and the
eye and then in the nose. Then I went for him, and we had it hot and
heavy, until we bumped into one of the wooden horses and I went down. He
tried to hit me after I was down, but Coulter and Paxton hauled him
back. Then Mr. Crabtree came in."
"A most disgraceful proceeding!" cried Josiah Crabtree. "And evidently
Major Ruddy's fault entirely."
"You are quite sure Ruddy started the quarrel?" questioned Captain
Putnam, gravely.
"Yes, sir."
"And he told the other cadets that your father was dishonest?"
"Yes, sir. That is what made me so mad. But I didn't hit him until he
attacked me," added Ritter, hastily.
"Who was present at the time?"
"Pepper Ditmore and Fred Century were with Ruddy, and Gus Coulter and
Nick Paxton were With me."
"Anybody else?"
"I didn't see anybody."
"You got the worst of the fight."
"Yes, sir. You see, he took me unawares. I guess I could whip him if we
were to meet on equal terms," added Ritter.
"You may retire to the next room, Ritter, while I question Major Ruddy."
"Don't you believe me?" cried the bully, in alarm.
"One side of a story is only one side," answered Captain Putnam,
non-committally.
"I believe Ritter tells the truth," put in Josiah Crabtree. "When I
appeared Ruddy was very insolent and so was Ditmore. I sent Ditmore to
his room as a punishment."
"You may call Ruddy in," answered the head of the school, briefly. He
understood Josiah Crabtree's dictatorial manner perfectly, and he only
retained the man because of his unusual ability as a teacher.
Jack came in and was told to sit down in the chair Ritter had just
vacated. Then Captain Putnam asked him to tell his story, and he related
everything just as it had occurred.
"Are you quite sure that you have told the plain truth, Major Ruddy?"
asked Captain Putnam, after he had finished.
"Yes, sir," answered Jack, and looked the head of the school fairly and
squarely in the face.
"Your story does not agree with that told by Ritter."
"I believe Ritter," broke in Josiah Crabtree. "It was an outrage to drag
in the boy's father simply because he has made some--er--unfortunate
speculations. If I were you, Captain Putnam----"
"Wait a moment, Mr. Crabtree," interrupted the owner of the Hall. "I am
conducting this investigation. Now that we have heard the stories of the
principals we'll hear what the witnesses have to say."
"Fred Century was there, and he is in the library now," said Jack.
"Pepper Ditmore was there, too, but Mr. Crabtree sent him to his room."
"I will question Century and Ditmore, and also Coulter and Paxton,"
answered Captain Putnam. "You may retire to Classroom Three, Major
Ruddy, until called."
Jack bowed and withdrew and walked to the classroom named. It was empty
and he threw himself down on a seat and gave himself up to his
reflections.
Fred was next called, and he was followed by Pepper. Both told
practically the story related by Jack. In the meantime George Strong,
the second assistant teacher, was sent off to summon Coulter and Paxton.
He was gone the best part of a quarter of an hour, and when he came back
his face was a study.
"Captain Putnam, I have just made a discovery," he said. "I would like
to speak to you alone."
"Alone?" queried the head of the school, somewhat astonished.
"Yes, sir, alone."
"Very well, then, come into the next room," answered Captain Putnam.