THAD MAKES A DISCOVERY
When Hugh, on his way home, came in sight of the Stevens place, he was
quite surprised to discover his chum Thad seated on one of the low gate
posts, and apparently waiting for him to pass along.
"Why, hello! what does this mean, I'd like to know?" burst out Hugh.
"After being honored with summons to come out and start practice at
baseball, you run home to get on your togs and then forget all about
it. But, joking aside, what really did happen to you, Thad, tell me?"
Thad was looking unusually serious, Hugh thought. Evidently something
quite out of the usual line must have occurred to detain him; and Hugh,
on his part, would not have been a natural boy had he not felt more or
less curiosity concerning its nature.
"Oh! that was only an accident," the other commenced saying. "I
begrudged losing my first chance to get limbered up; but so far as that
goes, there'll be plenty of occasions later on. You see, I had to go
on an important errand for my mother."
"It must have taken you out of town, then," remarked Hugh; "or else
you'd have showed up at the athletic grounds later on."
"The fact of the matter is, I had to run over to Chestnut Hill, which
you know is some ten miles away," explained Thad, as he made room
alongside for his chum. "It was a matter that could not be delayed, so
I didn't even bother running to the field to report to Mr. Leonard. At
that I hoped to breeze along fast enough to fetch me back in time to
have a little turn with the boys; but I counted without considering
that I was dealing with an old car; and sure enough one of the back
tires had to take on a puncture."
"And as you didn't carry an extra tire along, you just had to lay off
and mend the same," chuckled Hugh. "I was afraid that might happen the
other night when on our way to the hop; but we were lucky enough to
escape it. Of course, on the road home, I wouldn't have cared much,
because all the fun was over by then; and the girls would consider it
something of a joke for us to bump along on a flat tire. But I see the
old flivver in by the barn, so you did manage to get it home after all,
eh, Thad?"
"Oh! yes, though I made a beastly mess of my tire-mending, I'm afraid.
I ought to take a few more lessons in that art, because I've always
been weak there. And when I found how late it was after getting here I
concluded not to hustle around to the grounds. I guessed you'd be
cropping up to find out what had become of a certain baseball crank who
had played hookey. So I've been sitting here about ten minutes, I
should judge."
"Is that all?" asked Hugh.
"Well, no, it isn't," snapped Thad, "though I wonder how your sharp
eyes noticed anything peculiar about my manner. There is a lot more to
tell you, Hugh."
"Suppose you get started then, and let's hear of your adventures," the
other went on to say, with kindling interest. "Did any tramp try to
hold you up on the road; or was it necessary for you to stop and help
put out a fire in some farmhouse; like the time both of us had that
pleasure, and received the biggest dinner we ever got away with as a
reward?"
Thad shook his head in the negative.
"If you kept on guessing all day long I don't believe you'd hit the
mark, Hugh. Still, in one sense you're right when you call it an
adventure; though a pretty mild one. I'll tell you about it."
"Wish you would, Thad," grumbled Hugh, pretending to look anxious to
hurry along on his way home. "Playing ball for three hours gives a
fellow a ferocious appetite, you know; and we have chicken pot pie at
our house tonight, which is one of my favorite dishes. So please get a
move on you."
"Well, after I managed to mend my tire, being set on accomplishing the
job if it took me till dark, I started along the road, and presently
drew near town. That was about half an hour ago, I should imagine. I
had just stopped to take another look at the tire, which seemed to be
flattening more or less, when I heard some one calling weakly. When I
turned to look I found that by some accident I had stopped exactly in
front of that queer old place which we've always called the Rookery,
because it looks as if spooks might live there."
As Thad paused to catch his breath, Hugh elevated his eyebrows.
Apparently his interest no longer flagged, for he instinctively guessed
that something unusual must come out of Thad's mention of the strange
old place, where, as he well knew, Owen Dugdale and his eccentric
grandfather lived by themselves.
"When I caught the sound of a voice again," continued Thad, "I was
interested, because I had heard the one word 'help' uttered. Some one
must be in trouble, I told myself; and then all of a sudden I
remembered who lived there. So I started my machine and moved off the
road, to leave it clear for other cars to pass by if any came along.
After that I jumped out and hurried over to the stone wall that, as you
know, surrounds the wild-looking grounds of the place.
"The voice still sounded, and I could see somebody lying on the ground
there. I vaulted the low stone wall, and soon found that it was old
Mr. Dugdale. He seemed glad to see me, though really he didn't know me
from Adam, because I had never had a word with him before.
"While out taking exercise in the grounds he had been suddenly seized
with an acute attack of rheumatism or sciatica in one of his legs, and
had been unable to get back to the house alone. Then seeing me stop
and step out to look at my mended tire, he had called as loud as he
could, to attract my attention, hoping that I'd be kind and neighborly
enough to help him to the house; for as he explained to me his grandson
Owen was off playing ball just then."
"Yes," Hugh broke in with, "Owen was on deck, and did splendidly. He
may be able to make the team if he continues to improve. So you, of
course, assisted the old gentleman, as he asked, and got him safely to
his house?"
"Yes, that's what I did," replied Thad, "and it seemed that his pains
began to leave him once he got to walking. He said it was
characteristic of the disease to come and go suddenly and mysteriously.
When we arrived I had to help him up the steps, for he insisted on my
coming in. Well, to tell you the honest truth, Hugh, I was a little
curious to see what that queer old house did look like inside, and so I
didn't hold back at all. Now, you've likely never been there yourself,
even though you've been getting pretty intimate with Owen lately?"
"Once he asked me to step in, but it happened that I was in a hurry to
get home. I supposed some time or other he would renew the invitation,
but I also remembered that his grandfather was said to be queer, and
averse to meeting strangers; so I've thought nothing about it. Well,
is there anything more coming, or does that end your adventure?"
Thad drew a long breath, and looked sober.
"I only wish it did, that's right, Hugh," he continued, mysteriously.
"Up to then the whole thing hadn't amounted to a row of beans, so far
as giving me a thrill went. But the worst was yet to come."
"Go on, and don't stop so often, Thad," urged Hugh. "I believe you do
it just to tantalize me. What wonderful secret did you discover there?
Is that old house the rendezvous of a nest of counterfeiters, or might
it be where they manufacture moonshine whiskey, like those mountaineers
do down in Georgia?"
"Oh! come, it's nothing like that, Hugh, so don't allow your
imagination to carry you away. I did get something of a shock, though,
and I guess you'll feel the same way when you learn about it. Well,
the old gentleman asked me who I was, and if I knew his grandson Owen,
as well as a lot of other questions. Fact is, Hugh, I rather guess he
must have taken a violent liking for me right on, the spot, for when I
said I must be going two different times, he begged me to stay with him
just a little while longer.
"I knew I would be too late for the ball practice anyhow, and besides I
didn't have on my old suit, because mother had asked me not to wait to
change my clothes. So I sat down again each time, and answered some
more questions. The old gentleman interested me a whole lot in the
bargain, and I soon made up my mind that those silly people who had
been hinting that Old Mr. Dugdale might be that notorious Wall Street
speculator who had such a bad name, and who'd disappeared several years
ago, didn't know what they were talking about. Why, he is a polished
gentleman, and a foreigner at that, I tell you, Hugh.
"He started talking about his grandson. How his wrinkled face lighted
up when I said my chum, Hugh Morgan, had taken a great fancy for Owen,
and that I shared in the same feeling. You could see easily enough
that Mr. Dugdale believes the sun rises and sets in that boy of his.
Nothing would do, finally, but that he should take me to seen the den
Owen had fitted up for himself, because there was plenty of room in the
big house, and every fellow he knew had some kind of a den in which he
could keep his boyish treasures, in the way of foreign postage stamp
albums, photos taken by himself connected with outings he had been on,
college flags and burgees, and well, just such traps as the average boy
liked to see around him when he's out of school, and settling down to
read a favorite book.
"Of course, Hugh, I told him it would be too much for his aching leg,
but he assured me the pain had now all left him; and he wanted to know
if there was anything I could suggest that Owen might have to add to
his comfort while at home studying his lessons or reading. So I went
with him upstairs. Say, it's a real queer house, and must look a whole
lot spooky at night time; because they only burn lamps and candles, for
there's no electricity connection at all, or any gas either, I suppose.
"At the end of a long hall we came to where three steps led down into a
room. It was a bully place, I will say that, with plenty of light from
a lot of small dinky windows that faced on three sides of the room.
Owen had fixed it up in good taste in the bargain. He must have plenty
of spending money, because there were lots of traps around, from a pair
of expensive snow shoes hanging on the wall to a splendid toboggan
tilted up in a corner.
"In fact, Hugh, the place was pretty well filled with boy truck. It
looked cozy to me, and I ought to know something about a boy's den;
haven't I arranged mine seven separate times, until now it's back where
I started? Well, of course, to please the old gentleman, I walked
around, and peeked at things and told him Owen had as fine a loafing
place as any boy in Scranton; which sort of talk seemed to tickle Mr.
Dugdale a heap.
"Then, Hugh, I got my shock, all right. It seemed to grip my heart
just as if an ice-cold hand had been laid on it. You see, in nosing
around I chanced to set eyes on something that lay half hidden among
some papers on a side table. Hugh, you could have knocked me down with
a feather when I saw that it was a souvenir tea spoon, an ornate one at
that, representing some foreign city, I don't know which, for I was too
flustered by my terrible discovery to look close. Now, what do you
think of that?"