AN UNEXPECTED MEETING
"Say, fellows, did you ever hear this song?"
It was Ned Lowe who spoke. He sat in one of the rooms belonging to the
Rovers. On his knee rested a mandolin which he had been strumming
furiously for the past ten minutes.
"Sure we've heard it, Ned!" cried Andy. "What is it?"
"For gracious sake, Ned! why don't you let up?" cried Fred, who was in
the next room trying his best to study. "How in the world is a fellow
going to do an example in algebra with you singing about good times on
the old plantation?"
"That is right, Ned. Why don't you sing about good times in the
classroom when Asa Lemm is there?"
"Gee Christopher! what's the use of your throwing cold water on this
camp meeting?" came from Walt Baxter, who sat on the edge of the bed
munching an apple.
"Really, it's a shame the way you young gentlemen attempt to choke off
Ned's efforts to please this congregation!" exclaimed Spouter Powell,
who sat in an easy chair with his feet resting on the edge of a
chiffonier. "Now, when a man's soul is overflowing with harmony, and
beautiful thoughts are coursing through his cranium, and he is doing his
utmost to bring pleasure----"
"Wow! Spouter is at it again! Somebody choke him off!" cried Randy, and
catching up a pillow, he threw it at the head of the cadet who loved to
make long speeches.
"Say, fellows, why won't some of you let me get a word in edgeways?"
came from Dan Soppinger, who stood with his back against the door
leading to the hall. "I've been wanting to ask you a question for the
last ten minutes. Who of you can tell me the names of the fifth, tenth,
and fifteenth presidents of our country?"
"Oh, baby!" wailed Andy, throwing up his hands in comic despair. "Dan is
worse than either Spouter or Ned."
"I thought you were going to put a padlock on that question box of
yours, Dan," remarked Fred.
"I'll bet there isn't one of you can answer my question," retorted Dan
Soppinger.
"Sure! I can answer it!" returned Andy readily. "What was that question?
Who was the first laundryman in Chicago?"
"No; I said, who were the fifth, the tenth, and the fifteenth----"
"Oh! I remember now--the fifth, tenth and fifteenth discoverers of the
North Pole. That's easy, Dan. The fifth was Julius Caesar, the tenth,
Benjamin Frank----"
"See here! I didn't say a word about the North Pole discoverers!"
ejaculated the Human Question Box. "I said the fifth, tenth and
fifteenth----"
"Men to find out how to manufacture oleomargarine out of pure butter,"
finished Andy. "Now that's a purely scientific problem, Dan, not an
ordinary question. You want to take three pounds of oleomargarine and
divide them by two pounds of unadulterated butter, then----"
"For gracious sake! has that boy gone crazy?" cried Dan Soppinger in
despair. "I come over here and ask an ordinary question in history----"
"How do we know it's an ordinary question in history?" broke in Randy.
"The five, ten and fifteen sounds like a problem in higher arithmetic."
"Say, Dan, just forgive me for what I said, and I'll send you the answer
day after yesterday on a postal card," announced Andy mournfully. "And
I'll prepay the postage, too. Now, be a good boy, Son, and run along,
and maybe some time papa will buy you a lemon stick," and at this
remark there was a general laugh, in the midst of which Dan Soppinger
threw up his hands, turned and left the room.
It was several days after the hunting expedition, and the Rover boys had
settled down once more to their studies. This was the off hour in the
evening, and, as was usual, a number of their friends had dropped in to
see them.
"Only three weeks more to the winter holidays," announced Gif presently.
"What are you fellows going to do with yours?"
"We haven't decided yet, Gif, any further than that we're going home,"
answered Jack.
"If you feel like it, you had better come and pay me a visit. I know my
folks would be only too glad to have you."
"And we'd be glad to have you come down to New York and stay with us,
Gif," was the reply.
During the days that had gone by since the hunt, the Rover boys had had
several little differences with Professor Lemm. The teacher had spoken
to Colonel Colby about their coming in late, but the master of the Hall
had passed this matter over as being of no importance, somewhat to Asa
Lemm's chagrin.
"Oh, how I love that man!" had been Andy's comment.
The weather had remained clear, but on Thursday of that week came
another fall of snow, and by Friday this was in good condition for
sleighing.
"I wonder if we can't get up a sleighing party for Saturday afternoon
and take out some of the girls from Clearwater Hall?" said Jack.
"We ought to be able to get some sort of box-sled down at the Haven
Point livery stable," answered Randy. "Suppose we call the liveryman up
on the 'phone and see what he has to say, and then call up the girls?"
This was done without delay, and, as a result, it was arranged that the
liveryman should call at the school early Saturday afternoon for the
four boys and some of their chums, bringing with him a large box-sled
drawn by four horses. Then the boys were to get the girls, and all were
to take a ride until the supper hour. It was arranged that the four
Rovers should go on the ride, and also Spouter Powell, Gif Garrison,
Fatty Hendry, and some others.
"Of course, Fatty, we really ought to make you pay double price,"
remarked Andy to the fat boy, when the arrangements were being made.
"Nothing doing," grunted Fatty. "I don't weigh a bit more than Spouter
or Gif."
"Oh, no, not at all--only about sixty pounds more!" remarked Gif.
Some of the girls attending Clearwater Hall had stated that they wished
to do a little shopping in Haven Point before going on the ride, and so
all had promised to meet the boys in front of the moving picture
theater, which was a resort well-known to all of them.
"Now if the weather only remains good, we ought to have a peach of a
time," announced Randy, after all the arrangements had been settled.
The weather remained good, and promptly on time the liveryman drove up
to the entrance of the Hall with his big box-sled, which he had filled
with straw and robes. Into the sled piled the boys, Fatty Hendry
perching himself up on the front seat beside the driver.
Some of the lads had provided themselves with tin horns, and they set
off on the trip with a grand flourish, a number of the cadets left
behind gazing after them wistfully. But these lads were not utterly
disconsolate, for the reason that skating and coasting were now both
very good around the school.
The horses pulling the box-sled were fine animals, and in a short space
of time they jangled merrily into Haven Point, the boys blowing their
horns loudly to attract attention.
In the meantime, Ruth Stevenson and May Powell, accompanied by Alice
Strobell, Annie Larkins, and some of their chums from Clearwater Hall,
had arrived in the town and gone to several of the stores on various
errands. Then, a few minutes before the time appointed for meeting the
cadets, they hurried over in the direction of the moving picture
theater.
Several of the girls went into a drugstore close to the theater, leaving
Ruth and May standing on the sidewalk, looking at the various gaudy
billboards which were displayed there. The girls were discussing the
picture of a well-known moving-picture actress, when suddenly Ruth felt
some one touch her arm. Turning, she found herself confronted by a tall,
heavy-set youth, rather loudly dressed, and accompanied by another boy,
wearing a fur cap and fur-lined overcoat.
"Excuse me, but this is Miss Ruth Stevenson, I believe?" said the big
youth, with a broad smile on his coarse face.
Ruth was not at all pleased by being thus addressed, for she had
recognized the fellow as Slugger Brown, and also recognized Nappy
Martell. Nappy raised his cap and bowed pleasantly, both to her and to
May.
"We just got back to Haven Point," said Slugger Brown smoothly. "Been
away a short while, you know."
"And we thought we would go into the movies before going back to
school," put in Nappy Martell. "Were you going in, too? If you were,
let's go in together. I'll get the tickets," and he opened his coat to
thrust his fingers into his vest pocket and bring forth a small roll of
bills.
"Thank you, we are not going into the theater," answered May stiffly.
She did not like either Slugger or Nappy, and was sorry the pair had
shown themselves.
"How about it?" broke out Slugger, taking hold of Ruth's arm in a
decidedly familiar way. "Let's go in. You've got time enough."
"Thank you, but we have something else to do, Mr. Brown," responded Ruth
icily.
"You can't do much outside on a cold day like this," went on the bully.
"Come on in--I'm sure it's nice and warm in there, and they've got some
dandy pictures. Come ahead."
"Sure!" broke out Nappy. "I'll get the tickets," and he took several
steps toward the ticket booth.
"Thank you, but I said I didn't want to go with you," said May, quite
loudly and with flashing eyes.
"We pick our company when we go anywhere," added Ruth, giving Slugger
Brown a look which would almost have annihilated any ordinary boy. But
the bully was proof against anything of that sort.
"Oh, you needn't get on your high horse about it, Ruth Stevenson," he
sneered. "Some day maybe you'll be glad to go to a show with me."
"If you won't go, I guess there are other girls just as good, and maybe
better," added Nappy Martell, not knowing what else to say.
It was at this moment that the big box-sled containing the cadets hove
into sight. With a flourish, the driver drew up to the curb with the
boys tooting loudly on their tin horns, but this salute came to a sudden
end when the lads caught sight of their former schoolmates.
"Look who's here, will you!" ejaculated Randy.
"Slugger Brown and Nappy Martell," murmured Fred.
"Say, they are talking to Ruth and May!" broke in Andy.
To all this Jack said nothing. But he lost no time in leaping to the
pavement and walking up to the girls, who came forward to greet him.
"Oh, I'm so glad you got here!" exclaimed Ruth in a low voice, and she
looked at Jack appealingly and then let her eyes rove in the direction
of the bully and his crony.
"Those boys are just too horrid for anything!" murmured May, by way of
explanation.
"What did they do?" demanded Spouter of his cousin, he having quickly
followed Jack from the sled.
"They almost insisted upon it that we accompany them into the movies!"
"Why, they hardly know you!"
"That's true, Dick. And I think it was awful of them, the way they came
up."
"That Brown boy caught me by the arm, and he had no right to do that,"
said Ruth to Jack. "I don't want a thing to do with him."
"You get into the sled, girls, and we'll tend to Brown and Martell,"
announced Spouter, and the tone of his voice showed his anger.
The girls did as bidden, being assisted by the others; and, in the
meantime the remaining girls came from the store and also got into the
sled. Spouter and Jack strode across the pavement, and caught Slugger
Brown and Nappy Martell just as they were on the point of dropping their
tickets into the ticket box.
"Come here a minute. I want to talk to you," said Spouter, catching
Martell by the arm.
"And I want to talk to you," added Jack, as he detained Slugger Brown.
"I won't talk to you," retorted Nappy Martell, and tried to pass.
"Yes, you will!" answered Spouter. "You listen to me, Nappy! After this
you leave my cousin, May Powell, alone. If you don't, you'll have an
account to settle with me."
"And you leave both of those girls alone!" said Jack to Slugger Brown.
"Miss Stevenson doesn't want anything to do with you. Now, you mind what
I'm telling you, or you'll get into trouble the first thing you return
to the Hall!"
"Oh, say, Rover, you make me tired!" sneered the bully, glaring at Jack.
"I'm not going to try to take your girl away from you. There are plenty
of better girls around Haven Point. You go about your business and leave
me alone;" and, thus speaking, Slugger Brown passed into the
moving-picture theater, followed a moment later by Nappy Martell. The
two others watched them out of sight, and then looked at each other
knowingly.
"One fine pair, believe me!" was Spouter's comment.
"I'm mighty sorry Colonel Colby allowed them to return to the Hall,"
answered Jack. "I'm afraid it spells just one thing--Trouble!"