THE MYSTERIOUS TRAMP
Dedication
TO MY CUBBY FRIENDS IN THE
ALL SOULS’ PACK, PETERBOROUGH
[Illustration: Black Bill led the girl through the crowd to the big
tent.
_Frontispiece._ [_See page 68._
]
THE MYSTERIOUS
TRAMP
BY
VERA C. BARCLAY
Author of “Danny the Detective,” etc.
London
C. Arthur Pearson, Ltd.
Henrietta Street, W.C.2
1920
CONTENTS
CHAP. PAGE
I BY FIRELIGHT 9
II A COUNCIL OF WAR 13
III THE COMING OF MISS PRINCE 16
IV “DANNY THE DETECTIVE” 19
V IN THE WOODS 22
VI THE LAW OF THE WOLF CUB PACK 26
VII A WOLF CUB COUNCIL 31
VIII “I PROMISE....” 33
IX THE COMING OF THE MYSTERIOUS TRAMP 37
X BY MOONLIGHT 42
XI THE TRAMP’S STORY 45
XII THE SECOND QUEST 52
XIII ELEPHANTS 58
XIV THE CIRCUS 61
XV A KNIGHT OF KING ARTHUR 67
XVI DANNY FINDS MARIETTE--AND IS KIDNAPPED 74
XVII THE CUBS TO THE RESCUE 79
XVIII DETECTIVES 86
XIX BY THE LIGHT OF A LANTERN 91
XX A CONSPIRACY OVERHEARD 94
XXI THE “WICKED UNCLE” FOUND AT LAST 97
XXII AT DAWN 104
XXIII “WHAT’S UP?” 107
XXIV BLACK BILL IS QUESTIONED 112
XXV THE RESCUE OF DANNY 116
XXVI WHERE’S THE TRAMP? 119
XXVII THE FINDING OF MARIETTE 124
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
Black Bill led the girl through the crowd to the big tent
_Frontispiece_
FACE PAGE
“Well,” said Bill, “is war declared?” “Yes,” came the determined
reply 14
“Hush,” said David. “Squat down before he sees us” 23
Danny led the mysterious tramp to a deserted cottage 50
“All right, young scoundrel,” said Black Bill. “That’s your little
game, is it?” 76
Unmistakably it was Black Bill and the stranger 97
Crawling through the narrow window, Danny stepped into the punt 118
The Cubs cheered and threw themselves upon Danny, like so many
wild animals 121
THE MYSTERIOUS TRAMP
CHAPTER I
BY FIRELIGHT
The night nursery was in darkness, save for the red glow of the fire,
and the occasional flickering light of a little yellow flame that
seemed to wake up every now and then and light up the room, casting
strange black shadows on the ceiling. In three little white beds lay
three boys. At least they should have been lying, but, as a matter of
fact, two were sitting up, with expressions of sullen rage upon their
tear-stained faces, and one was lying in a huddled heap beneath the
bedclothes, sobbing.
“For goodness’ sake stop that beastly sniveling, you little cry-baby,”
said David.
The sobbing ceased for a minute, then, from beneath the bedclothes,
came the muffled voice of Nipper. “I--I’m not a cry-cry-cry baby.” The
sobbing went on.
“Nipper,” said David sternly, “you have no reason to bleat like that.
You only got four, an me and Bill got a dozen each.”
This brought Nipper from beneath the bedclothes.
“That’s ’cos I have more sense in my little finger than you
two fat-heads have in the whole of your bodies. I trod hard on
grandfather’s worst corn, and that made him drop the birch. I jolly
soon picked it up, and threw it out of the window. And he couldn’t find
nothing else to beat me with, so he let me go. It’s not for the beating
I’m crying, it’s for something else. I was going to tell you about it,
but as you’re both such beasts I shan’t now.”
Having delivered himself of this speech, Nipper retired under the
bedclothes, and began a series of mournful sounds. Now, though David
was ready of speech and full of ideas, Bill, his twin, was a man of
action. It was always David who thought of splendid schemes, but Bill
who carried them out. Leaning far out of his bed he reached for one
of his boots, and, taking a careful aim, landed it with a thud upon
Nipper’s huddled figure. This brought forth Nipper’s own special
performance and chief means of defence, a siren-like shriek. As was to
be expected, it brought Nurse to the door.
“Now then, you naughty boys,” she said, “if I hear another sound I
shall go and tell your gran’pa.”
“You can jolly well go,” said David, “he’s lost the birch.”
“If you aren’t quiet at once,” continued Nurse, “I shall not allow you
to go to the horseshow to-morrow.”
“That’s all right,” said David. “Grandfather has already forbidden us
to go----”
“But we’re jolly well going all the same,” added Bill in an aside.
“You shan’t have any jam for breakfast,” said poor old Nurse in
despair. This was a serious matter.
“Then here goes,” said Bill, in a spasm of rage, and he let fly his
remaining boot.
It struck the old Nurse very hard on the hand. She had rheumatism, and
the blow hurt her. With a little exclamation of pain she retired, and
shut the door.
A regular bally-rag then began. Pillows flew across the room, and
before the fight was finished Bill’s nightshirt was torn from top to
bottom, and David’s nose was bleeding.
And in the playroom Nurse was talking sadly to Eliza as she darned the
boys’ stockings. The piece of news she was giving Eliza was the very
piece of news that Nipper had heard, and which had caused his tears.
“The master has given me notice,” she said, wiping her eyes. “He says
it’s all my fault the way the boys behave, and it’s got so terrible he
won’t stand it a moment longer. He’s given me notice, and he’s going
to get a strict governess, who won’t stand any nonsense, and will get
them into good discipline. From the day those twins were born I’ve
looked after them--ten years, now. And Nipper’s just on eight--and I’ve
got to leave them!” Poor old Nurse laid her head down on the basket of
stockings and broke down. Since the boys’ parents had been drowned in
a shipwreck the old woman had had them under her care, but they had
repaid her with selfishness and disobedience.
The way the “young gentlemen up at the Hall” behaved was the talk of
the village. They would steal fruit, not only from their grandfather’s
glasshouses, but from the poor people’s little gardens. They would let
out Farmer Johnson’s pigs, and chase them all over the village. There
was nothing too bad for them to do.
“I pity the person as will have the looking after of them,” said Eliza.
“I only hope the master will get someone really strict.”