[Illustration: THE WRECK WAS BLOWN COMPLETELY APART.]
THE ROVER BOYS
WINNING A FORTUNE
OR
_STRENUOUS DAYS ASHORE
AND AFLOAT_
BY
ARTHUR M. WINFIELD
(Edward Stratemeyer)
AUTHOR OF “THE ROVER BOYS AT SCHOOL,” “THE ROVER BOYS
ON A TOUR,” “THE ROVER BOYS AT COLBY HALL,”
“THE PUTNAM HALL SERIES,” ETC.
_ILLUSTRATED_
NEW YORK
GROSSET & DUNLAP
PUBLISHERS
Made in the United States of America
BOOKS BY ARTHUR M. WINFIELD
(Edward Stratemeyer)
THE FIRST ROVER BOYS SERIES
THE ROVER BOYS AT SCHOOL
THE ROVER BOYS ON THE OCEAN
THE ROVER BOYS IN THE JUNGLE
THE ROVER BOYS OUT WEST
THE ROVER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES
THE ROVER BOYS IN THE MOUNTAINS
THE ROVER BOYS IN CAMP
THE ROVER BOYS ON LAND AND SEA
THE ROVER BOYS ON THE RIVER
THE ROVER BOYS ON THE PLAINS
THE ROVER BOYS IN SOUTHERN WATERS
THE ROVER BOYS ON THE FARM
THE ROVER BOYS ON TREASURE ISLE
THE ROVER BOYS AT COLLEGE
THE ROVER BOYS DOWN EAST
THE ROVER BOYS IN THE AIR
THE ROVER BOYS IN NEW YORK
THE ROVER BOYS IN ALASKA
THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS
THE ROVER BOYS ON A TOUR
THE SECOND ROVER BOYS SERIES
THE ROVER BOYS AT COLBY HALL
THE ROVER BOYS ON SNOWSHOE ISLAND
THE ROVER BOYS UNDER CANVAS
THE ROVER BOYS ON A HUNT
THE ROVER BOYS IN THE LAND OF LUCK
THE ROVER BOYS AT BIG HORN RANCH
THE ROVER BOYS AT BIG BEAR LAKE
THE ROVER BOYS SHIPWRECKED
THE ROVER BOYS ON SUNSET TRAIL
THE ROVER BOYS WINNING A FORTUNE
THE PUTNAM HALL SERIES
THE CADETS OF PUTNAM HALL
THE RIVALS OF PUTNAM HALL
THE CHAMPIONS OF PUTNAM HALL
THE REBELLION AT PUTNAM HALL
CAMPING OUT DAYS AT PUTNAM HALL
THE MYSTERY AT PUTNAM HALL
_12mo. Cloth. Illustrated._
GROSSET & DUNLAP, Publishers, New York
Copyright, 1926, by
EDWARD STRATEMEYER
_The Rover Boys Winning a Fortune_
INTRODUCTION
MY DEAR BOYS: This book is a complete story in itself but forms the
tenth volume in the line issued under the general title, “The Second
Rover Boys Series for Young Americans.”
In the opening volume of the First Series, “The Rover Boys at School,”
I introduced my readers to Dick, Tom and Sam Rover and their friends
and relatives. That volume and those which followed related the
adventures of the three Rover boys at Putnam Hall Military Academy,
Brill College, and elsewhere.
Leaving college, the three young men established themselves in business
in New York City and became married to their girl sweethearts. Dick
Rover became the father of a son and a daughter, as did likewise his
brother Sam, while Tom was blessed with a pair of lively twin boys.
The four youths were first sent to boarding school, as related in the
first volume of the Second Series, entitled “The Rover Boys at Colby
Hall,” where the lads made a host of friends. During their outings
they went with one of the older Rovers to establish oil wells in
Texas and Oklahoma and also went out on Sunset Trail, where we last
met them. Their school days had come to an end, and two of the boys
were preparing to join their fathers in business when a most disastrous
affair occurred. Then the lads went on an ocean trip in an endeavor to
aid the family fortunes, and what stirring times their outing led to I
leave for the pages which follow to narrate.
Of the twenty-nine volumes issued in this line of “Rover Boys” stories
the publishers have already sold _over three and one-half million
copies_! To me this is as astonishing as it is pleasing, and I here
wish to thank all the young people, as well as the parents, who have
stood by me in my efforts to entertain them.
Affectionately and sincerely yours,
EDWARD STRATEMEYER.
CONTENTS
CHAPTER PAGE
I FRED HAS A SECRET 1
II THE ROVERS AND SOME OTHERS 12
III AN ODD DISAPPEARANCE 22
IV ALECK SEES A GHOST 32
V A GLIMPSE OF ENEMIES 42
VI HOW THE RACE WAS DECIDED 52
VII ABOUT SOME INVESTMENTS 63
VIII OFF ON AN OUTING 73
IX THE CABIN IN THE WOODS 83
X AN UNEXPECTED BLAZE 92
XI WHAT HAPPENED ON THE ROAD 102
XII FRED TELLS HIS STORY 113
XIII STARTLING NEWS 125
XIV A DARING HOLD-UP 136
XV HOW THE ROVER COMPANY WAS HELD UP 147
XVI A GLOOMY OUTLOOK 157
XVII REAL FRIENDS 166
XVIII FOLLOWING KEN GREENE 177
XIX CAPTAIN CORNING’S STORY 188
XX THE DOTS IN A TRIANGLE 197
XXI THE BOYS REACH A DECISION 207
XXII BOUND FOR THE GULF OF MEXICO 217
XXIII CAUGHT IN A STORM 227
XXIV A MESSAGE OF IMPORTANCE 237
XXV SAM MAKES A DISCOVERY 247
XXVI HIDDEN EVIDENCE 257
XXVII THE MAN ON HORSEBACK 267
XXVIII THE MAN IN THE HAMMOCK 276
XXIX THE EXPLOSION 285
XXX HOME AGAIN――CONCLUSION 296
THE ROVER BOYS WINNING A FORTUNE
CHAPTER I
FRED HAS A SECRET
“Say, Fred, what is this secret you’re keeping from us?” demanded Jack
Rover, as he walked out on the piazza of the old farmhouse where his
cousin sat reading a magazine.
“Who said I had a secret?” questioned the youngest of the Rover boys,
as he laid down the magazine. “I’m sure I didn’t say a word about it.”
“Nonsense, Fred, you’ve got something up your sleeve, and you know it!”
“Of course he’s got something up his sleeve,” put in Andy Rover, who
sat on the steps munching an apple. “It’s his arm.”
“We know well enough, Fred, that you’re not roaming around this farm
singing ‘Down on the Ocean Bottom’ day and night for nothing,” added
Andy’s twin brother, Randy.
“What are you talking about――‘ocean bottom?’ I don’t know any such
song.” But there was a twinkle in Fred Rover’s eyes as he spoke.
“We ought to pound the secret out of him――that’s what we ought to do,”
announced Randy. “Come on, you old reprobate, let us in on this, and be
quick about it!” and, reaching over, he caught hold of Fred’s foot and
attempted to drag his cousin from the chair.
“Hi! Let up!” cried Fred, and aimed the magazine at Randy’s head.
Then he leaped up, broke away from his cousin, and vaulted the piazza
railing. An instant later he was dashing across the lawn with the
others in pursuit.
As the four boys tore over the grass at Valley Brook Farm three girls
came from the house to witness what was going on. They were Mary and
Martha Rover and their old school chum, Ruth Stevenson.
“Is it a race?” questioned Mary, Fred’s sister.
“No; I think they’re teasing Fred,” answered Martha. “They said
something about Fred having a secret.”
“And he has a secret, too,” answered Ruth Stevenson.
“What is it, Ruth?” demanded the other girls quickly.
“Oh, I can’t tell you that――at least, not yet. Fred told me not to say
a word about it.”
Across the lawn and down the lane shaded with big trees tore Fred Rover
with his three cousins in close pursuit. Then Fred reached the barn,
passed through an open doorway, and quickly rolled the door shut behind
him.
“Hi, you! Let us in!” cried Jack.
“You keep out of here!” answered Fred merrily. “If you don’t I’ll go
for a ride on Carrots.”
“Don’t you dare touch Carrots!” exclaimed Jack, in alarm. “You leave
that horse alone!”
“Maybe he can put some pep in Carrots, Jack, so you’ll win the race,”
suggested Andy.
“Carrots has got pep enough,” answered the oldest of the Rover boys.
“And, anyway, what exercise he needs he’s going to get from me.”
“Oh, it’s too hot to run any more, anyway,” came from Randy. “Let’s
call it off.”
“Fred, don’t touch that horse, do you hear?” cried Jack.
“Will you promise to leave me alone?” questioned his cousin through the
closed door.
“Yes. Just the same, I think you ought to let us in on that secret of
yours.”
“Oh, I’m holding back for your own good,” answered Fred, and then he
allowed the others to pull the door open and they came into the barn.
It was a perfect midsummer day, with a bright blue sky overhead and
a gentle breeze blowing from the west. One end of the big barn was
already half filled with sweet-scented hay and beyond the building
could be seen many acres of growing fields and orchards, all in the
best condition.
It was Jack who led the way to where the horse stalls were located.
Here, in a box stall, stood a small, wiry, sorrel horse with a white
blaze on his forehead. The horse gave a look of recognition as Jack
approached and stretched out his head in expectation of some tidbit,
and Jack handed him half an apple which he munched contentedly.
“He certainly is a fine-looking animal,” was Randy’s comment, as the
four boys gazed at Carrots. “You certainly ought to win that race,
Jack.”
“Well, I’m going to try, anyway,” was the answer.
“Jack has got to win that race,” put in Andy. “If he doesn’t he won’t
dare face Ruth again,” and he winked one eye suggestively.
“Oh, say, Andy, you leave Ruth out of this race, will you?” burst out
Jack, his face growing red.
“Humph! As if we didn’t all know that Joe Sedley is going to race you
solely on Ruth’s account,” went on Andy, who was the tease of the
crowd.
“He’s going to race me because he thinks his Black Diamond is a better
horse than Carrots,” returned Jack, “and because he thinks he can ride
better than I can!”
“Just the same, Jack, he’s got his eyes on Ruth,” broke in Randy. “I
guess he thinks it would be a grand thing to link the Sedley estate to
the new Stevenson estate.”
“Oh, you fellows are talking nonsense!” answered their cousin, but at
the same time Jack’s face took on a look of concern.
Valley Brook Farm, where the Rover boys were spending a vacation, was
located in the heart of New York State and was the property of their
great-uncle, Randolph Rover, after whom Randy had been named. The
neighborhood for miles around was exceedingly picturesque and since
a new state highway had been put through the land had been in active
demand for country residences, by people of means. Below the farm a
young man named Joe Sedley, who had inherited a large amount of money
from his parents, had purchased an estate of two hundred acres and
built himself rather pretentious bachelor’s quarters. Directly opposite
and adjoining Valley Brook Farm, Mr. Stevenson, the father of Ruth, had
purchased another two hundred acres and had now started to put up a
large country home.
Because Ruth was so well acquainted with the Rover girls she had often
stopped at Valley Brook Farm and her parents had occasionally stayed
there overnight while inspecting the work done on the new place next
door.
It was on one of her visits to the farm that Ruth one day met Joe
Sedley. He had proved himself an agreeable young man and had invited
Ruth and the other girls, as well as the boys, to visit his estate
and “give it the once over,” as he expressed it. Since that time he
had been exceedingly attentive to Ruth, much to Jack’s discomfiture,
for ever since he had known the girl the oldest of the Rover boys had
thought Ruth just the finest girl in all the world.
Although Joe Sedley owned both an enclosed car and a sport model, he
also possessed several saddle horses, one of them, named Black Diamond,
being his especial favorite.
“For a crosscountry racer, I’ll wager he can beat anything in this
neighborhood,” Sedley had once told the Rover boys and the girls.
“Oh, I don’t know,” Jack had answered rather carelessly. “A few months
ago Uncle Randolph bought a fine sorrel called Carrots. And believe me,
that horse can make some speed!”
“I don’t believe he could keep up with Black Diamond――not in a two-mile
race, anyway,” the young man from across the highway had replied.
“Your sorrel may be good enough for a half mile across the country, but
after that he’ll lag behind.”
This talk had led to a spirited conversation in which not only the boys
but also the girls took part. Then Randy had suggested a race, and this
challenge had been quickly accepted by Sedley and as quickly agreed
to by Jack, who usually rode Carrots when he was at the farm and who
that morning had been rather nettled by Sedley’s constant attention to
Ruth. This had been three days before, and the race was to come off on
the morrow in the morning, Sedley in the meantime having to go away on
business to Rochester.
“Why don’t you take Carrots out and exercise him?” said Andy.
“That’s what I intend to do,” answered Jack. “But I won’t run him too
hard――just enough to make him feel active.”
Jack Ness, the old man-of-all-work around the farm, had cleaned the
sorrel until Carrots fairly shone from the tip of his nose to the end
of his flowing tail.
“He’s the best nag in these parts, barring none!” declared Jack Ness
emphatically, as he placed the saddle on the sorrel’s back. “You sure
are going to win that race, Jack.”
“I certainly hope to,” was the reply. “By the way, has the news leaked
out to those living around here?”
“It certainly has, Jack,” said the hired man. “Everybody at Dexter’s
Corners knows about it. Mr. Sedley was down to Woddie’s store before he
left and also at the railroad station and he told everybody how he was
going to put it over you. You’ll have quite a crowd to witness the run.
Some folks are putting quite some wagers on it,” added the old man.
Joe Sedley, having perhaps more money than was good for him, had done
his best to draw Jack and his cousins into making a bet for a large
amount, but this the boys had declined.
“He could clean us out easily enough,” was the way Fred had expressed
it, “while the loss of one or two thousand dollars――or even
more――wouldn’t make him wink.”
“Well, I’m not in the betting business,” Jack had answered briefly. He
did not add that he had promised his father not to bet on horse races
of any kind.
Early the next morning Joe Sedley telephoned over asking for Ruth and
then invited her and the girls to use his sporting car in following the
finish of the race, which was to take place on a road ending near the
two farms. The invitation rather pleased Ruth, but nevertheless she
declined, stating that she had already arranged to go out with Martha
and Mary.
“He’s got a crust to telephone over to Ruth!” was the way Fred
expressed himself when he heard of this. “He knows well enough how
matters stand between her and Jack.”
“Well, I guess he thinks it’s a case of the best man winning,” answered
Randy. “And you’ve got to admit that he’s rather a nice sort, too,
although I think his money is spoiling him a little.”
Of course Jack was not present at this conversation. But he, too, heard
of how Sedley had telephoned, the news being conveyed to him by his
sister.
“Jack, you’ve got to keep your eye on that fellow,” declared Martha.
“He’s doing everything he can to get into Ruth’s good graces.”
“I know it, Martha, and it makes me mad to think of it! But what can I
do to prevent it?”
“You don’t think Ruth cares for him, do you, Jack?”
“I don’t know. He’s got a barrel of money――I know that!”
“You don’t suppose Ruth would let that influence her, do you?”
“You ought to know better than I do, Martha.”
“Well, I wouldn’t if it was me!” answered the sister loyally.
It was another perfect day, and when the time for the race came several
hundred people were found lining the course which led around several
roads in something of a circle, starting at the lower end of the Sedley
farm and finishing on a roadway between Valley Brook Farm and the new
Stevenson estate.
Both of the horses, as well as their riders, looked in the best of
condition as they came forward to begin the race. The course had been
carefully mapped out and watchers were stationed along the route to
see that no short cuts might be taken by either participant. Even old
Uncle Randolph was present and likewise the old colored servitor of the
Rovers, Aleck Pop.
“I done got a rabbit’s foot fur you, Massah Jack,” whispered Aleck just
before the race, and brought forth the foot in question, wrapped in a
handkerchief. “Dat am suah good luck fur you.”
“Thank you, Aleck. I’ll be sure to win now,” answered Jack.
But even though he spoke thus confidently, Jack realized that he had a
hard contest before him. Joe Sedley was an experienced rider and Black
Diamond a horse that had won more than one crosscountry contest. Jack
knew he could take two of the streams which were to be crossed and
also several hedges as well as any horse in that neighborhood. Carrots
could jump well also, but Jack relied more on his steed’s running than
anything else.
“All ready?” shouted the starter presently, and then, an instant later,
came the report of a pistol and the two contestants were off.