CHAPTER XXV
THE CAPTURE
Constable Newcomb and his posse disposed themselves comfortably aboardthe _Bluebird_, and, at a nod from Mr. Howbridge, Neale rang the bell totell Hank to throw in the gear clutch and start the boat.
The girls, much to Agnes' dissatisfaction, had been left ashore, sincethere was likely to be rough work arresting the "Klondikers," as theconstable called the tramps on Cedar Island. Mrs. MacCall stayed withthem.
They had disembarked at the point dock and when the boat pulled off wentto the hotel there to await the return of their friends.
"Now, Mr. Newcomb, perhaps you can explain what it's all about,"suggested the lawyer to the constable, when they sat on deck together,near Neale at the steering wheel. The lawyer made the boy a signal tosay nothing, but to listen.
"Well, this is what it's about," was the answer. "As I told you, aparcel of tramps--Klondikers they call themselves because, I understand,some of 'em have been in Alaska. Anyhow a parcel of tramps are living onCedar Island. They've been robbing right and left, and the folks aroundhere are tired of it. So a complaint was made and I've got a lot ofwarrants to arrest the men."
"Do you know any of their names?" asked the lawyer.
"No, all the warrants are made out in the name of John Doe. That'slegal, you know."
"Yes, I know," assented Mr. Howbridge. "And how many do you expect toarrest?"
"Oh, about half a dozen. Two of 'em have a motor boat, I understand, butthey had an accident in the storm last night and can't navigate. That'sthe reason we're going over there now--they can't get away!"
"Good!" exclaimed Mr. Howbridge. "I fancy, Mr. Newcomb, I may be able toadd another complaint to the ones you already have, if two of the menturn out to be the characters we suspect."
"Why, have they been robbing your hen roost, too?" asked the constable.
"No, but two of my wards, Ruth and Agnes Kenway, were robbed of a box ofjewelry just before we started on this trip," said the lawyer. "Tworough men held them up in a hallway on a rainy morning and snatched ajewel box. The men were tramps--and the day before that two men whocalled themselves Klondikers had looked at vacant rooms in the housewhere the robbery occurred. Since then the girls think they have seenthe same tramps several times. I hope you can round them up."
"We'll get 'em if they're on Cedar Island!" the constable declared. "Gotyour guns, boys?" he asked the members of his posse.
Each one had, it seemed, and the nervous tension grew as the island wasneared. Hank drove the _Bluebird_ at her best speed, which, of course,was not saying much, for she was not a fast craft. But gradually theobjective point came into view.
"It's just as well not to have too fast a boat," the constable said. "Ifthe Klondikers saw it coming they might jump in the lake and swim away.They won't be so suspicious of this."
"Perhaps not," the lawyer assented. But he could not help thinking howtragic it would be if it should happen that Neale's father was amongthose captured. Neale himself guided the houseboat on her way.
"Put her around into that cove," Constable Newcomb directed the youth atthe wheel, when the island was reached.
Silently the _Bluebird_ floated into a little natural harbor and wasmade fast to the bank.
"All ashore now, and don't make any noise," ordered the officer. "Theyhaven't spotted us yet, I guess. We may surround 'em and capture 'emwithout any trouble."
"Let us hope so," said Mr. Howbridge. "Have they some sort of house orheadquarters?"
"They live in a shack or two," the constable replied. "It's in themiddle of the island. I'd better lead the way," he went on, and heplaced himself at the head of his men.
"Don't make any outcry or any explanation if your father is among thesemen," said Mr. Howbridge to Neale, as the two walked on behind theposse. This was the first direct reference to the matter the lawyer hadmade.
"I'll do whatever you say," assented Neale listlessly.
"It may all be a mistake," went on the lawyer sympathetically. "We willnot jump at conclusions."
Hank had been sworn in as a special deputy, and was with the other menwho pressed on through the woods after Constable Newcomb.
Suddenly the leader halted, and his men did likewise.
"Something's up!" called Mr. Howbridge to Neale. They went on a littlefarther and saw, in a clearing, a small cabin. There was no sign of lifeabout it.
"I guess they're in there," said the constable in a low tone to his men."The motor boat's at the dock, and so is the rowboat, so they're on theisland. Close in, men!" he suddenly cried.
There was a rush toward the cabin, and Mr. Howbridge and Neale followed.The door was burst in and the constable and his posse entered.
Three men were asleep in rude bunks, and they sat up bleary-eyed andbewildered at the unexpected rush.
"Wot's matter?" asked one, thickly.
"You're under arrest!" exclaimed the constable. "In the name of the lawI arrest you! I'm the law!" he went on, tapping his nickel shield.
One of the men made a dart for a window, as though to get out, but hewas knocked back by a deputy, and in a few seconds all three men weresecured.
Neale, who had pressed into the cabin as soon as possible, looked withfast-beating heart into the faces of the three tramps. To his greatrelief none was his father.
"Now, what's all this about?" growled one of the men. "What's the game?"
"You'll find out soon enough," declared the constable. "Are either ofthese the men you spoke of?" he asked the lawyer.
"Yes, those two are the ones that several times went off in a hurry inthe motor boat," said Mr. Howbridge. "But I can not identify them as theones who took the jewelry. Ruth and Agnes Kenway will have to do that."
As he spoke the two men looked at him. One shook his head and the otherexclaimed:
"It's all up. They got us right!"
"Come on now lively, men!" cried Constable Newcomb. "Search this place,gather up what evidence you can, and we'll take 'em to jail."
"Are there any others?" asked Neale, hoping against hope as the men weretaken outside the shack and the search was begun.
"I guess we have the main ones, anyhow," answered Mr. Newcomb. "Oh, lookat this bunch of stuff!" he cried, as he threw back the dirty blanketsof one of the bunks. "They've been robbing right and left."
It was a heterogeneous collection of articles, and at the sight of onebox Mr. Howbridge exclaimed:
"There it is! The jewelry case I gave Miss Ruth! These men were eitherthe thieves or they know something about the robbery. See if anything isleft in the box."
It was quickly opened, and seen to contain a number of rings, pins, andtrinkets.
"Well, there's a good part of it," the lawyer remarked. "It will needRuth and Agnes to tell just what is missing."
Mr. Howbridge and Neale were watching the constable and his men finishthe search of the cabin, while others of the posse had taken theprisoners to the boat, when suddenly into the shack came another man,whose well-worn clothing would seem to proclaim him as one of the"Klondikers."
But at the sight of this man Neale sprang forward, and held out hishands.
"Father!" cried the boy. "Don't you know me?"
"It's Neale--my son!" was the gasping exclamation. "How in the world didyou get here? I was just about to start for Milton to look you up."
"Well, I guess, before you do, we'll look you up a bit, and maybe lockyou up, also," said the constable dryly. "Do you belong to the Klondikebunch?" he asked.
"Well, yes, I might say that I do; or rather that I did." said Neale'sfather, and though the boy gasped in dismay, Mr. O'Neil smiled. "Iunderstand the crowd has been captured," he added.
"Yes. And you may consider yourself captured also!" snapped out theofficer. "Jim, a pair of handcuffs here!"
"One moment!" interposed Mr. Howbridge, with a glance at Neale. "Irepresent this man, officer. I'll supply bail for him--"
Mr. O'Neil laughed.
"Thank you," he said. "Y
our offer is kind, and I appreciate it. But Ishan't need bail. I believe you received a letter telling you to makethis raid, did you not?" he asked the constable.
"I did," was the answer. "It was that letter which gave us the clue tothe robbers. I'd like to meet the man who wrote it. He said he wouldgive evidence against the rascals."
"Who signed that letter?" asked Neale's father.
"I have it here. I can show you," offered Mr. Newcomb. "It was signed bya man named O'Neil," he added as he produced the document. "He said he'dmeet us here, but--"
"Well, he has met you. I'm O'Neil," broke in the other. "And it was Iwho gave you the information."
"Oh, Father!" cried Neale, "then you're not one of the--"
"I'm not one of the thieves; though I admit my living here among themmade it look so," said Mr. O'Neil. "It is easily explained. One of themen made a fraudulent claim to part of a mine I own in Alaska, and I hadto remain in his company until I could disprove his statements. This Ihave done. The matter is all cleared up, and I concluded it was time tohand the rascals over to the law. So I sent the letter to theauthorities, and I'm glad it is all ended."
"So am I!" cried Neale. "Then you did strike it rich after all?"
"No, not exactly rich, Son. I was pretty lucky, though, and I struck paydirt in the Klondike. I wrote your Uncle Bill about it, but probably theletters miscarried. I never was much of a letter writer, anyhow. And Inever knew until the other day that you were so anxious to find me. Icouldn't have left here anyhow, though, for I had to straighten out myaffairs. Now everything is all right. Do you still want to arrest me?"he asked the constable.
"No," replied Mr. Newcomb. "I reckon you're a friend of the law and, inconsequence, you're my friend. Now come on, boys, we'll lock up theother birds."
Neale walked by the side of his father and it was difficult to say whotalked the most. Mr. Howbridge accompanied the constable and from himlearned how the raid had been planned through information sent by Mr.O'Neil.
When the party reached the houseboat, whither some of the deputies hadpreceded with the prisoners, the sight of a figure on the upper deckattracted the attention of Neale and the lawyer.
"Agnes!" gasped her guardian. "How did you get here?"
"On the _Bluebird_. I just couldn't bear to be left behind, and so Islipped on board again after you said good-by on the dock. There wasn'tany shooting after all," she added, as if disappointed.
"No, it was easier than I expected," admitted the lawyer. "And, whileyou should not have come, this may interest you!"
"Our jewelry!" cried Agnes as she took the extended box. Quickly shelooked over the contents.
"Only two little pins are missing!" she reported. "We shan't mind theloss of them. Oh, how glad I am to get my things! And mother's weddingring, too! How did it happen?"
"I think you have Neale's father to thank," answered Mr. Howbridge.
"Oh, I am so glad!" cried Agnes, and she was happy in more ways thanone. "What did I tell you, Neale O'Neil?"
The _Bluebird_ made a quick trip back to the point and the rascals werelocked up. Two of them proved to be the thieves who had robbed Ruth andAgnes, though their ill-gotten gains did them little good, as they darednot dispose of them. The third prisoner was not involved in thatrobbery, though he was implicated in others around the lake. Eventually,all three went to prison for long terms.
Neale's father, of course, was not involved. As he explained, he hadlocated a mine in Alaska and it made him moderately well off. But he hada rascally partner, and it was necessary for Mr. O'Neil to stay withthis man until a settlement was made. It was this partner who haddealings with the thieves; and that had made it look bad for Neale'sfather. This man was arrested later.
As soon as he saw how matters were on Cedar Island Mr. O'Neil decided togive the evil men over to the law, and he carried out his plan asquickly as possible. The two "Klondikers" who had inquired about roomsfrom the Stetson family were part of the thieving gang, and they werealso later arrested. They were planning a bank robbery in town, and thetwo men who took the jewelry from Ruth and Agnes were part of the samecrowd. The robbery of the girls, of course, was done on the spur of themoment. The two ragged men had merely taken shelter in the doorway,after having called at the Stetson house to get the "lay of the land."And as such characters are always on the watch to commit some crime theyhope may profit them, these two acted on the impulse.
For some reason the bank robbery plans miscarried, and the two jewelryrobbers started back for Lake Macopic, where they had left someconfederates, including Mr. O'Neil's partner. The rascals imagined theCorner House girls were following them, hence the several quickdepartures in the motor boat. Whether one of these men looked in thewindow of Tess was never learned.
"I'm so glad our suspicions of Hank were unfounded," said Ruth, whenlater the events of the day were being talked over in the _Bluebird_cabin.
"Yes, that ring was his mother's," said Neale. "He told me about itafter I had hinted that we had been watching him. And, oh, Father, I'mso glad I found you!" he added. "You're through with the Klondike;aren't you?"
"Yes, I'm going to sell out my mine and go into some other business."
"Do you mean back to the circus?" asked Mr. Howbridge.
"No. Though I want to see Bill and the others."
"Why don't you stay with us and finish the trip on the houseboat, Mr.O'Neil?" Ruth asked.
"Thank you, I will," he answered, after the others had added theirurgings to Ruth's invitation.
And so, after the somewhat exciting adventures the trip was resumed, andeventually the craft was delivered to her owner.
Before this, however, happy days were spent cruising about Lake Macopic,the children and Mrs. MacCall enjoying life to the utmost. There weredays of fishing and days of bathing and splashing in the limpid watersnear sandy beaches. Tess and Dot were taught to swim by Neale, and hisfather made the children laugh by imitating seals he had seen in Alaska.
Hank, too, seemed to enjoy the vacation days, and he proved a valuablehelper, forming a great friendship with Mr. O'Neil. During those daysRuth received two more letters from Luke and one from his sister. Lukewas still working hard at the summer hotel, and Cecile reported that thesick aunt was now much better. Luke congratulated Neale on finding hisfather. And then, as was usual, he added a page or two intended only forRuth's eyes,--words that made her eyes shine with rare happiness.
"Oh, we had a lovely time!" said Agnes when they disembarked for thelast time. "The nicest summer vacation we ever spent."
"Indeed it was," agreed Ruth.
"And when I get home I'm going to send Mr. Henry my doll and a kitten sohe won't be lonesome on that island in winter," observed Dot.
"And I'm going to send Mr. Tom something," declared Tess. "He likes me,and maybe when I grow up I'll marry him!"
"Oh, what a child!" laughed Ruth.
"I'm glad you liked the trip," said the lawyer. "And I think we canagree that it accomplished something," he added as he looked at Nealeand his father.
"It made my Alice-doll a lot better!" piped up Dot, and they alllaughed.
And so, in this jolly mood, we will take leave of the Corner HouseGirls.
THE END
CHARMING STORIES FOR GIRLS
(From eight to twelve years old)
THE CORNER HOUSE GIRLS SERIES
BY GRACE BROOKS HILL
Four girls from eight to fourteen years of age receive word that a richbachelor uncle has died, leaving them the old Corner House he occupied.They move into it and then the fun begins. What they find and do willprovoke many a hearty laugh. Later, they enter school and make manyfriends. One of these invites the girls to spend a few weeks at abungalow owned by her parents; and the adventures they meet with makevery interesting reading. Clean, wholesome stories of humor andadventure, sure to appeal to all young girls.
1 CORNER HOUSE GIRLS. 2 CORNER HOUSE GIRLS AT SCHOOL. 3 CORNER HOUSE GIRLS UNDER CANVAS. 4 CORNER HOUSE GIRLS
IN A PLAY. 5 CORNER HOUSE GIRLS' ODD FIND. 6 CORNER HOUSE GIRLS ON A TOUR. 7 CORNER HOUSE GIRLS GROWING UP. 8 CORNER HOUSE GIRLS SNOWBOUND. 9 CORNER HOUSE GIRLS ON A HOUSEBOAT. 10 CORNER HOUSE GIRLS AMONG THE GYPSIES. 11 CORNER HOUSE GIRLS ON PALM ISLAND.
BARSE & HOPKINS, PUBLISHERS
Newark N.J.--New York, N.Y.
THE POLLY PENDLETON SERIES
BY DOROTHY WHITEHILL
Polly Pendleton is a resourceful, wide-awake American girl who goes to aboarding school on the Hudson River some miles above New York. By herpluck and resourcefulness, she soon makes a place for herself and thisshe holds right through the course. The account of boarding school lifeis faithful and pleasing and will attract every girl in her teens.
1 POLLY'S FIRST YEAR AT BOARDING SCHOOL 2 POLLY'S SUMMER VACATION 3 POLLY'S SENIOR YEAR AT BOARDING SCHOOL 4 POLLY SEES THE WORLD AT WAR 5 POLLY AND LOIS 6 POLLY AND BOB
Cloth, Large 12mo., Illustrated.
BARSE & HOPKINS, PUBLISHERS
Newark N.J.--New York, N.Y.
CHICKEN LITTLE JANE SERIES
By LILY MUNSELL RITCHIE
Chicken Little Jane is a Western prairie girl who lives a happy, outdoorlife in a country where there is plenty of room to turn around. She is awide-awake, resourceful girl who will instantly win her way into thehearts of other girls. And what good times she has!--with her pets, herfriends, and her many interests. "Chicken Little" is the affectionatenickname given to her when she is very, very good, but when shemisbehaves it is "Jane"--just Jane!
Adventures of Chicken Little Jane Chicken Little Jane on the "Big John" Chicken Little Jane Comes to Town
With numerous illustrations in pen and ink
By CHARLES D. HUBBARD
BARSE & HOPKINS, PUBLISHERS
NEWARK, N. J.--NEW YORK, N. Y.
Dorothy Whitehill Series For Girls
Here is a sparkling new series of stories for girls--just what they willlike, and ask for more of the same kind. It is all about twin sisters,who for the first few years in their lives grow up in ignorance of eachother's existence. Then they are at last brought together and thingsbegin to happen. Janet is an independent go-ahead sort of girl; whileher sister Phyllis is--but meet the twins for yourself and beentertained.
6 Titles, Cloth, large 12mo., Covers in color.
1. JANET, A TWIN 2. PHYLLIS, A TWIN 3. THE TWINS IN THE WEST 4. THE TWINS IN THE SOUTH 5. THE TWINS' SUMMER VACATION 6. THE TWINS AND TOMMY JR.
BARSE & HOPKINS, PUBLISHERS
NEWARK, N. J.--NEW YORK, N. Y.
THE MARY JANE SERIES
BY CLARA INGRAM JUDSON
Cloth, 12mo. Illustrated.
With picture inlay and wrapper.
Mary Jane is the typical American little girl who bubbles over with funand the good things in life. We meet her here on a visit to hergrandfather's farm where she becomes acquainted with farm life and farmanimals and thoroughly enjoys the experience. We next see her going tokindergarten and then on a visit to Florida, and then--but read thestories for yourselves.
Exquisitely and charmingly written are these books which every littlegirl from five to nine years old will want from the first book to thelast.
1 MARY JANE--HER BOOK 2 MARY JANE--HER VISIT 3 MARY JANE'S KINDERGARTEN 4 MARY JANE DOWN SOUTH 5 MARY JANE'S CITY HOME 6 MARY JANE IN NEW ENGLAND 7 MARY JANE'S COUNTY HOME
BARSE & HOPKINS, PUBLISHERS
NEWARK, N. J.--NEW YORK, N. Y.
The Corner House Girls on a Houseboat Page 25