“Don’t let them see you,” called Jack, as the twins were about to dash down the slope. “Get back there out of sight.”
“Oh, they’ll know we did it, all right enough,” answered Spouter. “Come on down and have it out with them.”
This was what the majority desired, and before Glutts and the others could recover from their astonishment and dismay Gif and his crowd were down the slope.
“Huh! so you were the fellows to roll those snowballs down on us,” growled Bill Glutts, as he rubbed his leg where some of the hot coffee had been spilled upon it.
“That’s a fine way to treat a fellow,” said Werner, digging some snow from his ear.
“And you spoiled all the lunch!” wailed Codfish, looking around for his cap, which had been knocked off. “Oh dear! I wish I hadn’t come to this out-of-the-way place!”
“Shut up your whining!” roared Werner. “You make me sick!”
“I don’t care. I told you yesterday I wanted to go home,” answered Codfish complainingly. “I hate it up here!”
“Well, go home then!” snapped Werner. “Go home this minute if you want to. I’m sick of having you around.”
“You’d do much better, Codfish, if you wouldn’t train with fellows like Werner and Glutts,” remarked Jack.
“If I leave them will you fellows show me the way back to Timminsport?” questioned the sneak of Colby Hall pleadingly. It was plainly to be seen that he had had no easy time of it since he had come up into the woods.
“That depends,” said Gif, and caught the youth by the wrist. “Tell me, Codfish, were you at our Lodge the other day—the day the whole place was rough-housed?”
“No, I wasn’t, Gif. Really and truly I wasn’t!” cried the sneak, in alarm.
“Were Werner and Glutts alone?”
“Yes, yes! I had nothing to do with it!”
“See here, Codfish, you keep your mouth shut!” roared Glutts, and he moved forward as if to strike the small youth who cowered before him.
“You keep your distance, Glutts,” admonished Jack. “If Codfish is tired of staying with you fellows, he’s going to leave, and you’re not to say anything about it.”
“What right had you fellows to smash those snowballs down on us?” questioned Werner, with an angry look in his eyes.
“What right had you fellows to come and upset Cedar Lodge, destroying some of our stores, and walking off with some of the others?” questioned Jack sternly.
“We didn’t walk off with anything,” answered Werner quickly. “What we did we had a right to do—to pay you back for what you did to our stores in the sleigh.”
“We didn’t take any of your things,” put in Fred quickly; “and a whole lot of our stuff is missing.”
“We didn’t take a thing away—not a thing,” put in Glutts, and he smiled grimly to himself as he spoke.
“I know what they did!” cried Codfish quickly. “If you’ll take me along with you, and see that I get to Timminsport safely, I’ll tell you where your things are.”
“You say a word, Codfish, and I’ll lambaste the life out of you!” yelled Werner.
“You won’t touch Codfish!” broke in Jack sturdily. “And if he wants to go with us, he’ll go.”
“I want to go!” wailed the sneak. “I don’t want to stay with them another minute. But how am I to get my things that are up at their shack?” he questioned helplessly.
“Well go up there with you,” answered Gif.
A war of words followed, and then in uncontrolled rage Werner and Glutts attacked Jack and Gif. Half a dozen blows were exchanged, and then Glutts attempted to run away while Werner attempted to use the butt of his gun as a club. Andy tripped Glutts up, and Spouter caught Werner from behind, and as a consequence of the general mix-up the two bullies received a well-deserved drubbing. Then their weapons were discharged and their ammunition was taken away from them, and they were told to march back to Tony Duval’s shacks.
Here, as they expected, our friends had another set-to with the French-Canadian. Tony Duval wanted to take sides with Werner and Glutts, but the others would not listen.
“This young man is going with us, and he is going to take his things with him,” announced Gif, pointing to Codfish. “If you make any trouble for us, Duval, I’ll at once notify my father and my uncle, and likewise the authorities at Portview. Your reputation around here is already none of the best, and I’ll see to it that you are treated as you deserve.”
“Bah! what do I care for you or your father or your uncle?” cried Tony Duval, in a rage. “This is my property. You will leave it at once.”
“We’ll leave when this young man has his things, and not before,” answered Jack, and now he, too, fingered his gun in a suggestive manner.
Tony Duval realized that he was outnumbered and that the boys from Cedar Lodge meant business. He grumbled a good deal and talked in a whisper with Werner and Glutts. In the meanwhile, Codfish hurriedly gathered together his few belongings, and presently announced that he was ready to leave.
“Now, one thing more,” said Gif, turning to the two bullies. “Don’t you dare to show your faces anywhere near Cedar Lodge again. If you come on our property, you come at your own peril.”
“Oh, you don’t know how to take a joke,” grumbled Glutts.
“We’ll do as we please,” added Werner, but it was plainly to be seen that he was much disturbed.
The boys were about ready to leave the shack when they heard the sound of sleigh bells, and soon a two-seated sleigh came into sight drawn by a pair of powerful horses. The turnout drove directly to the front of the shack occupied by Tony Duval.
“Hello! there are those men again,” cried Gif.
All looked and saw that he referred to the Germans they had met on the road when looking for Cedar Lodge. The newcomers paid no attention to them, but leaped out of the sleigh and entered the Duval shack.
“I must go,” said Tony Duval abruptly. “And I want you to go, too, and never come back here again,” he added, and then hurried away.
“Who are those men?” questioned Jack, turning to Werner and Glutts.
“That’s none of your business,” answered Werner sourly. “You clear out of here and never come back.”
There seemed nothing to do but to leave the premises, yet the Rovers and their chums were curious to know who the Germans were and what their errand to Tony Duval’s shack could be. Yet they had no excuse for lingering longer, so presently they took their departure, Werner and Glutts looking sourly after them as they walked away.
“Do you know, I’d give a good deal to know more about those Germans,” remarked Jack, as they trudged along. “I wonder what they want here? They can’t be hunters, because they haven’t any hunting outfits.”
“They certainly couldn’t be up here for business,” returned Spouter, “because there is no business to speak of in this vicinity. Why, there isn’t even a farm or a farmer around here, and the nearest logging camp is miles away, so they told me at Henryville.”
“I’ll tell you what we might do,” said Gif. “We might pass into the woods and then turn around and come back again up behind Tony Duval’s shack. We can watch and see what the Germans do, and maybe we’ll hear what they and Duval have to say.”
“That’s an idea!” cried Jack. “I don’t know but what we had better act on it.”
CHAPTER XXIV
A CONVERSATION OF IMPORTANCE
“Do you know anything about those Germans?” questioned Fred, turning to Codfish.
“I know they came to see Tony Duval once or twice before,” answered the sneak of Colby Hall. “They and Duval seem to have some secret business between them.”
“Do you know what it is?” asked Jack.
At this Codfish shook his head.
“Did Werner and Glutts have anythin
g to do with it?” came from Gif.
“They went to Duval’s cabin once when the Germans were there. I asked to go along, but they wouldn’t let me. After that Bill and Gabe took some kind of a message down to Timminsport for them. It was on their way back from the town that they stopped and made a mess of things at your Lodge. They were laughing and joking about it when they got back, and that is how I know what took place.”
“You said you would tell us where the things that were taken away are,” came from Spouter.
“They are all in the barn under the hay—at least that is what Bill and Gabe said. They took ‘em out there in one of the bed sheets.”
“I guess that’s right,” came quickly from Gif. “I noticed that one of the sheets was missing.”
They had now reached the shelter of the forest, and here, after a little talk, it was decided that the twins and Fred should return to Cedar Lodge at once, taking Codfish with them, while Jack, Gif, and Spouter took a roundabout course leading to the rear of Tony Duval’s shack.
“We’ve got to be careful,” announced Jack. “For all we know, those Germans may be desperate characters.”
“And on the other hand they may be the most innocent fellows in the world,” added Spouter. “Remember, not all the German-Americans in this country are unpatriotic.”
The three soon reached a point where they could catch sight of Duval’s shack. They approached with caution so that they might not be seen from the single back window of which the rough building boasted. As the boys drew closer they saw that the window had been raised several inches. Evidently there was a good fire going inside of the shack, and with so many occupants the place had become overly warm.
“Then it’s all settled, and you’ll attend to the matter?” they heard one of the Germans remark, as they crawled up close to the building.
“Yes, I’ll do it,” answered Tony Duval. “But I’ll be running a big risk.”
“Not if you are careful,” said another of the Germans.
“And don’t forget that you are being well paid for your work,” added a third German, “and that you are doing this for the country in which your mother was born.”
“I should not want to be caught,” grumbled Tony Duval. “If I was, the authorities might hang me.”
“Poof! be not so chicken-hearted,” said the German who had first spoken. “Now it is all arranged, be careful that you do not disappoint us,” he added sternly.
The three cadets had listened to this talk with intense interest. Now Jack could not resist the temptation to peer in at one corner of the window. He saw one of the Germans returning a wallet to his pocket, and saw Tony Duval take up several bank bills from the table and place them away in his hunting jacket. All of the Germans were on their feet, and now turned to the door, which one of them flung wide open.
“It’s all over; get back as far as you can to the woods,” whispered the oldest Rover boy, and led the way with the others at his heels.
When the cadets gained the shelter of the trees they saw the Germans get into the sleigh once more, and a few seconds later they drove away, Tony Duval watching their departure.
“Now what do you make of that, Jack?” questioned Gif. His face showed that he was puzzled.
“It looks to me as if those fellows were up to no good,” returned Jack.
“Did you notice what they said about Tony Duval’s mother?” cried Spouter. “That seemed to me as if his mother might have been a German woman.”
“That’s the way I took it, too,” returned Jack. “And then, don’t forget what Duval said—that the authorities might hang him if he was caught. That sounds as if they were asking him to do something which was against the law.”
“Yes, and a big crime at that,” put in Gif.
“I wonder where the Germans live?”
“Most likely at a distance. Otherwise they wouldn’t be using a sleigh.”
“We ought to look into this, and without delay,” said Jack decidedly.
“Let us make it our business to find out all about the Germans to-morrow,” said Gif. And so it was decided.
When the three arrived at Cedar Lodge they found the others were already there and had uncovered the goods hidden by Glutts and Werner under the hay in the barn. There they likewise found the bedsheet and the blanket which had previously been taken.
“Well, anyway, they didn’t rob us,” was Randy’s comment.
“I guess they were afraid to do that,” answered his twin. “They thought we might bring the law down on them.”
“I don’t like those fellows any more, and I intend to have nothing more to do with ‘em,” said Codfish.
“I guess they got you up here simply to make you toady to them.”
“That’s what they did, Andy. They made me carry all the things for ‘em, and made me cut the wood and wash the dishes and everything. I was a big fool to leave home, where I might have had a splendid time during the holidays.”
That evening came the first real drawback of the outing. In returning from the barn Spouter slipped on some ice and fell down with his foot under him. When he got up he found that his ankle was sprained, so that he could scarcely walk upon it. The others assisted him into the bungalow and did what they could to make him comfortable.
“I guess I’ll be all right in a day or two,” grumbled Spouter. “But this will prevent me from going out with you to-morrow to find out about those Germans.”
“Well, anyway, Spouter, you’ll have Codfish here to keep you company, and I’m sure he’ll be glad enough to get something to eat for you,” said Jack.
“I’ll do that willingly if only you won’t call me Codfish any more,” pleaded the cadet mentioned.
“All right, Henry. We’ll have to call you by your right name after this.” And at this the sneak of the school seemed much relieved. Secretly, he hated the nickname of Codfish exceedingly.
Early in the morning came a surprise. The boys heard a well-known whistle and beheld Jed Wallop approaching, this time on foot. The old hunter had his gun with him.
“Thought I’d make a day of it with you,” he announced. “That is, unless you’ve some other plans.”
“We were thinking of coming over to your place,” answered Jack. “We want to get some information.”
“All right. I’m the walkin’ dictionary and cyclopædia of this hull district,” answered Jed Wallop, with a grin. “Go on and fire all the questions at me that you want to.”
The old hunter listened with interest to what the cadets had to say concerning the Germans and Tony Duval, and also about the message Glutts and Werner had carried to Timminsport for the strangers.
“That don’t look right to me, at all,” he said, shaking his head gravely. “I’ve seen them Germans a few times myself, drivin’ around in that big sleigh of theirn. Sometimes there’s only two of ‘em, and then agin the four are in a bunch. Someone once told me that Duval had German blood in his veins, and I guess that’s right.”
“And I’m sure Glutts is German, and maybe Werner too,” said Randy.
“My idee is that them Germans are holdin’ out at an old house up River Bend way. It was the old Parkingham estate, but it hasn’t been used for years. It’s a mighty lonely place, too, right in the midst of the woods.”
“How far is that from here?” questioned Fred.
“About three miles, I should say.”
“Is there a pretty good road?” questioned Jack.
“The way by the mountain road would be all of five miles. But I know a fair trail through the woods that we might take.”
“Then let’s get there as soon as possible!” cried Gif. “Will you go with us, Jed?”
“O’ course I will! If them Germans are traitors to this country, or anything like that, I want to know it,” answered the old hunter decidedly. “I’m too old to
enlist for the war, but I ain’t too old to do my duty by Uncle Sam.”
“We might combine business with pleasure,” remarked Jack. “We can take our guns and game bags, and also a substantial lunch. Then if we see any signs of game going or coming, we can take our time about getting back here.”
“One thing that brought me over was this,” went on Jed Wallop. “I heard one of you young fellers sayin’ you wanted to get a crack at a silver fox. Well, I know a holler about two miles from here where quite a few foxes are hangin’ out. I’ve heard ‘em barkin’ around there more than once. I saw a silver fox up that way, too, and if he shows himself you might git what you are wishin’ fer.”
“Fine!” exclaimed Jack, with enthusiasm. “But is that hang-out of the foxes on the way to the old mansion you mentioned?”
“No, it ain’t. But we might work around that way comin’ back.”
A substantial lunch was prepared and packed, and then, after seeing to it that their guns were in good order, the five cadets and Jed Wallop left the Lodge.
“Mighty sorry I can’t go along,” said Spouter dolefully. “However, I wish you all the best of luck, not only in getting some information about those Germans, but also in locating the foxes.”
“And you can depend on me taking good care of Dick,” said Henry Stowell.
“All right, Henry,” answered Gif; for he and all of the others had been told how Codfish hated his nickname, and they had decided to do what they could toward dropping it, although, as Andy had remarked, “It might be pretty hard to stop calling a donkey a donkey all the time.”
“We’ll give the little sneak a chance to turn over a new leaf,” was what Jack had said in return. “I don’t believe Codfish is bad at heart—he’s only been traveling in the wrong company.”
It was a fair day with the sun coming up clearly over the treetops. It was still intensely cold, but there was little or no wind, for which the lads were thankful.
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