Chapter XV: Meeting the Hindoo

Andy Carter, as it turned out, was playing his part in good faith. Perhaps he reasoned that he had been sufficiently treacherous, and that the very least he could do was to wind up a bad business on the square.

The basket, removed by him from the canvas wagon to prevent the Hindoo from making off with it, had been carried to a clump of bushes not far from the railroad tracks, on the north side of the show grounds, and covered with a pile of broken sticks and other refuse.

Men were already pulling down some of the auxiliary tents and loading them into wagons and driving the wagons to the waiting train. The elephants and nearly all the animal cages had been loaded, while the band wagons and the "chariots" had been stowed in their cars late in the afternoon.

"I suppose you're through with me, now?" inquired Carter, after Burton had secured the basket.

"I will be," said Burton, "as soon as I make sure that all the money is here."

"You'll be too late to catch the Hindoo," demurred Carter, "if you insist on going back to the wagon and counting over all that stuff."

"Then we'll lay the Hindoo by the heels before we count it. You can go with us, Carter. It'll do you good to see the fellow caught."

"He'll kill me!" declared Carter, drawing back.

"I guess he won't. There are too many of us for him to cut up very rough."

"If he sees all of us coming across the grounds, he'll suspect something and sheer off."

"There's sense in that, all right," remarked Burton. "On the whole, I believe I'll change my plans."

Burton stopped one of the wagons that was moving toward the train.

"Where's Harris?" he asked of the driver of the wagon.

"He's comin' right behind me," was the answer.

Harris was Burton's brother-in-law, and had always been in the showman's confidence. He was riding on a pile of tent poles, holding a couple of trunks on the load.

"Harris," called Burton, "I want you to take this basket down to the train for me. Don't let it get out of your hands."

"Another snake in it, Burton?" queried Harris, as he reached down for the basket.

"Well," answered Burton, "I wouldn't look into it to find out. Mind what I say and don't let the basket get away from you."

Having been reassured on this point by Harris, Burton, Matt, McGlory, and Carter moved on. Picking up two men at the dismantled animal tent, Burton turned Carter over to them.

"Andy has resigned," the showman explained dryly to the men, "and he wants to go to the train after his trunk. You men go with him, and keep hold of him all the time. Understand? See that he don't take anything but what belongs to him."

Carter was none too well liked among the show people, and the two men agreed cheerfully to look after him.

"Now," said Burton, as he walked off with Matt and McGlory, "we're in shape to meet the Hindoo. I don't know what I can do with the scoundrel after I get my hands on him. If he is put in jail here, I'll have to come back myself, or send somebody else, to make out a case against him. That wouldn't do--it would only cause extra expense and a loss of time. I guess we'll tie him up and take him along with us on section two of the train."

"Dhondaram ought to be made pay for what he has done," said Matt. "I think you ought to go to a little inconvenience, Burton, in the interests of law and order."

"The inconveniences may be more than you think, Matt. Suppose you would have to come back here to testify against the Hindoo? That would mean no aëroplane work for two or three days. I couldn't stand for that."

By that time, the three were close to the south side of the grounds. There were scattered clumps of bushes, here, and a few trees.

"We'd better hang back, Matt," whispered Burton, "while you go on and do the whistling. We'll be near enough to help you when Dhondaram shows himself. If he's too ugly, I'll use the revolver."

"He's got a bowie, Matt," cautioned McGlory. "Don't let him get a hack at you with it. He could help out Ben Ali's scheme of vengeance a good deal handier with the knife than with the cobra."

Matt stepped on ahead of Burton and McGlory, and began to whistle softly. He had not gone twenty feet before the whistle was answered and a dark figure stepped shadowily from behind some bushes.

"Carter Sahib!" came a low call.

"Dhondaram?" returned Matt.

"Here!" came the eager answer. "Have you brought the basket, sahib?"

"You know why I was to meet you," replied Matt, ignoring the question.

He disguised his voice as well as he could, and the low tone in which he spoke served still further to hide his identity.

The Hindoo could see that Matt was not carrying anything, and evidently his distrust was aroused.

"The sahib is fooling me!" he exclaimed. "You have not brought with you the basket. Part of the money is mine."

Matt had supposed that the Hindoo would run, as soon as he detected the trick. But he did not. On the contrary, he bounded straight at Matt and caught him by the shoulders.

"I want you, Dhondaram!" cried Matt, dropping his attempts at concealment. "You're a prisoner!"

Matt was strong, but the Hindoo was as slippery as an eel. With his arms about him, Matt tried to hold the villain, and in a measure succeeded. Dhondaram, however, heard the running feet and the voices of Burton and McGlory and redoubled his desperate efforts to escape.

He broke from Matt's arms, but Matt caught his left wrist and clung to it like a leech. With his right hand the Hindoo jerked his knife from his sash and made a vicious lunge with it.

Matt avoided the lunge, and before the attack could be repeated the showman and the cowboy had reached the scene.

Then, even with all three of them against him, Dhondaram made a desperate resistance. But numbers prevailed, and the rascally scoundrel's hands were bound at his back by means of his turban, which was opened out and twisted into a makeshift rope.

"He's a fighter, and no mistake," panted Burton, as he held the prisoner by one arm while McGlory took the other. "No more nonsense, Dhondaram," the showman threatened, flashing the weapon in front of his eyes. "You see what I've got? Well, look out that I don't use it."

The six-shooter, dimly visible in the gloom, had a quieting effect on the Hindoo.

"Don't shoot, sahib," he begged. "I go where you want."

"That's better," said Burton. "Trot along, and we'll soon be where we're going."

Their destination was the train, and they presently had Dhondaram in the sleeping car attached to section two. Very few of the show people had arrived, as yet, and an attempt was made to get a little information out of the prisoner.

But the Hindoo would not talk. In response to every question put to him, he shook his head and held his tongue.

"He'll talk with us in the morning," said Burton confidently. "Just tie his feet, boys, and leave him here. I've got to go back to the ticket wagon."

Matt and McGlory made the prisoner's feet secure, and a tap on the window called Matt's attention. Thinking it might be Burton, wishing to give him a private message, Matt left the car.

It was not Burton, but Carter and the two men set to watch him. Carter wanted his hat and coat.

While Matt was returning the borrowed garments, Carl and Ping came along, talking amiably with each other. Matt sent them into the car to look after the Hindoo, and also to tell McGlory to come out and help prepare the aëroplane for loading.

"I don't know, pard," said McGlory, as he and Matt made their way hastily to the place where the _Comet_ had been left, "but I reckon the motor boys have got a little the best of this ruction that Dhondaram kicked up. Burton has recovered the stolen money, Carter has been fired, and Dhondaram is a prisoner. Luck's on our side after all, eh?"

"That's the way it looks," answered Matt.