Chapter XVII: An Interview with George Strong

“Knocked ’em down!” cried Andy.

“What a whopper!” added Pepper. “Coulter went down for some reason we don’t know, and Paxton ran into him.”

“And we were all ahead of them at the time,” put in Jack.

“Well, I don’t know anything more than what I heard,” said Dale.

“You had nothing at all to do with it?” questioned Harry Blossom.

“No. But I can tell you something worth knowing,” said Jack, and related how Ritter’s cronies had tried to keep them in a “pocket,” as it is termed, and how they had slipped out. “They are mad because of that I guess,” he continued.

“I know they lost money on this race,” said Bart Conners. “I just learned that they made bets that either they or Ritter would win.”

“To my mind, it is nothing but a put-up job,” said Andy flatly. “They really bet on Ritter and they plotted to hold us back, knowing we really stood a good chance to come in ahead.”

“But none of us reckoned on Joe,” said Jack, with a grin. “I don’t begrudge him the victory.”

“Not for a minute!” answered Andy.

None of the chums did, for Joe was a prince of good fellows, even though rather quiet and studious. All went up to shake him by the hand and congratulate him.

“I don’t know how I did it myself,” said Joe. “I didn’t think I could win at the start, but after I had gone a couple of miles I found that I was in prime condition, and then I just let myself out, that’s all.”

Ritter had retired, thoroughly disgusted with the outcome of the race. Without loss of time he sought out Paxton and Coulter.

“Well, I’ve lost, and I’ve got to hand over every dollar I can scrape up,” he said, uglily.

“You needn’t blame me,” answered Coulter. “We did our best to keep the others back.”

“You didn’t keep Joe Nelson back. He was at the front nearly all the way.”

“You told us to keep Ruddy, Ditmore and Snow back—you didn’t say a word about Nelson,” growled Paxton.

“Well, who imagined he’d come in first? I didn’t think he’d last more than six or seven miles.”

“If your money is gone, so is mine,” sighed Coulter. “And I’ll be about ten dollars in debt in the bargain.”

“I am in debt, too,” added Paxton. “And besides, look at both of us,” and he pointed to their numerous scratches, now covered with court-plaster.

“Somebody said you were going to make a complaint against Ruddy and his chums?”

“So we were—when we thought one or another of ’em would come in ahead,” answered Paxton. “But as none of them won, what’s the use? We don’t want to get into a row if we can’t gain anything by it. If one of ’em had won, we might have raised a kick and had the winner disqualified—and saved our cash.”

“Were they to blame at all?” asked Ritter, curiously.

“No—but you needn’t tell outsiders so,” answered Gus Coulter.

While this talk was going on Jack and Andy sought out Mr. Strong. They found the assistant teacher in one of the classrooms, marking some lesson papers.

“Mr. Strong, we would like to speak to you for a few minutes in private,” said the young major.

“I am at your service, Major Ruddy,” answered George Strong, with a smile.

“We want to ask you about those insane men,” continued Jack. “We hate to bring the matter up, but something has happened of which we think you should be informed.”

“You mean my relatives, Mr. Shaff and Mr. Callax?” questioned George Strong, quickly, and now he was all attention.

“Yes,” said Andy. “Are they in custody?”

“I think so. I left them in care of a relative in Malone, in the upper part of this state. They went to Malone, you know, after they left Ithaca. The relative, a party named Spelterly, caught them with ease, and he promised me to put them in a private sanitarium. But why do you ask about this? Have you seen or heard of them?”

“We think we have, although we are not sure,” answered Jack, and then he and Andy told of what had occurred at the Chetwood cottage and when the bicycle had broken down. At the recital George Strong shook his head slowly and sorrowfully.

“This looks very much as if they were at large again and up to their old tricks,” he said. “I’ll have to look into it without delay.”

“If you go out to hunt the men up, won’t you let us go with you?” asked Andy.

“Perhaps. But I want to make certain they are at large at first.”

“Well, those men ought to be rounded up, no matter who they are.”

“That is true. But if they are not Mr. Callax and Mr. Shaff then I think I’ll allow the regular authorities to do the work,” answered the teacher.

The great bicycle race was the talk of Putnam Hall for several days and Joe Nelson was warmly congratulated over his victory. Pepper, Jack and Andy waited for the proposed “kick” from Paxton and Coulter, but it did not materialize.

“They know better than to make such a complaint,” said Andy, at last. But Jack guessed the truth.

“They found out we didn’t win,” said he, “so a complaint wouldn’t help them, so far as the outcome of the contest is concerned.”

Jack had already turned his sloop over to the shipbuilders to have the necessary repairs and alterations made, and now received word that the _Alice_ would be ready for him on the following Monday afternoon.

“Now you can get ready for that race with the _Ajax_,” said Pepper, when he heard of this. “I hope you beat the Pornell craft all hollow.”

“I hope so myself, but I heard yesterday that Fred Century had his boat in A1 condition and was doing wonders with her.”

“Well, you’ll do wonders with the _Alice_, and I know it,” said Pepper encouragingly.

On Friday night Jack and Andy were called into Mr. Strong’s private room. The assistant teacher looked much worried.

“I have just received word from my relative in Malone,” he said. “It appears that Bart Callax and Paul Shaff were confined in a private sanitarium in Syracuse. But they escaped some time ago, and though the keepers have hunted everywhere for them they have not been found.”

“Then the men in the green masks and hoods must have been them,” cried the young major.

“I am afraid you are right, Major Ruddy, and it worries me greatly. I really do not know what to do. I hate to make a public affair of this—especially in view of what has occurred in the past.”

“Why not start a private hunt for the two men?” suggested Andy. “We are willing to do all we can to aid you.”

“I know you are and I am thankful to you for it,” said the teacher warmly.

“To-morrow is Saturday,” said the young major. “Why not organize a party and search the woods back of the Chetwood home? We may be able to get on the trail of the pair.”

The matter was talked over for half an hour, and in the end George Strong said he would go out the next morning, and take Andy and Jack with him.

“Can’t you take Pepper Ditmore, too, and Stuffer—I mean Paul—Singleton?” asked Jack. “I know they won’t say a word to anybody, and you may need them—if we find the men and they show fight.”

“I want no violence, Major Ruddy. I think we made a mistake before by not treating Mr. Callax and Mr. Shaff very gently.”

“You can’t treat a man gently if he wants to club you,” answered Andy bluntly.

“That is true, and we’ll have to arm ourselves, I suppose, in case of emergency.” George Strong mused for a moment. “Yes, you may include Ditmore and Singleton in the party—but tell them to keep quiet about it. I do not wish this affair to become the talk of the whole school.”

It was arranged they should leave Putnam Hall directly after breakfast. They would first visit the Chetwood cottage and from that point endeavor to trace the flight of the insane men.

“They must be stopping somewhere,” said the teacher. “Maybe they have some sort of hut in the woods.”

“And they wanted that looking-glass to furnish it with,” added Andy and started to laugh, but quickly subsided, for he did not want to give George Strong pain.

“It is a terrible thing to be out of one’s head,” said the teacher. “I can remember when both of those men were as clear-minded as anybody. But after they lost their money they seemed to let their brains go with it.”

“It certainly is strange that they were both affected,” said Jack.

“Yes, that is something I can hardly understand myself,” answered the teacher. “Although they are closely related and have the same blood flowing in their veins.”