Part 9 (1/2)

”Are you sure of that, Bristles?” asked Fred, upon hearing his chum make such an astonis.h.i.+ng a.s.sertion with regard to that tawdry breastpin picked up in the cave.

”Fred, you c'n see for yourself that while this is a mighty cheap old thing, it's made in a queer shape,” Bristles went on to say.

”All of which is true, I admit,” the other confessed.

”Well, you know I've always been a great hand for noticing things,” said Bristles.

”Sure you have,” interrupted Colon, who was listening intently, although it was all ”Greek” to him; ”and 'specially when they happen to be connected with a pretty girl.”

Bristles grinned as he turned on the tall chum.

”Oh! rats!” he exclaimed, ”you're off your base this time, Colon, because she was a homely little thing, and with clothes on that I'd hate to see a sister of mine wearing. But I say again, and I'll keep on saying it---Sadie, if that was her name, was wearing this same brooch the day we pulled her brother Sam out of the river, when he'd broke into an airhole.”

”You understand what that might mean, don't you, Bristles?” pursued Fred.

”Why, I reckon now you're trying to make me see that the boy'n girl might have had something to do with the stealing of Mr. Periwinkle's money and papers,” was the way Bristles answered him.

”If the girl was here, the boy must have been, too,” said Fred.

”But gee whiz! Fred, that youngster didn't look as if he had half enough nerve to do a thing like that,” urged Bristles, scornfully.

”Oh! he had nerve enough, never fear,” Fred went on to remark, ”for you may remember he never gave a single peep himself, and it was the girl who did the shouting for help.”

”Might have been scared too much,” suggested Colon, wanting to have some say in the matter.

”No, I don't think he was,” replied Fred, ”because the girl told us he kept urging and demanding that she hold back and not try to help him, because his one fear seemed to be she would fall in too. But there's one thing we haven't seemed to figure on before, Bristles.”

”Say, I just bet you're going to spring that uncle on ne,” remarked the other, with surprising quickness.

”Why not,” demanded Fred, ”when we have learned that Corny Ludson has charge of the boy and girl, and must have been here in this cave with them. There was a man here, because I've found signs of his smoking several cheap cigars, throwing the stubs around afterwards.”

”What's that?” cried Colon, just then; ”say that name again for me, won't you?”

”Why, Corny Ludson, a man who seems to be uncle or guardian or something to the boy we pulled out of the Mohunk, the last time we ran my iceboat up river,” Bristles informed him.

Colon looked happy. No longer was he to remain ”sitting on the fence,”

without feeling he had any particular interest in the game.

Circ.u.mstances had managed it so that he could now enter the free-for-all race, and take his place in line.

”Now that's a rather odd name, you'll admit, boys,” he started to say in his slow, shrewd fas.h.i.+on, ”and it's not likely that there'd be two Corny Ludsons around this section of country; likewise having a couple of half-grown kids along in the bargain.”

”Go on, Colon; it begins to look like you knew something we want to hear the worst way,” Bristles urged.

”Here's the way it stands, then, fellows,” the obliging Colon continued.

”At first I didn't just catch the last name when you spoke about Sam and Sadie. That is why I didn't break in sooner. But Ludson gives it away.

He's the same man Mr. Peets the butcher was talking about one day some little time ago.”

”Yes, but tell us what he said, can't you?” urged Bristles.