Part 12 (1/2)

”He's such a peppery and ready-to-act little chap,” answered Fred, ”that I'm of the opinion he'd round Corny up in a rush. That might turn out to be the right thing. And again there's a chance it'd play him a mean trick. What if he were innocent after all? We'd feel that we'd done him a great wrong.”

This thought worked upon Colon's mind at once, for he had a very tender heart.

”Yes,” he added, reflectively. ”And then, how about that boy and girl?

Like as not they're in some place out of town, right now, depending on their uncle to fetch home the bacon. They'd have to go hungry a long time if Corny were locked up in the cooler. I'd hate to think of that same happening, from what you and Bristles told me about the poor kids.”

”That leaves us up in the air, you see,” pursued Fred. ”We don't know what our duty is---to tell the Chief, or wait to see what happens.”

”Now, by that I reckon you mean wait and see if anything is pulled off again in town, or around here?” suggested Colon; ”that is, in the way of a robbery like old Mr. Periwinkle's loss of his money and papers. Whew!

I must say it's getting interesting all of a sudden.”

”I was wondering,” Fred ventured, ”if Corny, provided he did rob the old miser, and has spent the small sum of money that was taken, could have heard that Mr. Periwinkle has said he'd pay a certain sum, and no questions asked, for the safe return of his papers!”

At that Colon puckered up his thin lips, and emitted a soft whistle, as if to thus display his surprise.

”Queer I never thought of that idea, Fred,” he said, nodding his head in a way to indicate that on the whole he was inclined to agree with what his companion had advanced.

”It's always possible, you know,” he was told. ”If only the papers could be returned without Corny showing his face! Now, he may have some sort of a plan like that to play, which would account for his coming to town again. I wonder if it'd be the right thing for me to see Mr. Periwinkle, and kind of put him on his guard?”

”Could you do it without telling him all about Corny?” demanded Colon.

”That's the question,” admitted Fred. ”That's where the hitch seems to come in the scheme. The old miser is apt to jump at conclusions, if he sees a chance to get his papers back, and bag the thief at the same time.

Once he suspects that I know who was in that cave where the empty tin cracker box was found, he'll insist on sending for Chief Sutton, and laying some sort of clever trap.”

”Well, if Corny is really guilty, he ought to suffer for it; and I wouldn't care a single pin only for that boy and girl. If we knew where they were kept right now, so we could bring 'em into town, and get folks interested in putting both in good families, I'd say go ahead and have Corny caught.”

”I wonder what Bristles would say about it,” mused Fred.

”Huh! I c'n tell you that,” grunted the tall boy, immediately.

”Then suppose you do, Colon.”

”Bristles,” continued the other, confidently, ”would hunch his shoulders this way, as he nearly always does, and then he'd say: whatever you think is the right caper, Fred, count me in. I'm ready to sneeze every time you take snuff!' That's the way Bristles would talk, mark my words.”

Fred laughed. He could not help feeling flattered at such an evidence of confidence on the part of these two chums; yet he feigned to disagree with Colon.

”I don't know about that, Colon, Bristles has a mind of his own, and sometimes it takes a lot of argument to convince him. You've got to batter down his walls, and knock all the props out from under him before he'll throw up the white flag. If I get half a chance to run across lots to-night, I'll try to see him. He ought to be put wise to what's going on.

”That's only fair, Fred, because he was there when we struck that cave.

And if I remember aright, Bristles was the first to discover about Corny having been the one who used that cooking fire.”

”Don't pa.s.s the word around, Colon, mind,” cautioned Fred.

”You didn't need to say that, my boy,” remarked the other, with a vein of reproach in his voice, ”because you ought to know I'm not one of the blabbing kind. I c'n keep a secret better'n anybody in our cla.s.s. They might pump me forever and never learn a thing.”

”When was it you saw Corny?” Fred asked, as though desirous of obtaining the fullest information possible.