CHAPTER XIX
STARTLING NEWS FROM HOME
"Here the conquering hero comes!"
"Say, but he looks like a real Lord, doesn't he?"
"Don't forget to bow to all the people you pass, Sir Tubbs!"
So the cries rang on, as the carriage and the carryall rolled away fromthe Ashton depot.
"Say, look here, what does this mean?" stammered the dudish student. "Itell you I'm no lord, or knight, or anything like that! I was over toParis, not London, don't you know. Weally, this is--er--veryembarrassing!" he pleaded, wildly.
"Stand up and make a speech, when you get to the campus, Willie boy!"sang out Tom. "Give 'em something grand on high finance, or railroadbuilding, or cooking beans, or something like that."
"Why, Tom, weally, don't you know, I know nothing of--er--railroads,or--er--beans. Please stop the carriage, I wish to get out. Thisis--er--awful, don't you know!" fairly panted the dude. He had stood up,but now the carriage gave a jolt and down he sat very suddenly.
On through the town and straight for the college drove the two turnouts,the students yelling themselves hoarse. Many at Brill had been let intothe secret, and when the grounds were reached a big crowd wascongregated, to take part in the sport.
"Here they are!"
"Hurrah for Lord Tubbs!"
"How are you, Duke William Philander!"
"Do you wear the order of the Red Garter?"
"No, it's the Blue Suspender he was decorated with."
"Speech! speech!" came the cry from every side.
Then the carriage came to a halt and was immediately surrounded by ahowling mob. A few had flowers that they threw at William Philander,while others had supplied themselves with stalks of celery, carrot andbeet tops, and similar things, which they sent forward with force anddirectness.
"Here's a bouquet for you!"
"My kindest regards, Tubbs!"
"Oh, isn't it grand to be a real, live Emperor!"
"Hi, let up, will you!" fairly shrieked poor Tubbs, as the things hithim in the head and shoulders, "Let up, I tell you! Oh, what a joke! Letme get out of the carriage! I can't make a speech! Stop throwing at me!Oh, my eye!" he added, as a beet top caught him in the left optic. Then,watching his chance, he leaped from the carriage, dove like a madmanthrough the crowd, and rushed for one of the dormitories, quicklydisappearing from view.
"Good bye, my boy, good bye!" sang out several. And then Tom sent thedress-suit case after him; and the fun came to an end.
"Poor William Philander, he won't forget that in a hurry!" was Dick'scomment. "Just the same, I am afraid the sport got a little too rough atthe end."
"Maybe it did," answered Tom. "If you want it, I'll speak to Tubbs andapologize."
"I see that apology in a gold frame right now!" declared Sam, with alaugh. "Tom, let him alone and he'll be all right."
All of the boys wondered how Tubbs would act when he showed himself.Much to their amazement he called Tom to one side that evening and shookhands cordially.
"It was all a mistake--this report that I had--er--been knighted, don'tyou know," he lisped. "But it was very nice to get up such a receptionin my honor, Thomas, really it was--although it got a bit rough towardsthe end. But I know it was meant well, and I thank you, honestly I do."And the dudish student shook Tom's hand again.
And then, for once in his life, Tom Rover didn't know what to say. As heafterwards admitted, he was completely "stumped." Poor, innocent Tubbshad really thought it an honor! To Tom that was "the limit."
"I'll never really know that chap," he said to his brothers. "His headmust be filled with sawdust and punk."
"Well, let him drop now," advised Dick. "Quit your fooling, Tom, and getat your studies. You know what I told you. We may have to leave Brillbefore we anticipated. And we want to get all the learning we can."
"Have you heard anything more from dad?" demanded the fun-loving Roverquickly.
"Yes, a letter came this evening. That business affair is in a worsetwist than ever. But dad hopes he can straighten it out. But he writesthat he isn't feeling as well as he was. If he gets sick, we'll have tojump in--or at least I will--and take his place."
"We'll all jump in," was Sam's comment. "I'd like to do something in abusiness way."
"Did dad give any particulars?" asked Tom.
"None but what we already know. He felt too ill to write much."
"Has he heard anything more of Crabtree or Sobber?"
"Nothing."
During the following week there was some excitement at Brill because ofa football game between that college and another institution oflearning. It was a gala occasion, and the Rover boys hired athree-seated carriage and brought Dora, Nellie and Grace to the game.Brill won the contest, and a great jubilee lasting far into the nightfollowed. The Rovers and the three girls had a little feast of their ownat the Ashton hotel, and on the way back to Hope the young people sangsongs, and had a good time generally. Perhaps some very sentimentalthings were said--especially between Dick and Dora--but if so, who canblame them? The placing of that engagement ring on Dora's finger by Dickhad made them both exceedingly happy.
During those days the boys took several short trips in the _Dartaway_,once landing in the field on the Dawson farm. They sought out DanMurdock and asked him if he had seen anything more of Koswell andLarkspur.
"Yes, I see 'em last week, but they got out of sight in the woods, andI couldn't find 'em," answered the farm hand.
"Around here?" asked Dick.
"No, that was on the edge of the big woods back of Hope Seminary. I wasdriving along, with some crates of eggs for the girls' college, when Isee 'em, sitting on a fallen tree, smoking cigarettes. I stopped myhosses and spoke to 'em, and then they up and run into the woods as fastas they could go! I looked for 'em, but I couldn't git on their tracknohow."
"What can they be doing up around Hope?" murmured Sam.
"Maybe they are sweet on some of the girls," returned Tom. "I know theyused to go up there, when they attended Brill."
"I hope, if they visit Hope, they don't speak to Dora and the others,"said Dick, as his face clouded.
"Maybe we better warn the girls," said Sam.
"No, don't do that," said Tom. "You'd only scare them. They know Koswelland Larkspur well enough. Don't say anything." And so the matter wasdropped.
Two days later came a special delivery letter from home that filled thethree boys with intense interest.
"Josiah Crabtree and Tad Sobber have at last shown their hand," wrote Mr. Anderson Rover. "They have sent an unsigned communication to me demanding fifty thousand dollars. They give me just two weeks in which to get the money together in cash and place it at a certain spot along the road between our home and Oak Run. If the money is not forthcoming they promise to blow up every building on the farm. The communication says, 'You can pay half of this and get the other half from your lady friends.' Which means, of course, the Stanhopes and Lanings."
"Of all the cowardly things!" cried Tom, after listening to the above."Why, it's a regular sort of Black Hand communication!"
"So it is," added Sam. "What else does dad say," he went on, and Dickcontinued the reading of the letter:
"At first I was inclined to treat the communication lightly and laugh at it, but then came another letter--a mere scrawl, stating they would give me a taste of what to expect that night. I told the detective of this and he came to the house and remained all night with us. About three o'clock in the morning there was an explosion outside, and when we dressed and ran out we found one of the chicken houses blown to flinders by dynamite or some other explosive. About one hundred chickens were destroyed."
"Just listen to that!" gasped Tom. "Oh, the rascals!"
"And Uncle Randolph's prize stock chickens!" murmured Sam. "That musthave made his heart ache!"
"I'll wager Aunt Martha was scared to death," added Tom. And Dick readon:
"Of course there was great excitement, and four of us, the detective, Ness, Pop, and myself, went after the rascals, leaving your Uncle Randolph to look after your aunt and the cook, both of whom were very much frightened. We hunted around until daylight, but without success. Then we went to the old mill in the auto, but the place was deserted. After that I notified the local authorities, and I have hired ten watchmen to guard the farm and every building on it. I have also sent for two more detectives, and I am hoping that, sooner or later, they will be able to trace the scoundrels and run them down."
"Does he say how he is feeling?" questioned Sam, as his brother pausedin the reading of the letter.
"Yes, he says he is about the same, but that Uncle Randolph is very muchupset over the loss of his chickens and wants to know if they hadn'tbetter pay the money demanded."
"Oh, I hope they don't pay a cent!" cried Tom.
"So do I," added Sam. "But I don't want to see them blown up either," hecontinued, seriously.
"None of us want that," said Dick. "But I'd not give them a cent--I'd beblown up a dozen times before I'd do it!" he continued, firmly.
"Do they want us home?" asked Tom.
"No, dad says it will do no good for us to come home. He says he willwrite or telegraph if anything new develops. He thinks, with the extrawatchmen on guard, and the detectives at work, Crabtree and Sobber willget scared and leave them alone."
"I hope they do," said Sam. He heaved a deep sigh. "Gracious! it seemsto me that no sooner are we out of one trouble than we get intoanother!"
"That is true."
"It's too bad--to have this piled on poor dad when he's so worried aboutthat business affair."
"Well, you know the old saying, 'troubles never come singly,'" answeredthe older brother.
After that the three boys watched the mails anxiously for over a week.Then came another letter from their father, in which he stated thatnothing new had developed. Then came another wait--until the day afterthat set by Crabtree and Sobber for the delivery of the fifty thousanddollars,--when Dick got a telegram, as follows:
"All quiet. Received another letter, to which I have paid no attention. Feel almost sure the rascals have left this part of the country. All fairly well."
"Well, that's some comfort," was Tom's comment. "I hope they have goneaway, and that we never see or hear of them again."
"Don't comfort yourself that way, Tom," answered Dick. "They are boundto show their hand again, sooner or later. We won't be safe from themuntil they are in jail."