The Mystery at Putnam Hall: The School Chums' Strange Discovery

  CHAPTER XXIV

  ANDY SHOWS HIS COURAGE

  "Stop that, Ritter! What do you mean by kicking Andy when he is down?"

  It was Pepper who uttered these words, as he rushed up from the otherside of the campus.

  "I didn't kick him," retorted Ritter. He was startled, for he had notanticipated being seen.

  "You did!"

  "A fight! A fight!" was the cry, and soon a crowd of cadets began tocollect.

  Slowly Andy arose to his feet. His face was pale, for both the blow onthe chin and the kick in the side had been severe.

  "You--you brute!" he gasped. "You dirty brute!"

  "Hi, don't you call me a brute!" roared Ritter.

  "You are a brute!" put in Pepper. "No fair-minded chap would kick afellow when he was down."

  "Ditmore, you keep out of this," grumbled the bully.

  "I'm going to see that Andy has fair play," returned Pepper.

  The encounter had occurred after Captain Putnam and the teachers haddisappeared, so there was little chance of an interruption by the Hallauthorities.

  Andy stood up and tried to collect himself. He was "boiling mad," forthe attack had been a dastardly one.

  "Had enough?" demanded the bully, coming closer, and with his fistsclenched.

  "No, I haven't!" answered the acrobatic youth, and then, of a sudden, hesprang high in the air, to come down on Ritter's shoulder. Then hecaught the bully around the neck with one arm.

  "Hi! hi! let up----" began Ritter. "I--I----"

  "I'll not let up!" retorted Andy. "You brought this on yourself, ReffRitter, and now you can take the consequences. How do you like that, andthat, and that?"

  Each "that" was accompanied by a stinging blow, one on the ear, one onthe eye and one on the nose. The second made the bully's left opticblack, and the third caused the blood to spurt freely. Then Andy landedanother blow on Ritter's mouth, leaped to the ground, and shoved thefellow from him.

  "I'll give you those for an opener," he said, breathing heavily. "Youcan have some more in another minute."

  "You--you rat!" hissed the bully and came at Andy with a rush. But theacrobatic youth dodged, and Ritter ran full tilt into Dan Baxter.

  "Hi, keep your distance, Ritter!" growled Baxter.

  "I'll fix him!" yelled Ritter, and made another lunge for Andy. Thistime he hit Andy on the shoulder. But the acrobatic youth came back athim in double-quick order, and Ritter received a blow in the chin thatbowled him over into the arms of Nick Paxton. As he went over his eyesclosed, and then he slid in a heap to the ground.

  "A knockout for Snow!"

  "Say, that was a smashing blow!"

  "It served Ritter right; he kicked Andy when he was down."

  "Yes, and he hit him before he was ready."

  Paxton, Coulter and several others gathered around the fallen bully andrubbed his face with some snow. In a few minutes he opened his eyes andstared around.

  "Don't--don't hit me again!" he mumbled, between his bleeding teeth.

  "Have you had enough?" demanded Andy. "If you haven't, stand up and getsome more."

  "Don't--don't hit me again!"

  "Then you have had enough?"

  "I'll--I'll meet you another time."

  "No, you won't, Ritter, you'll meet me now."

  "That's the talk!" cried several. "Finish the fight."

  "I don't want to fight any more," answered the bully, and his words camein almost a whine.

  "Then you have had enough? Yes or no?"

  "I've--I've had enough," said Ritter, in a low tone.

  "Very well; see that you remember this lesson," declared Andy, and thenturned on his heel and walked towards the Hall, followed by a dozen ofhis admirers.

  "Andy, it was great, the way you jumped on him!" declared Pepper.

  "It was only a little acrobatic stunt," declared Andy. "But it came inmighty handy. I shouldn't have tried it only he didn't fightfair--hitting me before I was ready, and kicking me when I was down."

  "You watch out that he doesn't play you foul," said Dale, who waspresent.

  "I'll keep my eyes open."

  It was soon whispered around the school how Andy had met and vanquishedthe bully, and as a consequence many of the fellows who had toadied toRitter deserted him. Even Paxton gave him the cold shoulder openly, andBaxter simply sneered at him. Only Gus Coulter clung to Ritter, and thepair seemed to become greater cronies than ever.

  After the election of officers, and the fight, matters ran along swiftlyuntil the midwinter holidays. During those days many of the boys visitedtheir homes. Captain Putnam spent his time in trying to clear up themystery surrounding the disappearance of the things from the Hall, butwithout success. The detective he had hired unearthed nothing ofimportance and was discharged. One of the waiters left of his ownaccord, and the master of the school could not help but wonder if he wasthe guilty party.

  In the meantime, Andy and his chums had been trying to find outsomething about Cameron Smith. They were equally unsuccessful, for noone they knew in Boston had ever heard of that individual. His name wasnot in the directory.

  "There was something strange about him," said Andy. "I wish Ritter wouldtell us more about him. But I know it would be useless to ask Reff. Hehasn't spoken to me since the fight."

  After the holidays came some fine skating on the lake, and also someiceboating.

  Fred Century had had a new iceboat built at Cedarville. It was calledthe _Skimmer_, and he was exceedingly proud of the craft.

  "You must come out with me," he said to Jack, Pepper and Andy, oneSaturday afternoon. "The ice is as smooth as glass, and the wind is justright."

  "All right!" cried Pepper. "A sail will suit me down to the ground."

  Jack and Andy were also pleased to go, and the quartet of boys were soondown at the boathouse, where the _Skimmer_ was tied up.

  They were just getting aboard of the iceboat when they saw another craftheave in sight.

  "Who is that on board?" asked Andy.

  "It is Reff Ritter," answered Pepper, "and Gus Coulter is with him."

  "The iceboat belongs to a fellow in Cedarville," said a cadet standingnear. "Ritter hired it for a week."

  The second craft was called the _Rosebud_, and was rather a fine-lookingoutfit, with steel runners and a snowy-white sail.

  "He must have paid something to rent that," observed Jack. "I thought hedidn't have much money?"

  "He says his father is in business again and is doing better," answeredPaxton, who was present. "Hello, Reff!" he called out. "Want anotherpassenger?"

  "I don't want you!" answered the bully, briefly.

  "All right, you don't have to have me!" growled Paxton.

  "Say, Century, do you want to race me?" asked Ritter, as he brought the_Rosebud_ alongside the dock.

  "I don't know," answered Fred, slowly. "What do you say?" he whisperedto the others.

  "Do you think you can beat him?" asked Pepper.

  "I can try."

  "Then go ahead," said Jack. "You don't care, do you, Andy?"

  "Not at all--if Fred can beat him," was the reply from the acrobaticyouth.

  "All right, I'll race!" called out Fred. "But you will have to carryfour, the same as myself."

  "Humph!" growled Ritter. "I don't know about that."

  "I'll go, Reff!" cried Mumps.

  "So will I!" added a cadet named White.

  "All right, jump aboard," cried the bully, and Mumps and White lost notime in doing as bidden.

  "Where do you want to race to?" asked Fred.

  "Up to Dorsett's Point and back."

  "All right. Are you ready?"

  "Yes."

  "Then let her go!" yelled the owner of _Skimmer_; and in a moment theiceboat race had started.