CHAPTER XXVIII CAPTAIN PUTNAM HAS HIS SAY
The young major was surprised, and for one instant he did not know whatto do. But then he recovered his wits and dashed out after Ritter. Hecaught the bully making his way back of the tent, and putting out hisfoot sent the fellow sprawling. Then, before Ritter could arise, Jacksat on him.
"You--you le--let m-me up!" gasped Ritter, who all but had the breathknocked out of him. "Le--let me up, do yo--you he--hear?"
"I'll let you up when you explain, not before!" cried Jack. "You weredoing something in my tent. I want to know what it was."
Before Ritter could frame a reply--and it is doubtful if he had oneready--a cry came from the tent occupied by Pepper, Andy and Dale.
"We've got you!" came in the voice of The Imp. "Stand where you are,Coulter!"
"Let me go! Please let me go!" pleaded the voice of Nick Paxton. "Oh,let me go this time and I'll never do wrong again!"
"Hello, so the rest of your crowd are in this," said Jack to Ritter. "Imight have known it. Come with me, and don't you try to run away, orI'll give you the worst licking you ever had."
The young major allowed the bully to get up and caught him tightly bythe arm. The two walked over to the other tent, and there beheld Coulterand Paxton surrounded by Andy, Dale and Pepper. Paxton was trembling asif with the ague, and Coulter was also much disturbed.
"We caught them in our tent at our things," said Pepper. "At least, theywere at my things."
"And Ritter was in my tent, putting something in my bed," answered Jack.
"Coulter dropped something. Make a light and see what it was," suggestedAndy.
"Oh, don't make a noise! You'll have the guard down on us! And CaptainPutnam and Mr. Strong!" cried Paxton, hoarsely. "We don't want to getcaught!"
"You are making as much noise as anybody," answered Ritter. He was muchdisturbed, but tried not to show it. "We were only playing a littlejoke," he continued. "Just to square up for that launch affair."
Andy had struck a match and lit a lantern that was handy. He cast therays on the flooring of the tent.
"Here is what Coulter dropped," said Dale, and picked the object up. "Atwenty-five cent bill, I declare! Where did that old-time money comefrom?"
"Here is another bill--a ten-cent one," added Pepper, taking it from hissuit-case, which Coulter had not had time to close. "Where did they getthis stuff?"
"Let me see those bills," cried Jack. "Keep your eyes on Ritter as wellas Coulter and Paxton," he added, to his chums.
The young major took the paper money and examined it with care. He gavea start and then turned sternly to Ritter.
"Where did that money come from, Ritter?" he demanded.
"Don't ask me," returned the bully as coolly as he could.
"You took it from Mr. Strong's collection."
"How do you know?"
"I feel sure of it. Shall I call Mr. Strong and find out?"
"No! no!" cried Paxton. "Don't call him! Don't call anybody, please!"And he fell on his knees before the young major.
"Paxton, tell me the whole truth of this," said Jack.
"Don't you say a word, Nick!" cried Ritter. "Remember your promise."
"But--but if they call Captain Putnam--" stammered the frightened cadet.
"Our word is as good as theirs," answered the bully.
"Then you are willing to tell falsehoods to get out of this affair, eh?"said Jack, in disgust.
To this Ritter did not reply. Coulter looked at Paxton and then at theother cadets. Evidently he was trying to think out a way to escapepunishment.
"See here," he said, in a low, nervous voice. "If we tell the truthabout this, and fix everything as it was before, will you let us go?"
"That depends," answered Jack. "You tell us what you were up to first. Iknow this paper money belongs to the collection Mr. Strong brought fromIthaca. I saw it this afternoon."
"All we were doing was to play a trick on you, and Mr. Strong," went onCoulter. "We took the old paper money and hid it in your tent."
"And then you were going to put the blame of taking it on us," broke inPepper quickly. "A fine trick, I must say! Why, Mr. Strong might havehad us locked up for stealing!"
"It was only a trick!" cried Paxton. "We would have explained itafterwards."
"Perhaps,--but most likely not," said Andy. "It was a dirty trick, tosay the least. You had no business to touch the money."
"Oh, you needn't preach to us, Andy Snow!" cried Ritter.
"I--I wish I hadn't touched the money!" whined Paxton. "I didn't want todo it in the first place!"
"Oh, you make me sick!" roared Ritter.
"Well, we're in a mess, and now we have to get out of it," mutteredCoulter. "We can't stay here all night."
"Better collect all that money first," suggested Jack.
"Yes, that would be the best plan," said a voice from the doorway of thetent, and looking around all of the cadets saw George Strong confrontingthem. The teacher had donned his long mackintosh and a pair of shoes.
"Oh, Mr. Strong!" cried Pepper.
"I presume none of you expected to see me," went on the teacher.
"Well, hardly," stammered Jack.
"I happened to wake up, and hearing you talking thought I would get upand see what was the matter. I listened to your conversation and foundout that the collection of paper money I brought with me to-day hasbeen--what shall I say?--appropriated or borrowed? That collection isvery valuable and is not mine, and I am under a promise to return itintact. I wish you would return the money to me, every bill, and each ingood condition."
"Mr. Strong, I wish to state that neither Ditmore, Snow, Blackmore normyself had anything to do with the taking of that money," said the youngmajor.
"So I judged, by the talk I overheard," answered the teacher, and hiswords gave Jack and his chums great relief.
More lanterns were lit, and Coulter, Paxton and Ritter were forced tohunt up all the bills, both in the young major's tent and in thatoccupied by his friends. The corporal of the guard came along, to findout what was going on, but when he saw the teacher in charge he retired.
It took some time to collect all the paper money, and while this wasgoing on Mr. Strong was grimly silent. He looked over the collectionwith care.
"Every bill seems to be here," he said, at last. "Now all of you younggentlemen can go to bed. In the morning I will investigate further, andreport to Captain Putnam."
Much worried, Ritter, Coulter and Paxton withdrew to their quarters.They had been caught in their own trap, and wondered what punishmentwould be meted out to them.
"Well, we've got to answer a few questions, too," said Jack. "Don'tforget that we were found fully dressed when we should have been in bedand asleep."
"That is true," answered Pepper. "But, nevertheless, I am mighty gladMr. Strong came in as he did. If he hadn't Ritter and his gang mighthave gotten us into no end of trouble."
"Ritter is a bad egg--I wish we were rid of him," was Andy's comment.
None of the boys slept well that night. In the morning roll call andparade were held as usual, and then word was sent out for all the boyswho knew about the affair of the night before to report to CaptainPutnam.
Jack and his chums were first called on to tell their story, and theyfrankly admitted that they had left the camp to talk to an outsider.
"The boy is a stranger here and he wanted aid, and we said we would helphim if we could," said the young major. "We did not go on any lark orplay any tricks. We simply sat and talked, and then came back to camp."And this testimony was corroborated by Jack's chums. Then all told howthey had discovered Ritter, Coulter and Paxton hiding the paper money.
After that Mr. Strong told his story, and then the bully and his cronieshad their say. Ritter tried to evade the truth, but Coulter and Paxtonbroke down and confessed all, and pleaded for mercy.
After the hearing Captain Putnam read the cadets a stern lecture andfo
rbid their going out of camp without permission. Then he proceeded tolecture Ritter and his followers separately.
"What you have done was despicable," said the head of the school. "I didnot imagine any of the cadets could be so mean. I will think the matterover, and this noon I will let you know what your punishment is to be."