The Project Gutenberg EBook of Joe The Hotel Boy, by Horatio Alger Jr.
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Title: Joe The Hotel Boy
Author: Horatio Alger Jr.
Release Date: March 18, 2006 [EBook #528]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ASCII
*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK JOE THE HOTEL BOY ***
Produced by Charles Keller and David Widger
JOE THE HOTEL BOY
OR
WINNING OUT BY PLUCK
By Horatio Alger, Jr.
CONTENTS.
I. OUT IN A STORM
II. A MYSTERIOUS CONVERSATION
III. A HOME IN RUINS
IV. THE SEARCH FOR THE BLUE BOX
V. A NEW SUIT OF CLOTHES
VI. AN ACCIDENT ON THE LAKE
VII. BLOWS AND KIND DEEDS
VIII. THE TIMID MR. GUSSING
IX. AN UNFORTUNATE OUTING
X. DAVID BALL FROM MONTANA
XI. A FRUITLESS CHASE
XII. THE PARTICULARS OF A SWINDLE
XIII. OFF FOR THE CITY
XIV. A SCENE ON THE TRAIN
XV. WHAT HAPPENED TO JOSIAH BEAN
XVI. A MATTER OF SIX HUNDRED DOLLARS
XVII. JOE'S NEW POSITION
XVIII. JOE SHOWS HIS MUSCLE
XIX. ONE KIND OF A DUEL
XX. ATTACKED IN THE DARK
XXI. DAYS AT THE HOTEL
XXII. ABOUT SOME MINING SHARES
XXIII. THE FIRE AT THE HOTEL
XXIV. THE BLUE BOX AT LAST
XXV. JOE VISITS CHICAGO
XXVI. HOW A SATCHEL DISAPPEARED
XXVII. JOE MAKES A DISCOVERY
XXVIII. FROM OUT OF A TREE
XXIX. THE FATE OF TWO EVILDOERS
XXX. CONCLUSION
PREFACE.
A number of years ago the author of this story set out to depict life
among the boys of a great city, and especially among those who had to
make their own way in the world. Among those already described are
the ways of newsboys, match boys, peddlers, street musicians, and many
others.
In the present tale are related the adventures of a country lad who,
after living for some time with a strange hermit, goes forth into the
world and finds work, first in a summer hotel and then in a large hotel
in the city. Joe finds his road no easy one to travel, and he has to
face not a few hardships, but in the end all turns out well.
It may be added here that many of the happenings told of in this story,
odd as they may seem, are taken from life. Truth is indeed stranger than
fiction, and life itself is full of romance from start to finish.
If there is a moral to be drawn from this story, it is a twofold one,
namely, that honesty is always the best policy, and that if one wishes
to succeed in life he must stick at his work steadily and watch every
opportunity for advancement.
JOE THE HOTEL BOY.
CHAPTER I.
OUT IN A STORM.
"What do you think of this storm, Joe?"
"I think it is going to be a heavy one, Ned. I wish we were back home,"
replied Joe Bodley, as he looked at the heavy clouds which overhung Lake
Tandy.
"Do you think we'll catch much rain before we get back?" And Ned, who
was the son of a rich man and well dressed, looked at the new suit of
clothes that he wore.
"I'm afraid we shall, Ned. Those black clouds back of Mount Sam mean
something." "If this new suit gets soaked it will be ruined," grumbled
Ned, and gave a sigh.
"I am sorry for the suit, Ned; but I didn't think it was going to rain
when we started."
"Oh, I am not blaming you, Joe. It looked clear enough this morning.
Can't we get to some sort of shelter before the rain reaches us?"
"We can try."
"Which is the nearest shelter?"
Joe Bodley mused for a moment.
"The nearest that I know of is over at yonder point, Ned. It's an old
hunting lodge that used to belong to the Cameron family. It has been
deserted for several years."
"Then let us row for that place, and be quick about it," said Ned
Talmadge. "I am not going to get wet if I can help it."
As he spoke he took up a pair of oars lying in the big rowboat he and
Joe Bodley occupied. Joe was already rowing and the rich boy joined in,
and the craft was headed for the spot Joe had pointed out.
The lake was one located in the central part of the State of
Pennsylvania. It was perhaps a mile wide and more than that long, and
surrounded by mountains and long ranges of hills. At the lower end of
the lake was a small settlement of scant importance and at the
upper end, where there was a stream of no mean size, was the town of
Riverside. At Riverside were situated several summer hotels and boarding
houses, and also the elegant mansion in which Ned Talmadge resided, with
his parents and his four sisters.
Joe Bodley was as poor as Ned Talmadge was rich, yet the two lads were
quite friendly. Joe knew a good deal about hunting and fishing, and also
knew all about handling boats. They frequently went out together, and
Ned insisted upon paying the poorer boy for all extra services.
Joe's home was located on the side of the mountain which was just now
wrapped in such dark and ominous looking clouds. He lived with Hiram
Bodley, an old man who was a hermit. The home consisted of a cabin of
two rooms, scantily furnished. Hiram Bodley had been a hunter and guide,
but of late years rheumatism had kept him from doing work and Joe was
largely the support of the pair,--taking out pleasure parties for pay
whenever he could, and fishing and hunting in the between times, and
using or selling what was gained thereby.
There was a good deal of a mystery surrounding Joe's parentage. It was
claimed that he was a nephew of Hiram Bodley, and that, after the death
of his mother and sisters, his father had drifted out to California and
then to Australia. What the real truth concerning him was we shall learn
later.
Joe was a boy of twelve, but constant life in the open air had made him
tall and strong and he looked to be several years older.
He had dark eyes and hair, and was much tanned by the sun. The rowboat
had been out a good distance on the lake and a minute before the shore
was gained the large drops of rain began to fall.
"We are going to get wet after all!" cried Ned, chagrined.
"Pull for all you are worth and we'll soon be under the trees," answered
Joe.
They bent to the oars, and a dozen more strokes sent the rowboat under
a clump of pines growing close to the edge of the lake. Just as the boat
struck the bank and Ned leaped out there came a great downpour which
made the surface of Lake Tandy fairly sizzle.
"Run to the lodge, Ned; I'll look after the boat!" shouted Joe.
"But you'll get wet."
"Never mind; run, I tell you!"
Thus admonished, Ned ran for the old hunting lodge, which was situated
about two hundred feet away. Joe remained behind long enough to secure
the rowboat and the oars and then he followed his friend.
Just as one porch of the old lodge was reached there came a flash
of lightning, followed by a clap of thunder that made Ned jump. Then
followed more thunder and lightning, and the rain came down steadily.
"Ugh! I must say I don't like this at all," remarked Ned, as he crouched
in a corner of the shelter. "I hope the lightning doesn't strike this
place."
"We can be thankful that we were not caught out in the middle of the
lake, Ned."
"I agree on that, Joe,--but it doesn't help matters much. Oh, dear me!"
And Ned shrank down, as another blinding flash of lightning lit up the
scene.
It was not a comfortable situation and Joe did not like it any more than
did his friend. But the hermit's boy was accustomed to being out in the
elements, and therefore was not so impressed by what was taking place.
"The rain will fill the boat," said Ned, presently.
"Never mind, we can easily bail her out or turn her over."
"When do you think this storm will stop?"
"In an hour or two, most likely. Such storms never last very long. What
time is it, Ned?"
"Half-past two," answered Ned, after consulting the handsome watch he
carried.
"Then, if it clears in two hours, we'll have plenty of time to get home
before dark."
"I don't care to stay here two hours," grumbled Ned. "It's not a very
inviting place."
"It's better than being out under the trees," answered Joe, cheerfully.
The hermit's boy was always ready to look on the brighter side of
things.
"Oh, of course."
"And we have a fine string of fish, don't forget that, Ned. We were
lucky to get so many before the storm came up."
"Do you want the fish, or are you going to let me take them?"
"I'd like to have one fish. You may take the others."
"Not unless you let me pay for them, Joe."
"Oh, you needn't mind about paying me."
"But I insist," came from Ned. "I won't touch them otherwise."
"All right, you can pay me for what I caught."
"No, I want to pay for all of them. Your time is worth something, and I
know you have to support your--the old hermit now."
"All right, Ned, have your own way. Yes, I admit, I need all the money I
get."
"Is the old hermit very sick?"
"Not so sick, but his rheumatism keeps him from going out hunting or
fishing, so all that work falls to me."
"It's a good deal on your shoulders, Joe."
"I make the best of it, for there is nothing else to do."
"By the way, Joe, you once spoke to me about--well, about yourself,"
went on Ned, after some hesitation. "Did you ever learn anything more?
You need not tell me if you don't care to."
At these words Joe's face clouded for an instant.
"No, I haven't learned a thing more, Ned."
"Then you don't really know if you are the hermit's nephew or not?"
"Oh, I think I am, but I don't know whatever became of my father."
"Does the hermit think he is alive?"
"He doesn't know, and he hasn't any means of finding out."
"Well, if I were you, I'd find out, some way or other."
"I'm going to find out--some day," replied Joe. "But, to tell the truth,
I don't know how to go at it. Uncle Hiram doesn't like to talk about it.
He thinks my father did wrong to go away. I imagine they had a quarrel
over it."
"Has he ever heard from your father since?"
"Not a word."
"Did he write?"
"He didn't know where to write to."
"Humph! It is certainly a mystery, Joe."
"You are right, Ned; and as I said before, I am going to solve it some
time, even if it takes years of work to do it," replied the hermit's
boy.
CHAPTER II.
A MYSTERIOUS CONVERSATION.
The old hunting lodge where the two boys had sought shelter was a
rambling affair, consisting of a square building built of logs, and half
a dozen wings, running to the rear and to one side. There were also two
piazzas, and a shed, where wood had been kept for winter use.
"In another year or two this old lodge will fall down," remarked Ned, as
he gazed around him.
"It must have been a nice place in its day," returned Joe. "What a pity
to let it run down in this fashion."
"The rain is coming around on this side now, Joe; let us shift to the
other."
The hermit's boy was willing, and watching their chance, between the
downpours, they ran around to another portion of the old lodge.
"It certainly is a little better here," observed Joe, as he dashed the
water from his cap.
A minute later the rumbling of the thunder ceased for the time being,
and they heard a murmur of voices coming from one of the rooms of the
lodge.
"Why, somebody must be here!" ejaculated Ned. "Who can it be?"
"Two men, by their voices," answered the hermit's boy. "Wait till I take
a look at them?"
"Why not go in?" questioned the rich youth, carelessly.
"They may not be persons that we would care to meet, Ned. You know there
are some undesirable characters about the lake."
"That's true."
Not far off was a narrow window, the panes of glass of which had long
since been broken out. Moving toward this, Joe peered into the apartment
beyond.
Close to an old fireplace, in which a few sticks of half-green timber
were burning, sat two men. Both were well dressed, and Joe rightfully
surmised that they were from the city. Each wore a hunting outfit and
had a gun, but neither had any game.
"We came on a wild-goose chase," grumbled one, as he stirred the fire.
"Got nothing but a soaking for our pains."
"Never mind, Malone," returned the other, who was evidently the better
educated of the two. "As we had to make ourselves scarce in the city
this was as good a place to come to as any."
"Don't you think they'll look for us here?"
"Why should they? We were sharp enough not to leave any trail behind--at
least, I was."
"Reckon I was just as sharp, Caven."
"You had to be--otherwise you would have been nabbed." Gaff Caven
chuckled to himself. "We outwitted them nicely, I must say. We deserve
credit."
"I've spent more than half of what I got out of the deal," went on Pat
Malone, for such was the full name of one of the speakers.
"I've spent more than that. But never mind, my boy, fortune will favor
us again in the near future."
A crash of thunder drowned out the conversation following, and Joe
hurried back to where he had left Ned.
"Well, have you found out who they are?" demanded the rich youth,
impatiently.
"No, Ned, but I am sure of one thing."
"What is that?"
"They are two bad men."
"What makes you think that?"
"They said something about having to get out of the city, and one spoke
about being nabbed. Evidently they went away to avoid arrest."
At this announcement Ned Talmadge whistled softly to himself.
"Phew! What shall we do about it?" he asked, with a look of concern on
his usually passive face.
Joe shrugged his shoulders.
"I don't know what to do."
"Let us listen to what they have to say. Maybe we'll strike some clew to
what they have been doing."
"Would that be fair--to play the eaves-dropper?"
"Certainly--if they are evildoers. Anybody who has done wrong ought to
be locked up for it," went on Ned boldly.
With caution the two boys made their way to the narrow window, and Ned
looked in as Joe had done. The backs of the two men were still towards
the opening, so the lads were not discovered.
"What is this new game?" they heard the man called Malone ask, after a
peal of thunder had rolled away among the mountains.
"It's the old game of a sick miner with some valuable stocks to sell,"
answered Gaff Caven.
"Have you got the stocks?"
"To be sure--one thousand shares of the Blue Bell Mine, of Montana, said
to be worth exactly fifty thousand dollars."
"Phew! You're flying high, Gaff!" laughed Pat Malone.
"And why not, so long as I sell the stocks?"
"What did they cost you?"
"Well, they didn't cost me fifty thousand dollars," and Gaff Caven
closed one eye suggestively.
"You bet they didn't! More than likely they didn't cost you fifty
dollars."
"What, such elegantly engraved stocks as those?"
"Pooh! I can buy a bushel-basket full of worthless stocks for a dollar,"
came from Pat Malone. "But that isn't here nor there. I go into the deal
if you give me my fair share of the earnings."
"I'll give you one-third, Pat, and that's a fair share, I think."
"Why not make it half?"
"Because I'll do the most of the work. It's no easy matter to find a
victim." And Gaff Caven laughed broadly. He had a good-appearing face,
but his eyes were small and not to be trusted.
"All right, I'll go in for a third then. But how soon is the excitement
to begin?"
"Oh, in a week or so. I've got the advertisements in the papers
already."
"Not in New York?"
"No, it's Philadelphia this time. Perhaps I'll land one of our Quaker
friends."
"Don't be so sure. The Quakers may be slow but they generally know what
they are doing."
More thunder interrupted the conversation at this point, and when it
was resumed the two men talked in such low tones that only an occasional
word could be caught by the two boys.
"They surely must be rascals," remarked Ned, in a whisper. "I'm half of
a mind to have them locked up."
"That's easier said than done," answered Joe. "Besides, we haven't any
positive proofs against them."
The wind was now rising, and it soon blew so furiously that the two boys
were forced to seek the shelter of the woodshed, since they did not
deem it wise to enter the lodge so long as the two men were inside. They
waited in the shed for fully half an hour, when, as suddenly as it had
begun, the storm let up and the sun began to peep forth from between the
scattering clouds.
"Now we can go home if we wish," said Joe. "But for my part, I'd like to
stay and see what those men do, and where they go to."
"Yes, let us stay by all means," answered the rich youth.
They waited a few minutes longer and then Ned suggested that they look
into the window of the lodge once more. The hermit's boy was willing,
and they approached the larger building with caution.
Much to their astonishment the two strangers had disappeared.
"Hullo! what do you make of that?" cried Ned, in amazement.
"Perhaps they are in one of the other rooms," suggested Joe.
At the risk of being caught, they entered the lodge and looked into one
room after another. Every apartment was vacant, and they now saw that
the fire in the fireplace had been stamped out.
"They must have left while we were in the woodshed," said Ned.
"Maybe they are out on the lake," answered the hermit's boy, and he ran
down to the water's edge, followed by his companion. But though they
looked in every direction, not a craft of any kind was to be seen.
"Joe, they didn't take to the water, consequently they must have left by
one of the mountain paths."
"That is true, and if they did they'll have no nice time in getting
through. All the bushes are sopping wet, and the mud is very slippery in
places."
They walked to the rear of the lodge and soon found the footprints of
the two strangers. They led through the bushes and were lost at a small
brook that ran into the lake.
"There is no use of our trying to follow this any further," said Joe.
"You'll get your clothing covered with water and mud."
"I don't intend to follow," answered Ned. "Just the same, I should like
to know more about those fellows."
"I wish I had seen their faces."
"Yes, it's a pity we didn't get a better look at them. But I'd know
their voices."
By the time they gave up the hunt the sun was shining brightly. Both
walked to where the boat had been left, and Joe turned the craft over
so that the water might run out. Then he mopped off the seats as best he
could.
Ned wanted to go directly home, and he and Joe rowed the craft in the
direction of Riverside. As they passed along the lake shore the hermit's
boy noted that several trees had been struck by lightning.
"I'm glad the lightning didn't strike the lodge while we were there,"
said he.
"It was certainly a severe storm while it lasted, Joe. By the way, shall
I say anything about those two men?"
"Perhaps it won't do any harm to tell your father, Ned."
"Very well, I'll do it."
Soon Riverside was reached, and having paid for the fish and the outing,
Ned Talmadge walked in the direction of his residence. Joe shoved off
from the tiny dock and struck out for his home. He did not dream of the
calamity that awaited him there.
CHAPTER III.
A HOME IN RUINS.
As Joe rowed toward his home on the mountain side, a good mile from
Riverside, he could not help but think of the two mysterious men and of
what they had said.
"They were certainly rascals," he mused. "And from their talk they
must have come from New York and are now going to try some game in
Philadelphia."
The hermit's boy was tired out by the day's outing, yet he pulled a
fairly quick stroke and it was not long before he reached the dock at
which he and Hiram Bodley were in the habit of leaving their boat. He
cleaned the craft out, hid the oars in the usual place, and then,
with his fishing lines in one hand and a good sized fish in the other,
started up the trail leading to the place that he called home.
"What a place to come to, alongside of the one Ned lives in," he said to
himself. "I suppose the Talmadges think this is a regular hovel. I
wish we could afford something better,--or at least live in town. It's
lonesome here with nobody but old Uncle Hiram around."
As Joe neared the cabin something seemed to come over him and, for some
reason he could not understand, he felt very much depressed in spirits.
He quickened his pace, until a turn of the trail brought the homestead
into view.
A cry of alarm broke from his lips and with good reason. The little
shelter had stood close to a large hemlock tree. The lightning had
struck the tree, causing it to topple ever. In falling, it had landed
fairly and squarely upon the cabin, smashing it completely. One corner
of the cabin was in ashes, but the heavy rain had probably extinguished
the conflagration.
"Uncle Hiram!" cried the boy, as soon as he recovered from his
amazement. "Uncle Hiram, where are you?"
There was no answer to this call and for the moment Joe's heart seemed
to stop beating. Was the old hermit under that pile of ruins? If so it
was more than likely he was dead.
Dropping his fish and his lines, the youth sprang to the front of the
cabin. The door had fallen to the ground and before him was a mass of
wreckage with a small hollow near the bottom. He dropped on his knees
and peered inside.
"Uncle Hiram!" he called again.
There was no answer, and he listened with bated breath. Then he fancied
he heard a groan, coming from the rear of what was left of the cabin.
He ran around to that point and pulled aside some boards and a broken
window sash.
"Uncle Hiram, are you here?"
"Joe!" came in a low voice, full of pain. The man tried to say more but
could not.
Hauling aside some more boards, Joe now beheld the hermit, lying flat on
his back, with a heavy beam resting on his chest. He was also suffering
from a cut on the forehead and from a broken ankle.
"This is too bad, Uncle Hiram!" he said, in a trembling voice. "I'll get
you out just as soon as I can."
"Be--be careful, Joe--I--I--my ribs must be broken," gasped the hermit.
"I'll be careful," answered the boy, and began to pull aside one board
after another. Then he tugged away at the beam but could not budge it.
"Raise it up Joe--it--is--crushing the life ou--out of me," said the
hermit faintly.
"I'll pry it up," answered the boy, and ran off to get a block of
wood. Then he procured a stout pole and with this raised the heavy beam
several inches.
"Can you crawl out, Uncle Hiram?"
There was no answer, and Joe saw that the man had fainted from
exhaustion. Fixing the pole so it could not slip, he caught hold of the
hermit and dragged him to a place of safety.
Joe had never had to care for a hurt person before and he scarcely knew
how to proceed. He laid the hermit on the grass and washed his face with
water. Soon Hiram Bodley opened his eyes once more.
"My chest!" he groaned. "All of my ribs must be broken! And my ankle is
broken, too!" And he groaned again.
"I had better get a doctor, Uncle Hiram."
"A doctor can't help me."
"Perhaps he can."
"I haven't any faith in doctors. A doctor operated on my mother and
killed her."
"But Doctor Gardner is a nice man. He will do all he can for you, I am
sure," urged Joe.
"Well, Dr. Gardner is a good fellow I admit. If you--can--can get
him--I'll--I'll--" The sufferer tried to go on but could not.
"I think I can get him. But I hate to leave you alone." And Joe stared
around helplessly. He wished he had Ned with him.
"Never mind--give me a drink--then go," answered Hiram Bodley. He had
often taken Doctor Gardner out to hunt with him and liked the physician
not a little.
Inside of five minutes Joe was on the way to the doctor's residence,
which was on the outskirts of Riverside. He had left the hermit as
comfortable as possible, on a mattress and covered with a cloth to keep
off the night air,--for it was now growing late and the sun had set
behind the mountains.
Tired though he was the boy pulled with might and main, and so reached
the dock of the physician's home in a short space of time. Running up
the walk of the neatly-kept garden, he mounted the piazza and rang the
bell several times.
"What's the matter?" asked Doctor Gardner, who came himself to answer
the summons.
"Our cabin is in ruins, because of the storm, and Mr. Bodley is badly
hurt," answered Joe, and related some of the particulars.
"This is certainly too bad, my boy," said the physician. "I'll come at
once and do what I can for him."
He ran for a case of instruments and also for some medicines, and then
followed Joe back to the boat.
"You act as if you were tired," said the doctor, after he had watched
Joe at the oars for several minutes.
"I am tired, sir--I've been rowing a good deal to-day. But I guess I can
make it."
"Let me row," said the physician, and took the oars. He was a fine
oarsman, and the trip was made in half the time it would have taken Joe
to cover the distance.
At the dock there was a lantern, used by Joe and the hermit when they
went fishing at night. This was lit, and the two hurried up the trail to
the wreck of the cabin.
Hiram Bodley was resting where Joe had left him. He was breathing with
difficulty and did not at first recognize the doctor.
"Take it off!" he murmured. "Take it off! It is--is crushing th--the
life out of--of me!"
"Mr. Bodley--Hiram, don't you know me?" asked Doctor Gardner, kindly.
"Oh! So it's you? I guess you can't do much, doctor, can you? I--I'm
done for!" And a spasm of pain crossed the sufferer's face.
"While there is life there is hope," answered the physician,
noncommittally. He recognized at once that Hiram Bodley's condition was
critical.
"He'll get over it, won't he?" questioned Joe, quickly.
The doctor did not answer, but turned to do what he could for the
hurt man. He felt of his chest and listened to his breathing, and then
administered some medicine.
"His ankle is hurt, too," said Joe.
"Never mind the ankle just now, Joe," was the soft answer.
There was something in the tone that alarmed the boy and he caught the
physician by the arm.
"Doctor, tell me the truth!" he cried. "Is he is he going to die?"
"I am afraid so, my lad. His ribs are crushed and one of them has stuck
into his right lung."
At these words the tears sprang into the boy's eyes and it was all he
could do to keep from crying outright. Even though the old hermit had
been rough in his ways, Joe thought a good deal of the man.
"Cannot you do something, doctor," he pleaded.
"Not here. We might do something in a hospital, but he would not survive
the journey. He is growing weaker every moment. Be brave, my lad. It is
a terrible trial, I know, but you must remember that all things are for
the best."
Joe knelt beside the sufferer and took hold of his hand. Hiram Bodley
looked at him and then at the doctor.
"I--I can't live--I know it," he said hoarsely. "Joe, stay by me till I
die, won't you?"
"Yes!" faltered the boy. "Oh, this is awful!"
"I'm sorry to leave you so soon, Joe--I--I thought I'd be--be able to do
something for you some day."
"You have done something for me, Uncle Hiram."
"All I've got goes to you, Joe. Doctor, do you hear that?"
"I do."
"It--it ain't much, but it's something. The blue box--I put it in the
blue box--" Here the sufferer began to cough.
"The blue box?" came from Joe questioningly.
"Yes, Joe, all in the blue box--the papers and the money--And the blue
box is--is--" Again the sufferer began to cough. "I--I want water!" he
gasped.
The water was brought and he took a gulp. Then he tried to speak again,
but the effort was in vain. The doctor and Joe raised him up.
"Uncle Hiram! Speak to me!" cried the boy.
But Hiram Bodley was past speaking. He had passed to the Great Beyond.
CHAPTER IV.
THE SEARCH FOR THE BLUE BOX.
Three days after his tragic death Hiram Bodley was buried. Although he
was fairly well known in the lake region only a handful of people came
to his funeral. Joe was the chief mourner, and it can honestly be
said that he was much downcast when he followed the hermit to his last
resting place.
After the funeral several asked Joe what he intended to do. He could not
answer the question.
"Have you found that blue box?" questioned Doctor Gardner.
"No, sir, I have not thought of it."
"Probably it contains money and papers of value, Joe."
"I am going to look for it to-day," said the boy. "I--I couldn't look
for it while--while--"
"I understand. Well, I trust you locate the box and that it contains all
you hope for," added the physician.
As luck would have it, Ned Talmadge's family had just gone away on a
trip to the West, so Mr. Talmadge could offer the boy no assistance. But
Ned was on hand and did what he could.
"You don't know what you'll do next, do you, Joe?" asked Ned, as he and
Joe returned to the wreck of the cabin.
"No."
"Well, if you haven't any money I'll do what I can for you."
"Thank you, Ned; you are very kind."
"It must be hard to be thrown out on the world in this fashion," went on
the rich boy, sympathetically.
"It is hard. After all, I thought a good deal of Uncle Hiram. He was
strange in his ways, but he had a good heart."
"Wasn't he shot in the head once by accident in the woods?"
"Yes."
"Maybe that made him queer at times."
"Perhaps so."
"I've got six dollars and a half of my spending money saved up. You may
have that if you wish," continued Ned, generously.
"I'd rather not take it, Ned."
"Why not?"
"If I can, I want to be independent. Besides, I think there is money
around somewhere," and Joe mentioned the missing blue box.
"You must hunt for that blue box by all means!" cried the rich boy.
"I'll help you."
After the death of Hiram Bodley, Joe and two of the lake guides had
managed to repair one room of the broken-down cabin, and from this the
funeral had taken place.
The room contained a bed, a table, two benches and a few dishes and
cooking utensils The floor was bare and the window was broken out. It
was truly a most uninviting home.
"Of course you are not going to stay here, now you are alone?" said Ned,
after a look around.
"I don't know where else to go, Ned."
"Why not move into town!"
"Perhaps I will. But I want to find that blue box before I decide on
anything."
Without delay the two boys set to work among the ruins, looking into
every hole and corner they could think of and locate. They pulled away
heavy boards and logs, and Joe even got a spade and dug up the ground at
certain points.
"It doesn't seem to be here," said Ned, after an hour had passed.
"It must be here," cried Joe.
"Perhaps it was buried under a tree."
"That may be true. Anyway, I am certain it is somewhere around this
cabin."
After that the hunt was continued for another hour, and they visited
several spots in that locality where Joe thought the blue box might have
been placed. But it was all to no purpose, the box failed to come to
light.
At last the two boys sat down on a bench in front of the cabin. Both
were tired out, Ned especially so. Joe was much downcast and his friend
did what he could to cheer him up.
"The box is bound to come to light some day," said Ned. "That is, unless
some of those men carried it off."
"What men, Ned?"
"The fellows who helped to mend the cabin just before the funeral."
"Oh, I don't think they would steal the box. Bart Andrews and Jack
Thompson are as honest as the day is long."
"Well, it's mighty queer you can't find some trace of the blue box."
The boys talked the matter over for some time, and then Ned announced
that he must go home.
"You can go with me if you wish," he said. "It will be better than
staying here all alone."
But Joe declined the offer.
"I'll stay here, and begin the hunt again the first thing in the
morning," he said.
"Well, if you want anything, come and see me, Joe; won't you?"
"I will, Ned."
Ned had come over in his own boat and now Joe walked down to the lake
with him. His friend gone, the hermit's boy returned to the dilapidated
cabin.
He was hungry but he had no heart to eat. He munched some bread and
cheese which a neighbor had brought over. He felt utterly alone in the
great worlds and when he thought of this a strange feeling came over
him.
It was a bitter night for the poor boy, but when morning came his mind
was made up. He would make his own way in the world, asking aid from no
one, not even Ned.
"And if I can't find the blue box I'll get along without it," he told
himself.
As soon as it was light he procured breakfast and then started on
another hunt for the missing box. The entire day was spent in the
search, but without results. Towards night, Joe went down to the lake.
Here he caught a couple of small fish, which he fried for his supper.
All told, Joe had exactly a dollar and a half of his own and nine
dollars which he had found in the hermit's pocketbook.
"Ten dollars and a half," he mused, as he counted the amount over. "Not
very much to go out into the world with. If I want to do anything in
town I'll have to buy some clothes."
From this it will be surmised that Joe was thinking of giving up his
roving life around the lake and mountains, and this was true.
Hunting and fishing appealed to him only in an uncertain way, and he
longed to go forth into the busy world and make something of himself.
He had two suits of clothing, but both were very much worn, and so were
his shoes and his cap. Hiram Bodley had left some old clothing, but they
were too big for the boy.
"I guess I'll get Jasok the peddler to come up here and make me an offer
for what is here," he told himself.
Jasok was a Hebrew peddler who drove around through the lake region,
selling tinware and doing all sorts of trading. It was time for him to
visit that neighborhood and Joe went to the nearest house on the main
road and asked about the man.
"He will most likely be along to-morrow, Joe," said the neighbor.
"If he comes, Mr. Smith, will you send him over to my place? Tell him I
want an offer for the things."
"Going to sell out, Joe?"
"Yes, sir."
"What are you going to do after that?"
"Try for some job in town."
"That's a good idea. Hunting and fishing isn't what it used to be. What
do you want for the things?"
"All I can get," and a brief smile hovered on Joe's face.
"I wouldn't sell out too cheap. Jasok is a great fellow to drive a
bargain."
"If he won't give me a fair price, I'll load the things on the rowboat
and sell them in town."
"That's an idea. Do you want to sell Hiram's double-barrel shot gun?"
"Yes, sir."
"I'll give you ten dollars for it."
"I was going to ask twelve, Mr. Smith. It's a pretty good gun."
"So it is, although it is a little bit old-fashioned. Well, bring it
over and I'll allow you twelve dollars," answered the neighbor, who was
willing to assist Joe all he could.
Joe went back for the gun without delay, and received his money. Then he
returned to the cabin and brought out all the goods he wished to sell.
By the middle of the next day the Hebrew peddler appeared. At first
he declared that all of the things Joe had to sell were not worth two
dollars.
"Very well, if you think that, we won't talk about it," said Joe,
briefly.
"Da vos all vorn out," said Jasok. "De clothes vos rags, and de
furniture an' dishes was kracked."
"If you don't want them, I'll take them to town and sell them. I am sure
Moskowsky will buy them."
Now it happened that Moskowsky was a rival peddler who also boasted of
the ownership of a second-hand store. To think that the goods might go
to this man nettled Jasok exceedingly.
"Vell, I likes you, Cho," he said. "I vos your friend, an' I gif you
dree dollars for dem dings."
"You can have them for ten dollars," answered the boy.
A long talk followed, and in the end the Hebrew peddler agreed to pay
seven dollars and a half, providing Joe would help to carry the goods to
the main road, where the wagon had been left. The money was paid over,
and by nightfall all of the goods were on the wagon, and Joe was left
at the cabin with nothing but the suit on his back. But he had thirty
dollars in his pocket, which he counted over with great satisfaction.
"I ought to be able to get something to do before that is gone," he told
himself. "If I don't, it will be my own fault."
CHAPTER V.
A NEW SUIT OF CLOTHES.
On the following day it rained early in the morning, so Joe had to
wait until noon before he left the old cabin. He took with him all that
remained of his possessions, including the precious pocketbook with the
thirty dollars. When he thought of the blue box he sighed.
"Perhaps it will never come to light," he told himself. "Well, if it
does not I'll have to make the best of it."
Two o'clock found him on the streets of Riverside, which was a town of
fair size. During the summer months many visitors were in the place and
the hotels and boarding houses were crowded.
There was one very fine clothing store in Riverside, but Joe did not
deem it best, with his limited capital, to go there for a suit. Instead
he sought out a modest establishment on one of the side streets.
Just ahead of him was an Irish couple who had evidently not been in this
country many years. The man entered the store awkwardly, as if he did
not feel at home. Not so his wife, who walked a little in advance of her
husband.
"Have you got any men's coats?" said she to the clerk who came forward
to wait on the pair. "If I can get one cheap for me husband here I'll
buy one."
"Oh, yes, madam," was the ready reply. "We have the best stock in town,
by all odds. You can't fail to be suited."
So saying, he led the way to a counter piled high with the articles
called for, and hauled them over.
"There," said he, pulling out one of a decidedly ugly pattern. "There
is one of first quality cloth. It was made for a gentleman of this town,
but did not exactly fit him, and so we'll sell it cheap."
"And what is the price?"
"Three dollars."
"Three dollars!" exclaimed the Irish lady, lifting up her hands in
extreme astonishment.
"Three dollars! You'll be afther thinkin' we're made of money, sure!
I'll give you a dollar and a half."
"No, ma'am, we don't trade in that way. We don't very often take half
what we ask for an article."
"Mike," said she, "pull off yer coat an' thry it on. Three dollars, and
it looks as if it was all cotton."
"Not a thread of cotton in that," was the clerk's reply.
"Not wan, but a good many, I'm thinkin'," retorted the Irish lady, as
she helped her husband draw on the coat. It fitted tolerably well and
Mike seemed mightily pleased with his transformation.
"Come," said the wife. "What will ye take?"
"As it's you, I'll take off twenty-five cents," replied the clerk.
"And sell it to me for two dollars?" inquired his customer, who had good
cause for her inaccurate arithmetic.
"For two dollars and seventy-five cents."
"Two dollars and seventy-five cents! It's taking the bread out of the
childer's mouths you'd have us, paying such a price as that! I'll give
you two twenty-five, an' I'll be coming again some time."
"We couldn't take so low as two twenty-five, ma'am. You may have it for
two dollars and a half."
After another ineffectual attempt to get it for two dollars and a
quarter, the Irish woman finally offered two dollars and forty-five
cents, and this offer was accepted.
She pulled out a paper of change and counted out two dollars and forty
cents, when she declared that she had not another cent. But the clerk
understood her game and coolly proceeded to put the coat back on the
pile. Then the woman very opportunely found another five-cent piece
stored away in the corner of her pocket.
"It's robbin' me, ye are," said she as she paid it over.
"Oh, no, ma'am, you are getting a great bargain," answered the clerk.
Joe had witnessed the bargaining with a good deal of quiet amusement. As
soon as the Irish couple had gone the clerk came toward the boy.
"Well, young man, what can I do for you?" he asked, pleasantly.
"I want a suit of clothing. Not an expensive suit, but one guaranteed to
be all wool."
"A light or a dark suit?"
"A dark gray."
"I can fit you out in a fine suit of this order," and the clerk pointed
to several lying in a heap nearby.
"I don't want that sort. I want something on the order of those in the
window marked nine dollars and a half."
"Oh, all right."
Several suits were brought forth, and one was found that fitted Joe
exceedingly well.
"You guarantee this to be all wool?" asked the boy.
"Every thread of it."
"Then I'll take it."
"Very well; the price is twelve dollars."
"Isn't it like that in the window?"
"On that order, but a trifle better."
"It seems to me to be about the same suit. I'll give you nine dollars
and a half."
"I can't take it. I'll give it to you for eleven and a half. That is our
best figure."
"Then I'll go elsewhere for a suit," answered Joe, and started to leave
the clothing establishment.
"Hold on, don't be so fast!" cried the clerk, catching him by the arm.
"I'll make it eleven and a quarter."
"Not a cent more than the advertised price, nine and a half," replied
Joe, firmly.
"Oh, but this isn't the same suit."
"It's just like it, to my eye. But you needn't sell it for that if you
don't want it. Mason & Harris are offering some bargains, I believe."
"You can get a better bargain here than anywhere in this town, or in
Philadelphia either," answered the clerk, who did not intend to let his
prospective customer get away. "We'll make it an even eleven dollars and
say no more about it."
Instead of answering Joe started once more for the door.
"Hold on!"
"I haven't got time."
"Make it ten and a half. At that price we are losing exactly half a
dollar on that suit."
"Not a cent over what I offered."
"We can't sell suits at such a loss. It would ruin us."
"Then don't do it. I think Mason & Harris have some good suits very
cheap. And they are quite up-to-date, too," added Joe.
"Our suits are the best in town, young man. Take this one for an even
ten dollar bill."
"I will if you'll throw in one of those half dollar caps," answered our
hero.
"Well, have your own way, but it's a sacrifice," grumbled the clerk.
He wanted to wrap up the suit, but, afraid he might substitute something
else, Joe insisted upon donning the suit then and there and likewise the
new cap. Then he had the old articles of wearing apparel done up into a
bundle and paid over the ten dollars.
"You're pretty smart after a bargain," said the clerk.
"I've got to be--when I strike such fellows as you," was the reply.
"You got a better bargain than that Irish woman did."
"I did--if the suit is all wool. But if it's cotton, I'm stuck,"
returned our hero, and with his bundle under his arm he walked from the
store.
He had left his rowboat in charge of an old boatman named Ike Fairfield,
and now he walked down to the boathouse.
"Just in time, Joe," said the old boatman. "Want to earn a dollar?"
"To be sure I do," answered our hero.
"A party of ladies want a long row around the lake. You can have the
job."
"All right, Ike."
"I charged them a dollar and a quarter. I'll keep the quarter for my
commission."
"That is fair."
"One of the ladies said she wanted somebody that looked pretty decent. I
think you'll fill the bill with that new suit."
"I didn't expect to wear the suit out on the lake, but in this case I'll
keep it on," answered Joe.
"I find it pays to keep well dressed, when you take out the summer
boarders," answered the old boatman. "And it pays to keep the boats in
good shape, too."
"Where am I to get the party?"
"Over to the dock of Mallison's Hotel. One of the ladies is Mallison's
niece."
"Why don't they take a hotel boat?"
"All engaged, two days ago. It's a busy season. But I've got to be
going. You had better go over to the dock at once. They want to go out
at three o'clock sharp."
"Very well, I'll be on hand," answered our hero.
CHAPTER VI.
AN ACCIDENT ON THE LAKE.
Joe certainly presented a neat appearance when he rowed over to the
hotel dock. Before going he purchased a new collar and a dark blue tie,
and these, with his new suit and new cap, set him off very well.
The boat had been cleaned in the morning, and when the ladies appeared
they inspected the craft with satisfaction.
"What a nice clean boat," said Mabel Mallison, the niece of the
proprietor of the hotel.
"And a nice clean boatman, too," whispered one of her friends. "I
couldn't bear that man we had day before yesterday, with his dirty hands
and the tobacco juice around his mouth."
The ladies to go out were four in number, and two sat in the bow and two
in the stern. It made quite a heavy load, but as they were not out for
speed our hero did not mind it.
"We wish to go up to Fern Rock," said Mabel Mallison. "They tell me
there are some beautiful ferns to be gathered there."
"There are," answered Joe. "I saw them last week."
"And I wish to get some nice birch bark if I can," said another of the
ladies.
"I can get you plenty of it."
Joe rowed along in his best style, and while doing so the ladies of the
party asked him numerous questions concerning the lake and vicinity.
When Fern Rock was reached, all went ashore, and our hero pointed out
the ferns he had seen, and dug up such as the others wished to take
along. An hour was spent over the ferns, and in getting some birch bark,
and then they started on the return for the hotel.
"I'd like to row," cried one of the ladies, a rather plump personage.
"Oh, Jennie, I don't think you can!" cried another.
"Of course I can," answered Jennie, and sprang up from her seat to take
the oars.
"Be careful!" came in a warning from Joe, as the boat began to rock.
"Oh, I'm not afraid!" said the plump young lady, and leaned forward to
catch hold of one oar. Just then her foot slipped and she fell on the
gunwale, causing the boat to tip more than ever. As she did this, Mabel
Mallison, who was leaning over the side, gazing down into the clear
waters of the lake, gave a shriek.
"Oh, save me!" came from her, and then she went over, with a loud
splash.
Joe was startled, and the ladies left in the boat set up a wail of
terror.
"She will be drowned!"
"Oh, save her! Save her, somebody!"
"It is my fault!" shrieked the plump young lady. "I tipped the boat
over!"
Joe said nothing, but looked over the side of the boat. He saw the body
of Mabel Mallison not far away. But it was at the lake bottom and did
not offer to rise.
"It's queer she doesn't come up," he thought.
Then he gave a second look and saw that the dress of the unfortunate one
was caught in some sharp rocks. Without hesitation he dived overboard,
straight for the bottom.
It was no easy matter to unfasten the garment, which was caught in a
crack between two heavy stones. But at the second tug it came free, and
a moment later both our hero and Mabel Mallison came to the surface.
"Oh!" cried two of the ladies in the row-boat. "Is she drowned?"
"I trust not," answered Joe. "Sit still, please, or the boat will surely
go over."
As best he could Joe hoisted Mabel into the craft and then clambered in
himself. As he did so the unfortunate girl gave a gasp and opened her
eyes.
"Oh!" she murmured.
"You are safe now, Mabel!" said one of her companions.
"And to think it was my fault!" murmured the plump young lady. "I shall
never forgive myself as long as I live!"
Mabel Mallison had swallowed some water, but otherwise she was unhurt.
But her pretty blue dress was about ruined, and Joe's new suit did not
look near as well as it had when he had donned it.
"Let us row for the hotel," said one of the young ladies. "Are you all
right?" she asked of Joe.
"Yes, ma'am, barring the wetting."
"It was brave of you to go down after Mabel."
"Indeed it was!" cried that young lady. "If it hadn't been for you I
might have been drowned." And she gave a deep shudder.
"I saw she was caught and that's why I went over after her," answered
our hero simply. "It wasn't so much to do."
All dripping as he was, Joe caught up the oars of the boat and sent the
craft in the direction of the hotel at a good speed. That she might not
take cold, a shawl was thrown over Mabel's wet shoulders.
The arrival of the party at the hotel caused a mild sensation. Mabel
hurried to her room to put on dry clothing, and Joe was directed to go
around to the kitchen. But when the proprietor of the place had heard
what Joe had done for his niece he sent the lad to a private apartment
and provided him with dry clothing belonging to another who was of our
hero's size.
"That was a fine thing to do, young man," said the hotel proprietor,
when Joe appeared, dressed in the dry garments, and his own clothing had
been sent to the laundry to be dried and pressed.
"I'm glad I was there to do it, Mr. Mallison."
"Let me see, aren't you Hiram Bodley's boy?"
"I lived with Mr. Bodley, yes."
"That is what I mean. It was a terrible accident that killed him. Are
you still living at the tumbled-down cabin?"
"No, sir. I've just sold off the things, and I am going to settle in
town."
"Where?"
"I haven't decided that yet. I was going to hunt up a place when Ike
Fairfield gave me the job of rowing out the young ladies."
"I see. You own the boat, eh?"
"Yes, sir."
"You ought to be able to make a fair living, taking out summer
boarders."
"I suppose so, but that won't give me anything to do this winter."
"Well, perhaps something else will turn up by that time." Andrew
Mallison drew out a fat wallet. "I want to reward you for saving Mabel."
He drew out two ten-dollar bills and held them towards our hero. But Joe
shook his head and drew back.
"Thank you very much, Mr. Mallison, but I don't want any reward."
"But you have earned it fairly, my lad."
"I won't touch it. If you want to help me you can throw some odd rowing
jobs from the hotel in my way."
"Then you won't really touch the money?"
"No, sir."
"How would you like to work for the hotel regularly?"
"I'd like it first-rate if it paid."
"I can guarantee you regular work so long as the summer season lasts."
"And what would it pay?"
"At least a dollar a day, and your board."
"Then I'll accept and with thanks for your kindness."
"When can you come?"
"I'm here already."
"That means that you can stay from now on?"
"Yes, sir."
"I don't suppose you want the job of hauling somebody from the lake
every day," said Andrew Mallison, with a smile.
"Not unless I was dressed for it, Mr. Mallison. Still, it has been the
means of getting me a good position."
"I shall feel safe in sending out parties with you for I know you will
do your best to keep them from harm."
"I'll certainly do that, I can promise you."
"To-morrow you can take out two old ladies who wish to be rowed around
the whole lake and shown every point of interest. Of course you know all
the points."
"Yes, sir, I know every foot of ground around the lake, and I know the
mountains, too."
"Then there will be no difficulty in keeping you busy. I am glad to take
you on. I am short one man--or will be by to-night. I am going to let
Sam Cullum go, for he drinks too much."
"Well, you won't have any trouble with me on that score."
"Don't you drink?"
"Not a drop, sir."
"I am glad to hear it, and it is to your credit," concluded the hotel
proprietor.
CHAPTER VII.
BLOWS AND KIND DEEDS.
Several days passed and Joe went out half a dozen times on the lake with
parties from the hotel. All whom he served were pleased with him and
treated him so nicely that, for the time being, his past troubles were
forgotten.
At the beginning of the week Ned Talmadge came to see him.
"I am going away to join the folks out West," said Ned.
"I hope you will have a good time," answered our hero.
"Oh, I'm sure to have that, Joe. By the way, you are nicely settled
here, it would seem."
"Yes, and I am thankful for it."
"Mr. Mallison is a fine man to work for, so I have been told. You had
better stick to him."
"I shall--as long as the work holds out."
"Maybe he will give you something else to do, after the boating season
is over."
A few more words passed, and then Ned took his departure. It was to be a
long time before the two friends would meet again.
So far Joe had had no trouble with anybody around the hotel, but that
evening, when he was cleaning out his boat, a man approached him and
caught him rudely by the shoulder.
"So you're the feller that's took my job from me, eh?" snarled the
newcomer.
Our hero looked up and recognized Sam Cullum, the boatman who had been
discharged for drinking. Even now the boatman was more than half under
the influence of intoxicants.
"I haven't taken anybody's job from him," answered Joe.
"I say yer did!" growled Cullum. "It ain't fair, nuther!"
To this our hero did not reply, but went on cleaning out his boat.
"Fer two pins I'd lick yer!" went on the tipsy boatman, lurching
forward.
"See here, Sam Cullum, I want you to keep your distance," said Joe,
sharply. "Mr. Mallison discharged you for drinking. I had nothing to do
with it."
"I don't drink; leastwise, I don't drink no more'n I need."
"Yes, you do. It would be the best thing in the world for you if you'd
leave liquor alone entirely."
"Humph! don't you preach to me, you little imp!"
"Then leave me alone."
"You stole the job from me an' I'm going to lick you for it."
"If you touch me you'll get hurt," said Joe, his eyes flashing. "Leave
me alone and I'll leave you alone."
"Bah!" snarled the other, and struck out awkwardly. He wanted to hit Joe
on the nose, but the boy dodged with ease, and Sam Cullum fell sprawling
over the rowboat.
"Hi! what did ye trip me up for?" spluttered the half-intoxicated man,
as he rose slowly. "Don't you do that ag'in, do yer hear?"
"Then don't try to strike me again."
There was a moment of silence and then Sam Cullum gathered himself for
another blow. By this time a small crowd of boys and hotel helpers began
to collect.
"Sam Cullum's going to fight Joe Bodley!"
"Sam'll most kill Joe!"
With all his strength the man rushed at Joe. But the boy dodged again
and put out his foot and the man went headlong.
"Now will you let me alone?" asked our hero, coolly.
"No, I won't!" roared Sam Cullum. "Somebody give me a club! I'll show
him!"
Arising once more, he caught up an oar and launched a heavy blow at
Joe's head. For a third time our hero dodged, but the oar struck him on
the arm, and the blow hurt not a little.
Joe was now angry and believed it was time to defend himself. He edged
towards the end of the dock and Sam Cullum followed. Then, of a sudden
the boy ducked under the man's arm, turned, and gave him a quick shove
that sent him with a splash into the lake.
"Hurrah! score one for Joe!"
"That will cool Sam Cullum's temper."
"Yes, and perhaps it will sober him a little," came from a man standing
by, who had witnessed the quarrel from the beginning. "He brought this
on himself; the boy had nothing to do with it."
Sam Cullum floundered around in the water like a whale cast up in the
shallows. The lake at that point was not over four feet deep, but he did
not know enough to stand upright.
"Save me!" he bellowed. "Save me! I don't want to drown!"
"Swallow a little water, it will do you good!" said a bystander, with a
laugh.
"Walk out and you'll be all right," added another.
At last Sam Cullum found his feet and walked around the side of the dock
to the shore. A crowd followed him and kept him from going at Joe again.
"I'll fix him another time," growled the intoxicated one, and shuffled
off, with some small boys jeering him.
"You treated him as he deserved," said one of the other boatmen to Joe.
"I suppose he'll try to square up another time," answered our hero.
"Well, I wouldn't take water for him, Joe."
"I don't intend to. If he attacks me I'll do the best I can to defend
myself."
"He has made a nuisance of himself for a long time. It's a wonder to me
that Mr. Mallison put up with it so long."
"He was short of help, that's why. It isn't so easy to get new help in
the height of the summer season."
"That is true."
Joe expected to have more trouble with Sam Cullum the next day but it
did not come. Then it leaked out that Cullum had gotten into a row with
his wife and some of her relatives that night and was under arrest.
When the boatman was brought up for trial the Judge sentenced him to six
months' imprisonment.
"And it serves him right," said the man who brought the news to Joe.
"It must be hard on his wife."
"Well, it is, Joe."
"Have they any children?"
"Four--a boy of seven and three little girls."
"Are they well off?"
"What, with such a father? No, they are very poor. She used to go out
washing, but now she has to stay at home to take care of the baby. Sam
was a brute to strike her. I don't wonder the relatives took a hand."
"Perhaps the relatives can help her."
"They can't do much, for they are all as poor as she is, and one of them
is just getting over an operation at the hospital."
"Where do the Cullums live?"
"Down on Railroad Alley, not far from the water tower. It's a mite of a
cottage."
Joe said no more, but what he had been told him set him to thinking, and
that evening, after his work was over, he took a walk through the town
and in the direction of Railroad Alley.
Not far from the water station he found the Cullum homestead, a mite of
a cottage, as the man had said, with a tumbled-down chimney and several
broken-out windows. He looked in at one of the windows and by the light
of a smoking kerosene lamp beheld a woman in a rocking-chair, rocking a
baby to sleep. Three other youngsters were standing around, knowing not
what to do. On a table were some dishes, all bare of food.
"Mamma, I want more bread," one of the little ones was saying.
"You can have more in the morning, Johnny," answered the mother.
"No, I want it now," whimpered the youngster. "I'm hungry."
"I'm hungry, too," put in another little one.
"I can't give you any more to-night, for I haven't it," said the mother,
with a deep sigh. "Now, be still, or you'll wake the baby."
"Why don't dad come home?" asked the boy of seven.
"He can't come home, Bobby--he--had to go away," faltered the mother.
"Now all be still, and you shall have more bread in the morning."
The children began to cry, and unable to stand the sight any longer Joe
withdrew. Up the Alley was a grocery store and he almost ran to this.
"Give me some bread," he said, "and some cake, and a pound of cheese,
and some smoked beef, and a pound of good tea, and some sugar. Be quick,
please."
The goods were weighed out and wrapped up, and with his arms full he ran
back to the cottage and kicked on the door.
"Who is there?" asked Mrs. Cullum, in alarm.
"Here are some groceries for you!" cried Joe. "All paid for!"
"Oh, look!" screamed the boy of seven. "Bread, and cheese!"
"And sugar!" came from one of the little girls.
"And tea! Mamma, just what you like!" said another.
"Where did this come from?" asked Mrs. Cullum.
"A friend," answered Joe. "It's all paid for."
"I am very thankful."
"Now we can have some bread, can't we?" queried the boy.
"Yes, and a bit of smoked beef and cheese, too," said the mother, and
placing the sleeping baby on a bed, she proceeded to deal out the good
things to her children.
CHAPTER VIII.
THE TIMID MR. GUSSING.
It was not until the children had been satisfied and put to bed that Joe
had a chance to talk to Mrs. Cullum. She was greatly astonished when she
learned who he was.
"I didn't expect this kindness," said she. "I understand that my husband
treated you shamefully."
"It was the liquor made him do it ma'am," answered our hero. "I think
he'd be all right if he'd leave drink alone."
"Yes, I am sure of it!" She gave a long sigh. "He was very kind and
true when we were first married. But then he got to using liquor
and--and--this is the result."
"Perhaps he will turn over a new leaf when he comes out of jail."
"I hope he does. If he doesn't, I don't know what I am going to do."
"Have you anything to do?"
"I used to wash for two families in town but they have regular hired
help now."
"Perhaps you can get more work, if you advertise. If you'll allow me,
I'll put an advertisement in the Riverside News for you."
"Thank you. I don't see what makes you so kind."
"Well, I have been down in the world myself, Mrs. Cullum, so I know how
to feel for others."
"Did you say you used to live with Bodley, the hermit?"
"Yes."
"My folks used to know him. He was rather a strange man after he got
shot by accident."
"Yes, but he was kind."
"Are you his son?"
"No. He said I was his nephew. But I never found out much about that."
"Oh, yes, I remember something about that. He had a brother who lost his
wife and several children. Are you that man's son?"
"I believe I am."
"And you have never heard from your father?"
"Not a word."
"That is hard on you."
"I am going to look for my father some day."
"If so, I hope you will find him."
"So do I." Joe arose. "I must be going." He paused. "Mrs. Cullum, will
you let me help you?" he added, earnestly.
"Why, you have helped me a good deal already. Not one in a thousand
would do what you have done--after the way my husband treated you."
"I thought that you might be short of money."
"I must confess I am."
"I am not rich but, if you can use it, I can let you have five dollars."
"I'll accept it as a loan. I don't want you to give me the money,"
answered the poor woman. She thought of the things she absolutely
needed, now that her husband was gone.
The money was handed over, and a few minutes later Joe took his
departure. Somehow his heart felt very light because of his generosity.
He had certainly played the part of a friend in need.
But he did not stop there. Early in the morning he sought out Andrew
Mallison and told the hotel proprietor of Mrs. Cullum's condition.
"I was thinking that you might be able to give her work in the hotel
laundry," he continued.
The hotel man called up the housekeeper and from her learned that
another woman could be used to iron.
"You can let her come and we'll give her a trial," said he.
It did not take Joe long to communicate with the poor woman, and she was
overjoyed to see work in sight, without waiting for an advertisement in
the newspaper.
"I'll go at once," said she. "I'll get a neighbor's girl to mind the
children." And she was as good as her word. As it happened, she proved
to be a good laundress, and Mr. Mallison gave her steady employment
until her husband came from jail. Then, much to his wife's satisfaction,
Sam Cullum turned over a new leaf and became quite sober and
industrious.
Joe was now becoming well acquainted around the hotel and took an
interest in many of the boarders.
Among the number was a young man named Felix Gussing. He was a nice
individual in his way, but had certain peculiarities. One was that he
was exceedingly afraid of horses and at every possible opportunity he
gave them as wide a berth as possible.
"Don't like them at all, don't you know," he said, to Joe, during a boat
ride. "Can't understand them at all."
"Oh, I think a good horse is very nice," answered our hero.
"But they are so--so balkish--so full of kicking," insisted Felix
Gussing.
"Well, I admit some of them are," answered Joe.
There were two young ladies stopping at the hotel and the young man had
become quite well acquainted with both of them. One he thought was very
beautiful and was half tempted to propose to her.
On the day after the boat ride with Joe, Felix Gussing took the ladies
to have some ice cream, and during the conversation all spoke of a
certain landmark of interest located about three miles from Riverside.
"I have seen it and it is--aw--very interesting," drawled Felix.
"Then we must see it, Belle," said one of the young ladies, to her
companion.
"Oh, I'm not going to walk that far," answered Belle, with a bewitching
look at the young man.
"You might drive over," suggested Felix, without stopping to think
twice.
"Oh, yes, I love driving!" cried one of the girls.
"And so do I!" answered the other.
"I will find out what can be done about a conveyance," answered Felix.
Being a good deal of a dude, and dressing very fastidiously, he did not
much relish visiting the livery stable attached to the hotel. But, early
on the following morning, he walked down to the place, and ordered a
horse and carriage, to be ready at ten o'clock.
Now it must be known that Felix did not intend to drive the carriage. He
thought the young ladies would drive for themselves, since both had said
that they loved driving. Unfortunate man! he knew not the snare he had
laid for himself!
Punctual to the minute the carriage drove up to the door.
Felix was on hand, standing on the steps, with politeness in his air,
though with trembling in his heart because so near the horses. He
assisted the ladies in. Then he handed the reins to Miss Belle.
"Do you wish me to hold the horses while you get in?" she asked sweetly.
"Till I get in!" ejaculated Felix, taken aback.
"Certainly! You don't think we are going to drive ourselves, do you? Of
course you are going with us."
Poor Felix! He was "in for it" now, decidedly. It required a good deal
of moral courage, a quality in which he was deficient, to resist a
lady's demand. His knees trembled with fear as he scrambled in. Joe, who
was standing not far away, looked on with a quiet smile on his face. He
realized what was passing in the dude's mind.
"He'd give ten dollars to get out of it," our hero told himself.
The boy who had brought the turnout around looked at Felix Gussing
earnestly.
"Take care of that horse, mister," said he, warningly. "He's young and a
little bit wild."
"Wild?" gasped the dude. "I--I don't want to drive a wild horse."
"Oh, he'll be all right if you keep an eye on him," went on the stable
boy.
"Young and a little bit wild!" thought Felix to himself. "Oh, dear, what
in the world shall I do? I never drove a horse before. If I get back
with less than a broken neck I'll be lucky! I'd give a thousand to be
out of this pickle."
"Hadn't we better start, Mr. Gussing?" asked one of the young ladies,
after a pause.
"Oh, yes--certainly!" he stammered. "But--er--you can drive if you
wish."
"Thank you, but I would prefer that you drive."
"Won't you drive?" he asked of the other young lady.
"Oh, no, not to-day. But I'll use the whip if you say so," she answered.
"Not for the world!" cried the unhappy Felix. "He is a bit wild already
and there is no telling what he'd do if he felt the whip."
At last the carriage drove off. Joe gazed after it thoughtfully.
"Unless I miss my guess, there is going to be trouble before that drive
is over," he thought. And there was trouble, as we shall soon learn.
CHAPTER IX.
AN UNFORTUNATE OUTING.
Fortunately for the unhappy Felix the horse walked away from the hotel
in an orderly fashion, and soon they gained the highway leading to the
resort the party wished to visit.
Had the dude left the horse alone all might have gone well. But he
deemed it necessary to pull on first one line and then the other, which
kept the carriage in a meandering course.
"I don't think, Mr. Gussing, that you can be much used to driving," said
one of the young ladies, presently.
"That's a fact," answered the dude.
"Why don't you keep to the right of the road?"
"Well,--er--the fact is, this horse is a very difficult one to drive. I
don't believe I ever drove one which was more so."
As this was the first horse Mr. Gussing had ever driven, this assertion
was true in every particular.
"Oh, I can't travel so slow!" cried one of the young ladies, and seized
the whip, and before Felix could stop her, used it on the steed.
The effect was magical. The horse started up like a racer, and tore
through the street as if trying to win a race for a thousand dollars.
The dude clung to the reins in the wildest terror. To his frenzied
imagination it seemed that his final hour was approaching.
"Whoa!" he screamed, jerking on the lines. "Stop, you crazy beast! Stop,
before we all get killed!"
But the horse only went the faster. And now, to increase his alarm, he
saw a buggy approaching from the opposite direction. It contained one of
the town lawyers, Silas Simms by name.
"We shall run into that buggy!" screamed the fair Belle. "Oh, Mr.
Gussing, be careful!"
A moment later the two turnouts came together with a crash, and one
wheel was torn from the buggy and the town lawyer pitched out headlong
to the ground. Then on went the carriage with the dude and the two young
ladies, at a faster pace than ever.
"Let me jump out!" screamed one of the ladies.
"No, not yet! You'll be killed, Grace," answered Belle.
"Then stop the carriage!"
Alas, the poor Felix was already doing his best to stop the horse. But
his jerkings on the reins only added to the horse's wildness.
Not far along the road was a good sized brook, spanned by a neat wooden
bridge. As the carriage neared the bridge, Felix pulled on the wrong
rein once again. The horse turned from the road proper, and descended
full speed into the stream itself.
"Oh, now we'll be drowned!" shrieked Grace.
But she was mistaken. The stream was easily fordable, so there was no
danger on that score. But the rate at which they were impelled through
the water naturally created no inconsiderable splashing, so that on
emerging on the other side the dude, as well as the young ladies, were
well drenched.
To the great joy of Felix the contact with the water cooled the ardor of
the steed, so that he resumed the journey at a far more moderate rate of
speed.
"Wasn't it just glorious!" cried Belle, who, after the danger seemed
past, grew enthusiastic. "What a noble animal!"
"Glorious?" echoed the dude. "I don't care much about such glory. As
for the noble animal--I--er--I wish he was hung! That's the best he
deserves."
The dude spoke bitterly, for the spell of terror was still on him. Had
he consulted his own wishes he would have leaped from the carriage and
left the ladies to their fate.
But the thought of the bewitching Belle made him keep his seat, and he
resolved that if he must die he would do it like a martyr.
The horse went on, and at last they neared the end of the short journey.
But here a new obstacle presented itself. There was a big fence and a
gate, and the gate was tight shut.
As they could not enter the grounds without opening the gate, the dude
got down out of the carriage. He did not hand the reins to either of the
ladies but laid them over the dashboard.
The instant the gate was swung open the steed darted forward, and
brought up with a jerk against a post that happened to be in the way.
Here he reared and plunged, causing the young ladies to scream "murder"
at the top of their voices.
"Oh, my! Oh, dear me!" bawled Felix, and took refuge behind a
neighboring hedge. "The horse has gone crazy! He'll bite somebody next!"
The cries reached some men who were not far off, and they came running
to the assistance of the party. One caught the steed by the bridle and
soon had him quieted down.
"I'll never drive that horse again!" said the dude. "Not for a million
dollars!"
"How are we to get home?" queried Belle.
"I'll drive you," said one of the men. "I know this horse. He used to
belong to Bill Perkins. I know how to handle him."
"Then do so," answered Felix, "and I'll pay you two dollars."
The man was as good as his word, and to Felix's astonishment he made the
horse go back to the hotel without the slightest mishap. Then the horse
was put in the stable, the dude paid the bill, and the party separated.
"I shall never drive again, never!" declared the dude to himself, and it
may be added that he kept his word.
"I hope you had a nice drive," said Joe, when he met Felix that evening.
"It was beastly, don't you know," was the answer. "That horse was a
terribly vicious creature."
"He looked to be gentle enough when he started off."
"I think he is a crazy horse."
"By the way, Mr. Gussing, Mr. Silas Simms was looking for you."
"You mean that lawyer who drives the spotted white horse?"
"Yes."
Felix gave a groan.
"He says he wants damages."
"It wasn't my fault that the horse ran into him."
"Well, he is very angry about it, anyway," said our hero.
Early the next morning Felix Gussing received a communication from the
lawyer. It was in the following terms:--
"MR. GUSSING. Sir:--In consequence of your reckless driving yesterday,
I was thrown from my carriage, receiving a contusion on my shoulder and
other injuries. My carriage was also nearly ruined. If you choose
to make a race-course of the public highways you must abide the
consequences. The damage I have sustained I cannot estimate at less than
one hundred and fifty dollars. Indemnify me for that and I will go no
further. Otherwise, I shall be compelled to resort to legal action.
"SILAS SIMMS, Atty."
Felix read the letter several times and his knees shook visibly. He did
not want to pay over such an amount, yet it struck him with terror when
he thought he might possibly be arrested for fast driving. He went to
see Mr. Silas Simms.
"I am very sorry," he began.
"Have you come to pay?" demanded the attorney, curtly.
"Well--er--the fact is--don't you think you are asking rather a stiff
price, Mr. Simms?"
"Not at all! Not at all, sir! I ought to have placed the damages at
three hundred!"
"I'll give you fifty dollars and call it square."
"No, sir, a hundred and fifty! Not a penny less, not one penny! Look
at my nose, sir--all scratched! And my ear! Not a penny less than one
hundred and fifty dollars!" And the lawyer pounded on his desk with his
fist.
"All right then, I'll pay you, but you must give me a receipt in full,"
answered the dude.
He had to wait until the bank opened, that he might cash a check, and
then he paid over the amount demanded. The lawyer drew up a legal paper
discharging him from all further obligations. Felix read it with care
and stowed it in his pocket.
"And now let me give you some advice, Mr. Gussing," said the lawyer,
after the transaction was concluded. "Don't drive such a wild horse
again."
"Depend upon it, I never shall," answered the dude. "It costs too much!"
he added, with a faint smile.
"Are you well acquainted with horses?"
"No."
"Then you had better leave them alone altogether."
"I have already made up my mind to do so."
CHAPTER X.
DAVID BALL FROM MONTANA.
Finding that Joe could be depended upon, Mr. Mallison put him in charge
of all of the boats at the hotel, so that our hero had almost as much
work ashore as on the lake.
During the week following, the events just narrated, many visitors left
the hotel and others came in. Among those to go were Felix Gussing and
the two young ladies. The dude bid our hero a cordial good-bye, for he
now knew Joe quite well.
"Good-bye, Mr. Gussing," said Joe. "I hope we meet again."
"Perhaps we shall, although I generally go to a different place each
summer."
"Well, I don't expect to stay in Riverside all my life."
"I see. If you make a move, I hope you do well," returned Felix.
On the day after the dude left, a man came to the hotel who, somehow,
looked familiar to our hero. He came dressed in a light overcoat and a
slouch hat, and carried a valise and a suit case.
"I've seen him before, but where?" Joe asked himself not once but
several times.
The man registered as David Ball, and put down his address as Butte,
Montana. He said he was a mining expert, but added that he was sick and
the doctors had ordered him to come East for a rest.
"'ve heard of Riverside being a nice place," said he, "so I came on
right after striking Pittsburg."
"We shall do all we can to make your stay a pleasant one," said the
hotel proprietor, politely.
"All I want is a nice sunny room, where I can get fresh air and take it
easy," said the man.
He was willing to pay a good price, and so obtained one of the best
rooms in the house, one overlooking the river and the lake. He ate one
meal in the dining room, but after that he had his meals sent to his
apartment.
"Is he sick?" asked Joe, after watching the man one day.
"He certainly doesn't seem to be well," answered Andrew Mallison.
"It runs in my mind that I have seen him before, but I can't place him,"
went on our hero.
"You must be mistaken, Joe. I questioned him and he says this is his
first trip to the East, although he has frequently visited St. Louis and
Chicago."
On the following day the man called for a physician and Doctor Gardner
was sent for.
"I've got pains here," said the man from the West, and pointed to his
chest. "Do you think I am getting consumption?"
The Riverside physician made a careful examination and then said the man
had probably strained himself.
"Reckon I did," was the ready answer. "I was in the mine and a big rock
came down on me. I had to hold it up for ten minutes before anybody came
to my aid. I thought I was a dead one sure."
"I will give you some medicine and a liniment," said the doctor.
"Perhaps you'll feel better after a good rest." And then he left.
That afternoon Joe had to go up into the hotel for something and passed
the room of the new boarder. He saw the man standing by the window,
gazing out on the water.
"I'm dead certain I've seen him before," mused our hero. "It is queer I
can't think where."
Doctor Gardner wanted to be taken across the lake and Joe himself did
the job. As he was rowing he asked about the man who had signed the
hotel register as David Ball from Montana.
"Is he very sick, doctor?"
"No, I can't say that he is," was the physician's answer. "He looks to
be as healthy as you or I."
"It's queer he keeps to his room."
"Perhaps something happened out at his mine to unsettle his nerves. He
told me of some sort of an accident."
"Is he a miner?"
"He is a mine owner, so Mr. Mallison told me, but he never heard of the
man before."
The stranger received several letters the next day and then a telegram.
Shortly after that he took to his bed.
"I am feeling worse," said he to the bell boy who answered his ring. "I
want you to send for that doctor again. Ask him to call about noon."
"Yes, sir," answered the boy, and Doctor Gardner was sent for without
delay. He came and made another examination and left some medicine.
"I'll take the medicine regularly," said the stranger, who was in bed.
But when the doctor had left he quietly poured half of the contents of
the bottle into the wash bowl, where it speedily drained from sight!
"Don't catch me drinking such rot," he muttered to himself. "I'd rather
have some good liquor any day," and he took a long pull from a black
bottle he had in his valise.
About noon a carriage drove up to the hotel and two men alighted.
One led the way into the hotel and asked to see the register.
"I'd like to see Mr. David Ball," said he to the clerk.
"Mr. Ball is sick."
"So I have heard and that is why I wish to see him."
"I'll send up your card."
"I don't happen to have a card. Tell him Mr. Anderson is here, from
Philadelphia, with a friend of his."
The message was sent to the sick man's room, and word came down that he
would see the visitors in a few minutes.
"He says he is pretty sick and he can't talk business very long," said
the bell boy.
"We won't bother him very much," answered the man who had given his name
as Anderson.
Joe happened to be close by during this conversation and he looked the
man called Anderson over with care.
"I've seen that man, too!" he declared to himself. "But where? I declare
he is as much of a mystery as the sick one!"
Our hero's curiosity was now aroused to the highest pitch, and when the
two men walked up to David Ball's room he followed to the very doorway.
"Come in," came from the room, and a deep groan followed. On the bed
lay the man from Montana, wrapped in several blankets and with a look of
anguish on his features.
"Feeling pretty bad, eh?" said Anderson, as he stalked in. "I am
downright sorry for you."
"I'm afraid I am going to die," groaned the man in bed. "The doctor says
I am in bad shape. He wants me to take a trip to Europe, or somewhere
else."
"This is Mr. Maurice Vane," went on Anderson. "We won't trouble you any
more than is necessary, Mr. Ball."
"I am sorry to disturb you," said Maurice Vane. He was a kindly looking
gentleman. "Perhaps we had better defer this business until some other
time."
"Oh, no, one time is as bad as another," came with another groan from
the bed. "Besides, I admit I need money badly. If it wasn't for that--".
The man in bed began to cough. "Say, shut the door," he went on, to the
first man who had come in.
The door was closed, and for the time being Joe heard no more of the
conversation.
It must be admitted that our hero was perplexed, and with good reason.
He felt certain that the man in bed was shamming, that he was hardly
sick at all. If so, what was his game?
"Something is surely wrong somewhere," he reasoned. "I wish I could get
to the bottom of it."
The room next to the one occupied by David Ball was empty and he slipped
into this. The room contained a closet, and on the other side was
another closet, opening into the room the men were in. The partition
between was of boards, and as the other door stood wide open, Joe, by
placing his head to the boards, could hear fairly well.
"You have the stock?" he heard Maurice Vane ask.
"Yes, in my valise. Hand me the bag and I'll show you," answered the man
in bed. "Oh, how weak I feel!" he sighed.
There was a silence and then the rustling of papers.
"And what is your bottom price for these?" went on Maurice Vane.
"Thirty thousand dollars."
"I told Mr. Vane you might possibly take twenty-five thousand," came
from the man called Anderson.
"They ought to be worth face value--fifty thousand dollars," said the
man in bed.
A talk in a lower tone followed, and then more rustling of papers.
"I will call to-morrow with the cash," said Maurice Vane, as he prepared
to leave. "In the meantime, you promise to keep these shares for me?"
"I'll keep them until noon. I've got another offer," said the man in
bed.
"We'll be back," put in the man called Anderson. "So don't you sell to
anybody else."
Then the two visitors left and went downstairs. Five minutes later they
were driving away in the direction of the railroad station.
"This certainly beats anything I ever met before," said Joe, to himself
as he watched them go. "I'll wager all I am worth that I've met that
Anderson before, and that he is a bad man. I do wish I could get at the
bottom of what is going on."
In the evening he had occasion to go upstairs in the hotel once more.
To his surprise he saw Mr. David Ball sitting in a rocking-chair, calmly
smoking a cigar and reading a paper.
"He isn't as sick as he was this morning," he mused. "In fact, I don't
think he is sick at all."
He wished to be on hand the following morning, when the strangers came
back, but an errand took him up the lake. He had to stop at several
places, and did not start on the return until four in the afternoon.
On his way back Joe went ashore close to where the old lodge was
located, and something, he could not tell what, made him run over and
take a look at the spot that had proved a shelter for Ned and himself
during the heavy storm. How many things had occurred since that fatal
day!
As our hero looked into one of the rooms he remembered the strange men
he had seen there--the fellows who had talked about mining stocks. Then,
of a sudden, a revelation came to him, like a thunderbolt out of a clear
sky.
"I've got it! I've got it!" he cried. "Mr. David Ball is that fellow
who called himself Malone, and Anderson is the man named Caven! They are
both imposters!"
CHAPTER XI.
A FRUITLESS CHASE.
The more Joe thought over the matter the more he became convinced that
he was right. He remembered a good deal of the talk he had overheard
during the storm, although such talk had, for the time being, been
driven from his mind by the tragic death of old Hiram Bodley.
"If they are working some game what can this Maurice Vane have to do
with it?" he asked himself.
He thought it best to get back to the hotel at once, and tell Mr.
Mallison of his suspicions. But, as luck would have it, scarcely had he
started to row his boat again when an oarlock broke, and so it took him
the best part of an hour to make the trip.
"Where is Mr. Mallison?" he asked of the clerk of the hotel.
"Out in the stable, I believe," was the answer.
Without waiting, our hero ran down to the stable and found the hotel
proprietor inspecting some hay that had just been unloaded.
"I'd like to speak to you a moment, Mr. Mallison," he said. "It's
important," and he motioned for the man to follow him.
"What is it, Joe?"
"It's about those men who called to see that sick man, and about the
sick man, too."
"He has gone--all of them have gone."
"What!" ejaculated our hero. "The sick man, too?"
"Exactly. But he didn't go with the others. While they were here he was
in bed, but right after they left he arose, dressed himself, and drove
away."
"Where did he go to?"
"I don't know."
"Do you know what became of the other two men?"
"I do not. But what's up? Is there anything wrong?" questioned the hotel
proprietor, with a look of concern on his face.
"I am afraid there is," answered Joe, and told his tale from beginning
to end.
"That's an odd sort of a yarn, Joe. It's queer you didn't recognize the
men before.
"It is queer, sir, but I can't help that. It flashed over me just as I
looked into the window of the old lodge."
"You haven't made any mistake?"
"No, sir."
"Humph!" Andrew Mallison mused for a moment. "I don't really see what I
can do in the matter. We can't prove that those men are wrongdoers, can
we?"
"Not unless they tried some game on this Mr. Maurice Vane."
"They may have sold him some worthless mining shares. That sort of a
trick is rather old."
"I think we ought to make a search for this David Ball, or Malone, or
whatever his name is."
"I'm willing to do that."
After questioning half a dozen people they learned that the pretended
sick man had driven off in the direction of a village called Hopedale.
"What made him go there, do you think?" questioned Joe.
"I don't know, excepting that he thought of getting a train on the other
line."
A horse and buggy were procured, and in this Mr. Mallison and our hero
drove over to Hopedale. They were still on the outskirts of the village
when they heard a locomotive whistle.
"There's the afternoon train now!" cried Joe. "Perhaps it's the one he
wants to catch."
The horse was touched up and the buggy drove up to the railroad platform
at breakneck speed. But the train was gone and all they could see of it
was the last car as it swung around one of the mountain bends.
"Too late, Mr. Mallison!" sang out the station master. "If I had known
ye was comin' I might have held her up a bit."
"I didn't want the train, Jackson. Who got on board?"
"Two ladies, a man and a boy--Dick Fadder."
"Did you know the man?"
"No."
"What did he have with him?"
"A dress suit case."
"Was he dressed in a dark blue suit and wear a slouch hat?" asked Joe.
"Yes, and had a light overcoat with him."
"That was our man."
"Anything wrong with him?" asked the station master.
"Perhaps," answered the hotel proprietor. "Anyway, we wanted to see him.
Did he buy a ticket?"
"Yes, to Snagtown."
"What can he want in Snagtown?" asked Joe.
"Oh, that might have been a blind, Joe. He could easily go through to
Philadelphia or some other place, if he wanted to."
At first they thought of telegraphing ahead to stop the man, but soon
gave that plan up. They had no evidence, and did not wish to make
trouble unless they knew exactly what they were doing.
"I hope it turns out all right," observed Andrew Mallison, when they
were driving back to Riverside. "If there was a swindle it would give my
hotel a black eye."
"That's one reason why I wanted that man held," answered Joe.
The next day and that following passed quietly, and our hero began to
think that he had made a mistake and misjudged the men. He was kept very
busy and so almost forgot the incident.
Among the new boarders was a fussy old man named Chaster, who was
speedily nicknamed by the bell boys Chestnuts. He was a particular
individual, and made everybody as uncomfortable as he possibly could.
One day Wilberforce Chaster--to use his full name,--asked Joe to take
him out on the lake for a day's fishing. Our hero readily complied,
and was in hot water from the time they went out until they returned.
Nothing suited the old man, and as he caught hardly any fish he was
exceedingly put out when he came back to the hotel.
"Your boatman is of no account," he said to Andrew Mallison. "I have
spent a miserable day," and he stamped off to his room in high anger.
"It was not my fault, Mr. Mallison," said Joe, with burning cheeks. "I
did my level best by him."
"That man has been making trouble for us ever since he come," answered
the hotel proprietor. "I am going to ask him to go elsewhere when his
week is up."
The insults that Joe had received that day from Wilberforce Chaster
rankled in his mind, and he determined to square accounts with the
boarder if he possibly could.
Towards evening he met a bell boy named Harry Ross who had also had
trouble with Chaster, and the two talked the matter over.
"We ought to get square," said Harry Ross. "I wish I could souse him
with a pitcher of ice water."
"I've got a plan," said Joe.
Stopping at the hotel was a traveling doctor, who came to Riverside
twice a year, for a stay of two weeks each time. He sold some patent
medicines, and had in his room several skulls and also a skeleton strung
on wires.
"That doctor is away," said our hero. "I wonder if we can't smuggle the
skulls and the skeleton into Mr. Chaster's room?"
"Just the cheese!" cried the bell boy, enthusiastically. "And let us rub
the bones with some of those matches that glow in the dark!"
The plan was talked over, and watching their chance the two transferred
the skeleton and the skulls to the apartment occupied by Wilberforce
Chaster. Then they rubbed phosphorus on the bones, and hung them upon
long strings, running over a doorway into the next room.
That evening Wilberforce Chaster remained in the hotel parlor until ten
o 'clock. Then he marched off to his room in his usual ill humor. The
gas was lit and he went to bed without delay.
As soon as the light went out and they heard the man retire, Joe and
the bell boy began to groan in an ominous manner. As they did so, they
worked the strings to which the skulls and the skeleton were attached,
causing them to dance up and down in the center of the old man's room.
Hearing the groans, Wilberforce Chaster sat up in bed and listened. Then
he peered around in the darkness.
"Ha! what is that?" he gasped, as he caught sight of the skulls. "Am I
dreaming--or is that--Oh!"
He started and began to shake from head to foot, for directly in front
of him was the skeleton, moving up and down in a jerky fashion and
glowing with a dull fire. His hair seemed to stand on end. He dove under
the coverings of the bed.
"The room is haunted!" he moaned. "Was ever such a thing seen before!
This is wretched! Whatever shall I do?"
The groans continued, and presently he gave another look from under the
bed clothes. The skeleton appeared to be coming nearer. He gave a loud
yell of anguish.
"Go away! Go away! Oh, I am haunted by a ghost! This is awful! I cannot
stand it!"
He fairly tumbled out of bed and caught up his clothing in a heap. Then,
wrapped in some comfortables, he burst out of the room and ran down the
hallway like a person possessed of the evil spirits.
"Come be quick, or we'll get caught!" whispered Joe, and ran into the
room, followed by the bell boy. In a trice they pulled loose the strings
that held the skulls and the skeleton, and restored the things to the
doctor's room from which they had been taken. Then they went below by a
back stairs.
The whole hotel was in an alarm, and soon Mr. Mallison came upon the
scene.
"What is the meaning of this?" he demanded, severely, of Wilberforce
Chaster.
"The meaning is, sir, that your hotel is haunted," was the answer, which
startled all who heard it.
CHAPTER XII.
THE PARTICULARS OF A SWINDLE.
"This hotel haunted?" gasped the proprietor. "Sir, you are mistaken.
Such a thing is impossible."
"It is true," insisted Mr. Wilberforce Chaster. "I shall not stay here
another night."
"What makes you think it is haunted?"
"There is a ghost in my room."
"Oh!" shrieked a maid who had come on the scene. "A ghost! I shall not
stay either!"
"What kind of a ghost?" demanded Andrew Mallison.
"A--er--a skeleton--and some skulls! I saw them with my own eyes," went
on the victim. "Come and see them for yourself."
"This is nonsense," said the hotel proprietor. "I will go and convince
you that you are mistaken."
He led the way and half a dozen followed, including Wilberforce Chaster,
who kept well to the rear. Just as the party reached the door of the
apartment Joe and the bell boy came up.
Without hesitation Andrew Mallison threw open the door of the room and
looked inside. Of course he saw nothing out of the ordinary.
"Where is your ghost?" he demanded. "I see nothing of it."
"Don't--don't you see--er--a skeleton?" demanded the man who had been
victimized.
"I do not."
Trembling in every limb Wilberforce Chaster came forward and peered into
the room.
"Well?" demanded the hotel proprietor, after a pause.
"I--I certainly saw them."
"Then where are they now?"
"I--I don't know."
By this time others were crowding into the apartment. All gazed around,
and into the clothes closet, but found nothing unusual.
"You must be the victim of some hallucination, sir," said the hotel
proprietor, severely.
He hated to have anything occur which might give his establishment a bad
reputation.
"No, sir, I saw the things with my own eyes."
The matter was talked over for several minutes longer and then the hired
help was ordered away.
"I shall not stay in this room," insisted Wilberforce Chaster.
"You need not remain in the hotel," answered Andrew Mallison, quickly.
"You can leave at once. You have alarmed the whole establishment
needlessly."
Some warm words followed, and the upshot of the matter was that the
fussy old boarder had to pack his things and seek another hotel that
very night.
"I am glad to get rid of him," said the hotel proprietor, after
Wilberforce Chaster had departed. "He was making trouble all the time."
"We fixed him, didn't we?" said the bell boy to Joe.
"I hope it teaches him a lesson to be more considerate in the future,"
answered our hero.
Several days passed and Joe had quite a few parties to take out on
the lake. The season was now drawing to a close, and our hero began to
wonder what he had best do when boating was over.
"I wonder if I couldn't strike something pretty good in Philadelphia?"
he asked himself. The idea of going to one of the big cities appealed to
him strongly.
One afternoon, on coming in from a trip across the lake, Joe found
Andrew Mallison in conversation with Mr. Maurice Vane, who had arrived
at the hotel scarcely an hour before. The city man was evidently both
excited and disappointed.
"Here is the boy now," said the hotel proprietor, and called Joe up.
"Well, young man, I guess you have hit the truth," were Maurice Vane's
first words.
"About those other fellows?" asked our hero, quickly.
"That's it."
"Did they swindle you?"
"They did."
"By selling you some worthless mining stocks?"
"Yes. If you will, I'd like you to tell me all you can about those two
men."
"I will," answered Joe, and told of the strange meeting at the old lodge
and of what had followed. Maurice Vane drew a long breath and shook his
head sadly.
"I was certainly a green one, to be taken in so slyly," said he.
"How did they happen to hear of you?" questioned Joe, curiously.
"I answered an advertisement in the daily paper," said Maurice Vane.
"Then this man, Caven, or whatever his right name may be, came to me and
said he had a certain plan for making a good deal of money. All I had to
do was to invest a certain amount and inside of a few days I could clear
fifteen or twenty thousand dollars."
"That was surely a nice proposition," said Joe, with a smile.
"I agreed to go into the scheme if it was all plain sailing and then
this Caven gave me some of the details. He said there was a demand for a
certain kind of mining shares. He knew an old miner who was sick and
who was willing to sell the shares he possessed for a reasonable sum
of money. The plan was to buy the shares and then sell them to another
party--a broker--at a big advance in price."
"That was simple enough," put in Andrew Mallison.
"Caven took me to see a man who called himself a broker. He had an
elegant office and looked prosperous. He told us he would be glad to buy
certain mining shares at a certain figure if he could get them in the
near future. He said a client was red-hot after the shares. I questioned
him closely and he appeared to be a truthful man. He said some folks
wanted to buy out the mine and consolidate it with another mine close
by."
"And then you came here and bought the stock of Malone?" queried Joe.
"Yes. Caven made me promise to give him half the profits and I agreed.
I came here, and as you know, Malone, or Ball, or whatever his name is,
pretended to be very sick and in need of money. He set his price, and I
came back with the cash and took the mining stock. I was to meet Caven,
alias Anderson, the next day and go to the broker with him, but Caven
did not appear. Then I grew suspicious and went to see the broker alone.
The man was gone and the office locked up. After that I asked some other
brokers about the stock, and they told me it was not worth five cents on
the dollar."
"Isn't there any such mine at all?" asked Joe.
"Oh, yes, there is such a mine, but it was abandoned two years ago,
after ten thousand dollars had been sunk in it. They said it paid so
little that it was not worth considering."
"That is certainly too bad for you," said Joe. "And you can't find any
trace of Caven or Malone?"
"No, both of the rascals have disappeared completely. I tried to trace
Caven and his broker friend in Philadelphia but it was of no use. More
than likely they have gone to some place thousands of miles away."
"Yes, and probably this Ball, or Malone, has joined them," put in Andrew
Mallison. "Mr. Vane, I am exceedingly sorry for you."
"I am sorry for myself, but I deserve my loss, for being such a fool,"
went on the victim.
"Have you notified the police?" asked Joe.
"Oh, yes, and I have hired a private detective to do what he can, too.
But I am afraid my money is gone for good."
"You might go and reopen the mine, Mr. Vane."
"Thank you, but I have lost enough already, without throwing good money
after bad, as the saying is."
"It may be that that detective will find the swindlers, sooner or
later."
"Such a thing is, of course, possible, but I am not over sanguine."
"I am afraid your money is gone for good," broke in Andrew Mallison. "I
wish I could help you, but I don't see how I can."
The matter was talked over for a good hour, and all three visited the
room Malone had occupied, which had been vacant ever since. But a hunt
around revealed nothing of value, and they returned to the office.
"I can do nothing more for you, Mr. Vane," said Andrew Mallison.
"I wish I could do something," said Joe. Something about Maurice Vane
was very attractive to him.
"If you ever hear of these rascals let me know," continued the hotel
proprietor.
"I will do so," was the reply.
With that the conversation on the subject closed. Maurice Vane remained
at the hotel overnight and left by the early train on the following
morning.
CHAPTER XIII.
OFF FOR THE CITY.
"Joe, our season ends next Saturday."
"I know it, Mr. Mallison."
"We are going to close the house on Tuesday. It won't pay to keep open
after our summer boarders leave."
"I know that, too."
"Have you any idea what you intend to do?" went on the hotel proprietor.
He was standing down by the dock watching Joe clean out one of the
boats.
"I'm thinking of going to Philadelphia."
"On a visit?"
"No, sir, to try my luck."
"Oh, I see. It's a big city, my lad."
"I know it, but, somehow, I feel I might do better there than in such a
town as this,--and I am getting tired of hanging around the lake."
"There is more money in Philadelphia than there is here, that is
certain, Joe. But you can't always get hold of it. The big cities are
crowded with people trying to obtain situations."
"I'm sure I can find something to do, Mr. Mallison. And, by the way,
when I leave, will you give me a written recommendation?"
"Certainly. You have done well since you came here. But you had better
think twice before going to Philadelphia."
"I've thought it over more than twice. I don't expect the earth, but I
feel that I can get something to do before my money runs out."
"How much money have you saved up?"
"I've got fifty-six dollars, and I'm going to sell my boat for four
dollars."
"Well, sixty dollars isn't such a bad capital. I have known men to start
out with a good deal less. When I left home I had but twenty dollars and
an extra suit of clothes."
"Did you come from a country place?"
"No, I came from New York. Times were hard and I couldn't get a single
thing to do. I went to Paterson, New Jersey, and got work in a silk
mill. From there I went to Camden, and then to Philadelphia. From
Philadelphia I came here and have been here ever since."
"You have been prosperous."
"Fairly so, although I don't make as much money as some of the hotel men
in the big cities. But then they take larger risks. A few years ago a
hotel friend of mine opened a big hotel in Atlantic City. He hoped to
make a small fortune, but he was not located in the right part of the
town and at the end of the season he found himself just fifteen thousand
dollars out of pocket. Now he has sold out and is running a country
hotel fifty miles west of here. He doesn't hope to make so much, but his
business is much safer."
"I'm afraid it will be a long time before I get money enough to run a
hotel," laughed our hero.
"Would you like to run one?"
"I don't know. I'd like to educate myself first."
"Don't you study some now? I have seen you with some arithmetics and
histories."
"Yes, sir, I study a little every day. You see, I never had much
schooling, and I don't want to grow up ignorant, if I can help it."
"That is the proper spirit, lad," answered Andrew Mallison, warmly.
"Learn all you possibly can. It will always be the means of doing you
good."
The conversation took place on Thursday and two days later the season at
the summer hotel came to an end and the last of the boarders took their
departure. Monday was spent in putting things in order, and by Tuesday
afternoon work around the place came to an end, and all the help was
paid off.
In the meantime Joe had sold his boat. With all of his money in his
pocket he called at the Talmadge house to see if Ned had returned from
the trip to the west.
"Just got back yesterday," said Ned, who came to greet him. "Had a
glorious trip. I wish you had been along. I like traveling better than
staying at home all the time."
"I am going to do a bit of traveling myself, Ned."
"Where are you going?"
"To Philadelphia--to try my luck in that city."
"Going to leave Mr. Mallison?"
"Yes,--the season is at an end."
"Oh, I see. So you are going to the Quaker City, as pa calls it. I wish
you luck. You'll have to write to me, Joe, and let me know how you are
getting along."
"I will,--and you must write to me."
"Of course."
On the following day Joe rowed along the lake to where his old home dock
had been located and made a trip to what was left of the cabin. He spent
another hour in hunting for the blue box, but without success.
"I suppose I'll never find that box," he sighed. "I may as well give up
thinking about it."
From Andrew Mallison our hero had obtained his letter of recommendation
and also a good pocket map of Philadelphia. The hotel man had also
made him a present of a neat suit case, in which he packed his few
belongings.
Ned Talmadge came to see him off at the depot. The day was cool and
clear, and Joe felt in excellent spirits.
Soon the train came along and our hero got aboard, along with a dozen
or fifteen others. He waved a hand to Ned and his friend shouted out
a good-bye. Then the train moved on, and the town was soon left in the
distance.
The car that Joe had entered was not more than quarter filled and he
easily found a seat for himself by a window. He placed his suit case at
his feet and then gave himself up to looking at the scenery as it rushed
past.
Joe had never spent much of his time on the railroad, so the long ride
had much of novelty in it. The scenery was grand, as they wound in and
out among the hills and mountains, or crossed brooks and rivers and
well-kept farms. Numerous stops were made, and long before Philadelphia
was gained the train became crowded.
"Nice day for riding," said a man who sat down beside our hero. He
looked to be what he was, a prosperous farmer.
"It is," answered Joe.
"Goin' to Philadelphy, I reckon," went on the farmer.
"Yes, sir."
"That's where I'm going, too. Got a little business to attend to."
"I am going there to try my luck," said Joe, he felt he could talk to
the old man with confidence.
"Goin' to look fer a job, eh?"
"Yes, sir."
"Wot kin ye do, if I might ask?"
"Oh, I'm willing to do most anything. I've been taking care of rowboats
and working around a summer hotel, at Lake Tandy."
"Well, ye won't git many boats to look at down to Philadelphy!" and the
old farmer chuckled.
"I suppose not. Maybe I'll strike a job at one of the hotels."
"Perhaps. They tell me some hotels down there is monsterous--ten an'
twelve stories high. Ye don't catch me goin' to no sech place. In case
o' fire, it's all up with ye, if you're on the twelfth story."
"Are you going to Philadelphia to stay, Mr.----"
"Bean is my name--Josiah Bean. I'm from Haydown Center, I am. Got a farm
there o' a hundred acres."
"Oh, is that so!"
"Wot's your handle, young man?"
"My name is Joe Bodley. I came from Riverside."
"Proud to know you." And Josiah Bean shook hands. "No, I ain't going
to stay in Philadelphy. I'm a-going on business fer my wife. A relative
left her some property an' I'm a-goin' to collect on it."
"That's a pleasant trip to be on," was our hero's comment.
"I'll feel better when I have the six hundred dollars in my fist. I'm
afraid it ain't goin' to be no easy matter to git it."
"What's the trouble!"
"I ain't known in Philadelphy an' they tell me a feller has got to be
identified or somethin' like thet--somebody has got to speak for ye wot
knows ye."
"I see. Perhaps you'll meet some friend."
"Thet's wot I'm hopin' fer."
The train rolled on and presently Joe got out his map and began to study
it, so that he might know something of the great city when he arrived
there.
"Guess I'll git a drink o' water," said Josiah Bean, and walked to the
end of the car to do so. Immediately a slick looking man who had been
seated behind the farmer arose and followed him.
CHAPTER XIV.
A SCENE ON THE TRAIN.
The slick-looking individual had listened attentively to all that passed
between our hero and the farmer.
He waited until the latter had procured his drink of water and then
rushed up with a smile on his face.
"I declare!" he exclaimed. "How do you do?" And he extended his hand.
"How do you do?" repeated the farmer, shaking hands slowly. He felt much
perplexed, for he could not remember having met the other man before.
"How are matters up on the farm?" went on the stranger.
"Thank you, very good."
"I--er--I don't think you remember me, Mr. Bean," went on the
slick-looking individual.
"Well, somehow I think I know your face," answered the old farmer,
lamely. He did not wish to appear wanting in politeness.
"You ought to remember me. I spent some time in Haydown Center year
before last, selling machines."
"Oh, you had them patent reapers, is that it?"
"You've struck it."
"I remember you now. You're a nephew of Judge Davis."
"Exactly."
"O' course! O' course! But I can't remember your name nohow."
"It's Davis, too--Henry Davis."
"Oh, yes. I'm glad to meet you, Mr. Davis."
"I saw you in the seat with that boy," went on the man we shall call
Henry Davis. "I thought I knew you from the start, but I wasn't dead
sure. Going to Philadelphia with us?"
"Yes, sir."
"Good enough. Mr. Bean, won't you smoke with me? I was just going into
the smoker."
"Thanks, but I--er--I don't smoke much."
"Just one mild cigar. That won't hurt you, I'm sure. I love to meet old
friends," continued Henry Davis.
In the end the old farmer was persuaded to walk into the smoking car and
here the slick-looking individual found a corner seat where they would
be undisturbed.
"I expect to spend a week or more in Philadelphia, Mr. Bean," said the
stranger; "if I can be of service to you during that time, command me."
"Well, perhaps ye can be of service to me. Do ye know many folks in the
city?"
"Oh, yes, a great many. Some are business friends and some are folks in
high society."
"I don't care for no high society. But I've got to collect six hundred
dollars an' I want somebody to identify me."
"Oh, I can do that easily, Mr. Bean."
"Kin ye?" The farmer grew interested at once. "If ye kin I'll be much
obliged to ye."
"Where must you be identified?"
"Down to the office of Barwell & Cameron, on Broad street. Do ye know
'em?"
"I know of them, and I can find somebody who does know them, so there
will not be the least trouble."
"It's a load off my mind," said Josiah Bean, with a sigh. "Ye see, the
money is comin' to my wife. She writ to 'em that I was comin' to collect
an' they writ back it would be all right, only I would have to be
identified. Jest as if everybody in Haydown Center don't know I'm Josiah
Bean an' a piller in the Union Church down there, an' a cousin to Jedge
Bean o' Lassindale."
"Well, they have to be mighty particular when they pay out any money in
the city. There are so many sharpers around."
"I ain't no sharper."
"To be sure you are not, and neither am I. But I once had trouble
getting money."
"Is thet so?"
"Yes. But after I proved who I was the folks were pretty well ashamed of
themselves," went on Henry Davis, smoothly.
So the talk ran on and at the end of half an hour the old farmer and the
slick-looking individual were on exceedingly friendly terms. Henry
Davis asked much about the old man and gathered in a good stock of
information.
When Philadelphia was gained it was dark, and coming out of the big
railroad station Joe at first knew not which way to turn. The noise and
the crowd of people confused him.
"Have a cab? Carriage?" bawled the hackmen.
"Paper!" yelled a newsboy. "All the evenin' papers!"
"Smash yer baggage!" called out a luggage boy, not near as tall as our
hero.
Looking ahead, Joe saw Josiah Bean and the slick-looking individual
moving down the street and without realizing it, our hero began to
follow the pair.
"He must be some friend," said our hero to himself.
He wondered where they were going and his curiosity getting the better
of him he continued to follow them for half a dozen blocks. At last they
came to a halt in front of a building displaying the sign:
JOHNSON'S QUAKER HOTEL
MODERATE TERMS FOR ALL.
"This hotel is all right and the prices are right, too," Joe heard the
slick-looking man tell the old farmer.
"Then thet suits me," answered Josiah Bean. "I'll go in an' git a room
fer the night."
"I think I might as well do the same," said Henry Davis. "I don't care
to go away over to my boarding house at Fairmount Park."
The pair walked into the hotel, and Joe saw them register and pass down
the corridor in the company of a bell boy. Then our hero entered the
place.
"Can I get a room here for the night?" he asked of the clerk behind the
desk.
"Certainly."
"What is the charge?"
"Seventy-five cents."
"That suits me."
The register was shoved forward and Joe wrote down his name. Then he
was shown to a small room on the third floor. The building was but four
stories high.
Joe was tired and soon went to bed. In the next room he heard a murmur
of voices and made out that the old farmer and his friend were talking
earnestly.
"They must be very friendly," was his comment, and thinking the matter
over he fell asleep.
Bright and early in the morning our hero arose, dressed himself, and
went below. He had breakfast in the restaurant attached to the hotel
and was just finishing up when the old farmer and the slick-looking
individual came in.
"Hullo!" cried Josiah Bean. "What are you doin' here?"
"I got a room overnight," answered our hero.
"We're stopping here, too. This is my friend, Mr. Henry Davis."
"Good morning," said the slick-looking man. He did not seem to fancy
meeting Joe.
They sat down close at hand and, while eating, the farmer asked Joe half
a dozen questions.
He spoke about his own business until Henry Davis nudged him in the
side.
"I wouldn't tell that boy too much," he said in a low tone.
"Oh, he's all right," answered the old farmer.
Joe heard the slick-looking individual's words and they made his face
burn. He looked at the man narrowly and made up his mind he was not a
fellow to be desired for an acquaintance.
Having finished, our hero paid his bill and left the restaurant.
He scarcely knew which way to turn, but resolved to look over the
newspapers first and see if any positions were offered.
While in the reading room he saw Josiah Bean and his acquaintance leave
the hotel and walk in the direction of Broad street.
A little later Joe took from the paper he was reading the addresses of
several people who wanted help, and then he, too, left the hotel.
The first place he called at was a florist's establishment, but the pay
was so small he declined the position.
"I could not live on three dollars per week," he said.
"That is all we care to pay," answered the proprietor, coldly. "It is
more than other establishments pay."
"Then I pity those who work at the other places," returned Joe, and
walked out.
CHAPTER XV.
WHAT HAPPENED TO JOSIAH BEAN.
In the meantime Josiah Bean and the slick-looking individual turned into
Broad street and made their way to a certain establishment known as the
Eagle's Club.
Here Henry Davis called another man aside.
"Say, Foxy, do you know anybody down to Barwell & Cameron's?" he asked,
in a low tone, so that the old farmer could not hear.
"Yes--a clerk named Chase."
"Then come down and introduce me."
"What's the game?"
"Never mind--there's a tenner in it for you if it works."
"Then I'm on, Bill."
"Hush--my name is Henry Davis."
"All right, Hank," returned Foxy, carelessly.
He came forward and was introduced to the old farmer in the following
fashion:
"Mr. Richard Barlow--of Barlow & Small, manufacturers."
All three made their way to the establishment of Barwell & Cameron, and
then Henry Davis was introduced under that name to a clerk.
As soon as Foxy had departed the slick-looking individual turned to the
clerk and called the old farmer forward.
"This is my esteemed friend, Mr. Josiah Bean, of Haydown Center. He has
business with Mr. Cameron, I believe."
"I'm here to collect six hundred dollars," said Josiah Bean. "Mr.
Cameron writ me some letters about it."
"Very well, sir. Sit down, gentlemen, and I'll tell Mr. Cameron."
The two were kept waiting for a few minutes and were then ushered into a
private office. Through Chase, the clerk, Henry Davis was introduced and
then Josiah Bean. All the papers proved to be correct, and after the old
farmer had signed his name he was given a check.
"See here, I want the cash," he demanded.
"Very well," said Mr. Cameron. "Indorse the check and I'll have the
money drawn for you across the street."
The farmer wrote down his name once more, and a few minutes later
received his six hundred dollars in twelve brand-new fifty-dollar bills.
"Gosh! Them will be nice fer Mirandy to look at," was his comment, as he
surveyed the bills.
"Be careful that you don't lose them, Mr. Bean," cautioned Henry Davis,
as the two left the establishment.
"Reckon the best thing I can do is to git back to hum this afternoon,"
remarked Josiah Bean, when he was on the street.
"Oh, now you are in town you'll have to look around a bit," said the
slick-looking individual. "You can take a train back to-morrow just as
well. Let me show you a few of the sights."
This tickled the old farmer and he agreed to remain over until the next
noon. Then Henry Davis dragged the old man around to various points of
interest and grew more familiar than ever.
While they were at the top of one of the big office buildings Henry
Davis pretended to drop his pocketbook.
"How careless of me!" he cried.
"Got much in it?" queried Josiah Bean.
"Three thousand dollars."
"Do tell! It's a powerful sight o' money to carry so careless like."
"It is. Maybe you had better carry it for me, Mr. Bean."
"Not me! I ain't goin' to be responsible fer nobody's money but my
own--an' Mirandy's."
"Better see if your own money is safe."
Josiah Bean got out his wallet and counted the bills.
"Safe enough."
"Are you sure? I thought there was only five hundred and fifty."
"No, six hundred."
"I'll bet you ten dollars on it."
"What! can't I count straight," gasped the old farmer, much disturbed.
"Six hundred I tell you," he added, after he had gone over the amount
once more.
"If there is I'll give you the ten dollars," answered the slick one.
"Let me count the bills."
"All right, there ye be, Mr. Davis."
Henry Davis took the wallet and pretended to count the bills.
"Hullo, what's that?" he cried, whirling around.
"What's wot?" demanded Josiah Bean, also looking around.
"I thought I heard somebody cry fire."
"Don't say thet! Say, let's git out o' here--I don't want to look at the
sights."
"All right--here's your money. I guess it's six hundred after all,"
answered the slick-looking individual, passing over the wallet.
They hurried to the elevator and got into quite a crowd of people.
"Wait for me here," said Henry Davis, as they walked past the side
corridor. "I want to step in yonder office and send a message to a
friend."
He ran off, leaving the old farmer by himself. Josiah Bean looked around
him nervously.
"I guess that wasn't no cry o' fire after all," he mused. "Well, if
there's a fire I kin git out from here quick enough."
The office building was a large one, running from one street to the
next. On the street in the rear was a bookstore, the proprietor of which
had advertised for a clerk.
Joe had applied for the position and was waiting for the proprietor to
address him when, on chancing to look up, he saw Henry Davis rush past
as if in a tremendous hurry.
"Hullo, that's the fellow who was with the old farmer," he told himself.
"What can I do for you, young man?" asked the proprietor of the
bookshop, approaching at that instant.
"I believe you wish a clerk," answered our hero.
"Have you had experience in this line?"
"No, sir."
"Then you won't do. I must have someone who is experienced."
"I am willing to learn."
"It won't do. I want an experienced clerk or none at all," was the sharp
answer.
Leaving the bookstore, Joe stood out on the sidewalk for a moment and
then walked around the corner.
A moment later he caught sight of Josiah Bean, gazing up and down the
thoroughfare and acting like one demented.
"What's the matter?" he asked.
"Matter?" bawled the old farmer. "I've been took in! Robbed! Swindled!
Oh, wot will Mirandy say!"
"Who robbed you?"
"Thet Mr. Davis I reckon! He counted the money last, an' now it's gone!"
"I saw Mr. Davis a minute ago."
"Where?"
"Around the corner, walking as fast as he could."
"He's got my money! Oh, I must catch him!"
"I'll help you," answered Joe, with vigor. "I thought he looked like a
slick one," he added.
He led the way and Josiah Bean came behind. The old farmer looked as if
he was ready to drop with fright. The thought of losing his wife's money
was truly horrifying.
"Mirandy won't never forgive me!" he groaned. "Oh, say, boy, we've got
to catch that rascal!"
"If we can," added our hero.
He had noted the direction taken by the swindler, and now ran across the
street and into a side thoroughfare leading to where a new building was
being put up.
Here, from a workman, he learned that the sharper had boarded a street
car going south. He hailed the next car and both he and the old farmer
got aboard.
"This ain't much use," said Josiah Bean, with quivering lips. "We dunno
how far he took himself to."
"Let us trust to luck to meet him," said Joe.
They rode for a distance of a dozen blocks and then the car came to a
halt, for there was a blockade ahead.
"We may as well get off," said our hero. "He may be in one of the
forward cars."
They alighted and walked on, past half a dozen cars. Then our hero gave
a cry of triumph.
"There he is!" he said, and pointed to the swindler, who stood on a car
platform, gazing anxiously ahead.
CHAPTER XVI.
A MATTER OF SIX HUNDRED DOLLARS.
"Say, you, give me my money!"
Such were Josiah Bean's words, as he rushed up to Henry Davis and
grabbed the swindler by the shoulder.
The slick-looking individual was thoroughly startled, for he had not
dreamed that the countryman would get on his track so soon. He turned
and looked at the man and also at Joe, and his face fell.
"Wha--what are you talking about?" he stammered.
"You know well enough what I am talking about," answered Josiah Bean,
wrathfully. "I want my money, every cent o' it,--an' you are a-goin' to
jail!"
"Sir, you are making a sad mistake," said the swindler, slowly. "I know
nothing of you or your money."
"Yes, you do."
"Make him get off the car," put in Joe.
"Boy, what have you to do with this?" asked the swindler, turning
bitterly to our hero.
"Not much perhaps," answered Joe. "But I'd like to see justice done."
"I want that money," went on the countryman, doggedly. "Come off the
car."
He caught the swindler tighter than ever and made him walk to the
sidewalk. By this time a crowd of people began to collect.
"What's the trouble here?" asked one gentleman.
"He's robbed me, that's what's the matter," answered the countryman. "He
has got six hundred dollars o' mine!"
"Six hundred dollars!" cried several and began to take a deeper
interest.
"Gentleman this man must be crazy. I never saw him before," came loudly
from the swindler.
"That is not true!" cried Joe. "He was with the man who lost the money.
I saw them together yesterday."
"I am a respectable merchant from Pittsburg," went on the swindler. "It
is outrageous to be accused in this fashion."
"Somebody had better call a policeman," said Joe.
"I'll do dat," answered a newsboy, and ran off to execute the errand.
As the crowd began to collect the swindler saw that he was going to have
difficulty in clearing himself or getting away. He looked around, and
seeing an opening made a dash for it.
He might have gotten away had it not been for Joe. But our hero was
watching him with the eyes of a hawk, and quick as a flash he caught the
rascal by the coat sleeve.
"No, you don't!" he exclaimed. "Come back here!"
"Let go!" cried the man and hit Joe in the ear. But the blow did not
stop Joe from detaining him and in a second more Josiah Bean caught hold
also.
"Ain't goin' to git away nohow!" exclaimed the countryman, and took hold
of the swindler's throat.
"Le--let go!" came back in a gasp. "Don't--don't strangle me!"
When a policeman arrived the swindler was thoroughly cowed and he turned
reproachfully to Josiah Bean.
"This isn't fair," he said. "It was all a joke. I haven't got your
money."
"Yes, you have."
"He is right, Mr. Bean," put in Joe. "The money, I think, is in your
side pocket."
The countryman searched the pocket quickly and brought out a flat
pocketbook.
"Hullo! this ain't mine!" he ejaculated.
He opened the p