says ten bells—­How’s the weather in your neck of the woods?” Instead the words were entirely different.  She could not believe her eyes as she made them out.  “Albright going through railway tunnel—­hold him up—­get notebook away—­keep Brewster out of game.”  Her senses reeled as she understood the meaning of the message.  That Joe was plotting against her when he pretended to be a friend cut her to the quick.  For a moment her lip quivered; then her nature asserted itself.  There was a thing to do and she must do it.  Dick must be kept from going through the tunnel.  Turning out the lights downstairs, she crept noiselessly out of the house, found her brother’s bicycle on the porch and pedaled off after Dick.  She knew exactly the way he would take.  From Migwan’s house he would go up Adams to Locust Street and from there to ——­th Avenue, and keep on going until he came to the dark tunnel.  Sahwah nearly burst with indignation when she thought of Joe’s cowardly conduct.  He was calmly getting Abraham to do the dirty work for him, so he would never be suspected of having anything to do with it in case Dick recognized Abraham.  She could see how the thing would work out.  Abraham lived just the other side of the tunnel.  All he would have to do would be to stand in the shadow of the tunnel, jump out on Dick as he came through, seize the notebook from his hand, and run away before Dick knew what had happened.  There would be no need of fighting or hurting him.  But Joe’s end would be accomplished and Washington would lose the game.  The fact that he was a traitor to the school hurt Sahwah ten times worse than the injury he was trying to do her.  “Even if his cousin is on the other side, he belongs to Washington,” she repeated over and over to herself.

Down Locust Street she flew and along deserted ——­th Avenue.  It was bitterly cold riding, but she took no notice.  Far ahead of her she could see Dick walking briskly toward the fatal tunnel.  Pedaling for dear life she caught up with him when he was still some distance from it.  “Whatever is the matter?” he asked, startled, as she flung herself breathless from the wheel beside him.

“The notebook,” she said.  “Joe’s trying to get it away from you.  He’s got Abraham Goldstein waiting in the tunnel to snatch it as you go by.”

Dick gave vent to a long whistle of astonishment.  “Of all the underhand tricks!” he exclaimed when the full significance of Joe’s act was borne in on him.  He was stupefied to think that Joe was a traitor to the school.  “That’ll fix his chances of getting into the Thessalonians,” he said vehemently.  “His name is coming up next week to be voted on.  Just wait until I tell what I know about him!”

Dick retraced his steps and took Sahwah home, where he left the precious notebook in her keeping to prevent any possibility of its getting lost before she could hand it in, and then took the streetcar and rode home the roundabout way, arriving there in safety.  Abraham waited out in the cold tunnel for several hours and then gave it up and went home, feeling decidedly out of temper with Joe Lanning and his intrigues.