“Say, he’s figuring on whether he’d best streak it as he is, or go in and gather a few things together that he may need,” continued the irrepressible Thad.

Even as he spoke they saw the other scramble hastily out of the comfortable hammock, and start post-haste for the open door of the cottage.  Thad was as certain of what was about to happen as that he knew his own name.  Hugh suspended judgment, believing that it would be unwise to jump too hastily to a decision.  Besides, there were a few little suspicious things connected with the actions of Brother Lu that he did not wholly like.

A minute passed, two of them, which doubtless seemed like so many hours to the confident Thad.  Then they again saw the late hobo coming out.  Thad stared harder than ever, and his heart felt like lead.

What did it mean? he asked himself.  Brother Lu did not have his hat on, nor was he carrying any sort of hastily thrown together bundle.  In fact, he showed not the first sign of the dreadful alarm Thad had anticipated.

He still carried the weekly paper in his hand as though he meant to look over that wonderful article of Jim’s again.  And what he had really darted into the house after was evident; for in the other hand he carried Mr. Hosmer’s only good pipe, as well as his tobacco bag, now getting woefully depleted of its prized contents.

Then, as if totally unaware of the fact that three pairs of eyes were glued upon his every slightest move, Brother Lu calmly filled the pipe, struck a match on the sole of Brother-in-law Andrew’s shoe, applied the flame to the contents of the pipe bowl, and puffed out a cloud of blue smoke with all the assurance in the world.  Thad nearly took a fit trying to hold in; the fact was Hugh felt constrained to lay a warning hand on his chum’s arm to keep him from bursting out in such a manner as to betray them to the smug hobo.

Brother Lu read the article again from beginning to end.  Then he smote his knee with his open palm several times, and they could actually hear him chuckle, as if he might be highly amused.  All this rather puzzled Jim, who had fully anticipated seeing the intruder making a bee-line for the railroad.  Perhaps he even began to wonder whether, after all, he might not have “laid it on a little thicker” when writing up that story about the grim Texan marshal.

Presently Matilda was heard calling to Brother Lu, who, leaving his hammock, sauntered into the house with all the airs of one who had arranged to take life easy from that time on.

“Hey! let’s beat it,” mumbled the keenly disappointed Jim Pettigrew.  “I’ve got heaps to do at the office; and I seem to tumble to the fact that, after all, our big game didn’t pan out just as was expected.”

Thad did not have a single word to say just then.  He was, in fact, too dazed to collect his thoughts.  But Hugh’s active mind was grappling with the matter, and he apparently seemed able to figure things out.