“There’s a blue sign over there in the next block,” said Amy.  “Who—­who’s going to do the talking?”

“Well, you’re pretty fond of it,” suggested Clint.

“Not today!  Not on Sundays, Clint!  I never could talk on Sundays!  You’d better do it.  And get Josh himself, if you can.  He’ll like it better than if he hears it from an H.M.  Tell him we got lost and—­”

But Amy’s further instructions were interrupted.  A blue-coated policeman who had been observing their approach with keen interest hailed them from the curb at the corner.

“Hello, boys!” he said.  “Where’d you come from?”

“We came from Thacher,” replied Clint.  “That is, we came from there this morning, or, rather, last night.  We’re from Brimfield, really.”

“Are, eh?  Thought you said Thacher.  What you doing here?’’

“Waiting for a train.  We lost our way last night and only got here this morning.”

“Why didn’t you take the seven-o’clock then?”

“We didn’t know about it until it was too late.  We were getting some breakfast at a restaurant down the street there.  We’re going to take the nine-forty-six.”

“The nine-forty-six is an express to New York, son.  What’s your name?  And what’s his?”

“My name’s Thayer and his is Byrd.  We go to Brimfield Academy.”

“Do, eh?  Aren’t you a long way from home?”

“Yes.  You see, we went over to Thacher to the football game and lost the trolley.  And then a fellow offered to give us a ride in an automobile as far as this place and we got in and a wheel came off and we had to walk the rest of the way.  But we got lost in the woods somewhere and—­”

“What sort of a looking fellow was this?  The one with the auto, I mean?”

“Oh, he was about twenty years old, with kind of long hair, light-brown, and sort of greyish eyes.”

“Tell you his name?”

“No, sir, we didn’t ask him.  He drives the auto for some liveryman in Thacher, he said.”

“Hm.  Well, that may be all right, kids, but I’ve been instructed to look out for suspicious characters this morning, and I guess you’d both better step around to the station with me.”  He smiled.  “I don’t suppose the Chief’ll keep you very long, but he might like to ask you some questions.  See?”

The boys nodded not over-enthusiastically and accompanied the officer.  The police station was but a half-block distant on a side street and their captor ushered them up the steps and into a room where a tall, bushy-whiskered man with much gold on his shoulders sat writing at a flat-topped desk.

“Chief, here’s a couple of youngsters I met on Main Street just now.  I guess they’re all right, but I thought maybe you’d like to look ’em over.”

The Chief nodded and proceeded to do so.  He had a most disconcerting stare, had the Chief, and the boys began to wonder if they had not, perhaps, after all performed that burglary!