“Perhaps I’m mistaken,” he mused.

He resolved to draw nearer and hear if possible what the two men were saying.

A clump of bushes grew close to the spring before mentioned, and he crawled up behind this, thus getting within fifteen feet of the campfire.

“You are certain you saw the boys, Buddy?” he heard the tall man with the scar say.

“I’m as sure of it as I’m sure your name is Arnold Baxt -”

“Hush, Buddy, how many times must I tell you that I want that name dropped, especially around here?”

“There ain’t anybody around here to hear us?”

“Well, I don’t want the name mentioned.  I call you Buddy.  You must call me Nolly.”

“All right, Nolly.”

“Now, you are dead sure you saw the boys on their way to Putnam Hall?”

“I am.”

“How much have you drank today?”

“Only two glasses, this morning.  Oh, it was them,” went on Buddy, with a total disregard for grammar.

The tall man muttered something under his breath.

“It’s too bad,” he said aloud.

“What’s too bad? "

“That they are going to Putnam Hall.  Still, I don’t know as it will amount to anything.  But I reckon you had best get out of the neighborhood.”

“I’m going to get out.”

“What brought you here?”

“I wanted to see you again, as I said before.”

“About what?”

“That mining deal.”

“I can’t do anything at present.”

“Why not?”

“There are some papers missing, Buddy.  As soon as I get those I’ll be in a condition to go ahead.  You know, I’ve got to move slowly.”

“Well, what brought you here?”

“That is my business.”

“Every few months or so you come up to Cedarville, Baxt—­ Nolly, and on a secret mission.”

“Well, who has a better right?  Come, let us talk about something else.  If you—­ Hullo, what’s that?”

Both men leaped to their feet as a sound from the bushes back of the spring reached their ears.

Tom had been lying as quiet as a mouse when a pinching-bug, as they are commonly called, had dropped from one of the bushes onto his neck.

The bug was as big as a walnut shell, and had fine nippers, and when he took hold of the skin Tom could not help but make a slight noise as he tried to throw the bug off.

Before the boy could arise to his feet the two men were rushing upon him, Buddy with a stick and the tall man with something which he had drawn from his pocket.  It was a sand-bag, a favorite weapon used in our large cities by footpads.

CHAPTER X

SETTLING DOWN AT THE HALL

“It’s a boy!” cried the tall, slim man.

“One of the boys!” came from the tramp known as Buddy.

“You don’t say!” The tall man turned to Tom.  “How did you get here?”