CHAPTER XVII
AT PRACTICE
"Did you see 'em?"
"Are they all there?"
"What about Helen Newton?"
"Say, where's my brown suit?"
"Has anyone seen my purple tie?"
"Give me those shoes, Sid! Who said you could take 'em, anyhow--my bestones?" and Phil fairly upset his chum in order to rescue the footgearthat had been taken without his permission.
I presume the reader can understand the meaning of the expressionswhich open this chapter. They had to do directly with Tom's startlingannouncement, and who said which or what does not matter. Sufficientto state that Sid, Phil and Frank thus overwhelmed Tom with the abovequestions.
"I didn't see any of 'em," went on Tom, when he could get his breath."But I heard her laugh----"
"Heard who laugh?" demanded Phil.
"Your sister."
"I thought you said they _all_ came!" reproached Sid.
"So I did, and so they have. Do you think one girl would have fourtrunks and four suitcases?" asked Tom, in indignant justification.
"They might--I have known of such," said Frank. "But are you surethey're all here?"
"Of course. Didn't I hear 'em all laugh? Anyhow, Madge must be here, orRuth wouldn't be at the cottage. And if two of 'em are there the othertwo are, too."
"That's no reason at all," said Phil, firmly. "This will have to beinvestigated. Where's my clean shirt? I'm going to see my sister!" andhe strode into the tent.
"It's the first time Phil was ever so thoughtful of his sister,fellows. I guess we'd better all get togged up a bit," said Frank, andthe activities, that had begun when Tom came in with the news (whichactivities had ceased momentarily while the glad tidings were beingconfirmed), were again resumed.
"Glad rags," as the lads slangily designated their habiliments, otherthan the ones in which they worked about the camp, were soon beingdonned, and a little later the boys were on their way to the Tylercottage.
"I wonder how long they're going to stay?" said Sid.
"As long as we do, I hope," said Tom. "There they are!"
"All four of 'em, sure enough," added Phil.
"You were a good guesser, Tom, old man."
"Oh, leave it to your Uncle Dudley!" declared Tom, puffing out hischest. "Little Willie knows what he's about."
"Hello, boys!" called Madge Tyler, as she caught sight of the advancingfour.
"Welcome to our city," added Ruth, as she threw a kiss to--her brother.At least Tom said so, when they accused him later of intercepting it,and Tom ought to know.
"Glad you're here."
"Isn't this place lovely?"
"Where is your boat?"
"Have you a motor?"
"Are you going to invite us to lunch in the tent?"
These questions and comments were bandied back and forth among the boysand girls, no one caring very much who said what, so glad were they tosee each other, and exchange greetings and experiences.
"We girls just came up this morning," explained Madge. "We didn't waitfor mother, and father has some tiresome business to look after so hecouldn't come. But I just said that Jeanette, our maid, was chaperoneenough, and so we came. I guess the man on the boat thought we hadbaggage enough."
"But he was nice about it," added Ruth.
"Yes, after I gave him a quarter," explained Helen.
"Oh, you dear! Did you really tip him?" asked Madge.
"Certainly--he--er--well, he seemed to expect it," and the boys laughedat her naive explanation.
"Won't you come in?" invited Madge. "It isn't much of a cottage, and wecan't even offer you a cup of tea, for we're all out, and I had to sendJeanette for some."
"Don't worry about that," remarked Phil.
"We've got all the food we can eat over at the tent," went on Tom.
All entered the charming little cottage, and the boys told of theirexperiences since coming to camp, while the girls detailed thehappenings of their journey that morning.
A small steamer, making regular trips about the lake, had left them andtheir baggage at the island, which was beginning to be quite a Summerresort. A new store had recently been built on the place, and provided avariety of articles, including foodstuffs for the cottagers.
"There's a boat or two with this cottage," explained Madge. "We'll haveto get them in the water to soak up, I suppose, and then we girls willgive you boys some lessons in rowing; won't we, girls?"
"We might try," said Ruth, drily.
"Your boats are in the water, I think," said Sid. "I saw that Mexican'take-care' man, as he calls himself, at them the other day, caulking upsome cracks."
"That's good," retorted Madge. "I know father wrote on to have thisdone, but I've been so busy, getting ready to come here, that I forgotto ask if it had been attended to. I wish we had a motor-launch, butfather is so old-fashioned, if I must say it, that he won't hear of it."
"Haven't you boys a launch?" asked Helen.
"No," replied Tom, "but perhaps we can hire one," and he looked at Ruth,who had been trying to signal him when the Mexican's name was mentioned.
"That's a good idea," declared Phil. "We'll see about it this afternoon."
Then Jeanette, the maid, having come from the store with the tea, theboys took their leave, to allow the girls time to change into morecomfortable and camp-like garments, and also to enjoy their beverage.
"We'll see you after lunch," called Phil.
"We'd ask you to stay," spoke Madge, "but really we haven't quite foundourselves yet. Later on----"
"Come on over to our tent," invited Sid.
"No, thank you," laughed the young hostess. "Some other time. We haveto unpack our dresses, or they'll get wrinkled."
The boys thought lunch time would never pass, but it did, though theymade a hasty meal of it. Then they hurried back to the cottage, anda little later four pairs of young persons were strolling in fourdifferent directions over the beautiful island.
"Oh, Tom!" exclaimed Ruth. "I've been just wild to get you alone for amoment to ask if you've found out anything about my brooch?"
"Not a thing, Ruth, I'm sorry to say. In fact the whole business is at astandstill. We had some suspicions, but they didn't lead anywhere, andwe're up against a stone wall so far in the game."
"Well, perhaps something may develop," she said with a sigh. "I hope so,for I'm afraid every day some of my folks will discover that I'm notwearing the brooch. When I went to bid grandmother good-bye I wore alarge bow tie, so she couldn't see the place where the pin ought to havebeen, but wasn't. Isn't it dreadful to be so deceitful?"
"Not at all," Tom hastened to assure her. "It isn't your fault, and, asyou say, something may develop."
They strolled on, as did the others, and the afternoon seemedwonderfully short.
I note, in looking back over some pages I have written, that I headedthis chapter "At Practice," and really I meant to devote considerablespace to detailing the doings of Tom and his chums in the shell, underthe guidance of Mr. Pierson. But I find that the girls have taken upsuch a large proportion of my available space that I have not much leftfor rowing matters. And, in fact, the boys found themselves in the samepredicament. After all, I suppose, it is not an unforgivable crime.
Tom and his chums kept promising themselves, from day to day, after thearrival of the girls, that they would buckle down to hard work in theshell, but each day saw them over at the cottage as early as decency andgood manners would allow, and the same thing kept them there as late aspossible.
They hired a small gasoline launch, that was continually getting out oforder, and stopping out in the middle of the lake. They had to be towedin so frequently that they became very well known. But it was all themore fun.
"There's something about this launch that you don't often find,"remarked Frank, one day when they had been drifting helplessly about.
"And it's a good thing you don't," added Tom.
"What I meant," said Frank, "was that it n
ever gets monotonous. The samething never happens twice."
"I should say not," declared Sid. "Everything on the old tub hasbroken one time or another, from the old cups to the piston rings,and everything from the spark coil to the batteries has given out!Monotonous? I should say nixy!"
Yet the boys did practice. Frank grew desperate when a week had gone bywithout their getting into the shell, and he spoke to such advantage,dwelling on the necessity of keeping in condition, that the othersagreed with him. So they left the girls to their own devices onemorning, and rowed down to college.
They found quite a number of their chums there, and considerablepractice was going on. Mr. Lighton had paid one of his flying visits andwas giving the lads some instruction.
Our friends told him of Mr. Pierson's offer, and the coach said:
"You could not do better, boys, than to follow his advice. I wish wecould get him to come to Randall in the Fall."
"Maybe he will," suggested Sid. "We'll ask him."
Mr. Lighton said he had word from Bricktop Molloy, and one or two ofthe others, that they were getting in some practice during the Summervacation.
"I hope we have a good eight when college opens again," he concluded, asTom and his chums rowed off in the four-oared shell.
Mr. Pierson was staying on the island now, and for the next few dayshe was with the boys considerably, giving them valuable advice. Theykept at practice, setting aside certain hours for it, and manfullywithstanding the temptation of going off on little excursions with thegirls.
So far as solving the mystery of the missing jewelry was concerned, noprogress was made, though the boys talked about it often. The faintsuspicions against the Mexican and Boswell were still maintained, butthat was all.
As for Boswell, he and his English friend and his "trainer," as hecalled the athlete, kept pretty much to themselves. Mendez was the sameover-polite Mexican as before. He opened his store, and did a goodbusiness, our friends patronizing him to some extent--partly to get alook inside his place. But, though their eyes were used to the bestadvantage, they saw nothing that would aid them in their quest.
"But I'll get Ruth's brooch back yet!" declared Tom, to himself.