CHAPTER XXIII.
THE ROUND UP.
The boys, thinking that the robbers might still be able to shoot, wentback a little way until they saw the other car coming.
"Well, you got them, sure enough," declared Mr. Switzer, as the cardrew up and came to a stop, "but I guess, by the looks, they're bothdead. We'd better have our guns ready though, for they may be able toshoot," he added turning to his men.
Their fears were groundless, however, for on approaching theoverturned car, they found that both men were unconscious, althoughthey were alive. Reed, who had lost the false mustache he had beenwearing had been thrown from the car and, having struck his head on arock, was lying a few feet away, stunned, while King was pinned underthe car, and groaning heavily. It was necessary to get the jack fromthe other car and raise the machine before they could drag him out. Heslowly opened his eyes and groaned as they bore him to the car.
It took some time to bring Reed around, but finally he began to showsigns of life and soon sat up and looked around in a dazed manner. Ashis eyes rested for an instant on Jack, a shudder ran through him andhe muttered something about not doing a very good job and sank backwith a moan.
They found the stolen money and securities in a box under the car,which was badly wrecked, and Mr. Golden took it in charge.
"Now," said Mr. Switzer, speaking to Mr. Golden, "if you are willing,George and I'll take these fellows back to Skowhegan in your car.There's a house just around that turn where a man by the name of Berrylives, and he'll probably hitch up and take the rest of you back toOakland and you can catch the train there for home."
"All right," replied Mr. Golden, "I guess that will be the best plan,and the boys can go along with you on their wheels."
So it was arranged, and the two injured robbers were made ascomfortable as possible on the back seat of the car with Mr. Switzer,after he had slipped handcuffs on them. They said nothing except thatKing said he believed his left leg was broken, and it was paining hima good deal.
"You're both mighty lucky that your necks aren't broken," declaredSwitzer.
"I don't know as it's so very lucky for us, either," said Reedmoodily.
The other officer took his seat in front with Sandy, and as theystarted off, Mr. Switzer shouted:
"I'll send some one out to tow their machine in."
The return trip was made without incident, the boys following the car.The prisoners were not inclined to talk and refused to answer anyquestions. On reaching Skowhegan, they were taken to the jail and adoctor summoned, who found that King's left leg was broken below theknee. Beyond a good sized lump on the back of his head and a severeshaking up, Reed was not injured.
The authorities at Boston were notified, and it turned out that Reedwas the long-wanted Jim the Penman, and, as Captain Long hadsuspected, King proved to be the man known as Oily Joe. They were bothsentenced to twenty years' imprisonment in the state prison ofMassachusetts.
As the boys, accompanied by Mr. Switzer, left the jail, after hearingthe doctor's report regarding the condition of the robbers, Bob toldhim of his suspicions regarding the farmer and his son, with whom theyhad the trouble the day before.
"That must be looked into," declared Mr. Switzer. "It certainly looksas though they were mixed up in it somehow. Tell you what I think we'dbetter do. It's only ten-thirty now; suppose we take your father'scar and drive right back there and see what we can find out about it."
To this the boys readily agreed, and taking the other policeman withthem they started, waiting only long enough for Bob to call up hismother and tell her the news.
They reached the place in a little over an hour, and as they droveinto the yard, the farmer was sitting on the back door step. As soonas he saw them, he rose and started to go into the house, but Mr.Switzer was too quick for him, and drawing his revolver, he pointed itat the man ordering him to stop. He wisely obeyed and Switzer told himto come to the car.
"Is this the man?" he asked, turning to Bob.
"Yes, he's the man all right."
The chief then explained the situation to him and told him that he hadbetter make a clean breast of it. The man was very much frightened andhis voice trembled as he spoke, telling them that he would tell themall he knew.
According to the man's account, the house in the woods belonged tohim. It had been built by a man from New York, three years ago, whointended to use it as a summer home, but his wife had died before itwas completely furnished, and he had bought it at a very low price.King and Reed had driven into his yard one afternoon, a week or soago, in an automobile. The smaller of the two, Reed, had said that hewas a wealthy business man from Boston and that King was his servant.He, Reed, had suffered from a nervous breakdown, and his doctor hadordered him to go way somewhere, with his man, where he could beperfectly quiet and where no one would bother him, and they werelooking for a place which they could rent.
He had at once thought of the log house in the woods and had offeredto show it to them. On seeing it, Reed had declared it to be just thething and had paid him a month's rent in advance. He had thought thatReed was pretty healthy looking for a sick man, but considered it noneof his business so long as he got his money. He had seen but little ofthem, but did know that they were away most of the time. Yes, hethought it strange, seeing that he wanted to be perfectly quiet, buthere again, it was none of his affair and he had not bothered his headabout it.
Bob asked him why he had been so hostile toward Jack and him, and whyhis son had stolen their wheels, and why he had kept the cap, onabandoning them. He said, in explanation, that Reed had called at thehouse one day, and during their conversation had told him that twoboys had stolen an invention from him. Some kind of a storage battery,the secret of which was in some metal caps. He had said that he wasvery anxious to get back at least one of the caps as he had lost theformula for making them and had been unable to get the rightproportion of metals. Asked why he didn't have the boys arrested, hehad replied that, unfortunately, he had no proof that they had stolenit, but that he would give one thousand dollars to get one of thecaps. So, it happened that when he had seen the boys the day before,and had noticed the electric motors on their wheels, he had at oncejumped to the conclusion that they were the boys Reed had told himabout. So, seeing a good chance, as he thought, to make one thousanddollars honestly and without much trouble, he and his son, who hadbeen at work in a field nearby, had followed them, and he guessed theyknew the rest.
The farmer's story sounded plausible enough as he told it, and, asthey had no evidence to the contrary, Mr. Switzer said he guessedprobably he was all right, but cautioned him to be more careful in thefuture or he might get into trouble, and telling him that he might becalled as a witness, proposed that they start back.
"I don't know I'm sure," he said to the boys, on the way back,"whether that fellow was telling the truth or not, but as long as wecaught the robbers, I don't see that we'd gain anything by arrestinghim and I guess we'd have a pretty hard time proving anything againsthim."
"Well, I got one good crack at him anyhow," chuckled Bob, "and I guessthat son of his will think twice the next time, before he tackles adude."
As the car drew up in front of the bank, they found that their fatherand the others had returned and getting their wheels, the boys lost notime in starting for the cottage, as they felt, according to Jack,hollow clear to the toes. Mrs. Golden said that he and Uncle Ben hadeaten lunch and would be up later as he had some business to attend toat the bank.
As they rode through the town, they had to stop a dozen times andreceive congratulations from their friends, and it was nearly twoo'clock when they reached the cottage. However, they found a goodlunch awaiting them, as their father had 'phoned that they werecoming. While eating, they gave their mother, their aunt and the twogirls an account of the events of the forenoon.
"I am very glad," declared Mrs. Golden, "that they are caught, as Iwould never have felt easy with them at large."
Mr. Golden and Uncle Ben
came up in time for supper and the eveningwas spent in talking over the events of the last few days.
The next night, when Mr. Golden came up from Skowhegan, he told theboys that he had a surprise for them.
"What is it?" both asked eagerly.
"I received a telegram this afternoon from Captain Long, saying that acheck for ten thousand dollars had been sent to you, which is thereward offered for the capture of Jim the Penman and Oily Joe."
The boys were surprised, and of course delighted, for they had notthought of a reward, although they now remembered that Captain Longhad told them that one had been offered.
"But, father, don't you think that Mr. Switzer and the other policemenought to have part of it?" asked Bob.
"No," replied his father, "I hardly think so. They only did their dutyin arresting them, while you were really the ones who caught them.What do you say, Ben?"
Uncle Ben agreed with their father, in thinking that the rewardbelonged to them alone, but Jack proposed that they would feel betterabout it if they gave them a part, and Mr. Golden smilingly told themto do as they thought best. So, after talking it over, they decided togive them one thousand dollars each. Mr. Switzer and the other two menwere much pleased when the boys gave them the money, and all decidedthat they had not expected any part of it as they considered that itbelonged to the boys.