CHAPTER XVI AT THE CHETWOOD COTTAGE
The cottage mentioned by Andy was located about a hundred and fifty feetfrom the road. It was set among some small trees, and a roadway led tothe front door. Along this roadway dashed Jack and the acrobatic youth.
The boy who had uttered the cry for help was a tall, thin lad, with ashock of black hair and deep, black eyes. He was a cripple, walking witha crutch, one leg being bent at the knee. He had come out of the cottagehopping on his good limb and flourishing his crutch menacingly at thetwo individuals in the green masks and hoods.
"Give up the wrench!" cried one of the strange individuals, shaking abarrel stave in the boy's face.
"We must have it!" shouted the second masked person. "We need it foropening the treasure chest!"
"Go away!" cried the boy. "Go away, I tell you!"
As he spoke he swung the crutch around and hit one of the masked men onthe shoulder. At this the fellow leaped back and uttered a wild laugh.
"Stop that!" cried Jack, as he leaped from his wheel. "Let that boyalone!"
"Ha! ha! The police have arrived!" cried the second masked man, who wasarmed with a small section of a garden hose.
"We must vanish!" cried the other masked fellow. "They want to put us injail for a thousand years!" and he began to retreat towards the woodsbehind the cottage.
"Here, hold up!" called out Andy, a sudden thought flashing into hismind. "I think I know those chaps," he added to Jack.
"They have robbed our home!" called out the cripple. "Please stop them!"
By this time the two masked men were running for the woods with all thespeed at their command. Jack and Andy rushed after them, leaving theirbicycles at the cottage door.
"What do you mean by saying you think you know those chaps?" asked Jack.
"Don't you remember Mr. Strong's two crazy relatives--Bart Callax andPaul Shaff? I believe the masked fellows are the same."
"By jinks, I think you're right, Andy! But I thought Mr. Strong hadthose relatives of his cared for."
"They must have broken away again--crazy people have a way of runningoff, you know."
"Well, those rascals acted as if they were half loony," was the youngmajor's comment.
All this while the cadets were racing after the two strange individuals,who were now crashing along between the trees and bushes of the woods.The men were fleet of foot, and slowly but surely they drew out of sightof their pursuers.
"It's no use," panted Andy at last. "After such a ride as we've had onour wheels I've no wind left for a foot race," and he came to a halt andleaned heavily against a tree for support.
"I wish I knew for certain that the two rascals were really those crazymen," was Jack's comment, as he, too, halted. "That would clear up themystery of the hold-up you and Pepper experienced the time the tire waspunctured.
"Well, we can tell Mr. Strong about this, when we get back to PutnamHall. He can telegraph to the folks who had the men in charge and learnif they have escaped."
Having rested, the chums retraced their steps to the cottage. They hadrun into the woods the best part of half a mile, and just before theycame in sight of the cottage they met the crippled boy, who had walkedafter them as well as his condition would permit.
"Did you catch them?" he asked, anxiously.
"No, they ran too fast for us," answered Jack.
"We might have caught them had it not been that we were tired out frombicycle riding," explained Andy. "We were in a race. But I guess that'sall over now, eh, Jack?"
"It certainly is so far as we are concerned," was the acrobatic youth'sanswer.
"I saw some boys on wheels ride past, just after you came up," said thecrippled youth. He heaved a deep sigh. "Wish you had caught those twomen."
"Don't you think they were crazy?" asked Jack.
"To be sure they were--crazy as loons. But I didn't know that at first.You see I was alone--father and mother went to Ithaca yesterday and theywon't be home till Saturday. Those men came along just as I was lockingup to go fishing down to the lake. They came up quietly and didn't speakuntil they were right behind me. I can tell you they scared me prettywell with those green masks!"
"What did they do?" asked Andy.
"At first they demanded that I get them some dinner. I said I had verylittle in the house. Then one of them said he'd take some oysters ontoast and some baked liver. I thought he was fooling, and that the twoof 'em might be some of my friends who had come to our house thinkingthey could scare me while my folks were away. Then they went inside andbegan to rummage around and I told them to quit--that a joke was a joke,but they were carrying it too far. Then they took a vest from myfather's trunk and I got scared and pulled one of 'em back. Then both of'em knocked me down and one pulled out a big butcher knife. Then I gotscared and ran outside. I saw you coming on your wheels and I yelledlike an Indian. I am very thankful you came to help me," concluded thecrippled youth.
After that he told them his name was Nat Chetwood and that his fatherowned a vineyard and a small shop where baskets were made. He said hisparent had gone to Ithaca on business and that his mother was off to paya relative a visit.
"Did they steal anything of value?" questioned the young major.
"That I can't say," answered Nat Chetwood. "You see, I don't knowexactly what my father had in his trunk. All they took out of the housewas a small looking-glass, an empty inkwell, and a big, tin wash-basin.But they threw the wash-basin away when you came. I know they took oneof my father's vests, for the big man of the two stuffed it under hiscoat. While they were at the trunk one of 'em asked me to whistle YankeeDoodle and said he'd take me to the circus next week. Oh, they werecertainly crazy,--and dangerous."
"I am sorry we didn't catch them," said Andy. "We'll have to reportthis, and without delay," and he looked at Jack, suggestively.
"That's right," returned the young major. "And maybe we'll come backsoon."
"I wish I had somebody to stay with me until my folks get back," saidthe cripple, wistfully. "I hate to stay alone, for fear those fellowswill come back."
"Can't you get some neighbor?" asked Andy.
"We haven't any very-near neighbors. But maybe I can get Jake Dengert.He works for my father," added Nat Chetwood.
It was not long after this that Andy and Jack left the cottage. Theymounted their wheels and rode slowly in the direction of Putnam Hall.They had covered only a short distance when they heard a well-knownwhistle behind them and looking back beheld Pepper.
"Hullo!" cried the Imp. "I thought you had won the race!" And his faceshowed his disappointment. "My handle bars got loose, that's what'sbringing me in so late," he explained.
"We've had a bit of an adventure," answered Jack, and he and Andyrelated what had occurred. Of course Pepper was intensely interested.
"It surely is no joke," said he, when the others had finished. "We canbe thankful we got off so easily that time we had the breakdown andthose fellows tackled us."
"Just what I think of it," answered Andy. "One thing is sure, though,those men have got to be rounded up and captured. Nobody will be safe solong as they are at large."
"Who won the race, I wonder," said Pepper, as they drew close to theschool grounds.
"There is one of the boys--I'll ask him," replied the young major, andwheeled toward the cadet.
"The race was won by Joe Nelson," said the youth. "He came in aboutquarter of a minute ahead of Reff Ritter."
"Hurrah for Joe!" cried Andy. "I really didn't think he could do it."
"I am glad to know he beat Reff Ritter," said Jack. "Had Reff won weshould never have heard the end of it."
The chums were soon in the midst of the riders and their friends. Manywanted to know how it was that Jack and Andy had dropped behind sounexpectedly, but the latter gave evasive answers, for they did not wantthe truth to become known just yet. First of all they wanted to talkmatters over with George Strong and learn what he might ha
ve to say.
"Paxton and Coulter came in quite broke up," said Dale.
"Serves them right," answered Andy promptly.
"They say you three fellows knocked them down on purpose and they aregoing to make a formal complaint against you," added the other cadet.