The Putnam Hall Rivals. Stratemeyer Edward
wind.
“I see a carriage coming!” exclaimed Jack, presently. “Step back of the bushes and see who is driving it.”
The others complied, and soon the carriage came up. On the seat driving was Amos Shepard, and at his feet rested a big square basket.
“There he goes,” exclaimed Pepper, when the farmer had passed. “Let us follow him.”
It was an easy matter to follow the carriage, for the road was rocky and the farmer had to drive slowly. Coming to a turn, the man in the carriage dismounted and placed the big basket in a crotch of a tree. Then he went on his way to Cedarville.
“Quick – there is no time to lose!” exclaimed Pepper. “Dan Baxter may come for this basket at any minute.”
They soon had the basket out of the crotch of the tree and examined the contents. There were the stuffed turkey, nicely cooked, some fresh biscuit, two pies, some apples, a jug of cider, and some other things.
“We’ll appropriate a pie and some biscuits and apples, and likewise a bit of the turkey,” said Andy.
“Be careful,” warned Jack. “If you muss the turkey up Baxter will suspect something.”
“I’ll fix that easily enough,” came from the resourceful Pepper.
Having taken what they wanted, the boys proceeded to “season” what remained with the pepper and with some lard and vinegar Andy had procured on the sly from the academy kitchen. They had brought some napkins with them, and in these placed what they had appropriated. Then Pepper calmly proceeded to break down one of the tree limbs.
“What are you doing that for?” asked Jack.
“I’ll show you,” said Pepper, calmly, and under the broken-down limb he placed the basket, resting on its side. “How is that?”
“First-rate!” laughed Jack.
“Looks exactly as if the basket had been on the limb and it had broken and spilt the stuff,” said Andy.
“Now we’ll get out of sight and watch,” went on the Imp.
They ran out of sight and waited. Not five minutes later Dan Baxter, Coulter, and Ritter hove into sight.
“Here is the spot, fellows,” they heard the bully of the Hall exclaim. “Anybody around?”
“I don’t see anybody,” answered Ritter.
“Where’s the basket?” asked Coulter, gazing up into the tree.
“Here it is, on the ground,” said Baxter. “Too bad, it’s tumbled over.”
“The limb broke down with it, it was so heavy,” said Reff Ritter.
Baxter got down and struck a match.
“The stuff is pretty well tumbled around,” said he. “And, say – some of the turkey is gone!” he added.
“Maybe some animal came up and took it,” suggested Coulter. “I thought I saw a dog on the road.”
“I am not going to eat after a dog,” said Ritter.
“Oh, I reckon it’s all right,” said Baxter, hastily. He did not want anything to occur to spoil the grandness of his proposed spread. To his cronies he had boasted that this was to be the finest spread ever given on the sly at Putnam Hall.
Taking up the basket, the bully rearranged the things. He noticed that there was not as much as he had ordered, and made up his mind to “pitch into” Amos Shepard when next they should meet. He and Coulter carried the basket and Ritter the jug of cider, and off they went to the Hall, entering unobserved by a back way, and sneaking to their dormitory, where the goodies were hidden in a clothes closet.
“Oh, wait till to-night!” said Pepper, as he and his chums also returned.
The evening seemed to drag after that, so many were waiting for bedtime to come. Baxter tried to learn from Dale what the talk earlier in the evening had meant, but got no satisfaction.
All of the boys of the bully’s dormitory had been invited to the feast and also some other cadets, making a total of sixteen lads who were to participate. They were all followers of Dan Baxter, and but few of them were liked by the other cadets.
At last it was time to go to bed, and one after another the boys went off. Our friends undressed and then slipped on some warm coats over their night garments. Soon the monitors came around to see that everything was as it should be for the night.
“Now is our time,” whispered Pepper. “Baxter’s crowd will be stirring soon.”
With caution they left their dormitory and stole along the hallway. As luck would have it, there was a room next to the Baxter dormitory that was vacant, the plaster having fallen and being not yet repaired. The door was unlocked and our friends entered.
“Listen,” said Pepper, as they all came close to a door which communicated with the next dormitory.
“Now, fellows, we’ll have the finest feast you ever saw at any school,” they heard Dan Baxter say. “I’ll carve the turkey and you, Coulter, can cut the cake, and Mumps can pour out the cider. After the cider we’ll have something a little stronger.”
“I don’t think they have anything hotter than that cider,” murmured Pepper.
Those outside of the room heard the bully and his cronies make numerous preparations for the feast. Then the stuff was passed around and all prepared to do full justice to what was handed to them.
“That is all right,” exclaimed Reff Ritter, as he bit into a turkey sandwich. “Say, wouldn’t it make Jack Ruddy and his crowd feel sore to know about these good things we are having!”
“Say, this sandwich is pretty warm,” came from Paxton. “Phew! but it’s hot!”
“Why, it’s cold, Nick,” answered the bully of the Hall.
“Is it? Not much! It’s full of pepper.”
“Ouch!” came from Mumps. “Oh, my tooth!”
“What’s the matter with it?” asked Coulter.
“I’ve bitten on something hard. Guess it was a stone.”
“Creation, what’s this?” came from Ritter. “Say, Dan, this smells like vinegar.”
Another boy was drinking some cider. He made a wry face and ejected the liquid from his mouth.
“That’s the worst cider I ever tasted!”
“Let me see!” cried Dan Baxter, and caught up a glassful. He took one swallow and began to breathe heavily.
“It’s – it’s – pep – peppery!” he gasped. “Oh, my insides are burning up! Somebody give me some water.”
“Whow! The cake is peppery, too!” came from another.
“And full of sand!”
“This piece of celery has got lard all over it!”
“This is the worst sandwich I ever tried to eat!”
“This apple is full of vinegar!”
“So is this currant jelly!”
“Say, fellows, somebody has played a trick on us!”
“Don’t eat any more of the stuff. It may be poisoned!”
“Oh, don’t say that!” groaned Mumps, turning pale. “I – I don’t want to be poisoned!”
“Who – who touched this stuff?” gasped Dan Baxter. He was so angry he could hardly speak.
No one could answer the question.
“If I ever find out who did it, I’ll – I’ll skin ’em alive, that’s what I’ll do!”
“One thing is certain,” said Reff Ritter, in deep disgust. “All of the stuff was fixed up, and there will be no feast to-night, that is sure. I wouldn’t