Edward Stratemeyer

“ The Roxley cohorts cheered wildly and sounded their horns and rattles. Brill, of course, had nothing to say.
"Oh, Songbird, they got in a run!" remarked Nellie, much dismayed.
"Well, the game is young yet," returned the Brill student. Nevertheless, he felt much crestfallen to think that Roxley had scored first.
With one run in, and a man on first, Roxley went to the bat with more confidence than ever. But it availed nothing, for Tom finished the inning with the Roxley runner getting no further than second. ”

“ Before answering, Tom looked at Dick. "Shall I tell him?" he questioned, in a low tone.
"You might as well, since you have gone so far," was the reply. "In fact, I don't know that it will do much good to keep still any longer."
"We've been robbed."
"You don't say so! Did you lose much?"
"We lost sixty-four thousand dollars' worth of bonds," answered Sam.
"Oh, a bad business deal, I presume." And Barton Pelter smiled grimly. "That's the way it is in Wall Street. You are up one day, and down the next. That's the way it was with my uncle." ”

“ I am like Dick; I prefer a business career rather than a professional one. It is Sam who is going to make the learned one of the family."
"Oh, come now, Tom! Don't pile it on!" pleaded the younger brother. And yet he looked greatly pleased; and Grace looked pleased, too.
"But if you leave Brill, you won't be able to get here very often, Tom," remarked Nellie, wistfully.
"That is true. But if I have to go to New York, why can't you go, too?"
"Oh, Tom!"
"Well, that is what Dora did when Dick gave up his college career. ”

“ An orchestra had been engaged for the occasion, and after the meal there was dancing by the young folks for several hours, both indoors and on the broad veranda of the homestead.
"Where are you going on your wedding tour, Tom?" asked Spud.
"We haven't decided yet," was the quick reply. "We're thinking something of going to the north pole, but we may go to the moon instead;" and at this answer there was a general laugh.
"They are going to slip away if they can," was Sam's comment to half a dozen of his chums, a little later. "We'll have to be on our guard." ”

“ W. P., the champion pitcher of Brill College!"
A cheer and a yell rent the air, and brought a great number of other students to that part of the campus. In a twinkling, William Philander was completely surrounded.
"What's it all about?"
"Is it a fight?"
"Who are they cheering?"
"It's all about Mr. W. P. Tubbs, Esq.," cried Tom, loudly. "Our new, double back-action, warranted, baseball twirler; the man who is going to shoot 'em over the plate in such a marvelous fashion that our rivals will go down and out in one, two, three order." ”

“ Tom will be burned up!" screamed Nellie.
"No, he won't," returned Sam, reassuringly. "He knows what he is doing." Nevertheless, Sam was as anxious as anyone over his brother's safety.
When the smoke shifted, it was seen that Tom had hauled the teacher from the window sill and had her over his shoulder. She hung down limply, showing that she had lost consciousness. Rung by rung, the youth came down the ladder slowly with his burden.
"He's got her! He's got her!" was the glad cry, and a few seconds later Tom reached the ground, where he was immediately surrounded by the others. ”

“ Then came the sixth, in which Frank Holden, the first baseman, distinguished himself by rapping out a three-bagger, coming in a few seconds later on a hit by the man following him.
"Up-hill work, and no mistake!" said the Brill captain, when the team had come in for the seventh inning.
"See here, Bob, if you think you would rather try some of the other pitchers——" began Tom.
"Nothing of the sort, old man. You are doing very well. I don't consider four runs against two any great lead. And you haven't walked as many men as their pitcher." ”

“ Here, several bonfires had been lit. They were composed of boxes and barrels with a large quantity of brushwood added, and one bonfire was nearly twenty feet in height.
"Here they come!" called out a student.
"Hurrah for our pitcher!"
"And the best fly catcher Brill ever saw!"
"Say, this is certainly some bonfire!" exclaimed Sam, looking at the big blaze.
"It sure is!" returned his brother. "If the wind should shift, it might prove dangerous," he added, as he watched a great mass of sparks floating across the stream and over the woods beyond. ”

“ What does this mean?" gasped the astonished William Philander. "I don't want any ride, I want you to leave me alone."
"All aboard, everybody!" sang out Tom, and gave the carriage a shove from behind. Before the dudish student could attempt to leap to the ground, the turnout was once more in motion and dashing along the campus roadway as fast as the students could pull and push it.
"Them boys is plumb crazy!" gasped old Filbury.
"Oh, I never! We shall certainly be hurt," wailed William Philander. ”

“ The crowd was certainly a gay one, and the Rovers lost no time in joining in the festivities. One student had a bugle, and another had an old base drum which boasted of only one head. These two succeeded in forming a crowd of their fellow-students into marching order, and, singing gaily and tooting horns and sounding rattles, and with numerous torches flickering, the collegians tramped around the college buildings and over the campus and then back to the bonfires. ”

“ Dick proposed that they take a stroll up Broadway.
"We can walk till we get tired," he said, "and then if you feel like it, we can jump into a taxi and take a ride around Central Park before we retire."
"That will be nice," returned Dora; and Tom and Sam said it would suit them, too.
As usual, upper Broadway—commonly called The Great White Way—was ablaze with electric lights. As the young folks strolled along, the great, flaring advertising signs perched on the tops of many of the buildings interested them greatly. ”

“ Much refreshed, the lads started back for the farmhouse. They were still some distance away when they saw Jack Ness hurrying towards them.
"I say, gents!" called out the hired man. "You're wanted at the house right away."
"What's the matter, Jack?" demanded Tom, quickly. "Is father worse?"
"No, it ain't that, Master Tom. It's a telegram what come for you."
"A telegram?" repeated Sam. "Do you know where it is from?"
"Your uncle said it was from Mr. Dick."
"Then there must be important news," said Tom, and without further words both youths started on a swift gait for the house. ”

“ I don't know if we are doing right to keep this from him."
"Before we tell him anything, let us consult Uncle Randolph and Aunt Martha," said Tom. "If they know the truth, that will lift a little of the responsibility from our shoulders."
"I am not going to tell any of them—at least, not for a week or so longer," returned Dick. "I am living in hope every day that we'll get some kind of a clew." ”

“ Why not let him go? As a gardener he is out of place in a big city like New York."
"I want him to stay here for two reasons," answered Tom. "In the first place I want him on hand in case the authorities at the seminary need him. In the second place, I am going to put the matter squarely up to Miss Harrow. She thought Nellie guilty, and she may have thought Royce worse than he really was. Perhaps I can get her to give Royce another chance. I think he would be all right if he would only let drink alone."
"The same old warm-hearted Tom as of old!" responded Dick. ”

“ Anderson Rover while they were his brokers.
"It's a mighty good thing that we got after Pelter, Japson & Company when we did," was Erick's comment. "If we hadn't, they would have put us in the worst kind of a hole, even if they had remained honest. They had no more conception of what constitutes a good business risk than has a baby."
"I do hope, Dick, that we make a success of this," returned Tom.
"Oh, don't say we're going to make a fizzle of, it!" cried Sam. "We've just got to win out, that is all there is to it!" ”

“ What in the world would we do if anything happened to poor, dear dad!"
"If only Uncle Randolph was more of a business man, he might go to New York and help Dick; but you know how he is all wrapped up in what he calls 'scientific farming.' Of course, it doesn't amount to a hill of beans, but he thinks it does, and he spends a great deal of money on it that might be put to better usage." ”

“ And at this, there was a general snicker, in the midst of which William Philander arose, caught up his dresssuit case, and fled to another car.
"You can bet that will hold William Philander for awhile," remarked Sam. "He won't dare to put as much as a toe in the water at Atlantic City until he is dead sure it is safe."
"Humph! William Philander isn't one of the kind to go into the water," sniped Tom. "He belongs to the crowd that get into fancy bathing costumes, and then parades up and down on the sand, just to be admired." ”

“ Finding a suitable spot, Tom brought the touring car to a standstill, turned off the power, and placed the starting plug in his pocket. Then the entire party made its way as rapidly as possible to the grandstand, one-half of which had been reserved for the students of Brill and their friends. Here Songbird took charge of matters.
"Just leave it all to me," he said. "You fellows go in and win."
"Yes, you must win, by all means, Tom!" cried Nellie. "Just remember that I've got my eye on you."
"Yes, we all want you to win," came from Minnie Sanderson. ”

“ For the moment neither of them knew what to say.
"I am sorry you did not know about this," pursued Mallin Aronson, when he saw by their looks how much they were disturbed. "Perhaps your dear father was taken sick so quickly that he did not have a chance to explain the situation."
"He hasn't been well for a long while, but I thought he had turned over all his business affairs to us," answered Dick. "It is queer that we have no record of this Sharon Valley Land Company investment," he added, turning to Tom.
"Have you gone over all the papers, Dick?" questioned the brother, quickly. ”

“ With but little to do in the offices that afternoon after three o'clock, the Rover boys took a walk up Broadway from Wall Street to where the Outlook Hotel was located.
"It certainly is a busy city," was Tom's comment, as they came to a temporary halt in front of the post-office. "Just look at the stream of humanity and the cars and wagons, not to speak of the automobiles."
"What takes my eye, is the size of so many of these buildings," declared Sam. "Say, maybe an earthquake around here wouldn't do some damage!"
"And to think of the way the people travel!" broke in Dick. ”

“ Ricks," declared Sam. "You shouldn't object to that."
"Huh! I ain't hired by the railroad company to get in no movin' picter," growled the station master. "I'm here to 'tend to the railroad business, and nothin' else."
"Never mind, Mr. Ricks, if they've got you in the picture you ought to be proud of it," declared Tom. "Think of the millions and millions of people all over the world who will be looking at you when they visit the moving picture theaters."
"Huh! I ain't no movin' picter actor, I ain't," snorted old Ricks. ”