Putnam Hall

“ CHAPTER VII A STRANGE LETTER BOX
"It won't be long now before we'll have to get back to Putnam Hall," observed Sam, as they drove along. "Dear old school! How I love it!"
"It's too bad that we are getting too old to go there," said Tom. "But we can't be boys always."
"I shall be glad to see the other fellows again," came from Dick.
"Do you know what I think?" declared Tom. "I think the Putnam Hall cadets are the finest lot of boys in the world!"
"Throwing bouquets at yourself, Tom?" said Sam, with a laugh. ”

“ The anchor was hoisted and the line attached to the dock cast off. Then they raised the mainsail and stood out into the darkness of the lake. Soon Putnam Hall and the boathouse were lost in the gloom.
“Now lower the sail and let her drift while we talk,” said Ritter.
“She may go on the rocks,” warned Coulter.
“If she does she won’t hit hard enough to hurt. The breeze has about died out.”
In the cuddy Pepper had regained his senses. With the door shut the place was suffocating, and all the two cadets could think of was to get out. ”

“ It was a mistake for you cadets to become disorderly in the classrooms and in the mess hall—and it was a mistake on the part of the teachers to attempt to starve you into submission. For trying to starve you I find Mr. Cuddle responsible, and he has this day severed his connection with Putnam Hall.”
“Good!” whispered Andy. “Good-bye to Cuddle, and may we never see his like again!”
“Mr. Crabtree is willing to let bygones be bygones,” went on Captain Putnam. “He realizes his mistakes and regrets them. ”

“ The following day they started back for Putnam Hall, and on the way met Larry, Frank, Fred, and a number of others. When Ithaca was reached a surprise awaited the crowd. The weather was so cold that the ice impeded transportation, and the Golden Star was not making her usual trips to Cedarville and other points.
"Here's a state of things!" cried, Tom. "What's to do—walk to
Putnam Hall?"
"Well, hardly, seeing that it is a good number of miles and the weather is bitterly cold."
"Well, if we can't walk and can't ride, how are we to get there?" came from Sam. ”

“ The Dauntless team wanted at least to make a field goal—to tie the score. But Putnam Hall held them back, and two minutes before the whistle blew made another touchdown and kicked the goal. When the game was ended the pigskin was on the Dauntless forty-five-yard line.
Putnam Hall had won!
What a cheering followed, and what a tooting of horns and sounding of rattles! The cadets cheered for their opponents and were cheered in return, and then all filed off the field.
"A dandy game!" cried Pepper to his chums. "Simply great!" And he fairly hugged Jack and Andy. ”

“ In this new tale the Putnam Hall Cadets show what they can do in various keen rivalries on the athletic field and elsewhere. There is one victory which leads to a most unlooked-for discovery. The volume is full of fun and good fellowship, calculated to make the Putnam Hall Series more popular than ever. ”

“ Money was raised among the cadets to present the captain with a fine set of encyclopedias, and of this gift Captain Putnam was justly proud.
“All things considered, you are doing very well,” said the master to his pupils. “I am proud of you, and happy to think that Putnam Hall is earning such a good reputation for itself.”
“I shouldn’t want to go to a better school,” said Jack. “It just suits me exactly.”
“So say I,” came from Pepper. “Of course we might do without Baxter and that crowd——”
“Every school seems to have its bully,” put in Andy. “All we can do is to make him keep his place.” ”

“ Does he belong at Putnam Hall?"
"Yes. I know nothing of him, however, further than that I have seen him several times on the Hall road."
Dick gave a low whistle.
"Perhaps we've put our foot in it," remarked Sam in a low tone to him.
"Never mind; we did what was right," answered Dick. "No fellow is justified in acting as Dan Baxter did."
"That's right."
"Tell us something about Putnam Hall, won't you?" said Fred
Garrison, after a pause.
At this the three girls laughed.
"What should we know about that place?" asked Dora. "We have never been inside, excepting at one Christmas entertainment." ”

“ In the midst of the excitement the Pornell students made one spare and a seven, two eights and a nine. Putnam Hall came to the front with two strikes and two spares. Then the extra balls were speedily bowled.
Score of third game, Putnam Hall 1042, Pornell Academy 982.
“Hurrah! Putnam Hall wins the match!”
“Wasn’t that last frame great!”
Then a wild cheering ensued, in the midst of which the cadets from the Hall surrounded the victors and shook hands over and over again. It was certainly a moment of great triumph.
“I’m proud of you, boys,” said George Strong. “You did very well indeed.” ”

“ Cheering loudly and blowing their horns, the cadets of Putnam Hall swept into the grounds of Pornell Academy. They expected the students of the rival academy to be lined up, waiting for them, but in this they were disappointed. Only a few lads were outside, and they took but little interest in the newcomers.
“Hullo, what’s this, a frost?” queried Jack.
“Looks like it,” answered Pepper. “I told you to beware of Roy Bock and his crowd. They may be rich, but they are no gentlemen.”
“Where is your bowling team?” demanded Dale of the first student he met. ”

“ A bolt was made by many of the cadets for the Putnam Hall carryall, and soon a crowd was inside and on the front seat, talking, joking and cheering, as suited the mood of each individual. Jack, Pepper, Andy and Dale managed to crowd inside throwing their suitcases on the top. Gus Coulter got in also, but when he saw that Reff Ritter and Nick Paxton had been left, he scrambled out again, and his place was taken by Fred Century, another student.
"Hello, Peleg, old sport!" cried Pepper, gaily, to the driver of the turnout. "How have you been for the past fifty years?" ”

“ For several days nothing was talked of at Putnam Hall but the mysterious disappearance of the students' watches and jewelry. The cadets could not get the matter off their minds, and as a consequence recitations became very poor.
"I shall offer a substantial reward," said Captain Putnam, and one afternoon a notice was posted in the school proper and in the gymnasium, offering one hundred dollars for information leading to the capture of the thief.
"Say, I shouldn't mind earning that reward!" murmured Dale.
"A fellow could have no end of a good time on a hundred dollars!" ”

“ Pornell Academy was a rival institution of learning, located several miles from Putnam Hall. It was presided over by Doctor Pornell, who had not fancied Captain Putnam’s coming to that locality. The students of Pornell were for the most part sons of wealthy parents, and a large number of them thought themselves superior to the Putnam Hall cadets. ”

“ Here the matter was dropped, but Dick had good cause to remember this conversation later on.
The distance from Putnam Hall to Pornell Academy was a mile and a half, and it was arranged that the football team, Captain Putnam, George Strong, and several others should ride to the latter place in the Hall carriages while the others walked the distance. Thanksgiving dawned bright and clear. The morning was spent in the Hall chapel, and dinner was served promptly at twelve.
"Don't eat too much," cautioned Sam. "I want every player to be wide awake today." ”

“ A “ROUGH HOUSE” AT PUTNAM HALL
“What is the matter, Mr. Crabtree?” demanded the master of the school, as he dismounted from his horse and strode forward.
“The schoolrooms, sir—and the sitting room and library! All turned topsy-turvy!” ”

“ As soon as summer was at hand, the Putnam Hall baseball club received a challenge from the Pornell club to play them a game at either school grounds.
"They want to square accounts for the football defeat," said Fred. "Well, the only thing to do is to accept the challenge," and the acceptance was sent without delay, the game to be played on the Putnam Hall grounds, Captain Putnam having promised the cadets his aid in building a grandstand. ”

“ THE CHUMS MAKE A CALL
For a week after the races, matters at Putnam Hall ran along smoothly. Captain Putnam insisted upon it that the students attend to their studies and our friends pitched in with vigor, so that Jack stood first in his class, Pepper third, and Andy fourth, which was certainly fine.
During that time Dan Baxter had a sharp “run-in” with the master of the Hall, who gave the bully a stern lecture. As a consequence Baxter was quite humble for the time being and did not risk doing anything to bring him into further disgrace. ”

“ About half the distance to Putnam Hall had been covered when the three cadets discovered a crowd ahead of them.
"Who are those fellows?" asked Pepper.
"Pornell Academy lads," announced Andy. "And see, they have spotted us!"
He was right, the other crowd, nine strong, were students from Pornell. They were led by Roy Bock and a fellow named Grimes. They had [Pg 177] been good-naturedly snowballing each other, but now they stopped.
"Three Putnam Hall cadets!" cried Bock. "Come on, fellows, here's a chance for sport." ”

“ Jack’s uncle presented him with a fine sloop, the Alice, and in this the young major sailed several races, as related in the third volume of this series, entitled “The Putnam Hall Champions.” The cadets also held a great bicycle race and a hill climbing contest, and they likewise had a bowling match with the team of a rival school, Pornell Academy. At that time Fred Century was a student at Pornell, but he became disgusted at the way his fellow students acted, and at the treatment he received from Doctor Pornell, and left that institution of learning and came to Putnam Hall. ”

“ Besides the school, there were a building fitted up as a gymnasium, and also several barns and carriage houses. The Hall was built in the form of the letter E, and was three stories high. It contained numerous classrooms, a private office, a large mess hall, or dining room, and both large and small dormitories.
The master of the school was Captain Victor Putnam, who was a bachelor, and as kind as he was strict. Captain Putnam was a West Point graduate, and had modeled his school somewhat after that famous government institution. ”

“ Once the stones were rolled away, doors and flagstaff came to the surface instantly. Then the big pole was fastened to the stern of the Alice and towed to the Putnam Hall dock.
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“Let’s fire another salute, to celebrate the return of the flagstaff!” cried Andy, and this, with Captain Putnam’s permission, was done. The cadets insisted upon planting the flagstaff themselves, just as it had been before, and the work was accomplished under Captain Putnam’s personal directions. Around the foot of the pole they dumped some rocks and poured in a quantity of cement to bind them. ”

“ A hunt was made that day and also the next. In the meantime Doctor Pornell sent a decidedly sarcastic letter to Captain Putnam. This angered the master of Putnam Hall exceedingly, and he sent an equally sarcastic letter in return; and there, for the time being, the matter rested,—so far as the Putnam Hall students were concerned.
But it did not rest with Roy Bock and his immediate cronies. In some manner Doctor Pornell learned that Bock had concocted the scheme to take away the cannon and the flagstaff, and consequently he considered Bock responsible for the removal of the trophies. ”

“ By eight o’clock that morning the runaway cadets of Putnam Hall went into camp not a great distance away from where Andy had driven the wagon into the woods. They found an ideal spot in a small clearing surrounded by dense woods. There the tents were pitched, and some of the boys cleaned out a handy spring, that all the water needed might be procured. While some of the cadets were raising the tents, others, under the directions of Bob Grenwood and Stuffer, were preparing breakfast. The cook stove had been set up, and three cadets had been detailed by Jack to procure firewood. ”

“ Captain Putnam was as good as his word, and over an hour was spent in questioning the help, and the other cadets, but without results. The investigation was continued Monday morning. But not the first trace of the missing watch and chain was discovered anywhere.
"It assuredly is a mystery," said Captain Putnam at last. "What do you make of it, Mr. Strong?" he asked of his second assistant.
"It is a very unfortunate occurrence," answered [Pg 112] George Strong. "If there is a thief in Putnam Hall we ought to locate him. As long as he remains undetected none of us will be safe." ”

“ The announcement that Ritter was the fellow [Pg 277] who had perpetrated the many thefts at Putnam Hall created strong excitement in the school. But the matter was hushed up as much as possible by Captain Putnam, and the master saw to it that every cadet got back the things that belonged to him, and also squared matters with the teachers.
In due course of time Cameron Smith was tried for the robbery of Point View Lodge and was sent to prison for a term of years. He admitted robbing Andy after the runaway, and the acrobatic youth got back from the pawnbrokers the things taken on that occasion. ”

“ The story was too good to keep, and soon many of the students knew how Baxter’s toady had thought to trap a burglar, and Mumps was plagued unmercifully. The man to do the cleaning also heard of it and laughed as loudly as anybody.
On the following Wednesday morning bright and early the cadets left Putnam Hall for the brief encampment. They took with them three wagons, loaded with tents, cooking utensils, and provisions.
The battalion certainly presented a fine appearance when it started off. Every cadet was looking his best, in a well-brushed uniform with shining buttons. ”