As the cadets were to remain in this camp for but one night only, nothing had been done toward putting any flooring in the tents. The cots of the captain and the two lieutenants rested on the short gra.s.s of the pasture. More than this, as the night was rather warm, one of the tent flaps was left open for ventilation, and for the same purpose a corner of the canvas in the rear was turned up.
As all of the cadets had tramped the distance from Colby Hall, no one was called on that night to remain on guard. In place of this a professor who had ridden over in an automobile agreed to sit up to see that nothing was stolen by any outsiders who might have an idea of doing such a thing.
But no outsiders appeared in view, all of the curiosity seekers having left the pasture lot before it came time for the cadets to turn in. As a consequence, the professor had nothing to watch, and soon grew exceedingly sleepy. Sitting in the tonneau of an open automobile, he presently began to nod, and then his head fell forward on his breast.
Jack had thought that he would soon drop to sleep, but the problems in his mind worried him so that presently he found himself wide-awake in spite of his fatigue.
"Confound it! why can"t I go to sleep?" he murmured to himself. Then, punching his pillow to freshen it up, he turned over and tried his best to drop off.
He was just on the edge of dreamland when a sound from outside the tent attracted his attention. At first he thought some night bird or a bat might be flying around. But then came a low murmur of voices.
"Somebody is up," he thought. "Perhaps it is Professor Grawson taking a walk around. He said he was going to keep an eye on things until morning."
Jack lay perfectly still, and presently saw a ray of light shoot into the tent from the rear. It was the gleam of a small pocket flashlight.
A thin silk handkerchief was over the end, so that the light was quite dim.
"Sure this is the right tent, are you?" he heard, in a low tone.
"Yes, this is the place," was the reply, in the faintest of whispers.
"Keep quiet now, and if there is any alarm, run for your life."
On hearing these words, the young captain was puzzled for the time being. But then he realized that the voices had a familiar sound, and he smiled grimly to himself.
Slowly and cautiously Gabe Werner and Bill Glutts wormed their way into the tent by way of the opening in the rear. Gabe had the flashlight, and this he cast from one side to another, taking care, however, that the rays did not fall into the face of any of the officers.
Jack kept his eyes closed when the marauders looked at him. But as they turned around he eyed them sharply. A line had been strung from the front to the rear pole of the tent, and on this were a number of hangers containing the three officers" uniforms and some of their other belongings. Stepping up to the uniforms, the two from outside looked them over quickly. Then Werner pointed to one uniform and to another, to signify that these belonged to Jack and Fred.
Not a word was spoken by those who had come in to play their mean trick on the Rovers. Silently each drew out his pocketknife and opened one of the blades.
Werner"s scheme, to which Glutts had agreed, was to cut all the b.u.t.tons from both uniforms and then slit the garments so that they would be next to useless. Then they were going to take the other belongings of the young captain and the lieutenant and throw them into a muddy brook located in one corner of the pasture.
Watching the marauders as a cat might watch a mouse, Jack saw the pocketknives opened and saw the two rascally cadets take hold of his coat and that belonging to his cousin.
"No, you don"t, you rascals!" he cried loudly, as he bounced off the cot. "Leave those uniforms alone!"
The interruption came so unexpectedly that both Werner and Glutts were dumbfounded. As Jack pounced on Gabe from the rear, Glutts, muttering a cry of terror, plunged through the opening of the tent by which he had come and fled down past the other nearby shelters at top speed.
"Let go of me!" hissed Gabe Werner, as he turned swiftly to find himself in Jack"s embrace.
The flashlight had dropped to the ground and rolled under one of the cots. The young captain and the ex-lieutenant began to wrestle, and in doing this fell over on the cot occupied by Lieutenant Blake just as this lieutenant and Fred were awakening.
"Hi! what does this mean?" spluttered Tom Blake, as both Jack and Werner came down on top of him.
The combined weight of the three brought the cot down with a crash. In the meantime Fred had jumped up.
"Say, what"s all this row mean?" he demanded quickly.
"Here is a fellow who was going to play a dirty trick on us!" shouted Jack. "Grab him! Don"t let him get away!"
He said this because in the tumble his hold on Gabe had been somewhat lessened, and in the mix-up Werner was now endeavoring to slip out of his grasp. All had fallen to the ground, and the ex-lieutenant kicked out vigorously with his heavy shoes, landing one blow in Blake"s stomach, and the other on Jack"s knee.
It was so dark in the tent that but little could be seen, and as Fred made a leap forward he fell over somebody"s legs and went down. Then in the mix-up Blake got in the way, and both Jack and Fred grabbed him, each by an arm, thinking he was the intruder.
"Give in!" cried Jack sternly. "If you don"t, it will be the worse for you."
"You"ve got the wrong man, Captain!" cried Blake. And then, as he was released, he added: "Wait until I make a light so that we can see what we are doing."
A lantern was hanging at the front of the tent, and, striking a match, Blake lit this. In the meantime, however, Fred saw a form disappearing through the hole in the back of the tent.
"There he goes!" he yelled to Jack.
"Stop him!"
This suggestion was unnecessary, for Fred was already crawling through the opening. But, being aroused from a sound sleep so suddenly, he was still somewhat dazed, and by the time he had got on the outside of the tent and was on his feet, Gabe Werner was a good distance away and running like a deer.
"Come back here!" shouted Fred, looking after the flying figure.
In a few seconds Fred was joined by Jack. By this time the hubbub around the officers" tent had been heard by others, and even Professor Grawson was awakened from his nap.
"What"s the trouble here?" demanded the professor, leaping from the tonneau of the automobile and hurrying in that direction.
"Two outsiders came into our tent," said the young captain.
"What did they want?"
"I guess they were going to play some trick. But I woke up and scared them off."
"Do you wish to make any complaint, Captain Rover?" went on the professor, as Blake came around with the lantern and some other cadets began to gather.
"I don"t think so--at least not to-night, Professor," answered Jack, after a few seconds of rapid thinking.
"I hope they didn"t do any damage," went on Professor Grawson.
"They didn"t have time. Although in the struggle, when I tried to catch one of them, we fell over one of the cots and broke it down."
"I see." The professor mused for a moment. "Well, perhaps you might better let the matter rest," he continued. He was afraid someone would ask him about himself, and then he would have to acknowledge that he had been asleep instead of remaining on guard.
The excitement soon died away, the report being that some of the cadets had been starting in for a little more horseplay, but that the scheme had been nipped in the bud. Andy and Randy were on hand, and asked Jack for some of the particulars.
"I"ll tell you about it to-morrow," whispered the young captain. "But mum is the word just now."
Returning to their tent after the excitement was over, the Rovers a.s.sisted Lieutenant Blake to put up his cot, so that he could sleep upon it. In doing this, Jack picked up the flashlight and the silk handkerchief with which the end had been covered. In the struggle the light had been turned off. Without saying anything about his find, the young captain slipped the articles into his pocket.
Running as fast as his somewhat clumsy steps would permit, Bill Glutts reached the tent which he and Werner occupied along with two of their cronies, cadets who had asked them to join Company B just previous to their leaving Company C. Glutts had run so fast that he could hardly breathe, and he sank down on his cot gasping.
"You look to be in a hurry, Bill," remarked one of the other cadets, who was awakened by the sudden entrance.
"Shut up--don"t make a sound!" whispered Glutts, half savagely. "If you do you"ll get the whole bunch into trouble."