Frank Roscoes Secret | Page 6

good stroke of business the day we helped him load the
overturned sleigh," said Fenn, referring to an incident of the previous
winter, as related in "The Darewell Chums in the City."
"What are you going to do?" asked Frank quietly.
"I haven't made up my mind," Bart answered. "I thought we'd better tell
the rest of the nine, and then think up some plan to turn the joke on the
Upside Downs."
"Maybe it would be just as well not to tell the others on the nine,"
suggested Frank.
"Why?"
"If you do, it will surely come to the ears of the first-year boys that we
are onto their game. Then they may change their idea and be up to
some dodge that we can't fathom. I guess we four can spoil their plans."
"Well, maybe that would be the best way," admitted Bart. "What do
you propose?"
"Are there plenty of boards, planks and boxes around your barn, Fenn?"
asked Frank.
"Lots of 'em."
"Then we'll set traps for our friends the enemy," said Frank. "They'll
walk right into them."
Frank explained his plan more in detail as the boys rowed down stream.
His idea was to build a series of traps all about the barn, covering every
approach. The traps would be made of boxes and boards, so arranged
that when a boy walked on them he would tumble off or slip into a box,
and the racket made would apprise those on watch, in the barn, of the
approach of the enemy. Then they could sally out, and, while the
Upside Down boys were in confusion, could easily disperse them.

"That's fine!" exclaimed Bart. "The very thing! We must get right to
work on it tonight."
That evening the four chums spent in the barn back of Fenn's house.
There was considerable hammering and pounding and fitting together
of planks, boards and boxes.
The next afternoon the four boys worked hard perfecting their
arrangements. There were four entrances to the barn, consisting of large
sliding doors in front and rear, and a small door that gave entrance to
the stable proper. The way to each of these was so arranged that any
persons passing along them would have considerable trouble in
reaching the structure. It was impossible to walk along them and not
step on a board, so fixed that it would tumble a box on the head of the
enemy, precipitate the boys into a packing case, or upset a big pile of
planks.
The fourth entrance to the barn was in the basement through an old cow
stable, long unused. The door had not been opened in a number of years,
and the hinges were rusty.
However, the four chums oiled the door so it would work easily,
cleared away a lot of rubbish and then had a means at hand of getting
into the barn of which they felt sure none of the conspirators knew.
That the Upside Down boys were aware of the other entrances Fenn
was sure, as several of the first-year pupils had been seen about the
barn Monday. They did not, however, the chums thought, know of the
traps.
Meanwhile preparations for the dinner went on. The food was
purchased from a caterer in town, and was to be delivered at the barn
Saturday evening.
The chums arranged to have it taken in through the large front doors,
the traps leading to them having been temporarily removed. After the
victuals were safely stowed away it was planned to have a guard of
boys constantly on hand inside the barn to protect them. The rumor of
the threatened attack on the spread was known to all the nine now.

"I rather guess they'll have all the trouble they want before they play
any tricks on us," said Bart, as he surveyed the defenses.
"Can they break in the doors, in case any of them get past the traps?"
asked Ned.
"I don't believe so," replied Fenn. "I've put extra hooks and bolts on,
and there are heavy bars to the big front and rear doors."
Saturday evening the materials for the spread were duly delivered at the
barn. Half a dozen boys volunteered as guards. It was arranged that the
members of the nine and their friends, numbering in all about
twenty-five, should come in through the cow stable door.
The guards were soon busy arranging the improvised tables, storing the
food away in places where, in case the conspirators did manage to get
in, they would have hard work to find it. Several were engaged in
getting lanterns ready to illuminate the banquet table.
In fact they were all so much occupied that they did not notice three
boys who had made a long circuit and brought up in the fields