Young Hunters of the Lake | Page 9

they are dressed. They have the same yellow-brown suits on they wore that day."
Giant had scarcely spoken when Whopper came out. His face showed that he was angry.
"I told you they did it," he said to Giant. Then, seeing the others, he explained:
"I accused them of it and they admitted taking the clothes--- they said it was nothing but a little joke and they laughed at me. Then when I said they could pay for the missing things they told me to clear out or they'd have me locked up for trespassing on Mr. Spink's land!"
"That's like Ham," answered Snap.
"I wish we could pay them off good," went on Whopper.
Just then Ham Spink and Carl Dudder came out of the post-office. Snap and the others were standing behind some boxes of goods and the dude and his chum did not at once see them.
"We'll have a celebration with those fireworks when they come," Ham was saying. "We'll show Fairview a great sight."
"That's right," returned Carl Dudder. "We'll put them in my father's barn until we want to use them."
Then both boys caught sight of Snap and the others and broke off their talk. They, wanted to brush past without speaking, but Snap and Shep blocked the way.
"We want to talk to you," said Snap.
"We have nothing to say," cried Ham, haughtily. "Get out of my way!" And he tried to brush past again.
"Ham Spink, I want to say just one thing," answered Snap. "I think you are as mean as you ever were, and I, for one, am going to pay you back for what you did the day we went swimming."
"Oh, give us a rest" muttered the dudish youth, and went on, and Carl Dudder followed, sticking his tongue in his cheek as he passed.
"Say, shall we pitch into them?" whispered Whopper. "We can knock them into the middle of next month!"
"No---wait---I've just thought of something," interposed Snap. "Let them go and come with me."
He led the way to a safe distance and then turned to Whopper.
"Did you hear them speak of some fireworks?"
"Sure."
"Did they say anything about the fireworks in the post office?
"Why, yes. But what has that got to do with------"
"What did they say, Whopper?"
"Why, it seems Ham and Carl and some other fellows---the same crowd that has been against us for so long---have chipped in and ordered some fireworks from the city. They are going to set the fireworks off in front of the Dudder house on Fourth of July night. The Spink family and some others are to be there. Ham and Carl are boasting what a fine celebration it is to be."
"Then I know what I'm going to do," said Snap.
"What?" came from all of the others.
"They took our clothing---why can't we take the fireworks?"
"Whoop! Just the cheese!" ejaculated Whopper. "We can set them off in the public square."
"Where the whole community can see them," added Giant.
"And we can return the remains after they are shot off," came from the doctor's son.
The matter was talked over for a half hour. All of the boys knew it was not just right to appropriate the fireworks but they were "dead sore" on Ham and Carl and knew no other way to "get square."
The boys had made only a few preparations for the Fourth, for nearly all of their spending money had been used up in buying things for the proposed outing. They had some firecrackers, and some blank cartridges for their pistols, and that was all.
Independence Day dawned bright and clear and throughout the town of Fairview there was the usual amount of noise. During the morning Snap heard from another lad how Ham and Carl were boasting of their fireworks.
"Finest fireworks the town ever saw," Ham had said. All the boys were invited to "hang on the Dudder fence" and see them set off that evening at nine o'clock.
"Now is the time for us to do something," said Snap to his chums, a little later.
The evening before they had visited the Dudder barn but had failed to locate the fireworks.
"That's right," said Giant. "The fireworks are there now---I saw Carl and Ham bringing them from the express office."
With caution the four boys walked down a side street, which connected, by an alleyway, with the Dudder barn. Nobody was in sight, and they slipped into the barn with ease. In a corner, on the floor, they saw a long, flat box, marked "Fireworks! With care!"
"We mustn't take them all!" said Shep. "We must leave a top row---just to fool 'em."
The others understood and went to work with care. In a very few minutes they had most of the fireworks pinwheels, rockets, Roman candles, flower pots and others---in their possession. Then they stuffed hay in the bottom of the box and on the top placed two pinwheels