Edward Stratemeyer - The Putnam Hall Rivals

“Here is the spot, fellows,” they heard the bully of the Hall exclaim. “Anybody around?”

“I don’t see anybody,” answered Ritter.

“Where’s the basket?” asked Coulter, gazing up into the tree.

“Here it is, on the ground,” said Baxter. “Too bad, it’s tumbled over.”

“The limb broke down with it, it was so heavy,” said Reff Ritter.

Baxter got down and struck a match.

“The stuff is pretty well tumbled around,” said he. “And, say – some of the turkey is gone!” he added.

“Maybe some animal came up and took it,” suggested Coulter. “I thought I saw a dog on the road.”

“I am not going to eat after a dog,” said Ritter.

“Oh, I reckon it’s all right,” said Baxter, hastily. He did not want anything to occur to spoil the grandness of his proposed spread. To his cronies he had boasted that this was to be the finest spread ever given on the sly at Putnam Hall.

Taking up the basket, the bully rearranged the things. He noticed that there was not as much as he had ordered, and made up his mind to “pitch into” Amos Shepard when next they should meet. He and Coulter carried the basket and Ritter the jug of cider, and off they went to the Hall, entering unobserved by a back way, and sneaking to their dormitory, where the goodies were hidden in a clothes closet.

“Oh, wait till to-night!” said Pepper, as he and his chums also returned.

The evening seemed to drag after that, so many were waiting for bedtime to come. Baxter tried to learn from Dale what the talk earlier in the evening had meant, but got no satisfaction.

All of the boys of the bully’s dormitory had been invited to the feast and also some other cadets, making a total of sixteen lads who were to participate. They were all followers of Dan Baxter, and but few of them were liked by the other cadets.

At last it was time to go to bed, and one after another the boys went off. Our friends undressed and then slipped on some warm coats over their night garments. Soon the monitors came around to see that everything was as it should be for the night.

“Now is our time,” whispered Pepper. “Baxter’s crowd will be stirring soon.”

With caution they left their dormitory and stole along the hallway. As luck would have it, there was a room next to the Baxter dormitory that was vacant, the plaster having fallen and being not yet repaired. The door was unlocked and our friends entered.

“Listen,” said Pepper, as they all came close to a door which communicated with the next dormitory.

“Now, fellows, we’ll have the finest feast you ever saw at any school,” they heard Dan Baxter say. “I’ll carve the turkey and you, Coulter, can cut the cake, and Mumps can pour out the cider. After the cider we’ll have something a little stronger.”

“I don’t think they have anything hotter than that cider,” murmured Pepper.

Those outside of the room heard the bully and his cronies make numerous preparations for the feast. Then the stuff was passed around and all prepared to do full justice to what was handed to them.

“That is all right,” exclaimed Reff Ritter, as he bit into a turkey sandwich. “Say, wouldn’t it make Jack Ruddy and his crowd feel sore to know about these good things we are having!”

“Say, this sandwich is pretty warm,” came from Paxton. “Phew! but it’s hot!”

“Why, it’s cold, Nick,” answered the bully of the Hall.

“Is it? Not much! It’s full of pepper.”

“Ouch!” came from Mumps. “Oh, my tooth!”

“What’s the matter with it?” asked Coulter.

“I’ve bitten on something hard. Guess it was a stone.”

“Creation, what’s this?” came from Ritter. “Say, Dan, this smells like vinegar.”

Another boy was drinking some cider. He made a wry face and ejected the liquid from his mouth.

“That’s the worst cider I ever tasted!”

“Let me see!” cried Dan Baxter, and caught up a glassful. He took one swallow and began to breathe heavily.

“It’s – it’s – pep – peppery!” he gasped. “Oh, my insides are burning up! Somebody give me some water.”

“Whow! The cake is peppery, too!” came from another.

“And full of sand!”

“This piece of celery has got lard all over it!”

“This is the worst sandwich I ever tried to eat!”

“This apple is full of vinegar!”

“So is this currant jelly!”

“Say, fellows, somebody has played a trick on us!”

“Don’t eat any more of the stuff. It may be poisoned!”

“Oh, don’t say that!” groaned Mumps, turning pale. “I – I don’t want to be poisoned!”

“Who – who touched this stuff?” gasped Dan Baxter. He was so angry he could hardly speak.

No one could answer the question.

“If I ever find out who did it, I’ll – I’ll skin ’em alive, that’s what I’ll do!”

“One thing is certain,” said Reff Ritter, in deep disgust. “All of the stuff was fixed up, and there will be no feast to-night, that is sure. I wouldn’t touch another mouthful for a thousand dollars.”

“I am going to find out who did this,” said Baxter, starting up. “And I am going to find out to-night!”

“It’s time for us to get out!” whispered Jack to his chums. “Baxter is going on a rampage!”

“To our dormitory!” whispered Andy, and led the way on tiptoes. The others followed, and in less than a minute they were safe in their room with the door tightly closed.

“Perhaps we had better get into bed for the present,” suggested Stuffer Singleton. “Baxter may come this way.”

This was considered good advice, and it did not take them long to put out the light that had been lit and get into bed. With ears on the alert they awaited developments.

They were not long in coming. Footsteps sounded in the hallway, and then they heard some whispered conversation in front of their door. Pepper wanted to laugh outright and had all he could do to hold in.

“I don’t hear them,” came softly in Dan Baxter’s voice.

“They are foxy,” answered Ritter.

The door was tried and Dan Baxter looked into the room. He could see next to nothing in the almost total darkness.

“Who – who’s there?” asked Andy, sleepily. “Is it time to – to get up?”

A grunt from Dan Baxter was the only response, and then the door was closed again, and they heard Baxter and some others moving away.

“Say, Andy, that was rich!” whispered Pepper, and gave a low laugh.

“Don’t stir too much yet,” cautioned Jack. “They may come back.”

“I am going to the door to watch,” answered Pepper. “If they come this way again I can crawl back to bed in a jiffy.”

Standing at the door, which he held on a crack, the Imp saw Baxter and several others move from one dormitory to another, listening and spying at every door.

“Cheese it, here comes Mr. Strong!” he heard Coulter say, a short while later, and off the bully’s crowd scampered to their rooms. Then the second assistant teacher came up the stairs and Pepper hurried back to his bed. George Strong looked around the hallway and walked to several dormitories, and then passed on to the third floor of the building.

“Will they come back again?” asked Andy, after a long spell of silence.

“Better wait a while longer and see,” said Hogan.

“I’m itching to get at that stuff,” came, with a sigh, from Stuffer.

“Did you ever know a time that you wasn’t hungry, Stuffer?” asked Andy.

“Humph! I guess you’ll get away with your full share, Andy,” was the retort.

At last the boys considered themselves safe and crawled from their beds once more. A dim light was made, and sitting in a circle, they divided the good things on hand and devoured them with a keen relish. The turkey proved to be of the best, and the pie was “prime,” as Andy expressed it.