"I will find out who fired the cracker before I have finished with you," growled the head assistant. "Get down and march into the Hall."
"Gracious, what have we struck now?" whispered Fred to Dick.
"Is this Captain Putnam?" asked Dick, without answering his chum.
"No, young man; I am Josiah Crabtree, A. M., Captain Putnam's first assistant. And you are —— " He paused.
"I am Dick Rover, sir. These are my brothers, Tom and Sam."
"And I am Fred Garrison," finished that youth.
"Very good. I hope, Richard, that you were not guilty of firing that cracker?"
"Was there any great harm in giving you a salute upon our arrival?"
"Such a thing is against the rules of the institution. Article 29 says, 'No pupil shall use any firearms or explosive at any time excepting upon special permission.'"
"We are not pupils yet, Mr. Crabtree."
"That argument will not pass, sir. So you fired the cracker? Very well. Mr. Strong!"
The second assistant came up. He was a man of not over twenty-five, and his face was mild and pleasant.
"What is it, Mr. Crabtree."
"You will take charge of the other new pupils, while I take charge of the one who has broken our rules on his very arrival."
"Hold on!" cried Tom. "What are you going to do with my brother?"
"That is none of your business, Master Rover. You will go with Mr. Strong."
"He didn't fire the cracker. I did that."
"You!"
"Yes — and I'm not ashamed to own it. I wasn't a pupil when I did it, — I'm not a pupil yet, — so I can't see how you can punish me for breaking one of your rules."
At this there came a titter from the cadets gathered around. Hardly any of them liked Josiah Crabtree, who was dictatorial beyond all reason. The head assistant flushed up.
"You are a pupil here, and I will show you that you cannot break our rules with impunity, and be impudent to me in the bargain!" cried Crabtree. "Come with me!" and he caught Tom by the arm, while Dick and the others were led off in another direction.
"Surely, this is a fine beginning," thought Tom as he walked along. He was half inclined to break away, but concluded to await developments.
"Are you going to take me to Captain Putnam?" he questioned.
"We do not permit cadets placed under arrest to ask questions."
"Great smoke! Am I under arrest?"
"You are."
"Perhaps you'll want to hang me next."
"Silence! Or I shall be tempted to sentence you to a caning."
"You'll never cane me, sir."
"Silence! You have evidently been a wayward boy at home. If so, it will be best for you to remember that all that is now at an end, and you must behave yourself and obey orders."
"Can't a fellow breathe without permission?"
"Silence!"
"How about if I want a drink of water?"
"Silence, I say!" stormed Josiah Crabtree. "I'll warrant you'll not feel so smart by the time you are ready to leave Putnam Hall."
There was a silence after this, as the head assistant led the way into the building and conducted Tom to a small room looking out toward the rear.
"You will remain here, Rover, until Captain Putnam returns."
"How long will that be?"
"Didn't I tell you not to ask questions?"
"But Captain Putnam may not return for a day or a month," went on Tom innocently.
"Captain Putnam will be back in an hour or two." Without another word, Josiah Crabtree turned and left the room, locking the door behind him.
"Well, by crickety!" came from the boy when he was left alone. "I've put my foot into it from the very start. I wonder what Captain Putnam will say to this? If he's half as sour-minded as old Crabtree, I'll catch it. But I haven't done anything wrong, and they shan't cane me — and that's flat!" and he shook his curly head decidedly.
The room was less than ten feet square and plainly furnished with two chairs and a small couch. In one corner was a washstand containing a basin and a pitcher of water.
"This looks a good deal like a cell," he mused as he gazed around. Suddenly his eyes caught some writing on the wall in lead pencil. He stepped over to read it.
"Josiah Crabtree put me here,
And I am feeling very queer;
He boxed my ears and pulled my hair —
Oh, when I'm free won't I get square!"
"Somebody else has been here before me," thought Tom. "I rather reckon I'll get square too. Hullo, here's another Whittier or Longfellow:
"'In this lock-up I'm confined;
If I stay long I'll lose my mind.
Two days and nights I've paced the floor,
As many others have before.'"
"I hope I don't stay two days and nights," said Tom half aloud. Then he walked to the single window of the apartment, to find that it was heavily barred.
"No escaping that way," he went on, and turned to read another inscription, this time in blank verse:
"And I am jugged,
Alone in solitude, and by myself
Alone. I sit and think, and think,
And think again. Old Crabtree,
Base villain that he is, hath put me here!
And why? Ah, thereby hangs a tale, Horatio!
His teeth, the teeth that chew the best of steak
Set on our table — those I found and hid;
And Mumps, the sneak, hath told on me! Alas!
When will my martyrdom end?"
"Good for the chap who hid the teeth!" continued Tom, and smiled as he thought of the rage Crabtree must have been in when he discovered that his false teeth were gone. A rattle in the keyhole disturbed him, and he dropped onto a chair just as the head assistant again appeared.
"I want the keys to your trunk and your satchel," he said.
"What for, sir?"
"Didn't I tell you before not to ask questions?"
"But my keys are my own private property, and so is what is in the trunk and the satchel."
"All pupils' baggage is examined, Rover, to see that nothing improper is introduced into the Hall."
"Want to see if I've got any more fire-crackers?"
"We do not allow dime novels, or eatables, or other things that might harm our pupils."
"Eating never harmed me, sir."
"Sometimes parents load up their boys with delicacies which are decidedly harmful. Come, the keys."
Josiah Crabtree's tones were so harsh that Tom's heart rebelled on the moment.
"I shan't give them to you, Mr. Crabtree. You have no right to place me here. I wish to see the proprietor, Captain Putnam, at once."
"Do you — er — refuse to recognize my authority over you? " cried Josiah Crabtree passionately.
"I do, sir. When I have met Captain Putnam and been enrolled as a cadet it may be different.