THE FIRE-ENGINE GOING OUT. Page 152.THE FIRE-ENGINE GOING OUT.Page152.
Seth's heart sank. For the moment he believed Walters was in earnest, and knew full well, having the location of each signal station in mind, that there were two engines whose houses were nearer the call than was Ninety-four's.
To get first water under such circumstances seemed impossible, and timidly Seth reminded Walters of the fact.
"I know it, Amateur, and am not counting that we'll win; but if we should, and if there be such things as mascots, then I'm free to admit you'll be a lucky one for us."
Perhaps 'Lish Davis had in his mind some idea similar to that expressed by Walters, for although Seth had seen him urge his horses to their utmost speed time and again, never before had he known him to press them so hard.
The mass of steel and iron was drawn over the pavement as if it had been but a feather's weight, and 'Lish Davis guided the horses, without checking their speed in the slightest, around a sharp corner so suddenly that Seth was nearly overthrown, while the clanging of gongs in the distance told of the approach of a second engine.
"It's Fifty-three!" Jerry Walters shouted in the boy's ear. "It's Fifty-three, and we've gotthirty seconds the start of her. How about getting first water now, Amateur?"
Seth pointed straight ahead where could be seen a cloud of sparks arising from the stack of a third engine which was coming directly toward them.
"Yes, Amateur, it's her or Ninety-four; Fifty-three is distanced, and I'll hold that you're bringing good luck to us if we do no more than beat one of 'em out."
Every man of that company, however eager he had previously been to be first at the scene of conflict, seemed now to outdo himself in activity.
A cloud of black smoke issuing from the second floor of a dwelling located the fire, and Ninety-four's tender was making a run for the nearest hydrant, passing the engine just as 'Lish Davis slackened speed.
Joe Black had gained the desired spot in advance of his rival, and as Ninety-four's tender dashed by, fifteen or twenty feet of the hose had been run off of the reel.
Then it was that Jerry Walters and 'Lish Davis gave vent to a loud cry of triumph, for Joe Black had made the connection.
Ninety-four's tender was stretching in just as the other company reached the hydrant, beaten by no more than ten seconds.
"We've got first water, Amateur, we've got firstwater!" Jerry Walters shouted as if having taken leave of his senses. "It ain't that we've never done such a thing; but this time it didn't belong to us, and we took it on your first run! If that ain't being a mascot for Ninety-four I don't know what you will call it."
Then there was no time for congratulations or further discussion regarding the matter, for the men had work to do which could not be delayed, and Seth was about to follow Joe Black when 'Lish Davis shouted:
"Come back here, Amateur! Come back! This is no time for you to be gettin' points when you're wearing the first decent suit of clothes you ever owned. Get alongside and behave yourself. I didn't allow you was to do any work when the captain let you in on this trick."
Under other circumstances Seth would have been grievously disappointed at being thus commanded to remain where he could see little or nothing of what was being done; but now he was so elated at the victory won that all else seemed but slight by comparison.
"I s'pose you'd have gone in there if you was wearing the finest coat ever made, eh?" the driver asked gravely, and Seth replied with another question:
"Wouldn't you, sir?"
"What I'd do don't cut any figger, Amateur. It's my business to go in there, but not yours yet a while. When the time comes that you're bound to step up with the foremost, I'm expecting to see you there, and wouldn't say a word that might hold you back. Now you're playing the gentleman, and you'll stay with me; besides, it ain't going to turn out anything after all. A curtain or some such flummery is blazing. It can't be much more."
In this surmise 'Lish Davis was correct.
Within ten minutes after Ninety-four was ready for work word came to "shut off," and the men set about disconnecting the hose.
So slight had been the fire that only two members of the company were detailed to do the overhauling—that, is to thoroughly go through the building from top to bottom to make certain no spark had been left which might be fanned into a flame—and the remainder of the men were ordered back to the house.
"It's what we may call a howling success, this first run of yours, Amateur," 'Lish Davis said as he drove leisurely homeward. "We've beat 'em all out, had little work to do, and it wasn't much more than good practice, with a precious fine record at the bottom of it. But don't you get puffed up thinking everything is going your way just 'cause you've started in easy and slick."
"There's no reason why I should be puffed up, Mr. Davis, except that I've had a chance to do what I've been longin' for—and that is to go out with Ninety-four as if I belonged to her."
"As ifyou belonged to her! That's what we allow you do, Amateur. From this out, unless it so be you turn about wonderfully and go crooked, you're one of us—an honorary member, so to speak."
"Put down on the roll as the official mascot," Jerry Walters cried, whereat the remainder of the company laughed heartily, and in this jovial mood was Ninety-four returned to her quarters; but Seth was not allowed to take part in the washing-up lest he should soil his fine feathers.
"I'm counting on your striking in at headquarters lookin' just as fine as silk, which you couldn't do if we let you hang 'round here helping with the dirty work," 'Lish Davis said when Seth would have claimed it as his right to be allowed to assist in the labor. "You're to toddle straight home now, for you've hung 'round this house long enough; stay there till morning, come over here for a bit about your usual time, and then take a spell at swelling down-town until nigh on to twelve o'clock, when I'll be ready to go with you. Well, why don't you start?"
"I wanted to thank you for lettin' me run with Ninety-four the first night I had my uniform on."
"You needn't do anything of the kind. The captain happened to be soft just as the alarm struck, else you wouldn't have got away with us. Now clear out, and take care you don't get into mischief."
As Seth went toward his lodgings he wondered whether the people whom he met in the street were not surprised at seeing him thus clad like a fireman, and so intent was he on walking erect with his shoulders thrown well back, that he might the better look the part he hoped one day to play, that he failed to observe Dan Roberts until the latter, suddenly recognizing his partner, shouted shrilly:
"Hi! Seth! Do you mean that's really you?"
"Don't make such a row on the street, Dan, 'cause folks will wonder what's the matter. But say, I do look pretty fine, eh?"
"Fine? Why, that's no name for it, old man. You're out of sight! Where did you get 'em?"
"This is the uniform I was tellin' you 'bout. Mr. Davis gave it to me when I was over to the engine-house, an' do you know I hadn't more'n got into it when there was an alarm, an' I rode to the fire on Ninety-four jest as if I belonged to her."
"No!"
"I did for a fact."
"Well, if they let you do that there ain't much question 'bout your gettin' into the Department."
"Mr. Davis says it all depends on me now, an' you can bet I'll work mighty hard, Dan Roberts."
"If you don't you're a bloomin' idjut! Why, I wouldn't ever knowed you if I'd been goin' fast! I was kind-er loafin' along wonderin' when you'd be home, an' thinkin' of Jip, so had time to look 'round. First off I couldn't make up my mind to holler, you looked so bloomin' swell. Now, I don't see why I shouldn't go in for somethin' same's you did, an' flash up in sich style; but no, I'll stick to sellin' papers, that'll be the way with me, an' think I'm playin' in great luck if I get to own a stand on some corner."
"You talk as if I was already in the Department, instead of havin' to work my way up to it."
"I only wish I was as near there. By the time you're captain of a company I'll jest about get so I can pay my own way, with never two cents ahead."
"Now, don't begin to jump on yourself 'cause it seems as if I was gettin' along pretty fast; but wait an' see how I pan out, an' as for doin' nothin' but sellin' papers, why, that's 'cordin' to the way you want it. There ain't any need of stickin' to sich business unless you hanker for it."
"Yes there is, except I'm willin' to starve," Dan replied mournfully, and to raise him from the depths of despondency into which he had been plunged bya sight of the uniform, Seth began to ask him questions concerning Jip.
"We left him down at the ferry. Bill Dean struck a feller there who promised to give Jip a lift now an' then. I don't reckon he'll have any trouble, 'cause them as are sellin' papers down that way don't seem to have much sand to 'em. He's goin' to sleep with Bill's friend, an' take it all in all I think he's gettin' along mighty well, considerin' it ain't a week since he burned us out. Say, goin' into the house now, or do you count on swellin' 'round a spell first?"
"We'll go home, Dan, an' in the mornin', after I've shined for Ninety-four's men, I'll meet you down-town."
"What? You goin' to do any more shinin'?"
"I am for them in that house, an' I'll keep it up till I get to be reg'larly in the Department. They've done so much for me, Dan, that if I should spend half my time as long as I live blackin' their boots, I wouldn't square things."
"If I counted on bein' a fireman I'd be one; I wouldn't black boots for anybody."
"Neither will I when I'm really in the Department; but I'm a long ways from there yet a while. Come home, an' to-night I'll stand a spread so's to celebrate wearin' the new uniform."
When he first saw Seth in his new uniform a certain feeling of envy came into Dan Roberts's heart; but he was not a fellow who could give himself up to this kind of thoughts very long, and within a few moments all that had passed away, leaving in its stead rejoicings that his partner had taken such rapid strides toward the desired end.
Before they had gained the seclusion of their own room Dan was his old self once more, and from that moment it is safe to say he was never again envious of Seth's good fortune, but sufficiently wise to profit by his partner's example.
When they entered the house, Mrs. Hanson, who must have been informed by 'Lish Davis of the expected change in Seth's condition, came to the door to see the boy in his uniform, and when she ceased her words of praise his cheeks were glowing red.
"You'll cut a terrible swath down-town to-morrow morning," Dan said sagely when they were alone. "Here's a woman that never saw either of us till yesterday, an' she goes pretty nigh crazy overthe way you look. I reckon Sam Barney would have a reg'lar fit if he should run up against you now."
To Seth's mind there was nothing wrong in admiring himself, or listening to words of praise from others, and he enjoyed to the utmost these speculations of his partner until Master Roberts, wearied of gazing at the amateur fireman, hinted broadly that if there was to be a spread set out in honor of the uniform, now was the time to "start her goin'."
"How much did that lay-out cost you last night?"
"Twenty-three cents."
"That's pretty stiff to pay for one supper; but it ain't every day I get a uniform, an' I guess I can stand it this once. We shan't spread ourselves in the same way ag'in, though," Seth said thoughtfully, speaking half to himself, and then taking some coins from his pocket, he added, "You go out and buy the stuff. I'll wait here."
"Why don't you come with me?"
"I'm 'fraid if Ninety-four's men should see me they'd think I was runnin' 'round swellin'."
"Well, s'posen they should? Haven't you got the right? Wouldn't most any feller who's got as near into the Department as you have?"
"Mr. Davis said I was to go down-town to-morrow mornin', an' perhaps that's all he thought I ought'er do, so I'll hang on here instead of goin' out ag'in."
Dan was not averse to making the purchases, and so deeply occupied was Seth with pleasant thoughts that it seemed to him Master Roberts had no more than left the room before he returned laden with packages.
As on the previous night he was accompanied by Bill Dean, who exclaimed in a tone of satisfaction as he entered the room:
"It seems like as if I'm allers 'round when you fellers are puttin' up swell lay-outs, don't it?" Then getting a full view of Seth for the first time he cried in an accent of unquestionable admiration, "Well, I'll be jiggered! Dan said you was lookin' mighty fine; but I never thought you could flash up like this! Why, you're a reg'lar fireman already."
"You wouldn't think that if you could hear what Ninety-four's men say, an', besides, there's no brass buttons on this uniform, you know."
"I ain't certain but it looks better without 'em. Anyhow, you're way up in G."
"He ought'er know it by this time," Dan added with a laugh. "Everybody has been tellin' him so, an' he come mighty near paralyzin' Miss Hanson. She jest threw up both hands when we opened the door."
"Well, I don't wonder; but say, I didn't come round to sponge off you fellers, 'cause I never thought of your havin' two such lay-outs one right after the other. I didn't know but you'd like to hear how we'd left Jip, an' then agin I wanted to talk 'bout bunkin' in here with you fellers."
"This is Seth's spread; but you'll hold on an' get your share of it now you're here," and Dan began to arrange the food on the table in the most tempting manner possible.
"Of course you'll stop," Seth added, "an' even if you'd known we was goin' to kind of celebrate, what would be the harm in comin' 'round an' gettin' some?"
"Well, I don't want you to think I'm playin' it on you, that's all; but it struck me a little while ago that if we could make a trade with the woman what runs this house, it would come easier on all hands. Now, that bed is plenty big enough for three, an' it ain't likely you'll be here much of the time, except to sleep, so why wouldn't it be a good idea to see how much extra she'll charge to let me in with you fellers?"
Seth knew of no good reason why Bill should not be allowed to share their palatial quarters, providing Mrs. Hanson did not object.
He knew Master Dean to be an industrious, well-intentioned boy, whose company, now that he was to be absent from home so much, might be desirable to Dan, and at once signified his willingness that the landlady should be consulted.
"I reckon Dan will be lonesome here when I'm gone so much, an' perhaps it would be a good plan. S'pose you two fellers go down an' see what she's got to say."
"Why don't you tackle her?" Master Roberts suggested. "She'll be so busy lookin' at your uniform that perhaps you could make a better trade."
Seth hesitated only an instant, and then went down-stairs.
When he returned his companions knew from the expression on his face, before he made a report, that the mission had been successful.
"She says if we keep quiet an' don't have a crowd hangin' round, or too many visitors, that we needn't pay any more for three than we do for two. I didn't think that would be jest the square thing, an' besides, we couldn't divide half a dollar up in three parts, so I told her we'd call it sixty cents, an' that will make the lodgin' come mighty cheap for all hands of us."
"When are you willin' I should come?" Bill Dean asked eagerly.
"Whenever you want to."
"Then I'll start right in to-night an' pay the same as you fellers do, for you've only got one day ahead of me."
And thus the matter was settled to the manifest delight of the new lodger.
The feast was an unusually satisfactory one on this particular evening.
Seth was as happy as a boy well could be because of the good fortune which had come to him through Ninety-four's men; Bill believed himself unusually lucky in having secured such desirable lodgings at an exceedingly low price; and Master Roberts had suddenly conceived an idea which seemed to him a remarkably happy one.
Not until his hunger had been appeased did Dan give words to his new train of thoughts, and then he announced with the air of one who has made a great discovery:
"If Seth hadn't laid himself right out to get into the Department, an' stuck to it whether the fellers were makin' fun of him or not, he wouldn't be wearin' that uniform now, would he? Course not. If I keep on sellin' papers an' don't try to do anything else, I'll never get some other kind of a job, will I? Course not. Now, I've made up my mind to own a store on Third Avenoo where I'll sell papers, an' books, an' sich truck, an' keep a lot of kids to do the outside work."
"An' you can do it, too, Dan, if you stick right at it," Seth replied confidently.
"Well, she goes from this out! I shan't spend any more money buyin' swell grub same's this is, an' if I don't get down-town every mornin' by daylight it'll be 'cause I'm broke up so bad I can't move."
Then the feasters discussed this new idea of Dan's, approaching it from every point of view, until the Third Avenue store was to Master Roberts an accomplished fact; nothing stood between it and him save hard work and a strict adherence to his purpose.
After this subject was exhausted a certain amount of their attention was given to Jip Collins's affairs. They speculated briefly as to what Sam Barney might be doing at that particular moment, or regarding matters connected with his departure, and it was not yet nine o'clock when all three were lying comfortably in bed, sleeping peacefully.
Dan awakened shortly after daybreak, and, strong in his purpose of one day owning a Third Avenue store, lost no time in making ready for business.
He and Bill Dean started down-town before sunrise, and Seth made his way to Ninety-four's house, where he busied himself in doing such work as came to his hand.
Before seven o'clock he had blackened the bootsof all the men, swept the floors, and groomed one of the horses.
'Lish Davis came down just as this last task was performed, and observing what had been done said gravely:
"Look here, Amateur, we don't count on your doing up all the odd jobs 'round this place, else the rest of us will rust out for lack of exercise."
"I got 'round pretty early, sir, an' 'd rather be at work than layin' still."
"After this noon you won't complain of having too much spare time on your hands. Been to breakfast?"
"Yes, sir."
"Then clear out an' go down-town, 'cause this is likely to be your last day off for quite a spell. I'll look after the other horses."
Seth would have been better pleased to remain in the engine-house two or three hours longer, but 'Lish Davis's injunctions, although given as a permission rather than a command, were not to be disobeyed, and without protesting he left the building.
It is hardly necessary to attempt to describe the reception accorded the amateur fireman, when he arrived at Printing House Square.
Every bootblack or newsboy in that section of the city had heard from Bill or Dan the fullest possible particulars regarding the new uniform, and allwere expecting to see a great change in Seth's appearance, but not prepared for such a decided transformation.
During at least two hours business was practically suspended, and Seth was literally forced to remain on exhibition because of the throng which surrounded him.
Many times did the policemen in the vicinity disperse the gathering; but the admiring ones reassembled immediately afterward, regardless of the threats of the officers, and thus the Society for the Admiration of Seth Bartlett was virtually in continuous session.
Those who had laughed the loudest because of his ambition were now the most extravagant in their praises, and there was not a boy on Printing House Square who did not realize as never before how much might be accomplished by persistent effort. Until eleven o'clock Seth "visited" with his friends and acquaintances, and then made his way up to keep the appointment with 'Lish Davis.
The driver, clad in his best uniform, was awaiting the boy's arrival, and cried good-naturedly when the latter appeared:
"Well, Amateur, you've spread yourself, eh? Been swelling all the morning till your head is so big that you need to borrow a new cap?"
"There's no danger of that yet a while, Mr.Davis. I'll wait till I see how I get along at headquarters before puffin' myself out very much."
"That's a good idea, Amateur, though at the same time I believe you'll pull through in great shape, providing you hang on as you've done since I knew you. Now, if it so be you've tended to all your business and are ready to duf into the work, we'll mosey along toward Sixty-seventh Street."
"The sooner I get to work the quicker we'll know whether the folks up there are goin' to let me stay," Seth replied, and with words expressive of kindly cheer and friendly wishes ringing in his ears, the Amateur set out on this his first real step toward a position in the Department.
"I don't want them as you'll meet at headquarters to think you're a dummy, Amateur, and it's in my mind to give you a little outline, so to speak, of this 'ere school, after which there'll be no need of your showing ignorance by asking questions. In the first place it ain't counted on that this 'ere branch of the service is to educate anybody and everybody that may come along. It's for such men as are admitted to the Department on trial, 'probationary firemen' chiefly; but the old hands have had a deal of good out of it.
"This plan was started long about '83 for no other reason than to show the men who were then in the service how to use the scaling ladder which had justbeen introduced, and the idea seemed to work so well that it gradually grew, kind of swelled out, so to speak, till it became a reg'lar school. First off, before the new headquarters was built, the city hired an old sugar warehouse on One Hundred and Fifty-eighth Street and North River, where the men were shown how to use scaling ladders and a life net, and I've been there when one class counted up sixty scholars, all of us old hands at the business. Remember this, Amateur, you'll never be too old to go to school, leastways that's what I've found.
"After the new headquarters building was opened in '87 the sugar warehouse was given up, and we firemen had what you might almost call a college. There's a yard at the back of the building nigh on to a hundred feet square, which is put up in such shape that water can be used the same as you would at a fire, and here drills go on like this, for instance: An alarm is sent out for a certain company when they least expect it, and the men find themselves called into headquarters to show what they can do. All that you're going to see, lad, and talking about getting points, why, you can learn more there in one exhibition drill than you could at forty fires, 'cause you're understanding just how the thing is going to be done.
"You'll find when one of these unexpected drills comes off that the engine is run into the yard, hosecoupled on to the hydrant, dragged up to the top of the building, water started and shut off, ladders used, and in fact the whole business gone through the same as if a hundred lives were in danger."
"Do the men really work as hard there as they do at a fire?" Seth asked.
"Do they, Amateur? Well, now, you can be mighty certain they do, 'cause it's owing to what they show at such times that gives them their rating. Now, for instance, Ninety-four's company is in the first grade; Eighty-six, that we bucked up against on that storage warehouse, is in the second grade; and there ain't a great many third grade nowadays, 'cause the men are drilled too well. And here's a point I want you to understand, Amateur: In case some man comes along and tries to tell you that the Department in this city or that is better than what we've got here, stick straight up for the fact that the New York Fire Department heads the world, and you won't be a grain away from the truth. Taking it all in all I'm free to say, open and above board, that you can't find a Department anywhere that can beat this, and I'm reckoning pretty strong that you wouldn't find one to equal us, taking all things into consideration.
"Now, we'll suppose you was old enough, and stout enough, and plucky enough, and knew enough to pass a civil-service and a physical examination foradmission to the Department. You wouldn't be put into regular service, but sent up to headquarters, where we're going now, and drilled in the yard, raising ladders, tossing 'em 'round, setting 'em up, and keeping at that kind of work till you could handle one the same's you might a knife or fork. Now, considering the fact that the lightest of 'em weighs twenty and the heaviest sixty-five pounds, with a length of from fourteen to twenty feet, you can see that you've got to be pretty nimble before getting through the first lesson, eh?
"Then we'll allow you've satisfied them as are giving the lesson. You'll be set at climbing up to the first window to start with; after you can do that, to the second, and so on till you've got to the top of the building by aid of the scaling ladders. It ain't such a mighty easy thing when you come to do it yourself as it looks while you're watching somebody else; about the time you're half-way up the hair on your head will come pretty nigh to standing on end; but bless you, Amateur, a man soon gets over that, till shinning outside of a building don't seem more'n child's play.
"Then there's the drill of building a chain—making a line of ladders from the roof to the street—and getting from the upper window out over the cornice. Straddling sills is another lesson you'll have to learn, till you can get astride of one, and byholding on with your knees, work as handy as on the ground. Standing on sills; working the life-line; climbing crosswise so's to step from one window and go to the next story on a slant, instead of straight up; using the life net by jumping down, or holding it for others to leap into—and if it so chances that you are ever set to holding one, Amateur, my boy, you'll find it ain't child's play. I've heard it said that when a man weighing one hundred and fifty pounds jumps from the sixth floor of a building, he strikes the net with a force of nigh on to eighteen hundred pounds, and I tell you them as are holding it have to keep scratching."
"Do you reckon I'll be allowed to practise with the men, Mr. Davis?" Seth asked as the driver paused an instant.
"I'm counting on it, lad; but don't make up your mind it'll be right away. We of Ninety-four's company believe we know what kind of a boy you are, because we've tried you, so to speak; but up here where we're going they've got only our word for it, and won't count very much on that till they've found it out for themselves. It may take a long time, and then again it mayn't; but every boy, whatever business he goes into, is bound to prove himself before he's thought to be of much account. It'll be the same at headquarters. Turn to, Amateur, the same as you've done since we knew you,and before a year goes by I reckon on seeing you in the drill."
"Are the men always practising?"
"Not every minute of the time, you know, because it comes precious nigh being hard work; but you can count on their doing all a man ought to do in the twelve hours. When it's storming, or too cold to work in the yard, you'll find them 'ere grown-up scholars in the gymnasium on the fifth floor, at work coupling or uncoupling hose; learning how to fight cellar fires, or practising with the tin-cutters for opening roofs. They're told about battering-rams, axes, hooks, and, finally, everything that we use, until the man who graduates up at headquarters is fit to handle a company all by himself, save, of course, that he lacks experience. Now, if it so happens that one don't learn quick enough, or shows he hasn't got a good head for the business, he's switched right off, and that ends his chance of getting into the Department. Of course kids are never taken on, and it ain't held out to you that you're going there on probation. We've got a job for you as a boy in the building, that's all, but with what little influence Ninety-four's men can use, and some thrown in from the other companies that we're friendly with, the idea is to slip you through on the sly, so to speak. If you please them at headquarters there'll be no voice raised agin your practising now and again with the others, and then is the time that everything depends on you.
"You've run to fires for the sake of getting points; but never had a chance to see whether you could carry them out or not. Now the opportunity is coming; if it's in you to do the work, why, when you're sizable we shan't have any trouble in getting you taken on probation, providing, of course, you can pass both examinations, and about that we've got to talk later. I don't want you to think a fireman is a regular idiot when it comes to book-learning. The older hands of us may be 'way off on such things; but them as goes through the civil-service examination have got to be pretty well posted, an' I'm counting on your working into some night-school."
Seth had listened attentively to the old driver's words; but there was a cloud on his face when mention was made of the fact that a fireman must have a certain amount of book-learning.
"I don't know hardly anythin' at all, Mr. Davis," he said in a mournful tone.
"You can read, can't you?"
"Yes, if the words ain't too long."
"And write?"
"Well, I wouldn't like to say I really could, 'cause it's just puttin' down letters same as they're printed."
"Didn't you ever go to school, Amateur?"
"No, sir."
"Why not?"
"'Cause I've allers had to hustle for my livin,' an' it never seemed as though I had the time; but now since you've begun to talk I know I might have done it evenings, instead of hangin' 'round with the fellers, or sleepin'. If I'd known folks had to go to school before they could be firemen, I'd been studyin' these last two years."
"I believe you, my boy, and if you had put into the work at books anywhere near as hard as you have on what you call 'picking up points,' you'd have been pretty well along by this time. Howsomever, we can remedy that, though we can't call back lost time. Jerry Walters and I'll figger up what's to be done, and explain further as soon as we've settled matters, 'cause you see, Amateur, you belong to Ninety-four, an' we ain't of the mind to have you fail in what you set out after."
"Shall I have any chance to see you?"
"Bless you, lad, yes. You'll be through between six and seven o'clock, and we'll be glad to have you drop in any evening till you set about studying; then I allow we'll fix up some place so's you can be away from your partner and his friends. We won't have any soft talk after we get inside, so I'll say it all now. Keep your upper lip stiff, Amateur; don't get down at the heel if them as are in chargeseem to bear on a little too hard; remember that all hands of Ninety-four's company are counting on you to make good their words, and be a man. Unless we get a call you'll see us to-night, so there ain't need of saying very much more just now."
By this time they had arrived at headquarters, and 'Lish Davis entered the building with the air of one who has no especial interest in whoever may be following him.
It was nearly eight o'clock on the evening of the day Seth paid his first visit to headquarters and he was greeted warmly by such of the men as were on the lower floor.
"Where's Mr. Davis?" he asked.
"He had twenty-four hours' leave an' ain't likely to flash up before to-morrow noon," Jerry Walters replied. "How did you get along at headquarters?"
"That I ain't quite so certain of," Seth replied doubtfully.
"Why not? Anything gone wrong?"
"No; but it don't seem as though the men up there had very much to say to me."
"Found you plenty of work, eh?"
"Oh, yes; there was enough of that."
"A little too much, I reckon, if it kept you till this hour."
"I was told that I should knock off at six o'clock, but then I hadn't finished the job I was workin' on, an' so stayed till it was done."
"How did 'Lish Davis swell 'round?"
"I didn't see anythin' of him after we got inside. He told a man there who I was, an' two or three of 'em hunted 'round to find work for me."
"Well, how do you like it so far's you've gone?" Jerry Walters asked with a smile, and the remainder of the company gathered around to hear the reply.
"I'd like anythin' that was givin' me a show of gettin' into the Department. Of course it ain't so pleasant in the house doin' all kinds of work as it is out of doors layin' still when you want to, or talkin' with the fellers."
"Then you don't feel like backin' out yet?"
"No sir-ee! I'll never feel like that. Look here, I've got to be up at seven o'clock to-morrow mornin', an' why couldn't I shine your boots to-night?"
"'Cause then is the time for you to rest, Amateur. Don't bother your head about our boots being shined, for we'll tend to that part of it. I reckon there'll be as much work at headquarters as you can comfortably do, so there's no need to come 'round here except to make a friendly call. Of course we're expectin' to see you pretty nigh every evenin' so's to have a report of how things are goin'; but so far's your blackin' our boots, that's all nonsense, and if 'Lish Davis was here this minute he'd tell you the same."
"But I want to do it, an' Mr. Davis promised me I should, 'cause it'll make it seem as if I was tryin' to square up for what all of you have done for me."
Jerry Walters tried to persuade Seth that he had better not attempt to do so much, particularly at the outset; but it could readily be told from the expression on the boy's face that he was not convinced, and Mr. Walters refrained from making further efforts in that line.
After answering a few more questions and promising to visit the engine-house on the following evening, Seth, feeling even more tired than he looked, set out for home, and Mr. Walters said to his comrades:
"That kid will work himself down to skin an' bones for the sake of tryin' to show he's thankful for the lift we've given him, and as for making his way into the Department, why, there ain't a ghost of a show that he'll fail."
And every member of the company appeared to share Jerry's opinion regarding the matter.
When Seth arrived at Mrs. Hanson's he found Bill Dean and Dan making ready to retire, and the latter cried in a joyful tone:
"I'm mighty glad you've come, Seth. Bill an' me was jest figgerin' that they'd fixed it up to have you sleep there nights."
"There wasn't anythin' said about that, and Ireckon they don't want boys 'round," the amateur fireman replied gloomily, and Bill asked in surprise:
"Why, what's the matter, old man? Ain't gettin' discouraged so soon, are you?"
"I reckon it'll be all right after a spell, an' I wouldn't want any of Ninety-four's men to know that I wasn't jest as chipper as a sparrer; but things are different up there from what they are down here. They jest set you to work an' let you keep hummin' without sayin' a word. I don't believe a single one of 'em has spoke to me since Mr. Davis went away."
"What you been doin'?"
"Cleanin' windows; an' I tell you they're so big that one of 'em makes considerable work. I hung on to it till I'd finished all on that floor, even though they told me to go home at six o'clock."
"What are you goin' to do to-morrow?"
"I don't know. Anythin' that comes up, I s'pose."
"Didn't they give you any lessons in the school?"
"I haven't even seen it yet. There might have been a hundred men 'round there practisin' for all I'd know, 'cause I was in the front of the buildin'."
"Why, I thought you'd go right to work learnin' to be a fireman," Dan said in surprise.
"Mr. Davis never allowed anythin' like that.He said after a spell, when I'd showed 'em I could 'tend to business, I might get a show; but you see, it ain't anyways certain that they'll do what Ninety-four's men have been countin' on. I've got to take the chances, you know, and work my way in."
Both Dan and Bill were disappointed by this report. They had fancied certain tasks might be required of Seth; but firmly believed he would be given instructions at once.
In fact, Dan had told his roommate several times during the day that he expected to see Seth an enrolled member of the Department within a few months, adding in support of such belief:
"When that feller tackles anythin' he goes right through with it, an' if he ain't big enough now he's got the nerve in him to grow terribly. It seems like he does everythin' he starts for."
Now that Seth appeared despondent his comrades believed it their duty to cheer him, and during half an hour or more they set about such task in earnest.
It seemed to them as if he was already growing more cheerful when the shrill whistling of a peculiar note was heard several times repeated, apparently on the sidewalk in front of the dwelling.
"That's Teddy Bowser!" Bill Dean exclaimed as he leaped to his feet. "He wanted to come up here to-night, but I told him he mustn't, 'cause ifthe fellers hung 'round I'd lose my show for a tony lodgin'."
"Go down and see what he wants," Dan suggested. "I don't believe we'd better let him come in, for there are three of us here now, an' Miss Hanson might think she was havin' too many fellers 'round for sixty cents a week."
Bill descended the stairs swiftly but noiselessly, returning in less than five minutes with a look of consternation upon his face.
"Say, Sam Barney's got back!"
"Got back!" Seth cried in astonishment and dismay. "Why, how'd he raise the money?"
"That's what Teddy didn't know. He said Sam flashed up 'bout an hour ago lookin' as chipper as you please, an' with cash in his pocket. He's tumbled to our racket, an' is promenadin' 'round town sayin' he'll catch Jip Collins before to-morrow night."
The three boys gazed at each other in perplexity, and fully a moment elapsed before the almost painful silence was broken.
Then Seth said interrogatively:
"Of course Teddy knew what he was talkin' 'bout?"
"Oh yes, he hasn't made any mistake, 'cause he saw Sam and heard him blow 'bout what a swell time he had in Philadelphy."
"He couldn't have been there very long."
"I don't understand it," and Bill plunged his hands deep in his pocket as he looked gloomily around. "I thought when we shipped him off that we'd settled the detective business, an' now it ain't any dead certain thing he won't run right across Jip Collins, 'cause the poor feller thinks Sam's so far away there's no danger of meetin' him."
"Where's Teddy?" Dan asked.
"Down on the sidewalk."
"What's he waitin' for?"
"I told him he'd better hold on a spell, 'cause we've got to dosomethin', fellers, an' perhaps he can help us."
"But if Sam's here with money in his pocket, how shall we stop him from workin' up the case?" Dan asked helplessly.
"First off we must tell Jip," Seth replied promptly. "To-morrow mornin' you an' Bill will have to see what can be done with Sam. It won't do to let him keep on the way he was goin' before we sent him off."
"I reckon you can't stop him if he's set on doin' it, an' he likely will be now he finds you're in the Department, 'cause he said he was goin' to be an out-an'-out detective long before you ever dreamed of gettin' a fireman's job."
"If he only knew how little of a fireman I am hewouldn't feel very bad 'bout it," Seth said with a sigh, and then added more cheerily, "Come on, fellers, we must find Jip, an' not stay out too late either, else Miss Hanson will raise a row."
The three went down the stairs softly, crept out on the sidewalk as if their own lives might be in jeopardy if the slightest noise was made, and there met Teddy Bowser.
"Oh yes, I saw him," Teddy said in reply to Seth's question. "He's been swingin' himself 'round Grand Street big as life for more'n an hour; says he had a great time in Philadelphy, an' ain't certain but he'll go over there to live after he gets Jip in jail. Sam must have struck some mighty soft snap, 'cause when he left this town he had only sixteen cents to his name."
"Do you s'pose he could find any one chump enough to lend him money?" Dan asked musingly, and Seth said almost sharply:
"It won't pay for us to stand here tryin' to figger how he's fixed things, 'cause we must be back mighty soon, and it may take quite a spell to find Jip."
"I reckon it will," Teddy added emphatically. "I hunted all 'round the ferry for him."
"Why, how did you know where he was?"
"The fellers told me. I didn't think it was a secret."
"It ought to have been," and Seth looked more distressed than before. "If all hands know, it won't take Sam Barney a great while to find out."
"He was talkin' 'bout it when I left; said there was no need of goin' to the ferry till mornin', 'cause he could put his hands on him when he wanted to. Some of Jip's chums must have gone back on him, an' I wouldn't wonder if I knew who. You see, Denny Macey was tellin' 'round that if Jip didn't ante up the dime he borrowed two weeks ago, he'd make trouble for him."
"Don't let's stand here any longer," and Seth led the way at a rapid pace toward the ferry.
Beyond speculating as to how the would-be detective had been enabled to return from Philadelphia, those who were seeking to do Jip Collins an additional favor indulged in little conversation during the hurried journey across the city.
As they neared the ferry each kept a sharp watch in the hope of meeting the boy whom he sought, but when they stood at the very entrance of the slip no sign of Jip had been seen, and then the difficulty of the search began to be apparent.
Master Collins was a stranger in this section of the city, and they might question a dozen boys without finding one who had so much as heard of him, therefore the quest was likely to be a long if not a vain one.
"It'll soon be too late to do anything if we don't hustle," Seth said when he realized all the possibilities against success. "Let each feller start out alone, and there'll be jest so many more chances of runnin' across him. We'll meet here by the ferry slip in half an hour."
This plan was acted upon without delay, and each member of the searching party did his best to bring the labor to a speedy and final conclusion; but when at the expiration of the time set the four met once more, nothing had been discovered.
"He's turned in," Bill Dean said in a tone of conviction.
"If it's with that chum of yourn it ought'er be easy to find him."
"He wasn't a chum of mine, an' I don't so much as know his name. It's a feller I've run across two or three times down-town, that's all."
"Then I can't see but what we must call it a bad job, for there's no kind of use in foolin' 'round here any longer."
"But if we don't find him now all Sam Barney's got to do is to walk over here in the mornin'," Dan said mournfully, and Bill Dean cried emphatically:
"I'll get ahead of that bloomin' detective if I have to set up all night! You can count on my bein' right here at daylight, an' that's the best anybody can do. You ought to get to bed, Seth,'cause you've got to turn out pretty early in the mornin'."
That it was useless to remain in that vicinity any longer with the hope of meeting Jip by chance, all understood, and mournfully they turned their faces homeward, Teddy Bowser suggesting that he might be able to do the repentant firebug a friendly turn by delaying Sam a certain length of time next morning.
"I'll ask him to tell me about his detective work, an' you can bet he won't lose such a chance, 'cause there's nothin' in this world he likes to talk about as well as himself."
"All right, you do that, Teddy, an' I'll snoop over here," Bill added. "Of course Seth can't take a hand in this work, on account of havin' to go to headquarters, but Dan will kind-er lay 'round anywhere, either to head Sam off, or find Jip."
Then Teddy Bowser took his departure for the night, and Mrs. Hanson's three lodgers returned to their room thoroughly distressed in mind.
The greater portion of the night might have been spent by them in discussing this new phase of affairs but for Seth, who said when his comrades began to hold forth on the subject:
"You fellers can't do any good talkin'. I've got to get some sleep if I count on bein' up early enough in the mornin' to do the work over to the engine-house an' get to my job at seven o'clock, so s'pose you quiet down and give me a chance?"
This was no more than a reasonable request, and soon Mrs. Hanson's lodgers were enjoying their needed repose, despite the troubles which had come upon them.
Seth, whose last thought had been that he must waken early, opened his eyes just as the day was dawning, and aroused his comrades.
"You fellers must turn out if you count on helpin' Jip this mornin', an' I'm goin' to get right off. Seems to me it would be a good idea if Bill was at the ferry right soon."
"I'll start now," Master Dean replied, and, since their plans had been fully arranged the night previous, there was nothing to prevent Seth from going at once to Ninety-four's house.
The watchman on duty admitted him with a reproof for trying to crowd too much work into one day; but made no further objection when the amateur fireman declared that he should "feel better if he did the shinin' the same's ever."
Not a man was awake save the one on duty, when, his work finished, Seth hurried toward headquarters.
When he arrived it lacked twenty minutes of the time set for him to begin work, and the first person he met inside the building was a gray-haired manwearing such a uniform as did Jerry Walters, the driver of Ninety-four, and all Seth's particular friends.
"What are you doing here?" the official asked in a not very friendly tone.
"I began to work 'round this place yesterday noon," Seth replied in an apologetic manner.
"Oh, you did, eh? You must be the kid 'Lish Davis made so much talk about."
"I am the boy he got the job for, sir."
"Well, what are you doing here so early? Seven o'clock is the hour."
"Yes, sir; but I don't s'pose it can make much difference if I'm here a little before time, 'cause then I'll get more done, don't you see?"
"And you were figuring on that same thing when you stayed here until eight o'clock last night, eh?"
"No, sir; I stayed 'cause I wasn't through washin' all the windows on the second floor, an' didn't want to leave the job half done."
"Well, in the future you'd better go home when the clock strikes six, the same as others do. What task have they set for you this morning?"
"Nothing as yet, sir."
"That's because you did your work too well yesterday. I suppose they allowed you had enough to last through the balance of this day."
"It would be a pretty poor kind of a boy whocouldn't do more'n wash that many windows in a day an' a half," Seth replied laughingly, fancying that this man's gruff manner was no indication of bad temper, but rather the reverse.
"They tell me you're counting on being a fireman one of these days?"
"Yes, sir," Seth replied promptly and decisively.
"You seem to be pretty certain of it."
"So I am, sir, 'cause I'll get there after a time if I work hard."
"You will for a fact, my son, if you believe it as firmly as you seem to. How much have you seen of the building so far?"
"I've only been in the room where I was workin' yesterday."
"Come up into the gymnasium with me. I'm running things in that quarter, an' it might be we can work you in with better profit there, than at window-washing."
It was as if Seth's heart gave a great bound just then, for in the gymnasium was begun the first of the fireman's lessons, and if he should be so fortunate as to be set at work there it seemed that advancement must necessarily be rapid.
Even though he had had less reason of wishing to be occupied in this portion of the building, he could not but have been delighted when he entered the well-appointed place, and he gazed around in whatwas very like an ecstasy of joy until suddenly aroused by the voice of this new acquaintance.
"Do you think you could keep things in proper shape here? There's plenty of work to be done, and at present we are getting none of the best."
"I'd like to have a chance to try, sir."
"Very well; I'll see to the red tape of the business down-stairs and in the meanwhile do you set about doing whatever you think is necessary. If 'Lish Davis wasn't mistaken, I'll see to it you get all the instruction in this portion of the building that you can stagger under, and it may be we'll put a little more muscle into you 'twixt now and the next few months."
Then, without having specified what it was he wished Seth to busy himself with, the gray-haired man turned to leave the gymnasium, when he suddenly stopped and asked sharply:
"Have you been to breakfast?"
"No, sir; I was told that I'd get my grub here."
"Then why didn't you 'tend to it when you first came in?"
"'Cause I met you, sir."
"I suppose you hadn't thought you might be needing something to eat?"
"It would have been no great matter, sir. I've got along until noon a good many days without anythin', an' can do it again."
"There's no need of that here, my son. Remember to get your meals on time, for regularity of habits,—although that will become a luxury if you are ever made a fireman,—regularity of habits is quite as necessary for the strength and building up of your body as any exercise you can take here. So far as possible eat at the same hour each day; go to bed early, get up early, and at all times see to it that your body is properly cared for. When did you have a bath last?"
"It's been quite a spell since I went in swimmin', sir."
"Well, you can begin the day with that. Use plenty of cold water, and I reckon the towels are coarse enough. Then get your breakfast, come up here, and go to work."
"At anything special, sir?"
"Whatever you see that's needed to be done."
Then this employer, who had given him such good advice, walked quietly away, and Seth was left to find the bathroom as best he might.
During this day Master Bartlett worked as industriously as ever; but with better heart than while employed about the first task set him at headquarters, for he had reason to believe there was at least one in the building who would lend him a helping hand, and the future seemed much brighter than it had twenty-four hours previous.
This new friend, who was spoken of as "Josh" by those who seemed to be best acquainted with him, and by others as "Mr. Fernald," apparently gave no heed to the boy, and Seth did whatever seemed to him most necessary, although there were many times when he was tempted to stop in order to watch the men at their exercises, until half-past five in the afternoon, when the man whom he was beginning to look upon as a friend said sharply:
"Get your supper, now, Seth Bartlett, and to-morrow morning see to it that you have breakfast before coming up here."
Seth wanted to say good-night to Mr. Fernald; but doubtful as to how such familiarity might be received, he departed in silence, turning around as soon as he was in the corridor where none could see him, to wave his hand in adieu.
Supper had been eaten, and he was on the sidewalk outside of headquarters just as the whistles were blowing for the hour of six.
"I'll have a chance to stop a good while in Ninety-four's house to-night, an' there may another alarm come so's I can go out with her again," he said to himself, and at that instant Teddy Bowser appeared from around the corner of the building and cried excitedly:
"Dan Roberts an' Bill Dean sent me up here to tell you that Sam Barney's had Jip Collins 'rested this afternoon 'bout three o'clock."
It was several moments before Seth could bring himself to believe that Dan and Bill Dean had utterly failed in their efforts to save Jip Collins from the would-be detective.
During the day he had given the matter comparatively little thought, believing that, having set out on their mission of mercy at such an early hour, his roommates would succeed in their efforts.
Sam Barney was known to all his acquaintances as a boy opposed to rising very early, or working very hard, and it had been no more than reasonable to suppose Jip would be warned in time.
Teddy Bowser could give very little information, and that which he did impart only served to heighten the mystery.
He stated that he met Sam at about seven o'clock that morning, and talked with him concerning his visit to Philadelphia with the purpose, as previously agreed upon, of delaying him until nearly nine o'clock.
That then the alleged detective had gone towardFulton Market with the avowed intention of meeting a friend, and Teddy was positive Jip had not been arrested until late in the afternoon.
"Where was Dan an' Bill when they sent you to tell me?"
"Over by Jefferson Market; that's where Jip's been jugged."
"Were they to wait there for me?"
"That's what they reckoned on, except you thought them firemen of yourn could help out."
"If Jip's really been 'rested I don't believe Ninety-four's men could do anything, 'cordin' to the way Mr. Davis talks. We'll go right down to the market."
During the long journey, for neither Seth nor Teddy could afford to pay ten cents for car-fare, the latter told as nearly as he could remember Sam Barney's version of his visit to "Philadelphy."
"He says the way he figgered it out at first, Jip Collins ought'er been over there; but he'd found out his mistake soon enough if you fellers hadn't hurried him off."
"He didn't go for most a day after he acted 'bout crazy to get away."
"That's one of his excuses, of course; I'm jest givin' you the fairy story he flashed up to me. He says he wasn't any sooner in the train than he began to work the plan over in his mind, same's allthe detectives do, an' it didn't take him a great while to figger how it was. At the jump he thought it was mighty queer that Bill Dean should go 'round raisin' money to send him away, an' after he was in the cars he tumbled to himself, don't you see? To hear him tell it you'd believe all he had to do was to set down an' think over things to find out jest what was what."
"It's a big pity he couldn't think who stole his money," Seth interrupted. "'Cordin' to his story he's been after the thief ever since."
"He says he would have caught him if this case of Jip's hadn't turned up, an' seein's it was so much bigger he dropped everything else. Well, after he made up his mind that the fellers what chipped in the money was tryin' to run him out of town, the train started, so of course he had to keep on; but he'd fixed it with himself that he was bound to come straight back soon's he could. I reckon he swelled himself 'round the depot over in Philadelphy, blew in the sixteen cents he had, an' give some of the fellers a terrible stiff 'bout bein' a detective, till he borrowed money of 'em to come back. The way he tells it is that jest as soon as he got there people knew who he was, an' give him a great reception. He makes out that there was a slat of folks hangin' round the station tryin' to get a chance to see him; but that's all in your eye, of course."
"Sam Barney must be a fool if he thinks anybody is goin' to believe such yarns."
"He must think it, else he wouldn't tell 'em. Now, 'cordin' to his story, some of them fellers was jest loaded with the stuff, and they put up the price of a railroad ticket back. I don't know what he did with himself while he was in the town, 'cause you can't make out anything by what he says."
"Why didn't he come back on the next train if everybody was ready to lend him money?"
"He says he jest actually couldn't get away from the crowd that wanted to see him an' talk to him, so he stayed a spell to give 'em a good time by showin' himself. Then when he got ready he swings on board, an' over he comes. But he's chafin' under the collar, Seth, 'cause the fellers sent him off when he ought'er have stayed, an' that's why he's so down on Jip Collins."
"He was jest as bad before Bill Dean ever begun to raise money to get rid of him, else it would have been different. I tried to make him promise to let Jip alone, an' he wouldn't listen to any talk at all. He thinks it'll be a big thing for him in case he puts it through. If I couldn't get on in the world except it was by sendin' some feller to jail, I'd stick to sellin' papers or blackin' boots the rest of my life."
"Sam is pretty near green thinkin' you've gotahead so fast; but says that jest as soon as he has worked the case up against Jip he'll smash your racket all to pieces."
"Have you seen him since he did this terrible fine piece of detective work?"
"No; I hadn't heard anythin' 'bout it till Dan hailed me."
For some time after this Seth remained silent trying to devise a plan by which he could aid the unfortunate firebug; but the more he considered the matter the less probable did it seem that either he or his comrades could in any way benefit the prisoner.
"I'm 'fraid Jip will go up the river," he said at length, and Teddy replied mournfully:
"I guess he's a goner for a fact, an' all on account of Sam Barney's wantin' to show hisself a detective."
When the two had come to their journey's end Dan and Bill Dean were seen solemnly pacing to and fro on the sidewalk in front of the entrance to the court-room, looking sadly disheartened.
"Have you done anythin' yet?" Seth asked in a low tone as he joined them.
"There's nothin' we can do. Jip's locked up, an' Sam Barney's struttin' 'round the streets showin' hisself off for a first-class detective," Dan replied in a tone of irritation.
"Do you know how he happened to nab him?"
"It must have been that Denny Macey give him away," Bill Dean replied, "for I saw Jip this mornin' early, an' he 'greed to keep out er sight."
"Do you s'pose he stayed on the street after that?"
"Denny knew where he slept last night, and must have told Sam, jest as some of the fellers say he threatened to do."
"Well," Seth said after a brief reflection, "if you can't help him, what's the use of standin' here?"
"We was waitin' for you. I thought, an' so did Dan, that perhaps the driver of Ninety-four might cook up some kind of a plan we could work through. Anyhow, it don't seem as though it would do much harm for you to talk with him."
"Of course it won't; but if it wasn't that Jip's likely to be sent to jail for a good many years I wouldn't bother him, 'cause it don't seem the square shake for me to keep runnin' there whenever things turn wrong."
"It would be pretty tough to let Jip be sent up for four or five years jest 'cause you didn't want to bother Ninety-four's crew."
"I know that, Bill, an' I'm goin' to talk to Mr. Davis now. I was only sayin' I wouldn't do it if things wasn't the way they are. I'll go ahead, an' you fellers meet me up to the room after I getthrough, 'cause it won't do for all hands to loaf 'round in front of the engine-house."
To this proposition those who were ready to sacrifice their own pleasure and interests in order to aid the penitent firebug made no demur, and Seth set out at full speed, leaving the others to follow at a more leisurely pace.
"Hello, Amateur! It seems to me you've knocked off work kind-er late to-night?" 'Lish Davis cried as the boy entered the engine-house.
"Mr. Fernald, the man who runs the gymnasium, told me I was to go away every night at six o'clock——"
"So Josh has taken you in hand as he promised, eh?"
"He's given me a chance up in the gymnasium, where I can't help seein' a good deal of the drillin' even when I'm workin', an' it seems as though it was a mighty soft snap."
"Josh ain't a man who'll make it very soft for any boy. You've got to toe the mark pretty straight with him, Amateur; but if it so be you strike him just right things will move along in great shape. Why didn't you leave headquarters as he told you?"
"I did, sir; but Teddy Bowser was waitin' outside to tell me that Sam Barney has had Jip Collins 'rested for settin' fire to the lumber-yard."
"So, so! He has, eh? I thought you shipped that bloomin' detective over to Philadelphia?"
"That's what we did, Mr. Davis; but he managed to get back, an' tumbled to the trick we played on him, so the very first thing he does is to get Jip pulled."
"Well, whether it be boys or men who go wrong, sooner or later they've got to pay the penalty in some fashion, and perhaps it's just as well this Collins chap should square matters now as at any other time."
"But it seems terrible, Mr. Davis, to have him sent to jail for nobody knows how many years."
"It'll be a good many if he's convicted on the charge of arson; that I can give you as a straight tip."
"I was in hopes you'd feel kind of bad about it, Mr. Davis," Seth said, hesitatingly.