“You may be right,” admitted Mike, calming down. “I’m in a rotten bad humor this morning. I ought to be after what happened last night. I’ve just been telling Wolfe what I thought of you fellows for quitting me the way you did. Somebody must have seen me knocked out by the Merriwell crowd, yet you all skidooed like a lot of frightened rabbits.”
One and all, they protested that they had not realized he was knocked out. Apparently none of them had seen Merriwell fling him against the wall, at the foot of which he fell stunned and helpless. Satisfied that this was the case, Mike once more repeated his statement that he had been attacked by at least four of the Merriwell crowd and had been knocked senseless by a blow on the head.
“I was having it with Merriwell himself when the others jumped on me,” he said. “If they’d only let me alone about ten seconds more, I’d broken that fellow’s back for him.”
“Perhaps,” nodded Ditson doubtfully; “but he has a very tough back.”
“Have you fellows read the papers this morning?” inquired Poland. “I have. The police say the old warehouse was burned by firebugs. We want to keep mum, fellows.”
“That was not all I read in the paper,” came from Toleman. “Didn’t you notice the account of the burglarizing of Steigler’s costuming shop? I want you to know that I’ve disposed of the outfit I wore last night. You can’t find it anywhere around my joint. The rest of you chaps better get rid of your stuff.”
“Oh, don’t be so timid!” mocked Ditson. “Who’ll ever suspect us?”
“Wait! What if some of the Merriwell crowd were seen and recognized? What if they’re cornered and tell all they know? What if they take a notion to tell, anyhow? Although they can’t prove it against us, I’ll venture to say they know every one of us. Now, if the police get next to them and ask them questions, won’t they name us chaps as being responsible for that fire? If we’re named, you can bank on it that the cops will search our rooms for some of the rigs we wore. I’d a hundred times rather be pinched for the fire than the other job. We could swear that the fire was the result of an accident, a lark; and, although we might regard the other business as a lark, the police would not look on it in that light, and the court would be sure to inflict punishment.”
“He’s right,” nodded Lynch. “I’m going to dispose of my outfit just as soon as I can, and the rest of you better do the same.”
“I suppose you’re all so frightened now,” sneered Ditson, “that there isn’t one who’ll dare lift his hand against Merriwell during the rest of the term.”