“Why bless my soul!” ejaculated the professor. “All I wanted was to get a fine specimen of a blue grasshopper from his big hat, where the insect had alighted. It was worth about forty dollars.”
“I saw some just as good in a city once for twenty dollars,” put in Tommy, “and they had more silver braid on.”
“What! A grasshopper with silver braid on?” cried the scientist.
“I thought you said his hat was worth forty dollars,” went on Tommy, somewhat embarrassed.
“I was speaking of the blue grasshopper,” explained Mr. Snodgrass. “My, I am sorry to have missed that one.”
“But you did a good service in scaring this Mexican away, as you did the chap with the ox cart,” spoke Ned. “He might have made trouble for us.”
“And we had better get out of here while we have the chance,” said Jerry. “He may come back any minute.”
Accordingly the auto was turned around, and run over the same course by which it had entered the field. Otherwise it would have been almost impossible to have advanced, so thick was the grass. The road regained, the machine was sent along it at good speed, for fear Don Elvardo or some of his friends might appear.
“We had better stop and fix the brakes,” suggested Ned, after an hour’s run.