“I’ll tell ye later,” promised Mr. Snook nervously.
“May I ask what this is all about?” inquired Jerry. “The constable says we are charged with assault and battery. By whom?”
“By Noddy Nixon!” was the unexpected answer of Judge Blackford.
“Noddy Nixon!” cried Jerry. “Is he here?”
“No. I’ll tell you how it was,” went on the magistrate. “I received a telephone this noon, from Judge Lawton, of Middleville township. He said a party of autoists had come to him, and had sworn that another party of autoists, naming and describing you, had caused them to burst two tires. And, as the tires burst, Mr. Nixon and his party were thrown to one side of their car, painfully bruising and contusing them, as the warrant says.
“So Judge Lawton, before whom the original warrant was sworn out, asked me to issue a supplementary one, and to intercept you as you came through here. Which I had to do, it being my duty. Now you can consider yourself charged with the crime, and how do you plead. I’ll hold court right here. Did you or didn’t you?”
“Well, I guess I did it,” answered Bob. “I threw the tacks in the road. But it was to prevent Noddy from following us.”
Thereupon the judge was told as much of the story as Jerry and his chums thought necessary to explain of their conduct, no mention being made of the radium on Snake Island. He was told how Noddy had repeatedly tried to take a mean advantage.
“Hum. That makes it different,” spoke Judge Blackford. “I reckon that Nixon chap didn’t tell this to my friend Judge Lawton. Otherwise he wouldn’t have asked me to issue a warrant. Now this is how the matter stands.
“I was requested to apprehend and hold you for examination. That I must do. This Nixon fellow promised to be here in the morning, at nine o’clock, to give his evidence. I don’t believe he’ll come and face you. But I must hold you until then. I ask you, in the meanwhile to be my guests. Then, in the morning, if he does not appear, I shall discharge you, and explain matters to Judge Lawton. I know he will approve of it. Will you stay and dine with me? I’ll be glad of your company, and you needn’t consider yourselves prisoners. You’re out on bail, so to speak. Supper will soon be ready. Will you stay?”