“Why can’t you two officers leave this whole affair to Randy and me?” questioned Andy. “You just go off and forget all about it and take in what happens.”
“I’ll see about that,” answered the young major. He realized the point his cousin was trying to make and yet he was angry enough to give the sneak a sound thrashing.
The boys had walked on a distance of a quarter of a mile and were coming out along the lake front when suddenly Spouter, who was walking ahead with Dan Soppinger, uttered an exclamation.
“Look down there at the dock!” he cried. “Looks like a fight going on!”
“That’s what it is!” exclaimed Gif.
“Why, it’s Tommy Flanders and his crowd and they are beating up old Nat Durgin!” came quickly from Fred.
“I’ll bet they got into a row about hiring that motor-boat,” remarked Andy. “Let’s go down and see what happens.”
“They have no right to beat up poor old Durgin,” returned Jack. “He’s not a half-bad sort, even though he is rather lazy.”
The crowd of cadets hurried their steps and soon came closer to the scene of the quarrel. They had seen Tommy Flanders strike the old man in the face, and now Nat Durgin responded with a blow on the shoulder. Then Flanders jumped in, followed by Billy Sands and Paul Halliday, and the three boys from Longley Academy bore the old boatman to the ground.