"He's going downstairs to tell Captain Dale or one of the professors!" exclaimed Jack in a low voice. "We had better get out of here."
The young captain's advice was followed, and all lost no time in leaving the fire escape and entering the school building. They were just in time to see the door to Stowell's room flung open and the sneak hurry downstairs.
"I must see what he does!" cried Randy, who could never let any portion of a joke get away from him, and he hurried down the stairs after Stowell.
Captain Mapes Dale was in the office of the school writing a letter when Stowell burst in upon him with scant ceremony.
"Oh, Captain Dale, won't you please come quick?" cried the little sneak, all out of breath with excitement. "Somebody put about a million mice in my room, and I've got the fellow locked up in my clothes-closet."
"A million mice in your room, Stowell!" exclaimed the captain, leaping to his feet. "Surely you must be mistaken. You don't mean quite that many," and a faint smile crossed his features.
"Well, there are a whole lot of them, anyway," returned Codfish. "When I opened my bed they leaped right out at me and they ran all over the floor, and then one of them went up the leg of my pajamas and bit me. See how I had to tear my pajamas to get him out?" and he showed the spot.
"And you say you have the culprit locked up in your closet?" demanded Captain Dale.
"Yes, sir. Won't you please come up and see who it is before he has a chance to break out? Of course he'll try to get away if he can. He won't want to be caught."
"Yes, I'll go up immediately. Are the mice up there still?"