"Perhaps I shall get down there some time, Jack. Are you going to stay at home during all of the holidays?"
"No. We have been planning to stay at home about a week, and then, if we can arrange it, we want to visit Snowshoe Island and do a little hunting before school opens again."
"Then you're going to accept old Uncle Barney's invitation!"
"That's the idea, Ruth. You don't mind, do you?" and the oldest Rover boy looked anxiously at his companion.
"Not at all. In fact, I'm rather glad to hear of your going to the island. It may give you a chance to talk to old Uncle Barney about my folks. And if you get any such chance, I hope you'll impress it upon him that we want to be friends."
When the cadets returned to Colby Hall, both Jack and Fred were in unusual good humor, for, not only had Ruth said she would try to get down to New York during the holidays, but May had told Fred that if Spouter came down to the metropolis she would try to accompany her cousin.
Several days slipped by, and the Rover boys applied themselves closely to their lessons, for they wished to make as good a showing as possible during the coming examinations. During that time, they saw Slugger, Nappy and Codfish a number of times, but all of those unworthies seemed to give them a wide berth.
Although Colonel Colby had not given the Rovers any of the particulars of what he proposed to do, he had not forgotten what Randy and Fred had told him. He had had a conference on the subject with Professor Brice, Silas Crews, and Bob Nixon, the chauffeur, and Nixon and Crews were detailed to watch every movement made by the bully and his cronies.
It was on the following Tuesday, the day previous to the examinations, that Silas Crews came hurrying to the master of the Hall, who had just entered the school library in search of a certain book.
"I think Brown and Martell are at it," he announced in a low tone of voice. "Martell just sneaked a quart bottle of ink from the storeroom, while Brown picked up some of the cans of vegetables which were cast aside by the cook as unfit to eat. Now they have both gone down into the boiler-room, evidently after those ashes."