“They was down on the road that runs to Barlight Bay.”
“Walking?” queried Fred.
“No, they was in an old wagon pulled by the sorriest lookin’ nag I ever set eyes on. They had the wagon piled high with packages.”
“Were you sure they were the same men?”
“I think they was the same. Of course, I wouldn’t like to swear to it until I got a better look at ’em. They was just goin’ past as I came in from a side road, and as soon as they saw me they whipped up their horse and started down the road in a cloud of dust.”
“You ought to have stopped them,” said Jack.
“How could I do that? I wasn’t close enough to catch hold of the horse. And besides that, what chance would an old feller like me have against two husky men? More than likely, too, they was armed, while I didn’t have anything—not even a cane.”
“But you should have notified the authorities,” said Fred.
“Oh, I did that, knowing that they was on the lookout for those fellers. I hurried to Rackville just as fast as I could, and called on the justice of the peace and the town constable. Then they got busy and telephoned to the next town and notified the police. They got a gang of six or eight men lookin’ for the men and the wagon, but up to this afternoon they hadn’t got any trace of ’em.”
“Well, that certainly is interesting,” remarked Jack. “You say you are pretty sure they are the same fellows who were around the plant just previous to the explosion?”