“What?” cried Eddie, still pointing.
“Sure!” said the detective. “The worst ever! Give that a tap and see where we would be. Angels, every one of us!”
“Don’t joke!” cried Eddie, such agony in his voice that they all looked at him in surprise.
“I am not joking, kid! It is true! What did you think they were??”
For reply, Eddie turned to Ernest and shook him violently by the arm.
“Take me home, Ern: take me home! Come on, I got to go right now! Oh, don’t, don’t wait!” he begged.
“What ails you? They won’t go off if we are careful,” said Ernest.
“Oh, it’s not that! I have one of those things in my Sunday pants! They are hanging up where Jack can get at them if he takes a notion. He is always going through my pockets to find pennies. Oh, come on! I will tell you as we go!”
“All right,” said Ernest. “Keep cool, youngster! They are all asleep at this hour, and you know Jack is always the last one up.”
“Well, I would like to know about this,” said the detective.