"Tad, will you be good enough to explain what this means?"
"Yes, sir. To be brief that's the fellow who shot at us. He tried to kill us both up here in the mountains."
"Are you sure?"
"Positive."
"I guess I ought to know," grinned Rector, "He jumped me, tied me to a tree, then was about to blow my head off when Tad appeared just in time to save my precious life."
By this time Stacy had slipped from his saddle and striding over to the prisoner stood looking down at him. "So, you're the fellow who potted me twice to-day, are you?" demanded the fat boy sternly. The prisoner made no reply, but he gazed up at his tormentor so savagely that Stacy instinctively took a step backward.
"He is the man, but we landed him," answered Rector proudly.
"Is there any objection to my giving the ruffian a good hard kick for luck?" asked Stacy.
"There certainly is objection to your doing anything of the sort," returned Tad sharply. "We have not come to the point where we treat our prisoners of war the way the Germans do theirs. You let the man alone or I'll have something to say to you."
"Stacy!" rebuked Professor Zepplin sternly.