"Dad," said Jack, "I have an idea."
"What is it? Out with it."
"Well, we are trapped here. Suppose we turn the tables."
"What do you mean?" asked Bob.
"Well, Dad," said Jack, turning to his father, "didn't you say Don Fernandez comes to call on you before retiring?"
"Yes, we have become good companions. He guards me carefully, keeps me a prisoner for his own ends, but he is a cultured man and we have much in common."
"Father says," asserted Bob, "that you are being held prisoner in order to make trouble between the United States and the Mexican government."
"He is correct," approved Mr. Hampton. "Don Fernandez has not attempted to conceal from me that that is his desire. He sent a demand for a preposterous ransom, merely in order to precipitate action at Washington, and he has been wondering why no action was taken."
"Well, that's what father thought," declared Bob. "So he has kept the matter of your being kidnapped a secret. Instead of appealing to our government, we set out to rescue you. Father says we must do our utmost to avert trouble between Mexico and the United States."
"So that accounts for many things," said Mr. Hampton. "I'm glad to have them cleared up. But we are forgetting your idea, Jack. What is it?"