Surprise, for a few seconds, kept the boys from saying a word. Teddy, himself, was not only astonished, but the breath was somewhat jolted out of him so he could not have said anything even if he had wished to.
Joe, Dick and Fatty Nolan were the first to speak and they all shouted, together:
“Who did that?”
By this time Teddy had managed to scramble to his feet. He loosened the loop of the lasso and slipped it over his head, letting the coils fall to the ground. Then he, too, demanded:
“Who did that?”
There was no answer. Teddy picked up the rope and pulled on it. The far end came snaking over the ground out of the bushes.
“Why, there’s no one there!” exclaimed Dick. “No one has hold of the rope!”
“But somebody must have thrown this lasso!” declared Joe.
“And they gave it a good yank, too, after they lassoed me,” said Teddy. “I was pulled right off my feet! I’m going to find out who’s playing tricks!”
Teddy was about to pull all the rope toward him, in coils at his feet, when Fatty Nolan called: