"Oh, do you think it could have happened that way?" asked Ted.
"Of course it could!" replied Uncle Toby, but he did not really say that it had happened like that. In fact Uncle Toby knew it had not happened this way. He felt pretty sure that some one had come in the night and stolen Skyrocket away, but he did not want to tell the Curlytops this for fear of making them afraid.
"Well, if Skyrocket has just run away he'll run back again," said Ted.
"Yes, he will, for he's done it before," added Janet.
Then the children felt better, and sat down to breakfast. But when Uncle Toby had a chance to speak quietly to Aunt Sallie he said:
"Don't say anything to the children, but I think some tramp—maybe the same one who took your plum pudding—came in the night and stole Skyrocket."
"But why would a tramp want Skyrocket?" asked Aunt Sallie.
"Perhaps he thought we would pay money to get the dog back—as I will do if he doesn't come back himself," said Uncle Toby. "You can't tell what a tramp would do. Anyhow, I know we didn't leave any doors or windows open. I just said that to quiet the children. I feel sure Skyrocket has been stolen by a tramp."
"What are you going to do about it, Uncle Toby?"
"I'm going to get Jim Nelson and some of the lumbermen around here and have a look around. For one place, we'll go to that old cabin of Newt Baker's, which we saw the man running away from that day. Maybe he's the tramp who took Skyrocket and also your plum pudding."