"Robbed!" cried Mrs. Golden, as they all sprang to their feet. "How much did they get?"
"I don't know, I don't suppose they can tell yet, but Riggs said it was a large amount."
By this time the boys were at the garage, only a short distance from the house, and shouting to Sandy, the chauffeur, had the car out by the time their father and Uncle Ben were ready.
"Can we go?" asked Bob.
"Why, yes, I suppose so, but you'll get there sooner if you take your wheels. You coming, Ben?"
"Guess I will," replied the latter, and telling the women that they would 'phone as soon as they could, they were off, the boys leading the way on the motorcycles.
CHAPTER XXI.
BOB AND JACK THINK THEY HAVE A CLUE.
The First National Bank of Skowhegan, of which Mr. Golden was president, is situated on Water street. Behind it runs the Kennebec river through a rock gorge, nearly fifty feet deep. At the time of our story, the bank building was new, having been built only the year before. It was thoroughly modern in every respect, and contained what was supposed to be a burglar-proof vault.
The boys soon distanced the car and in exactly eleven minutes from the time they started were in front of the bank. They found a crowd of several hundred people collected in the street, for such a thing as a bank robbery in Skowhegan had never been known, and there was great excitement. Hurriedly, they pushed the wheels into a livery stable nearby, which was run by a friend of theirs, and then pushing their way through the crowd, managed to reach the sidewalk, in front of the bank, but here the people were so closely packed, that they were forced to stop.
"Guess we'll have to wait for dad," panted Jack, after a vigorous shove had failed to make an opening.