“Well, he caught us with the goods, all right,” said Holly.
“I—I wonder what he’ll do—he and Zany?” ventured Dutch. “Shall we stay?”
“Got to,” was Holly’s opinion, and indeed the request of the professor was equivalent to a command—under the circumstances.
They waited there in misery until the Latin instructor and Mr. Zane came. The gasp of astonishment and dismay that the proctor gave as he saw his room was evidence enough of the manner in which he viewed it.
“This is what I found them at when I returned—most unexpectedly,” said Mr. Tines, with a wave of his hand toward the shrinking youths. “If I were in your place, Mr. Zane, I would make them restore everything to rights, and then inflict such punishment as would cover the case. Disbarment from athletics would be none too severe, as I see that all these are members of the football team.”
There was a gasp of dismay from the four, they had not bargained for that.
“I came back unexpectedly,” went on the professor. “Dr. Churchill had forgotten some papers to be used in the lawsuit, and I volunteered to return for them. Getting here unexpectedly, I looked for you, Mr. Zane. I knocked at your door. I was bidden to enter. This—this—” and the professor made a dramatic gesture, “this is what I beheld,” and he waved his two hands hopelessly at the confusion.
As yet the proctor had said nothing. He looked at his dismantled room as though he could not comprehend it. Never—never had he beheld it in this way before, not even when he moved from one apartment to another, nor when a section of the building in which he had his study was rebuilt.
“I was in the freshman dormitory—there was a little—ahem—a little difficulty there,” and the proctor hesitated. “I had no idea——”
“If I were you I would make them put everything exactly as they found it,” interrupted Mr. Tines, severely.