“It’s a good thing I came down hard in that seat, or we’d never found the deed,” went on Tom. “Otherwise we might have traded back this chair for our own, and never would have known a thing about the quit-claim.”
“But where is our chair?” asked Sid. “And how in the name of the sacred cow did the deed get in the seat of this one?”
“Say, don’t ask any more questions, or I’ll go batty,” declared Tom. “Come on, let’s take this deed to Prexy right away.”
It was such a momentous occasion that nothing less than a full delegation of the four “guardsmen” could do justice to it, so the quartette of chums invaded the office of Dr. Churchill, to that gentleman’s no small amazement. On the way our heroes met several of their chums, but they did not mention their find, thinking it best to let the proper authorities know of it first.
“Ahem! Is this a strike, gentlemen?” asked the president, with a twinkle in his eyes.
“It’s a ‘find’!” exclaimed Tom, and he held out the deed.
To say that Dr. Churchill was surprised would be but faintly to express it. He eagerly questioned the boys, who as eagerly answered, telling the story of their missing clock and chair from the beginning.
“I can’t understand it,” went on the president, with a puzzled shake of his head. “But I’ll take good care of this quit-claim deed, and we can make inquiries later. You have rendered a service to Randall to-day, gentlemen, that she will not soon forget. I thank you personally, and, later, I will see that you receive the recognition you deserve.”
“Come on!” whispered Tom to his chums, for the good old doctor was much affected. “It’s nearly time for the game, and we don’t want to miss that.”